Wine storage business Wine Ark keeps a keen eye on the two million bottles it keeps for customers to see what they’re collecting and this year, for the first time in since 2007, Penfolds Grange has lost the title of Australia’s most collected wine to its cheaper relative, dubbed ‘baby Grange’, at one-10th of the price. But luckily for Treasury Wine Estates, owners of Penfolds, it’s another wine from that portfolio – the Bin 389 Shiraz Cabernet, which sells for around $75 compared to the $750 the current 2011 vintage of Bin 95 Grange commands.

Global architectural firm The Buchan Group has uncorked its design of the Mt. Beautiful Tasting Room in Cheviot, New Zealand, aimed at introducing food and wine enthusiasts to this internationally successful, locally grown wine label. Mt. Beautiful is a premium North Canterbury wine brand grown and produced at Spotswood, nine kilometres north of Cheviot. The tasting room based in Cheviot showcases its varieties in Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Riesling, and Chardonnay. Sympathetic to the timber-themed design of the adjoining Two Rivers Cafe, the fitout uses a blend of natural materials to reflect the environment of the vineyard.

The wine industry will soon have another tool at its fingertips to help navigate important on-farm decisions. National Wine and Grape Industry Centre (NWGIC) director, Professor Alain Deloire, from Wagga Wagga, said a smartphone app is being developed by researchers with Wine Australia at Charles Sturt University (CSU).

The government’s plans to crack down on tax rorts in the wine industry probably won’t cause cheap-and-cheerful plonk prices to rise, but could lead to some of Australia’s 2500-odd wineries go bust, winemakers say. Treasury Wine Estates, the country’s biggest winemaker by market value and one of the biggest by volume, has welcomed the government’s long-awaited plans to make a rebate for winemakers lower and harder to claim. But many winemakers say the government has gone too far. They will be pushing Revenue Minister Kelly O’Dwyer and Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources Anne Rushton to water down the plans.

Swan Valley producer Mandoon Estate has continued its stellar run at the Perth Royal Wine Show, winning three awards including best WA wine of the show, for its Frankland Reserve Shiraz 2014.
Mandoon also won the award for the most successful WA producer processing less than 300 tonnes for the fourth consecutive year. Mandoon’s Reserve Shiraz also won the trophy for the best WA red wine.

The Federal Government today released an implementation paper on tightened eligibility criteria for the Wine Equalisation Tax (WET) rebate. “The implementation paper sets out the Government’s proposed approach to implement the tightened eligibility criteria, giving consideration to these issues, and invites views from industry,” said Kelly O’Dwyer, the Minister for Revenue and Financial Services.

When Gino Fortino of Fortino Winery walks his vineyards he can tell the berries are “nice and plump, not shrivelled up like they were last year during the drought.” The Gilroy winemaker notes that El Niño rains earlier this year also increased “the hang time,” resulting in more balanced and flavorful grapes. Things are also looking good at Wente Vineyards in Livermore, where the harvest began August 15 with Chardonnay grapes, followed by Sauvignon Blanc. “Right now, the quality is exceptional,” says winemaker Karl Wente, “but I won’t know for sure until I taste the wines come Christmas.”

A flagship Australian wine online store supported by Wine Australia has launched today on Alibaba Group’s business to consumer platform, Tmall.com, providing a further avenue for Chinese consumers to purchase Australian wines. Andreas Clark, Wine Australia CEO said, “the opening of the store is a landmark moment that builds on a year of strong growth for Australian wine in the Chinese export market. It opens up another commercial opportunity for Australian wineries to tap into China’s growing appreciation for our fine wines”.

A major survey of practices in the Australian grape and wine industry is being launched today by the Australian Wine Research Institute. This is the first time a comprehensive survey of grape and wine production practices has been conducted in Australia. It is intended that the survey will be repeated in five years’ time to allow adoption trends to be captured. All survey data submitted will be treated with strict confidentiality.

The good times at Penfolds maker Treasury Wine Estates have flowed through to executive pay packets, with chief executive Mike Clarke’s total remuneration jumping 32 per cent to $5.9 million for 2015-16, reports The Australian Financial Review. The Treasury annual report lodged with the ASX on Thursday showed that Mr Clarke’s total remuneration was up from $4.45 million a year earlier. The report outlined that 60 per cent of Mr Clarke’s remuneration was performance related.