History of Wine Grapes in the Cowra Region Records show that in 1865 there were a total of 24 acres of vines in the ""Lachlan"" region, some for table grapes but also producing about 20 gallons of wine. Further records show agricultural production in 1879 included 3,000 gallons of wine. The Cowra free press said of James Ousby""s farm in 1893; "...its principle feature is the vineyard, the returns from which show that the land in the locality is most suitable for wine growing. The vineyard and orchard embrace seven acres set on with four kinds of wine grapes, Red Hermitage and Tokay being the principle varieties. The wine from these grapes is pronounced excellent and has won for its maker much praise. Should the area under vine be extended and wine making worked on a large scale it would without doubt prove lucrative..." The Cowra Steam Mill was built for publican Thomas Walsh in the township of Cowra and opened as a flour mill in 1861. Flooded in 1900 the mill was leased to Reid Smith and ceased operation in 1905. The building still stands and has been renovated by the O""Dea family and re-opened in 1996 as a restaurant and wine sales outlet for Windowrie Wines. In the early 1860""s Capt James Brown selected a holding "Browns Valley" on the Canowindra - Gooloogong road. He established a vineyard and winery at this location and a wine sales outlet on the Eugowra Road about 7 kms from Canowindra. Barrels of wine were hauled to Bathurst by bullock wagon until the advent of a rail link. The winery closed at the turn of the century presumably due to depressed times. Around the 1940""s there was a commercial winery owned by the Thoms family operating on the site that was subsequently purchased by Edgells. In 1972 the search for alternative crops for the region spurred Alan Mitchell to plant a small trial area of wine grapes on his property "Garallan" on the banks of the Lachlan just downstream of the Cowra township(Billimari area).In the same year an American company commissioned a viticulture project on the slopes adjacent to the river on the southern side of town. The venture was taken over by Sydney-based developer, Tony Gray and the first vines were planted in 1973. The initial 36 hectares of vineyard planted between 1973 and 1975 were sold to Hunter Valley winemakers, Rothbury Estate in 1981. They were delighted to inherit the mature Chardonnay plantings. In the meantime Brian Croser (who was introducing his Petaluma label) had made nationally acclaimed Chardonnay from these grapes while he was winemaker at Charles Sturt Winery in Wagga Wagga. In 1988 a second phase of vineyard development commenced with the establishment of a 220 hectare vineyard on the property "Cooraminta" 5 km upstream of Cowra on the Lachlan river. This was purchased by Simeon Wines in 1994 from Orlando Wyndham who remain as managers of what is now known as "Richmond Grove". At a similar time the first grapes were planted on the mixed farming enterprise of "Windowrie" at Billimari. This is one of the bigger developments in the area. Subsequent expansion includes shareholders enjoying the experience of owning small areas of vines managed by the O""Dea family. Large wine companies such as Brokenwood and McGuigan have become involved in this area of the region. Windowrie also has the only Winery in the region at this time and has been contracted to crush for several major companies. Vineyard expansion has been ongoing since this flurry of activity with vineyards sited on most approaches to Cowra. The vineyards have grown to encompass over 1700 hectares and draw water from both the Lachlan and the Belubula rivers and aquifers. The industry is a large employer of both permanent and casual labour from the towns. Recognition of Cowra as a source of premium wine grapes has emanated from the success of white wines made from Chardonnay grown across the region and the definitive characteristics of those wines. Many awards have been won nationally and internationally since 1980 and Cowra appearing on a label is generally associate with Cowra Chardonnay irrespective of the brand name. Over the past decade other varieties such as Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Sangiovese, Pinot Noir, Traminer, Riesling, Verdelho, Semillon, and Sauvignon Blanc have shown potential. The Cowra Wine Show held at the end of July comes at the beginning of the show season and is the third biggest show in Australia behind Sydney and Melbourne.