NA ="Bellandean, Fletcher,";
FE1[0]=" The Granite Belt region is called the 'Granite Belt' due to the nature of the terrain. Large granite boulders pepper the landscape, sometimes causing problems during planting. It is Queensland's best known wine region, and close B";
FE2[0]="risbane. It encompasses an area that stretches from Cunningham's Gap (120 kilometres south west of Brisbane) in the east, north to Allora and Clifton, south to the border town of Wallangarra, and to Inglewood and Texas in the west";
FE3[0]=". The region is centred around the town of Stanthorpe on the New South Wales Queensland border. The country was once scrubby woodland with large granite boulders. It was cleared in the 1800s to make way for orchards and table grap";
FE4[0]="es. The wine industry was pioneered by Italians and their descendants beginning around the 1920s. They produced wine for their own enjoyment and for sale to the Italian cane-growing communities to the north. The modern era began i";
FE5[0]="n the 1960s when Shiraz was planted. This led to the growth of boutique wineries that today produce a broad range of wine styles including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. It was formally declared as a";
FE6[0]=" wine region in 2000. The Granite Belt is one of the highest vineyard regions in Australia with altitude (ranging from 700-1200 metres) to create distinctive seasons with cold frosty winters and warm summers. The principal drawbac";
FE7[0]="ks for this region are spring frosts and vintage-time rainfall and highly variable soils. Wine tourism is, and will continue to be, of critical importance to the majority of the Granite Belt wineries, most of which lack the critic";
FE8[0]="al mass to service retail channels. Harvest time: early March to mid April. There are over 50 boutique wineries as well as an abundance of fresh produce and gourmet foods waiting for you to discover. The region holds some of Queen";
FE9[0]="sland's most famous events including the Warwick Rodeo, Australian Small Wine Makers Show, Historic Leyburn Motor Sprints, and Red November.";
LA1[0]=" The Granite Belt is the northern most extension of the New England Tableland - and a massive granite intrusion approximately 200 million years old. The hardness of the rock has guaranteed that this landscape stands out above the s";
LA2[0]="urrounding country (600 to 1000 metres). The most spectacular scenery is in the southern end of the Granite Belt where streams have dissected the granite to produce dramatic boulder strewn landscapes. The two principal soil types ";
LA3[0]="are different to those encountered in most Australian wine regions. One is a highly permeable, speckled (from granite) sandy, grey-black soil, the other a light brownish grey soil, also speckled; the subsoils are a bleached sand p";
LA4[0]="assing into clay at depth. Their drainage is good, but increases the need for irrigation. Currently the region crushes approximately 1000 tonnes of grapes each year. New vineyards and planting's will see its production grow to wel";
LA5[0]="l over 4000 tonnes in the next few years. The predominant classic varieties produced are Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc. The combination of cool weather and decomposed granite soils enables th";
LA6[0]="e production of outstanding wines. The region today boasts more than 50 wineries and vineyards.";
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CL1[0]=" Situated on the inner or western spine of the Great Dividing Range, it is its altitude (over 800 m) which makes this a table wine region, notwithstanding its extreme northerly latitude. The Granite Belt is one of the highest viney";
CL2[0]="ard regions in Australia with altitude ranging from 700-1200 metres, which creates distinctive seasons with cold frosty winters and warm summers. Spring frosts, cold nights at the beginning and end of the season, relatively high h";
CL3[0]="umidity, peak summer temperatures moderated by sub-tropical monsoon influences, and intermittent heavy late season rainfall all contribute to an unusual climate which has been variously described as cold and as hot, but is undoubt";
CL4[0]="edly warmer than its late harvest dates would suggest. The risk of fungal disease is quite high, and spring frosts demand careful site selection. The area has a mean January temperature of 20.6 degrees Celsius, and a cooler ripeni";
CL5[0]="ng period ideal for the growing of premium grapes. The region's Heat Degree Days (HDD) reading of 1703 is similar to the Barossa Valley (South Australia), Margaret River (Western Australia) and better/warmer Bordeaux vintages in F";
CL6[0]="rance. Location: 28°40'S, 151°56'E; Annual rainfall: 800 mm; Mean January temp: 20.5°C; Sunshine hours per day: 8.1";
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HI1[0]=" Following discovery by Allan Cunningham in 1827, the Granite Belt was largely a grazing area until 1872 when tin mining commenced. The new settlers brought vegetables, fruit trees and vines (for table grapes) to the area to provid";
HI2[0]="e food for the miners and their families, and it was soon discovered that this temperate, high altitude district was a natural orchard area. The local parish priest, Father Davadi, brought knowledge of winemaking and the cultivati";
HI3[0]="on of vineyards from his Italian homeland. While some wine was made from surplus table grapes by local Italian fruit-growers, it was not until the mid 1960s that growers became interested in classic wine varieties. In 1965 the fir";
HI4[0]="st wine grapes were planted in the Granite Belt: one hectare of shiraz. It was an appropriate choice because this variety outshone all others (with the possible exception of semillon) over the next 25 years. The Ricca family were ";
HI5[0]="the pioneers, closely followed by Toowoomba solicitor John Robinson and wife Heather who established Robinsons Family Vineyards in 1969. In the following year third-generation farmer Angelo Puglisi commenced what was initially cal";
HI6[0]="led Sundown Valley Vineyards but is now called Ballandean Estate. These two wineries remain the largest in the district, and both enjoy the distinction of having their products marketed nationally (if on a restricted scale). Komin";
HI7[0]="os, Rumbalara and Bungawarra are other well-established wine names and there are now more than 50 wineries in the area. As in most progressive wine regions, accommodation providers, cafes and restaurants are keeping pace with the ";
HI8[0]="volume of travellers. Visitors have to forget all their pre-conceived notions of Queensland's semi-tropical climate. With an altitude ranging from 760 metres to more than 1000 metres, the region experiences cold winters with occas";
HI9[0]="ional snow in July. Spring is the time to see wildflowers at the region's four national parks, and summers are surprisingly mild.";