Antipodean delights
As a producer of wine, Australia has been going from strength to strength in recent years, including when it comes to Ireland’s imports. In 2014, 1.6m cases were imported to this country, while overall exports from Australia increased in 2015. This was the first time since the global economic downturn in 2007 that the export market had experienced growth, indicating that recovery was in full effect.
Meanwhile, in Ireland, wine showed a volume growth of 2% in 2016, reaching 67m litres, with the off-trade and on-trade seeing volume growth of 2%. While the numbers matched up, it was the off-trade that accounted for a majority of sales, thanks to heavy promotional activity, especially in the grocery retail sector. Lidl and Aldi, as with most segments, came with a strong offering in terms of price and product range, which led to other grocery retailers feeling the pressure to keep prices moderate.
In the coming years, wine sales in Ireland are predicted to reach sales of 72 million litres by 2021. This increase is predicted in tandem with the ongoing economic recovery, which sees Irish consumers have more disposable income for non-discretionary items like wine.
Australian wine is a very strong category in Ireland. It is a country synonymous with accessible reds and fresh-tasting whites. With plenty of time left in the summer, we take a closer look at some of the best Australia has to offer Antipodean. Australian wine Back to school Craft beer Free-from
Family heritage
In 1957, Filippo and Maria Casella arrived in Australia from Italy, and introduced their tradition of making simple wine perfect to share with family and friends. Prior to this, the Casella family had been producing wine in Italy since the early 19th century, but in the 1950s Filippo and Maria immigrated to Australia to make a better life for themselves and their family. The Yellow Tail brand was launched in 2000, and was originally marketed as an export wine. Its success came almost immediately. Before long, more Australian wine was imported to the UK than from France, and by 2003 Yellow Tail was the number one wine imported into the USA.
At a glance: Australian Wine
- An estimated 30 million glasses of Aussie wine are consumed every day around the world. Australia has no less than 65 different winemaking regions, each with its own characteristics due to climate, soil type, vines, topography and more
- There are approximately 2,000 wine producers across Australia, 90% of which have existed only since 1970. No wonder they’re known as New World Wines
- Australia is the sixth biggest wine producing nation in the world, producing more than 1.2 billion litres in 2014
- Australia’s rapid ascent in wine producing through the decades is thanks in part to the work of the Australian Wine Research Institute in Adelaide. It was founded in 1955 andis devoted to researching the art and science of wine
- The grapes Australia is most famous for are Chardonnay and Shiraz; all 65 wine regions grow and use these grape varieties (among others)
- The newest area to be designated an official winemaking region is Mount Gambier in South Australia’s south east
Wild success
One of Ireland’s favourite Australian wine brands, Wolf Blass, celebrated another successful year at the International Wine Challenge in May this year. Its prestigious team of winemakers was awarded the Barossa Valley Shiraz Trophy for the Wolf Blass Platinum Label Shiraz 2013. Further to this eminent honour, Wolf Blass also won an incredible eight Gold, 23 Silver and 18 Bronze medals overall.
Wolf Blass’ multi-award-winning lineup continues to impress experts and consumers alike
These awards come off the back of Wolf Blass’ recent award for Winery of the Year 2016 by two separate panels – Winestate Magazine and the InterVin International Wine Awards. As the brand continues to impress in every competition it enters, these wins are a strong testament to the company’s ongoing commitment to quality above all else.
Many of Wolf Blass’s IWC award-winning wines are currently available in Ireland via their exclusive Irish distributor Findlater Wine & Spirit Group, including the popular President’s Selection Cabernet Sauvignon (Silver Medal) and the famous Yellow Label range, of which the Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Shiraz were all Bronze medal winners.
The brand’s accessible “Aussie Blend” Red Label Shiraz-Cabernet – a Bronze medal winner – is also long known to the Irish consumer, while the Wolf Blass Silver Label Chardonnay (Bronze medal) was more recently introduced to these shores to great acclaim. Wolf Blass was established in the Barossa Valley in 1966 and has grown from a humble tin shed to become one of the world’s most successful and decorated wine brands. All told, it has been the recipient of more than 3,000 medals and trophies at national and international wine shows! The essence of Wolf Blass wines is exemplified through the passion of its custodians past and present as they continuously strive to produce wines of quality, character and consistency.
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