Vinismo is written by its readers -- Internet users like you -- and we need your help! Try our getting started guide to learn how.
Coonawarra is an official Geographical Indication of Limestone Coast, South Australia.
Coonawarra is located in the cool, southern extremity of South Australia, four and a half hours drive from either Adelaide or Melbourne, the nearest capital cities.
It is home to the famed Terra Rossa, a cigar shaped strip of red soil with a well draining limestone base. It sits atop a low ridge, 60 metres above sea level, in otherwise dead flat countryside.
A soil profile reveals a top layer of rich, friable red loam which can vary in depth from a few centimetres to a metre thick. This soil overlays a thin layer of calcareous material which in turn overlays a deep stratum of limestone. A subterranean reservoir of fresh water underneath serves vines with root systems developed enough to reach it.
Coonawarra measures 15 kms in length and varies in width from 200 metres to 1.5 kms. It is situated between the 37th and 38th parallels, 80 kms inland from the bleak Coorong coastal region rimming the Southern Ocean.
The area experiences long but cool hours of sunshine during the ripening period allowing grapes to develop intense flavours whilst retaining good acid levels. With its long, warm summers, cool autumns and cold winters the climate of Coonawarra has been compared to that of Bordeaux.
