Wine Network

Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference

Fri, 10 May 2013 16:06:06 +1000

The Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference is owned and conducted by the Australian wine industry. The conference is held on a triennial basis for the benefit of the Australian wine and grape industry, and is an important contributor to this industry's excellence and competitive advantage. For more information visit the website www.awitc.com.au

Vintage 2013

Fri, 10 May 2013 16:03:10 +1000

Vintage 2013 appears to have been very good with warm and dry growing conditions consistent throughout the season extending through to mid-April ideal conditions for all varieties.
After good winter rains, the dams were full laying the foundation for a great start to the growing season. October was the beginning of a long, warm and dry summer. Two good rain events in February and March were much needed to see the vines through their ripening process. The warm, dry weather continued through to early Autumn providing excellent conditions for the later ripening varieties such as Shiraz and Cabernet sauvignon. Overall, crops were down between 10% and 20% primarily due to smaller berries and lighter bunch weights. While yields were slightly down the wines are showing full concentrated flavours with terrific colour density. All varieties appear to have performed well but the stand outs at the moment are Pinot noir, Shiraz and Chardonnay.

Increasing sales of Australian Wine in China

Thu, 11 Oct 2012 12:43:42 +1000

China has been the fastest growing export market for Australian wine in recent years, and is now the third largest destination for bottled exports. In the 12 months to the end of March 2012, the value of bottled exports increased by 37% to AUD$192 million, the volume by 28% to 31 million litres, and the average value by 7% to AUD$6.11 per litre. Significantly, exports priced at over AUD$7.50 per litre rose 47% to AUD$84 million, putting China in first place in this category. Australian wine is now the second largest imported wine in China, with a 14% market share in value and 13% in volume.

For the most part consumers in China still have limited knowledge about wine, and invariably are drawn to French wine when making purchases, particularly of premium wine. This makes education very important, to trade, media and consumers.
This makes education very important, to trade, media and consumers. Consumers in first tier cities have more wine knowledge than those in second tier cities. They have a wider selection available and thus more chance to taste wines from all over the world. However, it is more and more obvious that the great potential lies in second tier cities, where consumers have increasing disposable income and are eager to learn how to appreciate wine.

Wine glut nearing an end?

Thu, 11 Oct 2012 12:30:00 +1000

Rabobank's latest quarterly for three months to October says a massive global oversupply of wine between 2004-2010, that depressed prices and led many growers to rip up vines, looks like coming to an end. The good news for Australian growers is that conditions in south east Australia have been favourable so far and good yields are predicted for the upcoming 2013 harvest. Grape prices have posted their first significant increase since 2008.

Finlaysons Wine Roadshow

Mon, 27 Aug 2012 11:05:46 +1000

Gary Baldwin has joined the Finlaysons Wine Roadshow for 2012 to assist in presenting a series of seminars covering the topics of Managing difficult vintages. The roadshow will address many including risk allocation between grower and winemaker, what can be done in the vineyard and winery to ameliorate the effects of a bad vintage and also dispute resolution surrounding fruit assessment, grading and/ or rejection. The series of shows are hosted in many wine regions of Australia so go to the website www.wineroadshow.com.au to find out more.

Victorian Wine Show

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:40:00 +1000

Gary Baldwin of Wine Network Consulting will chair the Victorian Wine Show for the second year and with a great list of judges and a new venue, it should provide a great showcase for 2012 whites and 2012 reds and an even better opportunity for those vineyards and wineries that got it right in 2011. Go to www.victorianwineshow.com.au to find out more.

WCA/ ASVO

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:38:38 +1000

Wine industry organisations such as ASVO and WCA are flagging. The newer, younger brigade of winemakers and viticulturists seem to be unaware of the value of interaction with their peers at face to face events and one can only surmise that they do all their communicating via facebook, twitter and social media in general. We would argue that they are missing out on a very valuable forum and a chance to ask industry leaders who may not easily answer their twits - ending up with their best mates advice which may not always be the best advice!

2012 Vintage Summary

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:08:41 +1000

Consensus is that quality of the wine produced in 2012 will be high. Regional reports collated by Wine Australia include such phrases as 'truly special'. 'exceptional' and 'one of the strongest on record'. The 2012 crush is estimated to be nearly 4% higher than last year at 1.66 million tonnes - compared with 1.60 million tonnes in 2011 (ABS published crush figure for 2011). This figure is just above the five year average of 1.63 million tonnes and reflects three years in a row of very similar vintages. Compared with 2011. red yields were up by an estimated 7% depite significant losses in the Riverina and other NSW wine regions. Shiraz was the biggest mover - up by 16% while Cabernet sauvignon was down by a reported 4%. Merlot was up by 15%, and remarkably - Pinot gris/ Grigio up by 40% to 15,000T.....from that figure, I guess the bubble is yet to burst!
Grape prices are beginning to firm, which is good news for the grower's and we are aware that super premium Cabernet sauvignon and Chardonnay are very hard to find on the bulk market. A summary of the price outcomes for 2012 can be seen on the Wine Australia website www.wineaustralia.com/ winefacts but overall, price increases were recorded by Chardonnay, Shiraz, Cabernet sauvignon, Merlot, Colombard, Muscat and Grenache. Riesling maintained its price while Sauvignon blanc, Semillon, Pinot noir and Pinot gris all recorded price declines.

Weather......

Thu, 25 Aug 2011 15:30:00 +1000

Confidence remains high that an El Nino event will develop during the Australian Spring and persist into summer, with all climate indicators continuing to show a trend towards El Nino conditions. Eastern and central tropical Pacific waters have continued to warm over the past months, while the easterly trade winds weaken across the tropical Pacific. The Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) index is trending towards El Nino values. The SOI has fallen below -10 during the past week, the lowest value in more than two years. To meet El Nino classification the SOI must remain below -10 for three consecutive months. During an El Nino event large parts of the nation typically see below average rainfall, with the greatest affects occurring during spring and summer. As a result, climate models are consistently indicating that central, eastern and southern Australia will see near to below average rainfall during this spring and summer. Warm sea surface temperatures over the southern Indian Ocean (outside the IOD region) may provide high moisture levels over southwestern Australia during this spring and summer. In turn, climate models indicate that rainfall will remain near average over this region.
Are you ready for budburst? Its hard to believe but it is just around the corner....have you got your plans in place for the next season - if not, give us a call and we will help you set up your program and plan for the season ahead....