Portal:New South Wales/Selected article/05, 2008

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New South Wales wine is Australian wine produced in the state of New South Wales, Australia. New South Wales is Australia's most populous state and its wine consumption far out paces the region's wine production. The Hunter Valley, located 130 km (81 mi) north of Sydney, is the most well known wine region but the majority of the state's production takes place in the Big Rivers Zone-Perricoota, Riverina and along the Darling and Murray Rivers. The wines produced from the Big Rivers zone are largely used in box wine and mass produced wine brands such as Yellow Tail. A large variety of grapes are grown in New South Wales—including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Shiraz and Sémillon.

Sharing some similarities with the French wine region of the Languedoc, the New South Wales land mass covers a vast expanse of varying microclimates. The Great Dividing Range has a substantial influence on the climate of many of New South Wales' viticultural areas with areas of higher elevation, such as Orange, Canberra and the Hilltops region have cooler climates with more continental influences. The Hunter Valley is very warm, with high humidity and a large amount of rainfall during the growing and harvest season. The Mudgee, Cowra and Big Rivers Zones are warm and much drier than the Hunter Valley with several areas requiring irrigation for grape growing.