Winemaking collective attempts to save Australian fine wine future

Unless the Australian wine industry repairs its international image and reignites interest in its higher-priced products there will be further business closures, warned Australia’s First Families of Wine (AFFW).

Speaking exclusively to the drinks business, the group stressed that the UK market needed reminding that Australia “produces outstanding terroir wines”.
 
Representatives from all 12 of the newly-formed winemakers’ collective have been visiting the UK’s major cities to promote their range of wines, which together cover all of Australia’s regions, before holding an icon tasting at the London International Wine Fair next week.
 
One member of the collective, Doug McWilliams from the McWilliam’s Wines Group, said that Australia need to pull out around 25% of its vineyards for its wine industry to remain viable.
 
However, he added that the surplus is “slowly starting to go away.”
 
Helping this process is a smaller 2010 vintage. “We’ve had a great vintage and it’s down this year at 1.5 million tonnes, which balances demand,” said McWilliams.
 
“For the last three years we’ve had big vintages of around 1.8m tonnes, but there’s only demand for 1.5m, which is why people have been talking about an 80m case surplus,” he added.
 
Representatives from the organisation pointed out that the growth of inexpensive products at the expense of fine wines was prevalent in Australia as well as leading export markets such as the UK.
 
“The biggest growing segment in Australia is supermarket own brands and cheaper look-alike products,” said Ross Brown from Brown Brothers.

 
In contrast, at the very top end, Stephen Henschke said that demand worldwide for his winery’s finest wines outstrips supply. “You can never make enough,” he said of his flagship label, Hill of Grace.
 
Australia’s First Families of Wine was launched in October last year and is spending around Aus$600,000 promoting the country’s fine wines.
 
The UK is the first country to form part of the collective’s campaign trail.
 
The organisation referred to its group approach as “co-opetition”.
 
“If we all kick the fly wheel a bit it will go faster,” explained McWilliams.
 
The inaugural members of the AFFW are:
 
·       Brown Brothers (Victoria)
·       Campbells (Victoria)
·       d’Arenberg (South Australia)
·       De Bortoli (Victoria)
·       Henschke (South Australia)
·       Howard Park (Western Australia)
·       Jim Barry (South Australia)
·       McWilliam’s (NSW)
·       Tahbilk (Victoria)
·       Tyrrell’s (NSW)
·       Wakefield (South Australia)
·       Yalumba (South Australia)
 
Patrick Schmitt, 13.05.2010