The first European settlers in the Great Western area were sheep graziers in the 1840s and closer settlement began with the discovery of gold during the Victorian gold rush, the Post Office opening on 1 June 1858.[2] . The first vineyards in the Great Western area were established by two Frenchmen who met at the gold diggings at Daylesford. Following their example, Joseph Best and his brother Henry established vineyards in 1865. Following Joseph's death in 1888, the property was purchased by Hans Irvine. Irvine imported staff from France and dedicated himself to establishing a sparkling wine of comparable quality of French champagne. In 1918, Irvine sold the winery to his friend and Australian wine pioneer, Benno Seppelt.[3]
Today, Great Western is the wine and food village of the Grampians. Wineries are still producing quality sparkling wines including Seppelt Salinger at the Seppelt winery, now owned by Treasury Wine Estates.[4][5] The Ahchow Family have been custodians of the Seppelt Great Western estate since 2016. The Seppelt cellars include over 3 kilometres of labyrinthine tunnels ("drives") originally constructed by out of work gold miners. The underground cellars were used to allow the sparkling wine to rest and develop.[3] Sparkling Shiraz was first made at the now Seppelt site in Great Western. The other major vineyard in the area is the Concongella vineyard, operated by Best's Wines, producing a wide variety of wine types.[6] Table shiraz, including some from pre-phylloxera root stocks, is also produced by wineries in the area.[7] The development of a water recycling program transferring waste water from nearby Ararat to wineries at Great Western has allowed recent expansion of the wine industry in the area.[8]
The horse racing club, the Wimmera Racing Club, holds the Great Western Cup meeting on Australia Day (26 January),[9] and a rodeo is also held annually.
^Country Racing Victoria. . Archived from the original on 3 August 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
^West and fairest Lions roar The Age 25 March 2012
Further readingedit
Brasch, Nicolas; Thomson, Chris (2016). Best's Great Western: Celebrating 150 years. Preston, Vic: Bounce Books. ISBN9780992398149.
Francis, L.R. (1965). 100 Years of Wine Making: Great Western 1865-1965. Great Western, Vic: B. Seppelt & Sons. OCLC 52978235.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great Western, Victoria.
February 13, 2024
great, western, victoria, great, western, town, east, wimmera, region, victoria, australia, town, located, western, highway, shire, northern, grampians, local, government, area, kilometres, north, west, state, capital, melbourne, town, population, great, weste. Great Western is a town in the east of the Wimmera region of Victoria Australia The town is located on the Western Highway in the Shire of Northern Grampians local government area 225 kilometres north west of the state capital Melbourne The town has a population of 425 Great Western VictoriaThe Western Highway at Great WesternGreat WesternCoordinates37 09 0 S 142 51 0 E 37 15000 S 142 85000 E 37 15000 142 85000Population425 2021 census 1 Postcode s 3377Location225 km 140 mi north west of Melbourne111 km 69 mi north west of Ballarat19 km 12 mi north of Ararat16 km 10 mi south east of StawellLGA s Shire of Northern GrampiansState electorate s RiponFederal division s WannonThe first European settlers in the Great Western area were sheep graziers in the 1840s and closer settlement began with the discovery of gold during the Victorian gold rush the Post Office opening on 1 June 1858 2 The first vineyards in the Great Western area were established by two Frenchmen who met at the gold diggings at Daylesford Following their example Joseph Best and his brother Henry established vineyards in 1865 Following Joseph s death in 1888 the property was purchased by Hans Irvine Irvine imported staff from France and dedicated himself to establishing a sparkling wine of comparable quality of French champagne In 1918 Irvine sold the winery to his friend and Australian wine pioneer Benno Seppelt 3 Today Great Western is the wine and food village of the Grampians Wineries are still producing quality sparkling wines including Seppelt Salinger at the Seppelt winery now owned by Treasury Wine Estates 4 5 The Ahchow Family have been custodians of the Seppelt Great Western estate since 2016 The Seppelt cellars include over 3 kilometres of labyrinthine tunnels drives originally constructed by out of work gold miners The underground cellars were used to allow the sparkling wine to rest and develop 3 Sparkling Shiraz was first made at the now Seppelt site in Great Western The other major vineyard in the area is the Concongella vineyard operated by Best s Wines producing a wide variety of wine types 6 Table shiraz including some from pre phylloxera root stocks is also produced by wineries in the area 7 The development of a water recycling program transferring waste water from nearby Ararat to wineries at Great Western has allowed recent expansion of the wine industry in the area 8 The horse racing club the Wimmera Racing Club holds the Great Western Cup meeting on Australia Day 26 January 9 and a rodeo is also held annually The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Mininera amp District Football League 10 For more information on Great Western please visit here Gallery edit nbsp Anglican Church nbsp Church building nbsp General Store nbsp Great Western Hotel nbsp Mechanics Institute nbsp War memorial gates nbsp Main StreetReferences edit Australian Bureau of Statistics 28 June 2022 Great Western Suburbs and Localities 2021 Census QuickStats Retrieved 14 November 2022 nbsp Phoenix Auctions History Post Office List Retrieved 20 February 2021 a b Great Western Victoria Australia Travel smh com au www smh com au 8 February 2004 Retrieved 19 May 2008 Seppelt Salinger Seppelts Wines Archived from the original on 22 July 2007 Retrieved 31 May 2007 Seppelt Foster s Group Archived from the original on 28 August 2007 Retrieved 31 May 2007 Best s Concongella Vineyard Great Western Established 1866 Best s Wines Archived from the original on 3 March 2007 Retrieved 31 May 2007 Our Vineyards Great Western Victoria Seppelts Wines Archived from the original on 29 August 2007 Retrieved 31 May 2007 Courtney Pip 30 April 2000 Great Western turns water into wine Landline Australian Broadcasting Corporation Retrieved 31 May 2007 Country Racing Victoria Wimmera Racing at Great Western Archived from the original on 3 August 2008 Retrieved 7 May 2009 West and fairest Lions roar The Age 25 March 2012Further reading editBrasch Nicolas Thomson Chris 2016 Best s Great Western Celebrating 150 years Preston Vic Bounce Books ISBN 9780992398149 Francis L R 1965 100 Years of Wine Making Great Western 1865 1965 Great Western Vic B Seppelt amp Sons OCLC 52978235 nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great Western Victoria Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Great Western Victoria amp oldid 1180521963, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
