Brown Brothers Milawa Vineyard Explained

Brown Brothers Milawa Vineyard
Type:	Private
Foundation:	1889
Location:	Milawa, Victoria, Australia
Industry:	Wine
Products:	Tarrango, Orange Muscat & Flora, Cienna, Dolcetto & Syrah, Spatlese Lexia, Shiraz etc
Homepage:	http://www.brownbrothers.com.au

Brown Brothers Milawa Vineyard is a family-owned wine company based in Milawa, Victoria, Australia. Brown Brothers was founded in 1889 by John Francis Brown and continues to be owned and operated by his descendants on the original property. Brown Brothers makes wine from a wide range of grape varieties and into a range of styles.

History

In 2009, Brown Brothers was asked to join Australian wine alliance Australia's First Families of Wine a multimillion-dollar venture to help resurrect the fortunes of the $6 billion industry highlighting the quality and diversity of Australian wine.^{[1] [2]} The 12 member alliance includes Brown Brothers, Campbells, Taylors, DeBortoli, McWilliam’s, Tahbilk, Tyrell’s, Yalumba, D'Arenberg, Howard Park, Jim Barry and Henschke. The main criteria are that the family-owned companies need to have a "landmark wine" in their portfolios listed under Langton’s Classification and/or 75% agreement by group that a wine is considered "iconic", must have the ability to do at least a 20-year vertical tasting, have a history going back a minimum of two generations, ownership of vineyards more than 50 years old and/or ownership of distinguished sites which exemplify the best of terroir, commitment to export and environmental best practice, appropriate cellar door experience, and be paid-up members of the Winemakers Federation of Australia.^{[1] [3] [4]}

Grape varieties

Brown Brothers is known for including uncommon and novel grape varieties in their product line,^[5] including Cienna, Tarrango, and Mystique,^[6] alongside classic grapes.

Brown Brothers has made wine from the following grape varieties over the years.

• White: Arneis, Chenin blanc, Chardonnay, Chasselas, Colombard, Crouchen, Flora, Gewürztraminer, Sauvignon blanc, Gordo, Marsanne, Moscato, Muscat of Alexandria (Lexia), Orange Muscat, Pinot grigio, Rhine Riesling, Roussanne, Sultana, Sylvaner, Trebbiano, Verdelho, Viognier, Vermentino, White Frontignac
• Red: Aglianico, Barbera, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cienna, Dolcetto, Durif, Graciano, Lagrein, Malbec, Marzemino, Merlot, Mystique,^{[7] [8] [9]} Meunier, Mondeuse, Nebbiolo, Petit Verdot, Pinot noir, Ruby Cabernet, Sangiovese, Schioppettino, Shiraz, Tarrango, Tempranillo, Zinfandel

Wine styles

• Fortified: The fortified wine has been in a range of styles including Tawny Port, Ruby Port, Vintage Port, Flor Fino Sherry, Sweet Sherry, Muscat & Tokay.
• Table Wine: The table wines have ranged from dry to sweet, usually straight varietals, but occasionally blends such as Shiraz/Cabernet, Shiraz/Mondeuse/Cabernet (SMC)
• Dessert Wine: The dessert wines have included a blend of the Orange Muscat & Flora varieties and a Botrytis Riesling labelled Noble Riesling.
• Sparkling Wine: The Sparkling wines are mostly in the Méthode Champenoise with grapes from the Whitlands vineyard but there has also been other styles such as a Sparkling Shiraz. Brown Brothers are also a leader in King Valley Prosecco, and also blends of Lexia and Cienna for its Rosé, and also with natural flavourings. It is known as Zibbibo, a synonym for Muscat of Alexandria

Vineyards

Brown Brothers has vineyards in Victoria, Australia and Tasmania, Australia with a variety of climates and soil types.

• Milawa, Victoria (Established: 1885) Varieties: Merlot, Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon, Dolcetto, Graciano, Mondeuse, Shiraz & White Frontignac.
• Mystic Park, Victoria (Established: 1968) Varieties: Cienna, Dolcetto, Tarrango, Orange Muscat, Flora, Crouchen, Shiraz, Colombard & Chardonnay
• Banksdale, Victoria (Established: 1994) Varieties: Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Pinot grigio, Viognier & Tempranillo
• Kayena, Tasmania (Established: 1994) Varieties: Riesling, Sauvignon blanc, Pinot gris, Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Cabernet, Alvarinho, Viognier & Pinot noir
• Heathcote, Victoria (Established: 1999) Varieties: Shiraz, Merlot, Durif, Malbec, Sangiovese, Tempranillo, Petit Verdot, Dolcetto & Pinot grigio
• Devil's Corner (Established: 2005) Varieties: Pinot noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, Pinot gris, Riesling, Gewurztraminer & Savagnin
• The Hazards, Tasmania

External links

• Brown Brothers website
• Australia's first families of Wine

Notes and References

1. Simon Evans, The Australian Financial Review, Tuesday 18 August 2009, Page 61
2. Chris Snow, Decanter Magazine, 17 August 2009, Top Australian wineries team up to push super-premium wines
3. Web site: The Heart & Soul of Australian wine to launch in Sydney on Monday 31 August. Winetitles, Australia's wine industry portal. 2009-08-18.
4. Web site: First Families forge pact to promote wine. Jamie Freed, Business Day. 2009-08-18. dead. https://archive.today/20120709122152/http://business.watoday.com.au/business/first-families-forge-pact-to-promote-wine-20090817-ends.html. 9 July 2012.
5. https://www.wine-searcher.com/merchant/13501 "Brown Brothers"
6. https://www.wineaustralia.com/whats-happening/stories-of-australian-wine/june-2017/brown-brothers "Brown Brothers. A storied history of Australian wine innovation"
7. https://www.csiro.au/en/Research/Farming-food/Growing-robust-crops/Alternate-grape-varieties/Mystique "Mystique"
8. https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2017/05/brown-brothers-previews-new-grape-variety-mystique/ "BROWN BROTHERS PREVIEWS NEW GRAPE VARIETY ‘MYSTIQUE’"
9. https://www.wineaustralia.com/whats-happening/stories-of-australian-wine/june-2017/brown-brothers "Brown Brothers. A storied history of Australian wine innovation"