1991 Australian Vintage

The 1991 season ran from spring 1990 through the autumn 1991 harvest. No official harvest report from the period was found; this account rests on Decanter's vintage guide for Australian reds. A classic dry Australian summer followed a warm start to the growing season, with above-average temperatures in January and February, especially in South Australia. Vintage was early and yields were slightly down.

• Warm start to the growing season, then a classic dry summer
• Above-average January and February temperatures, especially in South Australia
• Early vintage; yields slightly down

Decanter says 1991 gave virtually every serious red wine maker the chance to show their talents, from Margaret River and the Great Southern in Western Australia across every known red district in South Australia and Victoria. The premier South Australian red regions of the Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, McLaren Vale and Eden Valley each had great seasons, as did Margaret River and the Lower Hunter Valley in New South Wales.

• Decanter: South Australia: great seasons in the Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, McLaren Vale and Eden Valley
• Decanter: Western Australia: Margaret River and the Great Southern named
• Decanter: New South Wales: a great season in the Lower Hunter Valley

Decanter compares 1991 with the 1990 vintage: the 1991 reds appear more restrained and classically structured, while the 1990 crop is typically thicker, more dense and powerful. Beyond leading red makers such as Cullen, Henschke, Moss Wood, Rosemount Estate and Penfolds, Decanter names exceptional 1991 wines including Parker Terra Rossa First Growth and Penley Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (Coonawarra), Mount Mary Cabernet Quintet (Yarra Valley), St Hallett Old Block Shiraz (Barossa Valley) and Brokenwood Graveyard (Hunter Valley).

• Decanter: 1991 reds: more restrained and classically structured than 1990
• Decanter: Leading makers named: Cullen, Henschke, Moss Wood, Rosemount Estate, Penfolds