Winegrape growers should not expect higher prices. This is despite a report that suggests wine exporters are raising the sale price of their wine. According to the quarterly Rabobank wine report, bottled wine export prices rose 4.8 per cent to $4.30 a litre and bulk wine prices were up 6.3 per cent to $1.01 per litre. But Wine Grape Growers Australia executive director Lawrie Stanford said growers were yet to see the benefit of higher prices, reports Weekly Times Now.
The sale of Clarendon’s Hickinbotham Vineyard to a major US wine group is expected to create almost 20 local jobs. Jackson Family Wines bought the 186ha property last week, after it was put on the market in October 2010 for $10 million following the death of owner and prominent builder Alan Hickinbotham. It is the Jackson family’s second vineyard purchase in the McLaren Vale region, after they bought Kangarilla’s Yangarra Estate a decade ago, reports Southern Times Messenger.
Austrian officials have dropped an investigation launched after a man was found to be selling wine and schnapps with Adolf Hitler on the label. They said there was no proof that the labels break a law against glorifying the Nazi era. State prosecution official Heinz Rusch said the investigation has come to a halt because of lack of proof that the man contravened that specific law. The legal probe was launched last year after complaints that a website posting showed bottles with portraits of Hitler and the swastika, reports Decanter.
The 2012 Central Otago Pinot celebration in Queenstown, New Zealand, from Thursday 26 to Saturday 28 January 2012, attracted nearly 200 passionate pinotphiles from the UK, US, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Winemakers, winery owners, Masters of Wine, wine educators, wine writers and marketers were shown retrospective snapshots of ‘older’ Pinot Noirs and younger tastings of Burgundy, Pinot Noir and even, to ensured we kicked off in true southern style, Riesling – from Central and from the world, writes NZ wine writer Joelle Thomson.
The 2012 Central Otago Pinot celebration in Queenstown, New Zealand, from Thursday 26 to Saturday 28 January 2012, attracted nearly 200 passionate pinotphiles from the UK, US, France, Hong Kong, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Winemakers, winery owners, Masters of Wine, wine educators, wine writers and marketers were shown retrospective snapshots of ‘older’ Pinot Noirs and younger tastings of Burgundy, Pinot Noir and even, to ensured we kicked off in true southern style, Riesling – from Central and from the world, writes NZ wine writer Joelle Thomson.
The elimination of duty on wine into Hong Kong is developing a whole new wine drinking consumer group that presents a great opportunity for Hawke’s Bay wineries, according to Debra Meiburg, Master of Wine and long-time Hong Kong resident. Ms Meiburg, who was in Hawke’s Bay last week to meet winemakers, says there is a rapidly growing mid-market of consumers who can now purchase wine at affordable prices through supermarkets, reports Voxy News.
Iconic Australian brand Penfolds dominated the Australian secondary wine market last year – securing 70 places in the top 100. Auction house Langton’s said top Grange wines and a host of experimental wines form the 1950s and 1960s took 70 spots on the top 100 leaderboard of 2011, attracting top dollar from buyers. Eight Penfolds wines were named by Langtons as the top 20 most desired brands, including Penfolds Grange, Bin 707, Bin 28, Bin 407, Bin 128 and Bin 389, reports Harpers Wine & Spirit.
Judging for the prestigious 2012 Macquarie Group Sydney Royal Wine Show kicked off yesterday at Sydney’s Olympic Park. More than 2240 wines were submitted to this year’s show, representing almost all of Australia’s wine regions. There are 37 trophies and numerous gold, silver and bronze medals up for grabs covering a range of classes across varietal wines, fortified wines and brandy, reports The Shout.
A wine company’s effort to convince a national committee to host a symposium here in the Barossa Valley has paid off. Orlando Wines now welcomes 30 professionals and students as part of the 6th annual New Zealand/Australian Sensory Symposium, held at the Jacob’s Creek Visitor’s Centre on February 8 and 9. According to Orlando Wines, the symposium targets sensory professionals who are looking for new ideas and knowledge to use in their research or work environment and would like opportunities to discuss current sensory issues with others working in the field, reports the Barossa Herald.
A spate of vineyard sales is kindling hopes that the slide in land values has finally been halted after four years of accelerating misery for Australia’s grapegrowers. In November Casella Wines, which produces the Yellow Tail label, snapped up two Langhorne Creek properties, spanning 360 hectares, for $6.2 million after the only listed landowner in the sector, Cheviot Kirribily Vineyard Property Group, was forced into liquidation, The Australian Financial Review reports.