It is no easier than it has ever been to make a dollar out of Queensland wine, but there are plenty of people willing to try By all accounts, the industry is thriving. On the Granite Belt, which sits on the Great Dividing Range, 200 km south-west of Brisbane, 48 cellar doors operate. We are as much about tourism as wine, and most of the businesses are small. Vineyards range in size from two hectares to 100 hectares. It is picturesque and mountainous with orchards, vineyards, market gardens, bouldery bush and four national parks. The area's chief attraction to the major population centres on the coast is that at 750 to 1,000 metres elevation, it provides a novel winter break, with the opportunity to curl up with wine in front of an open fire. Temperatures plunge to as low as -12℃ duringJune, July and August and, occasionally—very occasionally—it snows. Even during summer the nights are cool, typically down to 12℃ or less, and at Ballandean, one of the lower, warmer villages, the average daily maximum temperature over the summer months is 28.8℃.
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