Syrah 1830s. So while the name or spelling "Shiraz" may be an effect of the English language on a French name, there is no evidence that it actually originated in Australia, although it was definitely the Australian usage and the Australian wines that made the use of this name popular. Another legend of the grape variety's origin, based on the name Syrah, is that it was brought from Syracuse by the legions of Roman Emperor Probus sometime after AD 280. This legend also lacks documentary evidence and is inconsistent with ampelographic findings. The wines that made Syrah famous were those from
Irrigation in Australia million in 2000-01. Water use by the rice industry fell between 2000/01 and 2004/05, due mainly to smaller planted areas during the drought; the rice industry used in 2000/01, in 2004/05 and in 2008/09. Wine, dried and table grapes are grown commercially in all States and Territories. Grape production is the fifth largest fruit industry in Australia. Of that production wine grape production at over per annum is almost nine times the production of dried grapes and 14 times the production of table grapes. A comparison with other grape producing countries throughout the world shows that Australia was the fourteenth