Central Victoria Zone, Victoria

Central Victoria Zone Wine Region

The Central Victoria Zone covers a broad area encompassing some incredible regions, ripe for wine enthusiasts to discover.

Comprising of estate gems from Bendigo, Goulburn Valley, Heathcote and Strathbogie Ranges, the entirety of the zone begs travellers to deconstruct their cellar door jaunts over a couple of days. Although the high altitude of the region is, for the most part, considered a cool climate, there are pockets that buck the trend and produce rich reds. 

Consider the areas of Bendigo and Heathcote that can yield trademark black fruit in their cabernet sauvignon, with finely honed tannins similar to rival styles from warmer Australian regions. White varieties are equally flourishing in the Goulburn Valley and Strathbogie Ranges regions, where the higher altitude and cooler temperatures nourish some elegant white wines.

Central Victoria is bursting with spectacular panoramas of rocky landscapes, waterfalls and vineyards. The combination of farming and forest country makes for an interesting mix, and it’s a region that can be rediscovered time and time again.

James Halliday on the Central Victoria Zone

This is another densely populated zone in terms of regions and of wineries, an important part of the crucible that has seen Victoria spawn more new wineries since 1985 than any other state. Thus, it leads the tally count of wineries on a state-by-state basis, returning it to the former glory days of the third quarter of the 19th century.

The regions of the Central Victoria Zone are on the inland, or northern, foothills of the Great Dividing Range, which swings west and starts to lose altitude as it nears Melbourne. Warm days are offset by cold nights, although the rainfall (as is the case further south) remains winter–spring dominant, making irrigation economically essential. It is red wine country first and foremost, with shiraz leading the way.