CHAPTER 16 | 1920s – Bountiful Years
ever seen, overtaking Burgoyne’s who, having taken most of the dry reds exported from South Australia for so long, gradually slipped into second place, never to recover its position’. . . . The Barossa was a relatively sleepy wine region immediately after World War I. But plantings accelerated, with over 14,000 acres of new vineyards established in five years to 1926, creating a boom time for the region. Large wineries with incredible economies of scale dominated the industry, with names including Penfolds, Seppelt, Orlando, Reynella (which had vineyards near Lyndoch), and Yalumba enjoying strong export sales of port-style or sherry-type wines. Following the initially turbulent years on the heels of the Export Bounty Act , the export market of Australian table wine to England resumed and flourished, albeit in smaller volumes than in previous decades. Third- and fourth-generation German settlers continued to grow and supply grapes to the wineries, often arriving at the crusher in horse-drawn wagons well into the 1930s. In 1925, a new cooperage was built by AP John & Sons to increase barrel production for wineries. Of course, these fortunes also related to the growth in fortified wine consumption, and hence why Victoria began to lag. That same year the Australian Prime Minister Stanley M Bruce and his wife visited the Barossa Valley with a massive entourage of South Australian wine industry leaders. Their first halt was Reynell’s ‘spic and span’ Lyndoch Cellars, followed by Gramp’s
1925 SEVENHILL CABERNET PORT Clare Valley, South Australia
Fortified wines were strongly favoured by the consumer during the 1920s. Sevenhill was established in 1848 and is the birthplace of the Jesuits in Australia. The 1925 Sevenhill Cabernet Port, made by Brother George Downey, which would have been a relatively small bottling, was described by Max Lake as ‘fabulous’. The winery was better known for its sacramental wine. It shipped large quantities to the Catholic Church located in Australia and around the Pacific Rim. Almost all of the wine was fortified. The sacramental wine was usually a blend of shiraz, grenache, tokay, verdelho, frontignac, pedro ximenez, and muscat. Fortified to 32%, it must have kept the priests very happy. Small quantities of dry red (mataro) and dry white (doradillo and riesling) were made at this time. It was not until the 1954 vintage that a decent commercial volume of table wine was produced.
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