Syrah into Australia in 1832 by James Busby, an immigrant who brought vine clippings from Europe with him, and it is almost invariably called "Shiraz". Today it is Australia's most popular red grape, but has not always been in such favour; in the 1970s, white wine was so popular that growers were ripping out unprofitable Shiraz and Grenache vineyards, even those with old vines. In the Barossa Valley, the world's oldest continually producing commercial vineyard is believed to be the Shiraz vines at Turkey Flat in Tanunda that were originally planted in 1847. Many factors, including the success of brands like
Isabella (grape) Isabella (grape) The Isabella grape is a cultivar derived from the grape species "Vitis labrusca" or 'fox grape' which is used for table, juice and wine production. The skin of Isabella when ripened is a dark purple, almost black with a tender green-yellow flesh. It has large well formed fruit clusters with thick bloom. It is a slip skin variety, meaning that the skin separates easily from the fruit. The grapes are used to make wine, most notably Uhudler and Fragolino. The Isabella being of the genus "Vitis x Labruscana" imparts a "foxiness" to the wine and because of this