Free trade deals fuel hopes of a new wine export boom

Australian winemakers produce many wonderful drops but it’s a drop in overseas trade tariffs that’s got them giddy. A string of new free trade deals, culminating in last week’s long-awaited 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, are bringing down barriers to markets across Asia and the Pacific. Coupled with a weak Aussie dollar, the deals are fuelling hopes of a new boom in wine exports. After a decade of stagnant international sales, things are finally looking up. “There’s a slow return to optimism,” says Tim Kirk, chief winemaker of Clonakilla Wines.