Vignerons in the Marlborough region are on a building spree, adding infrastructure to help them leverage off record tourist arrivals. The aim is to turn winery visitors into life-long advocates of Kiwi vino. Almost 612,000 foreigners visited New Zealand vineyards in the year through June, 11 per cent more than a year earlier, and government figures show that wine buffs typically stay in the country longer and spend more.
A winery from the Riverina in southern New South Wales continues to fill the cellars of oenophiles across the world. Chalkers Crossing vineyard, located on the outskirts of the country town of Young, currently exports to the UK, China and Canada, and will soon begin selling to Thailand.
In Australia, Barokes created the first successful wine in a can in 1996 and patented the technology, known as Vinsafe, in 2002. Barokes now licenses their technology to producers in Australia and overseas. Barokes’ marketing director Irene Stokes says of the technology, “The Vinsafe technology ensures wine is canned to maintain the product’s integrity (colour, taste, aroma), stability and longevity.”
Thirteen new members from eight different countries have joined the Institute of Masters of Wine, including Bree Boskov from Australia. Boskov started out as a sommelier in Canada before moving back to Australia and spending a decade in key account sales and brand management with De Bortoli Wines.
The Federal Government’s long-awaited farm register reveals investors from the United Kingdom have easily the biggest stake in foreign-owned farmland in Australia. The register, compiled by the Australian Tax Office, shows 13.6 per cent of Australia’s farmland is foreign-owned. UK-based investors own 27.5 million hectares or almost 53 per cent of that portion.
The Advisory Board of the Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA) is calling on men in the Australian wine community to join women in taking action to address the issue of gender diversity. “Gender equality is not just a women’s issue, it’s an issue for the entire wine community,” said Jane Thomson, AWIWA founder and chair.
Pernod Ricard’s UK managing director Denis O’Flynn, who has been with company for 16 years leaves at the end of the month following another good year of growth.
Marlborough wine companies and grapegrowers have sustainability guidelines around how they manage grape marc. The majority of companies in the region are members of Sustainable Winegrowing in New Zealand, a program set up by industry body New Zealand Winegrowers.
Current and future adaptation strategies will be crucial for the wine industry. Recently more than 150 scientists from around the globe gathered at the ClimWine2016 Symposium in Bordeaux. One of the participants at the conference was Dr Amber Parker, Lincoln University viticulture lecturer, who is exploring changes to the lifecycle (phenology) of grapevines in response to temperature.
The US Congress’ ratification of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement is in serious danger. But running alongside the crippled TPP, and potentially of more importance to Australian trade, has been the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. Essentially, the partnership is a free trade agreement between the 10 ASEAN members and the six countries with which ASEAN has existing FTAs.