Australia

Isabelle Legeron, Travel Channel's very own wine wonder woman, begins her quest to uncover the world's greatest wines.

Isabelle is in Australia, a country that has taken the wine world by storm, where she charts its meteoric rise whilst dipping into Australia's unique landscape, culture and people. From the delicate Pinots of Melbourne to the spiritual home of Australia's wine in the Barossa Valley, Isabelle brings her no nonsense approach to bear on the wines on offer.

Along the way she meets an inspiring host of winemakers, including 'Duck' who also finds time to build a Buddhist temple! Isabelle immerses herself in the culture to such an extent that, before she knows it, she's at a barbie! So grab a glass for yourself and enjoy.

Melbourne's Wine Regions Inland Victoria The Barossa Adelaide’s Wine Regions

Episode 1 - Melbourne's Wine Regions

In this episode, Isabelle touches down in Melbourne, the lifestyle capital of Australia. She takes to the road for some wine and food matching in a BYO, explores the area’s offering of pinot noirs and meets some of the biggest cheeses in the wine world down under. She cooks up a barbie with a fine catch of a winemaker, gets behind the ‘wheel’ of Australia’s oldest steam train and learns what it is that is just so unique about the Australian spirit that has meant the country’s wine being catapulted to centre stage in less than a quarter century!

For more information on the wines, wineries, and activities featured in this episode check out these sites…

Sandro Mosele & Kooyong - www.kooyong.com
Szeremley also has a wonderful vineyard restaurant with stunning views out over Lake Balaton, so you’ve no excuse not to line your stomach with a fabulous meal before your afternoon of wine tasting!

James Halliday – www.winecompanion.com.au
…for one of the most authoritative voices on Australian wine. You can also take a look at, and try the wines from, the winery that James started in the Yarra all those decades ago. Visit www.coldstreamhills.com.au

Tony Jordan & Domaine Chandon – www.greenpointwines.com.au
…for an exciting alternative to your every day French bubbly. Tony’s MD of Green Point (Domaine Chandon downunder) but he also makes his own wine, so look out for his label next time you’re in a wine shop – Spear Gully Vineyards!

Mac Forbes – www.macforbes.com
…for wines as delightful as the man himself; well worth getting your hands on if you can.

Puffing Billy – www.puffingbilly.com.au
…and if like Isabelle you fancy driving a steam train yourself, take a look at Puffing Billy’s footplate experience!<

The Botanical – www.thebotanical.com.au
…for a nice nibble at a BYO.

Global ballooning – www.globalballooning.com.au
…for a birdseye view of the winelands or indeed of Melbourne itself!

Guill de Pury & Yeringberg - www.yeringberg.com
…for a slice of history.

Episode 2 - Inland Victoria

Isabelle goes bush, abandons Melbourne and heads inland to Victoria’s dry dusty interior. On her way she learns to throw a boomerang with an Aboriginal Elder, unearths indigenous delights when she meets one of Australia’s most famous filmmakers, and pays a visit to a winemaker called Duck. She tastes her way through the changes and finds out just how much the Victorian wine industry owes to gold.

Episode 3 - The Barossa

This episode sees Isabelle journeying to the spiritual home of Australia’s signature grape variety – Shiraz. Settled by German refugees in the 1800s, Isabelle discovers a heritage that is still very much alive today: wursts of every shape and size and, funnily enough, some of Australia’s best Riesling! She pays a visit to the home of Russell Crowe’s favourite vino, tries a tipple that is over one hundred years old and sees for herself how important the issue of water is to the Australia of today and tomorrow.

Episode 4 - Adelaide’s Wine Regions

Isabelle ends the series in the capital of South Australia, Australia’s Wine State, where meets some of the founding fathers of modern Australian winemaking. In this episode Isabelle discovers the importance that the medical profession has had on Australia’s wine heritage, meets a wacky winemaking visionary and travels to one of Australia’s most remote and savagely beautiful islands, where grapes rub shoulders with colonies of sea lions, wallabies, and the real Aussie outdoors.

The production team of ’Journey into Wine – Australia’ would like to thank, the following musicians for their contributions:
John O’Dea and his songs of the outback at Portee Station – www.johnodea.com.au
David Rowan and his button accordion, from the Tooboorac Hotel – www.heathcote.org.au
The Tanunda Liedertafel and their choral music
John Parkham and his didgeridoo, from Tandanya, the National Aboriginal Cultural Institute – www.tandanya.com.au
Eddie Peters and his Torres Strait Island vocals, from Tandanya, the National Aboriginal Cultural Institute – www.tandanya.com.au
If you fancy finding out more about wine generally visit Isabelle @ www.isabellelegeron.com or at www.wine-lab.com