From Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, to Chardonnay, the range of wine styles recognised at the Hawke’s Bay A&P Bayley’s Wine Awards on Tuesday night impressed the panel of local, national, and international judges. Chairman of judges was Trinity Hill chief winemaker Warren Gibson, who has been at Trinity Hill since it was established in 1997. Mr Gibson said the awards, presented at a extravagant dinner on Tuesday night, showcased the “huge range of styles” of wine produced in Hawke’s Bay.

Australia’s 1743 active wine exporters sold 10pc more wine in offshore markets to achieve export sales of $2.17 billion for in the past year. Mainland China has outstripped the United States as the leading destination for Australian wine exports for the first time, with the soaring industry-wide sales momentum providing a further boost for Penfolds owner Treasury Wine Estates. Exports by Australian wine producers to China jumped by 51 per cent to $474 million in the 12 months to September 30 overtaking the US, which increased by 4pc to $448m.

Western Australia continues to dominate 2016’s major national wine shows after a Margaret River winery won Australia’s most sought-after wine trophy on Thursday night. The 2014 Deep Woods reserve cabernet sauvignon won the coveted Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy, awarded to the best young dry red (one or two years old) at the Melbourne Wine Show. Some of Australia’s most famous wines, including Penfolds Grange, have won the Jimmy Watson since it was first awarded in 1962, when the owner of one of Melbourne’s most famous wine bars died suddenly and his friends established the trophy in his memory.

Australian wine exports’ double-digit growth continued in the 12 months to 30 September 2016 according to Wine Australia’s Export Report, released today. From October 2015 to September 2016, the value of exports grew by 10 per cent to a total value of $2.17 billion, with growth again being primarily driven by bottled exports, particularly at higher price points. Bottled exports grew by 14 per cent to $1.8 billion and the average value of bottled exports increased by 9 per cent to $5.47 per litre, a 13-year high.

Australian Vintage, maker of wines such as McGuigan, Tempus Two and Nepenthe, has issued its second profit warning in three months amid the economic fallout from the UK’s Brexit vote. Shares in Australian Vintage (AVG) sank 10 per cent after the company warned the continued fall in the value of the British pound, which has already sunk as much as 34 per cent against some currencies, would see the winemaker’s profits drop by between $3.5 million to $4 million.

Pacific Rim officials and industry representatives met in Ottawa, Canada to
streamline import-export requirements and reduce costs for governments and winemakers.
The Winemakers Federation of Australia (WFA) were amongst more than 60 wine regulators
and wine industry representatives from 14 nations who gathered at the Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) Wine Regulatory Forum’s (WRF) 6th Annual Technical Meeting on
“Winemaking Practices and International Trade” to share good regulatory practices on wine
certification, laboratory analysis and winemaking practices in the important trade region.

For the first time since 2010, the Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy, Australia’s most coveted wine award which recognises the Best Young Red Wine has been won by a Cabernet Sauvignon, with Western Australia’s Deep Woods Estate 2014 Reserve taking home the illustrious honour at last night’s 2016 Royal Melbourne Wine Awards (RMWA). Deep Woods also took home the trophy for Best Cabernet Sauvignon for the same wine, whilst other major trophies were spread across the country. The François de Castella Trophy for Best Young White Wine was awarded to Victoria’s Seville Estate for their 2015 Chardonnay.

John Belsham has been producing fine wine for 40 years. His American-born partner Kelly Brown has a passion for exceptional customer experience. Together they’ve created a tasting room in Ponsonby that’s fast becoming an urban legend. My first question for John Belsham and Kelly Brown, the couple behind The Foxes Island Tasting Room (link is external) in Auckland’s Ponsonby, is “how did you first meet?” Turns out, it was a shared passion for wine that brought the Kiwi and American together.

Marlborough has achieved global success with its Sauvignon Blanc, but producers should be working harder to communicate sub regional differences rather than blending across the region, believes one winemaker. Winemaker Matt Thomson, who has worked as an international wine consultant for the past 20 years, released the first vintage of his Blank Canvas range in 2013, having founded the brand with his wife, MW student and director of the company Sophie Parker-Thomson.

Global wine production in 2016 is expected to be among the lowest in 20 years, an industry body said Thursday, suggesting climatic events such as El Nino could be to blame. The International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) estimated this year’s output at 259 million hectolitres (Mhl; there are 100 litres in a hectolitre), a year-on-year drop of five percent. This worldwide annual total, released at a news conference in Paris, is among the three lowest since 2000.