Grapegrower & Winemaker - June 2015

JUNE 2015

You can’t afford to miss the ‘national

wine industry supplier trade show’

JULY 14-16

2015

• NZ VINTAGE REPORT • Senate Inquiry into the wine industry • New test for Brett

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from the editor

Nathan Gogoll Editor

More talk, more action WE NEED to talk. Nobody wants to hear that. The conversation that follows is rarely positive. So when a group of Senators recently tapped the wine industry on the shoulder and said ‘we need to talk’ (or in this case ‘we are having a Senate inquiry into your industry’), I’ll admit I got a bit worried.

Initially, I wondered whether there was a section of the industry lobbying to the Senators for an inquiry. I don’t believe this was the case. But then I suspected an inquiry would be a waste of money and I worried whether the industry would really get engaged.

But now the Senate Inquiry into the Australian Wine Industry is in motion, there’s no point arguing about whether the money it will cost could be better spent. And as soon as the wheels of the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee began turning, I know a wide range of feedback was offered.

I also know Senator Anne Ruston, who is based in Renmark in the Riverland, has been touring wine regions to get first hand feedback. She was kind enough to stop on the top of hill as she was travelling to Clare, so there was just enough signal strength for us to have a chat on the phone.

The reasons she wanted an inquiry seem fair enough. She certainly has big ambitions for the inquiry to help the industry. But my head hurts when I think about all the different feedback being provided, all the individual issues to be addressed – some that have huge

implications for some regions, but don’t trouble others. And I also wonder how the different, yet linked, issues facing grapegrowers and wineries will be worked through.

I got thinking about what sort of ‘ground rules’ I’d want the inquiry, and the whole industry for that matter, to work around. Here’s what I’ve been thinking...

STOP LOOKING IN THE REAR-VIEW MIRROR I’ve got a feeling there has been more talk than action because people are looking in the rear-view mirror, hoping and waiting for the ‘good times’ to return.

The focus has to turn to what’s in front of the industry and what can be done to meet the realities of today and the opportunities of tomorrow.

TIME TO SET REALISTIC TARGETS I could nominate for the 2016 AFL Draft. But the truth is, at 34 years of age and a senior football career of two B-grade games for the Balaklava Peckers, I do not have the capability to make that opportunity a reality. Luckily, the wine industry has a lot more scope for improved export sales than I have for success in the AFL Draft, but the growth targets still needs to be realistic.

Steady export sales growth should be achievable, but massive short-term growth that eliminates the oversupply isn’t realistic and probably wouldn’t be sustainable anyway.

KNOW YOUR NUMBERS If you are growing grapes and you don’t know what your cost of production is, then you are in a dangerous position.

Same goes if you have made decisions to increase your winery’s production even though sales and prices have been stationary, or even falling. Nobody owes you a successful business.

SUPPLY MUST BE ADJUSTED A wise man with a worried look on his face recently told me that supply and demand are two hands clapping. It took me a while to understand, but I think it means something like this… there is no way to measure demand on its own, or supply on its own – they only exist together. Just clapping louder (spending more on marketing, in this case) won’t be the only solution. But now I might be mixing my metaphors.

I recognise there are already people (and whole organisations) working on projects and plans to address the issues that I’ve been thinking about. I hope some of these plans and projects will receive extra attention, perhaps extra support, as a result of the Senate Inquiry.

I’m not sure, but I do hope there will be lots of positives for the industry from the inquiry process. I hope the discussions can be open and those involved can look beyond their own interests for the greater good of the industry.

Enjoy the read.

Nathan Gogoll

Contributors Simon Nordestgaard, Australian Wine Research Institute senior engineer, reviews developments in winery-based destemming and sorting equipment. His in-depth article starts on Page 96.

Greg Howell from Vintessential Laboratories looks at a new way of testing for Brett. His report starts on Page 84.

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

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contents features JUNE 2015

29

WineTech2015 Preview

72

Vineyard Machinery

78

Soil Management

96

Crushing

103 Bottling, Labelling & Packaging

You can’t afford to miss the ‘national

wine industry supplier trade show’

106 Export, Transport & Logistics

JULY 14-16

2015

• NZ VINTAGE REPORT • Senate Inquiry into the wine industry • New test for Brett

COVER Ann Killeen’s photography skills have been used for winery advertising and newsletters and her photos have also been published in wine industry and lifestyle magazines and books. This month’s cover photo was taken next door to what was her family’s original Moodemere vineyard, established by the Webster family in 1854.

news

grapegrowing

Movers & shakers .....................................8

Relative sustainability of organic, biodynamic and conventional viticulture ...58

Senate Inquiry into the wine industry.......10 New Zealand vintage wrap ....................14 Emilie Reynolds has been scouting across both the North and South Island to gather this vintage report.

14

Regional Roundup: South Australia .......20

Part 2: Vine health and grape yields.

This is the second article based on recent research to establish what impact different viticulture techniques have on the impact of soil health, vine health and wine characteristics.

Drum Muster celebrates milestone ...........65 Delayed pruning shifted Shiraz maturity by two weeks in 2015 ...............66 66

My View: A plan for the wine industry or a missed opportunity .............22 Stuart Thomson, the former executive director of the Grape and Wine Research and Development Corporation (GWRDC) looks at the issue of the ongoing services and sustainability of Wine Australia.

WineTech2015 ........................................29

Results from a three-year trial across three pruning dates (winter, budburst, and 2-3 leaves) and two thermal regimes (control, heated).

Below the surface ...................................68 Our extensive preview will get you motivated to attend WineTech2015.

There’s an extra way to get to the ‘root’ of what is happening in the vineyard. You just need a backhoe.

regulars 6 What’s online 24 R&D@Work JUNE

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People in research: Dr Justin Cohen

90 Young Gun “Then instead of returning to the US, to work in corporate management for a hotel group as planned, I accepted a scholarship to undertake a PhD in wine marketing.

“It’s where I first connected with Professor Larry Lockshin (Pro Vice Chancellor for Strategic Coordination andA Head of Marketing at University of South Australia) and his research group.”

After completing his PhD, Dr Cohen moved to Europe to work in the Master Vintage program, which is an EU-funded Master of Science program (MSC) for oenology, viticulture and wine business.

Responsible for the wine marketing component and research supervision, Dr Cohen said that after two exciting years of delivering education and conducting research across numerous European markets he was ready for the next challenge - at the Australian Centre for Retail Studies, a specialised retailing centre at Monash University.

Cohen said he happily made the jump.

Dr Cohen continues to work closely with Larry and Armando, particularly on the current China projects.

“We’re a great team. My focus is particularly managerial, it’s my job to solve problems and come up with ways to overcome hurdles that crop up with such projects.

“Working in emerging markets like China now is really exciting, because we are getting past people just espousing their thoughts and feelings. Our EBI team is actually doing the research in country. We can make arguments and claims about market dynamics founded in data and not just conjecture.”

4 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Dr Justin Cohen, Research Fellow, Ehrenberg Bass Institute for Marketing Science

Beginning with a childhood spent at Cape Cod in the United States to a career that spans Europe, Australia and now Asia, for Research Fellow Dr Justin Cohen it’s been a journey inspired by great food and wine experiences.

“I focussed my energy on commercial research and strategy implementation

“Working in emerging markets like China now is really exciting.”

Dr Cohen is also enjoying the growing

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Ask the AWRI Looking back Advertiser index Marketplace classifieds June 2015 – Issue 617

June 2015: Issue 617 winemaking On the right road at Murray Street ..........80

People & Places: AWRI’s 60th birthday ....94 Developments in destemming and sorting technology 96 Part one: In the winery. Simon Nordestgaard, Australian Wine Research Institute senior engineer, reviews developments in winery-based destemming and sorting equipment.

80

sales & marketing Telling the story of Seabrook generations ...........................103 “It’s not about opportunity, it’s about capability,” according to the Murray Street Vineyards general manager.

104

New test in the battle against Brettanomyces ............................84

Lessons from the craft brewery .......104 Adaptable cross flow filter..................... 105

There’s another great tool to use in the continuing fight against this pesky spoilage yeast. Greg Howell, from Vintessential Laboratories, reports.

There’s no middleman when it’s straight From the Producer .................86

business & technology

The premise behind the website From the Producer is all about offering direct access between customers and producers. Its founder, John Cameron, admits it began with his own desire to make local produce more accessible.

Top Tips: Entering Asia ..........................106

Young Gun: Fresh. Energetic. Altmann. ....90 Making wine, saving the world. It’s all in a day’s work for Vanessa Altmann. Emilie Reynolds caught up with the Langhorne Creek winemaker to chat about her journey so far and the exciting chapters to come.

China set to dominate Asia’s growth in wine imports ............... 110 110

Kemble rekindles his winemaking with latest drops .....................................93

PUBLISHER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE Hartley Higgins

PRODUCTION Simon Miles

MANAGING EDITOR Elizabeth Bouzoudis

CIRCULATION: Melissa Smithen subs@winetitles.com.au

EDITOR Nathan Gogoll editor@grapeandwine.com.au EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Dr Jim Fortune, Denis Gastin, Dr Steve Goodman, Dr Terry Lee, Paul van der Lee, Bob Campbell MW, Prof Dennis Taylor and Mary Retallack EDITORIAL Emilie Reynolds journalist@winetitles.com.au ADVERTISING SALES Chas Barter sales@grapeandwine.com.au June 2015 – Issue 617

WINETITLES PTY. LTD. 630 Regency Road, Broadview, South Australia 5083 Phone: (08) 8369 9500 Fax: (08) 8369 9501 info@winetitles.com.au www.winebiz.com.au @Grape_and_Wine Printing by Lane Print Group, Adelaide © Contents copyright Winetitles Pty Ltd 2014. All Rights Reserved.

Print Post Approved PP535806/0019 Articles published in this issue of Grapegrower & Winemaker may also appear in full or as extracts on our website.

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

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on the grapevine what’s ONLINE

Australia’s First Families of Wine launch in USA

Vineyard fears ‘non-existent frogs’ One of Australia’s more esteemed makers of Shiraz has been locked in a struggle with bureaucrats intent on turning his property into a haven for a frog he says hasn’t been seen on the property for 50 years. Pat Carmody, whose Craiglee Vineyard sits on Melbourne’s western outskirts, discovered by chance in 2013 that his property had a Growling Grass Frog overlay placed on it covering 75 per cent of the area, reports The Australian.

Wine producers called to the UK Australian wine producers are being urged to visit the UK to promote their produce. Australia continues to be the market leader in the UK but Wine Australia said there could be more done to increase sales and sure up Australian exports.

Laura Jewell, regional director for Wine Australia for the UK and Europe, said Australian wine is the focus of tastings in January and the presence of Australian wine producers and grapegrowers at these events would help to get the story behind the wine to the British public, reports the ABC.

Harvest hit by bad weather Delegat Group’s New Zealand harvest has fallen by more than a quarter but the wine company is still confident sales will rise this year. The New Zealand harvest has accounted for 25,000 tonnes, 26 per cent lower than last year. The company said that was partly due to higher than average yields the previous year and lower than average yields this year. The wine producer said it was hit by cool weather over the flowering period and unseasonal late spring frost in Marlborough, reports Radio New Zealand.

.com.au Australia’s wine industry portal by Winetitles Australia’s wine industry portal by

Australia’s Families of Wine representatives.

DURING May’s Aussie Wine Month, some of Australia’s leading family wineries, working together as the 'First Families of Wine' travelled to North America to showcase the modern diversity of Australian fine wine.

Robert Hill-Smith, Australia’s First Families of Wine chairman, led 12 family representatives from the member wineries on a North American tour coordinated by Wine Australia.

The travelling party was team of Australian industry leaders and the group consisted of Peter Barry, Ross Brown, Colin Campbell, Darren De Bortoli, Stephen Henschke, Scott McWilliam, Chester Osborn, Alister Purbirck, Justin Taylor Bruce Tyrrell and Jeff Burch.

Kicking off with two trade and consumer launch events in San Francisco New York, the team then headed to Canada with events in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.

Angela Slade, Wine Australia North

American regional director, said the tour was an important opportunity for the group and the combined resources of the 'First Families' group was an excellent support for the Wine Australia marketing efforts.

“Australia’s First Families of Wine is a showcase for the multi-generational story of Australian wine – from early days in the 1800s through to the modern wine story from the 1950s, to the regional and stylistic evolution of today,” Slade said.

“The North American launch, led by Robert Hill-Smith, represented both wine heritage and a look at Australia’s longterm sustainability well into the future.”

Hill-Smith said the time was right for Australia’s First Families of Wine to showcase their commitment to North America and be there in person to tell their stories, make a lot of noise and have some fun.

“We’re firing on all cylinders,” HillSmith said.

Wine Victoria to work with state government on $1m tourism plan

Winetitles

Daily Wine News is a snapshot of wine business, research and marketing content gleaned from international wine media sources, with a focus on Australian news and content. To subscribe visit www.winebiz.com.au/dwn.

WINE VICTORIA, the peak body representing the interests of the Victorian wine industry, will work closely with the state Government to roll out a $1 million investment aimed at boosting Victorian wine tourism and exports.

The $1 million plan was announced this week by Jaala Pulford, Victorian Minister for Agriculture and Regional Development, as part of the government’s

2015-16 budget. The plan includes the establishment of a Wine Industry Ministerial Advisory Group and funding to develop a Victorian Wine Tourism Strategy.

Damien Sheehan, Wine Victoria chair, welcomed said the organisation welcomes the Victorian Government’s support at a time when many of the industry are doing it tough.

“The investment announced today gives us the ability to partner with the government on key issues that can reverse our profitability issues,” he said,” Sheehan said.

“As the Australian dollar drops and the strength of Victoria’s tourism grows, now is the time to increase the understanding of our fantastic wine offering by increasing cellar door visitation and growing exports in key markets.”

Tourism is a major economic driver for Victoria, with wine related tourism worth more than $1.5 billion per year to Victoria’s economy. With 21 distinct

wine regions, Victoria sees 1.5 million annual winery visitors and 12,000 people are employed in wine related jobs.

The wine industry is also an important exporting partner for Victoria and known to be one of the state’s most valuable food export categories, worth $197 million per year and growing.

“We’re looking forward to the government’s Meet the Wine Maker inbound trade mission in late May, as these events are a big step towards building the profile of Victoria’s premium wines and getting our products in front of important international wine buyers,” Sheehan said.

The commitments are a welcome answer to what the association has been recommending to both parties since before the state election last year, according to Sheehan.

“As the Victorian wine industry’s peak advocacy body, we have been encouraging the Government to partner with industry on these sorts of activities, so this support is significant for Victorian wine producers,” he said.

“With tough barriers like wine oversupply and fierce international competition, we need all the support we can get to help make the Victorian wine industry thriving again.”

Wine Australia launch new guide WINE AUSTRALIA has launched its updated Market Program Guide outlining upcoming user-pays activities available to wine brands, exporters, importers, regions and states to promote Australian wine both domestically and in key export markets.

The guide currently includes 53 userpays opportunities in 16 markets ranging from trade-focused events, consumer events, retail promotions, tastings and masterclasses, educational initiatives and advertorial opportunities to sommelier and trade immersion activities, that all aim to promote the diversity, quality and regionality of Australian wine.

As this is the first Market Program Guide released since Stuart Barclay took on the role of general manager – market development, there have been a few noticeable changes.

For the first time an updated guide with new activities on offer will be released every quarter rather than

annually. The more regular updates will enable greater agility in capitalising on emerging market opportunities.

“All of the activities we offer are designed to meet the needs of the wine community, complementing their own marketing efforts,” Barclay said. “By updating the guide every quarter instead of releasing a new guide each year, we’re ensuring that we’ve got the flexibility to create new activities that facilitate a more nimble marketing approach.”

Barclay said if the Australian wine industry is going to defend and grow key export markets they must capitalise on opportunities and adapt based on the needs of our levy payers.

“People will notice a strong emphasis on the key trade shows around the world,” Barclay said. “We’re seeing a great deal of renewed interest and enthusiasm in Australian wine in some of our most important export markets and we want to keep up that momentum.”

Barclay said shows like ProWein and the Vancouver International Wine Festival have been hugely successful activities for the wine community this year.

“In fact 75 per cent of our exhibitors at ProWein have already signed up for next year.”

The successful Market Access Program, trialled last year in the US, returns in the updated guide in a more structured format and re-named Market Entry Program. Offering three tiers, the program will provide user-pays assistance to Australian wine brands wanting to enter new markets.

Supporting the user-pays activities will be approximately 70 core marketing activities solely funded by levies. These activities are planned for key markets such as the US, Canada, UK, China and Australia. The Market Program Guide is now available to view and download on the Wine Australia website.

Commercial vineyards at CSU to return to farmland CHARLES STURT UNIVERSITY (CSU) has returned its commercial vineyards in Orange and Wagga Wagga to farmland as it discontinued commercial wine production.

In March CSU announced plans to abandon large-scale production and expand focus on the premium boutique wine market through an experimental winery at the National Wine and Grape Industry Research Centre (NWGIC).

Paul Dowler, CSU executive director of finance, said the university’s proud tradition of winemaking would continue with new boutique wines from the experimental winery.

“The move to focus on premium wines will ensure our teaching, research and extension activities are focused on a key June 2015 – Issue 617

growth segment in the Australian wine market,” Dowler said.

“The decision to scale back commercial production also recognises increased competition in the higher education sector, coupled with ongoing uncertainty around reforms.”

Dowler said the University sought expressions of interest (EOI) to lease the University’s commercial vineyards, but no partners had been found.

The removal of the vines and associated trellis infrastructure took place in Wagga Wagga in early May. The six hectare commercial vineyard comprised of Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Muscat plantings.

In Orange, the commercial vineyard si 12.5 hectares and includes plantings www.winebiz.com.au

of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz, Merlot, Riesling, Pinot Gris and Cabernet Sauvignon Blanc.

A date for the removal of vines and associated infrastructure in Orange is yet to be determined.

CSU hoped to return the former vineyards land to general farm use.

“We will ensure that the land is restored and sown down to pasture to ensure it blends into the landscape and supports the farming activities that will continue,” Dowler said.

The University has been able to secure a lease of the commercial winery at Wagga Wagga to a local wine producer and expected the facility to be fully utilised in the future.

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movers & shakers Kim Horton joins Willow Bridge Estate FOLLOWING the tragic death of Simon Burnell, the chief winemaker at Willow Bridge Estate in March this year, the Western Australian winery has appointed highly-decorated and respected winemaker Kim Horton.

Horton will join the Willow Bridge Estate team in early June, from Ferngrove,

where he has been their senior winemaker for the past 13 years.

Jeff Dewar, Willow Bridge Estate owner said he was grateful to have such a respected winemaker join the team.

“We are honoured that Kim, who is regarded as one of the leading Winemakers in WA, has decided to make

the move to the Ferguson Valley,” Dewar said.

“The current Willow Bridge Estate wines are a testament to the vineyards, the skills and perfectionism of the entire team and we look forward to the passion, knowledge and expertise that Kim will bring to these wines in the future. “

World class sommelier and consultant returns to Sydney KAVITA FAIELLA, wine director of the Press Room Group Hong Kong and wine program consultant for Aman Tokyo, returned home to Sydney after a 10-year tour abroad to act as a global brand ambassador and independent wine consultant.

Her business, aptly named Voyageur Selections will bring Faiella’s vast and varied experience to the fore, encompassing wine education, brand consultation, regional distribution and expansion into key Asian markets.

“I have been overseas for the last decade, and for the last few years I have really wanted find a way to get back to Australia and use my knowledge to help the Australian wine industry,” Faiella said.

An expert in developing markets, Faiella’s tenure includes some of the most successful and innovative hotel and restaurant groups in Asia and has built her an enviable network of distributors, sommeliers, restaurateurs, hoteliers, journalists and wine millennial throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

“My career began as head sommelier in the Maldives as a part of the Conrad

group,” Faiella said. “I then moved to Singapore with the Aman Resort Group and worked across South East Asia. After that I worked through India until settling in Hong Kong for three years.”

Faiella said Hong Kong was where she truly recognised the benefit of a strong campaign among winemakers.

“Producers being active in the market really made a difference,” Faiella said.

“In Asia, people aren’t naturally familiar with wine and everything is learned so when they meet a winemaker face to face and can attach them with a brand, it really sticks.”

Faiella said relationships were an important factor in the Asian market, and winemakers who put in the effort, often see the gains.

“Asia is completely different to classic market that Australians are familiar with, like the UK and US,” she said.

“There are a lot of stories of being burnt in Asia, so winemakers are often quite cautious.”

While Faiella’s experience speaks for itself, she has also amassed an impressive wine education over the years.

As well as pursuing a master sommelier

qualification, Faiella has completed her advanced sommelier certification and passed both the theory and practical components of the final level of the MS exam, making her Australia’s youngest and only female to have reached this level.

In 2010, Faiella was recognised as one of the top 10 most influential wine personalities in India by CNN and currently sits on the Decanter World Wine Awards judging panel with international recognition of her influence well documented around the globe.

Faiella has also regularly contributed to magazines such as the FINE wine magazine and brings a youthful and current perspective to wine in her columns for Marie Claire, Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue India and Asia Tatler Online.

Voyageur Selections offers brand ambassador services for small to medium sized wineries wanting to develop in the Asia-Pacific region along with wine education and Kavita also consults to hotels and restaurants who are seeking sommelier support services.

Barons of the Barossa inducts new members

Three new Barons of the Barossa.

8 Grapegrower & Winemaker

PETER GAGO, Tyson Stelzer and Grant Dickson were named Barons of the Barossa at a ceremonial dinner held in the Barossa Valley in April.

Founded in 1975, the Barons of the Barossa are a wine fraternity who support Barossa wine, viticulture, gastronomy, heritage and the arts.

Gago said he was incredibly proud to hold the position in a region which he believed has a critical role in the global advancement and appreciation of South Australian wine.

“In the footsteps of Jeffrey PenfoldHyland, Max Schubert, Dr Ray Beckwith and John Duval from the Penfolds stable, I’m delighted to be welcomed into this proud fraternity, who support and champion the very best that the Barossa Valley has to offer,” Gago said.

The honour comes after Peter was recently named Gourmet Traveller www.winebiz.com.au

WINE’s 2014 Winemaker of the Year and received the Len Evans Award for Leadership - the first recipient to receive both accolades.

Tyson Stelzer, a highly-regarded wine journalist and author of the Barossa Wine Traveller among a host of other books, has just been named the 2015 International Wine and Spirit Communicator of the Year.

“As a 6th generation descendent of one of the early settlers of Bethany, I have always felt at home in the Barossa. Now it’s official. What an honour,” Stelzer said.

Grant Dickson, the co-­ owner of the highly-acclaimed fermentAsian restaurant and the creator of its iconic winelist, was formerly the wholesale manager for Rockford Wines.

“The Barossa’s real wealth is in the depth of its great characters who, with June 2015 – Issue 617

both wisdom and vision, never give up the quest of celebrating the inherent goodness of this place, but always in a spirit of profound humility,” Dickson said.

“My Vietnamese wife and I as well as her non-

English speaking family have been made to feel incredibly welcome.

“I am so flattered and humbled that the community of Barons have asked me to become one of their number. This was an honour that I never saw coming.”

Stephen Henschke noted these three have made significant contributions to the Barossa’s reputation as one of the world’s great wine regions and have been staunch advocates throughout their careers.

Lion signs China wine deal INDUSTRY giant Lion has signed a long-term deal with Jebsen Fine Wines to have its Fine Wine Partners portfolio distributed across China.

The deal will see Jebsen distribute Australian and American wine brands across many of China’s provinces. St. Hallett, Petaluma, Stonier, Knappstein and Argyle are just some of the brands to be accessible to Chinese comsumers.

Bill Webb, managing director of Lion’s Fine Wine Partners, said China is a key focus for the future of the business in a global market.

“China is an immensely important part of our global aspirations,” Webb said. “Jebsen has exhibited a long-term commitment to building premium wine brands and, with its extensive distribution footprint, will ensure that our wines are accessible to a wide spectrum of adult consumers across China.”

Webb said Lion were delighted to partner with Jebsen Fine Wines, A marketing and distribution organisation and one of the leading importers of premium wine in China.

Gavin Ward, Jebsen director, said he believes Chinese consumers will soon develop a loyalty to these brands.

“As the wine category in China continues to grow in sophistication and consumers’ passion for wine knowledge reaches new heights, now is the time to invest greater efforts in promoting outstanding wine brands such as the ones we will now distribute from the Fine Wine Partners stable,” Ward said.

“We have great confidence in these brands and are convinced that the Chinese adult consumer will embrace them and develop a loyal following over the coming years. Fine Wine Partners has demonstrated its belief in the China

As the wine category in China continues to grow in sophistication and consumers’ passion for wine knowledge reaches new heights, now is the time to invest greater efforts in promoting outstanding wine brands. market and we look forward to working with them on this exciting journey over many years to come.”

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news

Senate Inquiry into the wine industry A GROUP of Senators believe an inquiry will help the Australian wine industry address the key issues it faces and help make the most of existing opportunities. In March Senator Ruston, together with Senators Nick Xenophon, Bridget McKenzie, Peter Whish-Wilson and John Madigan, successfully moved to establish an inquiry by the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee.

Senator Anne Ruston said she had two main motivations for the inquiry, to address a situation where many grapegrowers barely cover their production costs; and to see a re-focus of sales efforts into export markets.

“The industry needs a bit of a shake up,” said Ruston. “It needs to drive demand for its product overseas if it is to have a sustainable future. Australia is an exporting country and we aren’t going to get rich selling to ourselves. This is very true of the wine industry. With new free trade agreements in place and a falling Australian dollar, now is the time for the industry to get out there in international markets and spruik our premium wine.”

The industry needs a bit of a shake up. It needs to drive demand for its product overseas if it is to have a sustainable future.

Senator Ruston said the inquiry would examine issues such as legislation and regulation, potential market failure, representation and levies, the power of large retailers and the wine equalisation tax (WET) rebate.

“The WET rebate in particular has been a contentious issue with New Zealand wine producers receiving it, but also because it takes the industry’s focus off exports,” she said.

While the Senate committee is scheduled to report in November, Senator Ruston has already been consulting widely across the industry, touring wine regions to speak with regional organisations, grapegrowers and winemakers. She’s already been to Western Australia and was most on her way to the Clare Valley when the Grapegrower & Winemaker spoke to her.

She has also met with various state and national bodies.

“I was involved in the wine industry in the halcyon days of the late 90s,” Ruston said. “There’s certainly a very different mood at the moment.”

The Senator said her meetings have revealed there are a number of “bigger picture issues that are common across the regions”, but she is also aware that different issues have far more impact in certain areas.

“Some regions have water issues, for example, and they are not all facing the same set of hurdles.”

The industry has generally supported the inquiry and many organisations have already provided feedback during the initial consultation period. There is widespread hope the inquiry will deliver positive initiatives for the industry.

Mike Stone, the Murray Valley Winegrower Inc executive officer, said it will be an “opportunity to alert the Australian community and parliamentary representatives to the issues that have seen hundreds battling to stay solvent”. Stone pointed out that across the Murray-Darling and Swan Hill wine regions, around 500 growers have left the industry in the past 10 years.

“Growers need to join their regional and national industry

10 Grapegrower & Winemaker

bodies in presenting evidence, ideas and information to the Senate committee,” said Stone.

The Australian Grape and Wine Authority (AGWA) was encouraged by the focus on strategies to increase profitability of growers and winemakers. Andreas Clark, AGWA chief executive officer, said the organisation looked forward to participating.

But not everybody can agree that a Senate-driven investigation is the right approach.

Bruce Tyrrell, the CEO of Tyrrell’s Wines and secretary of the Hunter Valley Wine and Tourism Association, said the cost of a Senate Inquiry was unnecessary.

“The money would be much better spent on export marketing.

The industry has had enough inquiries and not enough action. It will be waste of time as we already know what the answers are.

The market needs to sort them out and Government keep their hands of the industry as they normally get it wrong,” Tyrrell said.

“Much of the scope has been covered in WFA’S budget submissions. The industry knows what the current problems are; we need more sales and a lower Australian dollar.”

Pete Bissell, Balnaves winemaker and Limestone Coast Grape and Wine Council chairman, countered Tyrrell’s position.

“The global economy has changed, the market demographic is changing, so some of the previous inquiries were conducted in different circumstances. An inquiry held now may well identify many of the same problems, but there may well be different options available now to improving industry profitability,” Bissell said.

“A consultative inquiry into these issues could help clarify the way forward.”

And Marc Allgrove, the former consulting CEO to the McLaren Vale Grape, Wine & Tourism Association, said “the reality is the industry is in a position where change is necessary”.

“Structural reforms are required and if the Senate Inquiry can precipitate those, then it will be very important. The matter is not about whether the inquiry represents an opportunity for change – the industry needs to accept there is a need for change, or it will suffer the consequences.”

De Bortoli Wines managing director, Darren De Bortoli, said he hoped the inquiry would “help to eliminate market distortions, ensure equity in the collection and distribution of levies and better support regional communities”.

“Until these issues are adequately resolved further scrutiny is required.”

Sheridan Alm, a Riverland grapegrower, said it would be a good time to assess whether the support mechanisms of the industry were still functioning.

“Winegrape growers and winemakers pay considerable levies for the greater good and it would be dangerous to assume that levy outcomes always remain on track,” said Alm. “With good business models and governance practices in place the regional, state and national bodies who serve us can get on with doing what they need to do, improving and ensuring the viability and success of winegrape growers and winemakers alike.

“We all know that industry restructure, new business models and renewed marketing efforts are required but how can we actually achieve this. Why have we been successful with some of the recommendations yet failed with others?”

Brett Proud, another Riverland grower (and member Riverland Winegrape Growers Association and Riverland Wine Industry Development Council) agreed it was a good opportunity to examine “the many bodies in the industry”.

www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

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news “If the inquiry can find out why the industry has not been able to act on the many past recommendations, then it will be very worthwhile,” said Proud.

Andrew Weeks, the business manager at Riverland Wine and the Riverland representative on the WGGA executive committee, said the Senate Inquiry should examine where various responsibilities lie, and look for efficiencies and synergies.

“The current arrangement with many disparate industry bodies is a model that was formed during boom times, and is not necessarily best at present. Is there anyone out there who thinks that the industry is going so well that a look under the bonnet is not a good idea?

Mike Stone wants the Australian Wine Industry Code of Conduct at the top of the agenda.

“The purpose of the code is to provide a fair framework for the purchase of grapes, i.e. minimum standards for grape purchase agreements, including the process by which prices are set and, if necessary, the means by which prices can be disputed,” said Stone.

“But with less than half Australia’s wine grape production covered by the code, many growers are left powerless, which is exacerbated when, in times of over-supply, all power is vested in the grape buyer. The 2015 Senate inquiry comes 10 years after the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee enquired into the ‘Operation of the Wine-Making Industry’, which ironically recommended the introduction of a mandatory code of conduct.

“At the time, there was no support from wineries for a mandatory code. However, after several years’ negotiation between WGGA and WFA agreement was reached on provisions for a voluntary code. Six years on and clearly the voluntary code is not working effectively. While many of the issues to be presented to the 2015 inquiry will be reminiscent of those submitted in 2005, this latest attempt to shine the spotlight on continuing unrest within the industry should be regarded as another opportunity to make headway on effecting change.”

Brian Simpson, the Riverina Wine Grapes Marketing Board CEO, said it could be time for the government to make sure changes are made.

“If the inquiry recommends further legislation to assist the industry participants then the Government should earnestly provide it as such,” said Simpson. “It is understood that

legislation has its impacts and possible drawbacks but when faced with the current market conditions for producers it is worthwhile investigating.”

Andrew Weeks said there has been a problem with the execution of plans in the past “and if the proposed inquiry can find out why the industry has not been able to act on the many recommendations, then it will be very worthwhile”.

“To be fair, the Wine Restructuring Action Agenda identified directions that the industry should take lest it would sink lower. The problem was getting the industry to act. Likewise, the Expert Review identified real issues with the industry, and action is under way as a result of that. It would be retrograde to suggest that because there has been a lack of action the current inquiry should not proceed. Instead, let’s find out why there was a failure of industry to act, and address those problems.

Clearly continuing in the same mould is not an option, and quoting previous failures as a reason not to act is a defeatist position.”

Senator Ruston said she has been encouraged by the quality of the feedback she has received so far. She also believes the industry still has an optimistic outlook.

“Largely, I’d say the people I’ve spoken to believe the industry has a strong future,” said Ruston. “But to be sustainable the whole supply chain needs to be profitable.

“I think on 90 per cent of the issues people universally agree, and we saw that was true of the WFA proposal on the WET Rebate.”

[Editor’s note: The WET Rebate reforms were withdrawn from the Federal Budget process after this interview took place] “Australia was once the aspirational wine capital of the world. We did it once, there’s no reason not to do it again. We need more money spent on the marketing effort, to change the brand of Wine Australia and pull the industry through the imbalance.

“The overwhelming feedback is that the industry wants to drive demand, but I think people understand it might require it might require some amount of supply adjustment as well.”

Ruston said the inquiry has arrived at a time when action is required.

“I want to get out there and drive this inquiry and give it some horsepower. Having an inquiry like this will bring people together and if people agree on the responses, then what needs to be addressed will start to happen automatically.”

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www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

26TH EDITION INTERNATIONAL ENOLOGICAL AND BOTTLING EQUIPMENT EXHIBITION

ORGANIZED BY

WORLD LEADER IN WINE TECHNOLOGY 3 rd —6 th NOVEMBER 2015 Fiera Milano (Rho) Italy info@simei.it / simei.it

New Zealand vintage wrap NORTH ISLAND

It’s all action in the vineyard as grapes are picked, sorted and sent to the winery to begin the long slow alchemy of becoming wine.

Auckland & Matakana Although volumes were less than the past two years, Christine Didsbury, Brick Bay Wines director, said the team managed to pull together a good harvest through hard work at their Matakana vineyard in North Auckland.

“We’re feeling very happy with vintage 2015,” Didsbury said.

“With ruthless fruit thinning to retain quality bunches, we achieved good levels of fruit ripeness at harvest.”

Didsbury said the vineyard managed a lucky escape from the powdery mildew that impacted on most of the country.

“The canopy of all the varieties continued looking strong and healthy throughout, powering the fruit towards optimum ripeness.”

A domino effect of good conditions allowed the vineyard to produce excellent quality, according to Didsbury.

“Healthy soil equals healthy vines which equals disease resistance and leads to grapes with fully developed fruit flavours with minimal spray usage,” Didsbury explained. “Of course the weather was kind to us as well, with a very dry summer and a balmy autumn.”

Didsbury said a stunning crop of Pinot Gris was handharvested on March 11 and 12, the Malbec on April 2, while on April 7 the Merlot was also gathered in.

“Too soon to sing the praises of the 2015 vintage but at this stage we’re celebrating immaculately clean, well-ripened fruit, full of flavour.”

Gisborne Farmers and growers in the East Cape Gisborne region waited nervously for the worst of Cyclone Pam to strike in midmarch, but were relieved when the extreme conditions were downgraded at the last minute.

With warnings to prepare for the worst, grapegrowers harvested as much of the crops as they could before the predicted high winds and heavy rain arrived.

Al Knight, Gisborne Winegrowers Association president, said the region had not been severely impacted with the vintage deemed a success. ““The harvest season flow was really good and while there was a little bit of panic around the possible impact of what was left of Pam, that came to very little.” Knight said. “The weather system did not have a significant impact on fruit quality.”

Knight described the 2015 wine vintage as another bumper

14 Grapegrower & Winemaker

season which could hold its own among the last two “fantastic years”.

“We’ve seen some very good quality fruit harvested across all varieties,” Knight said.

Kicking off in late February, Knight said the harvest had been progressive, with fruit picked as it matures.

“It’s pretty much all done and dusted, with just some noncontracted fruit still to be picked,” he said.

The region expected high tonnage across the board, which was good news for the region, according to Knight.

Gisborne’s close competitor region, Marlborough, had been experiencing a relatively low season, which brought good news for the area.

“It was pretty clear early on that Marlborough would come in under their original tonnage estimates,” Knight said. “That set a few alarm bells off with some of the larger wine companies and that’s absolutely added to the value of the Gisborne crop.”

Knight said about 1,000 tonnes of grapes that were either non-contracted or surplus to contract here have now been picked as a result.

“The Marlborough situation has been a lifesaver for some Gisborne growers, because any surplus fruit has been picked up by the major companies,” he said.

Knight said the focus of winemakers to get the fruit off the vines at optimum maturity without compromising quality had been achieved.

“I think the quality of the wine produced from this vintage will be very good,” Knight said. “So it all augurs well for another very good year.”

On the back of “fantastic” 2013 and 2014 vintages, Knight said this year was another bumper.

“I think this vintage has the potential to achieve the same high results.”

Hawkes Bay If 2013 was the “vintage of the century”, 2014 was a close second. As the 2015 harvest comes to an end, superlatives are being carefully used by an industry enjoying a harvest hat-trick.

“Most would be considering this to be a very good, solid vintage,” said Michael Henley, Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers Association (HBWG) chair and Trinity Hill Wines chief executive officer.

“There are few regions that are able to claim three great

www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

vintages in a row. We have had really good fruit and yields are down. Generally when yields are down, quality is better.”

A cool start to spring, followed by a long, dry summer and little frost resulted in excellent growing conditions in Hawke’s Bay said Xan Harding, HBWG Association deputy chair and Black Bridge Estate owner.

“Overall we are confident of a good vintage, and Merlot and Chardonnay are likely to be stand outs,” Harding said.

Some growers feared Cyclone Pam in March would impact the quality of the grapes but only the tail end reached the area and it was more like “a little drink for the vines”, according to Harding. Weather that followed was ideal and it was only the return of rain and a surprise early frost in April that brought the season to an end slightly earlier than expected for some of the region’s 266 vineyards.

It is anticipated the harvest will echo last year. In 2014 two thirds of the 44,500 tonnes picked were made into white wine and one third was red wine, with Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah making up almost half of the vintage.

After two stellar vintages, winemaker Rod McDonald said 2015 is “another out of the box”.

“We didn’t have things entirely our own way, but it was pretty close. 2013 stands out as the best vintage across the board, and perhaps the best for red wines, but the last two years have been cracking because they both got off to a great start. And although this year finished a little early with rain and frost, it only affected the late varieties and the last ripening sites, where it will not have compromised anything,” McDonald said.

John van der Linden, Villa Maria’s Hawke’s Bay regional vineyards manager agrees: “As a result of the good growing conditions, the grapes ripened to good levels and have good concentration, flavour and structure.”

A lighter quantity appears across the board in Hawke’s Bay, but it has an upside. “We might be lighter on volume this year, but we’re right on target for quality,” said Jon Peet, Elephant Hill’s viticulture manager.

With vineyards located across the Bay, it’s on the coast that Peet said Chardonnay has been the standout.

“In our Gimblett Gravels and Triangle blocks Merlot was harvested in the first week of April and was extremely good.

June 2015 – Issue 617

They’re almost finished fermenting and the quality and flavour is outstanding,” he said. “There’s no great secret to a successful vintage - you have to be able to respond to what the season throws at you. It’s about maximising the potential.”

Van der Linden is responsible for managing Villa Maria’s vineyards across the Bay, including significant holdings in the Gimblett Gravels.

“The red varieties attained good ripeness levels and were harvested in very good condition. There were some excellent parcels of grapes.”

Martinborough “Small, but flavourful” was how one Martinborough winegrower had described the 2015 vintage.

Jeremy Corban, Big Sky Wines viticulturist and winemaker and chairman of Wines from Martinborough, said the crop may be smaller than usual, but the fruit quality was “excellent”.

“I’m looking forward to seeing some elegant and intense wines from the 2015 Martinborough vintage,” Corban said.

He’s echoing the view of many winemakers about “a very different year” for the Martinborough grape harvest.

A “cold and windy November” took its toll on the grapes, reducing the crop by as much as half for many vineyards. The hot dry summer months were welcome and harvesting started in late March much as normal for the majority of the crop, although April rain slowed things down a bit.

While dry conditions are bad for farmers, they’re excellent for growing grapes.

“While the rain complicated the harvest for some, most people I’m talking to are saying the same thing – a smaller crop than usual, maybe 25 per cent to 30 per cent down, but excellent quality fruit.”

Corban said winemakers were talking about good-looking fruit with rich fruit flavours and colours, and small, intensely flavoured Pinot Noir berries in particular.

“That spells memorable Martinborough wines.”

Richard Riddiford, Palliser Estate managing director, said the quality of grapes were looking good however yields were down.

“All I’ve learned over 26 years is that yield can vary by as much as plus or minus 50 per cent, and that’s because we can’t control the weather,” Riddiford said.

www.winebiz.com.au

Grapegrower & Winemaker

15

New Zealand vintage wrap SOUTH ISLAND

The fruits of hard labour. CREDIT: Gill Walsh- Wines of Canterbury.

Nelson According to Todd Stevens, Neudorf Vineyards winemaker, the vintage in Nelson was “uncomplicated”.

“The season commenced midSeptember with bud break in the Chardonnay,” Stevens said. “The following spring months saw mixed weather events with intermittent cold spells due to regular dustings of snow on the surrounding mountains.”

Stevens said although Nelson experienced a very dry spring (third driest November on record), the cool and windy conditions ensured flowering and spring growth was variable and as a result potential yield was reduced.

16 Grapegrower & Winemaker

December bought some much needed rain to help with canopy growth before settling into a warm, dry Christmas and January period, according to Stevens.

“The great growing conditions continued into February albeit with an autumnal feel,” he said. “The moderately warm February slowed sugar accumulation but allowed for continual flavour development.”

A warm but variable March brought on another early harvest for the vineyard.

Fruit appeared physiologically ripe at lower sugars and Stevens said as a result harvest commenced at Neudorf on the 17th March and finished with Albarino on the 7th April.

www.winebiz.com.au

“This will be remembered as a moderately sized harvest where the vagaries earlier in the season were outweighed by a “classic” ripening window,” Stevens said. “As a result we currently see wines which are moderate in alcohol while displaying ripe characters and maintaining purity and vibrancy.”

Marlborough While Marlborough basked under blue skies throughout summer, the fruit on the vines was developing into some of the best seen in a number of years, according to Marcus Pickens, Wine Marlborough general manager.

June 2015 – Issue 617

Weeks of warm, dry weather followed on from a cooler than average start to the season. After a total of 15 spring frosts hitting the region, only small pockets of damage occurred.

“It was the first day of summer, December 1 that created the biggest impact,” Pickens said. “Temperatures plummeted, impacting on those vines that were flowering at that time.”

Stuart Dudley, Villa Maria’s Marlborough viticulturist said the blocks that flowered later or even earlier than that did well, however the middle flowering blocks were impacted.

Those cooler than expected temperatures carried on into the first half of December, with many Sauvignon Blanc blocks affected.

“The end result was variability in yields throughout Marlborough,” Pickens said. “Some were bang on average, others well up to 30 per cent below – with all less than the 2014 yields.”

By late December, the weather in the region hit the hot and dry buttons.

Temperatures began to climb and the rain stayed away to such an extreme that the region was declared a drought zone in late January, having received the lowest amount of rainfall over a seven month period since records began.

Pickens said although vines might like it dry, the continued drought began to impact in February, just as the fruit hit veraison.

“The end result was smaller berries, and while that impacts final yields, it does help produce concentrated flavours,” he said.

Although there were predictions vintage would begin earlier than usual, Pickens said it didn’t eventuate.

“With dry conditions and a lack of disease pressure, wineries were able to let their fruit hang longer,” he said.

“Flavour, acidity, texture and sugar levels all benefitted from the increased hang time, and the fruit that was delivered to wineries has been lauded by winemakers throughout the region.”

Pickens said he couldn’t predict the final yield count for Marlborough, but expected it to be well below 2014 and below the long term average.

“Sauvignon Blanc was the hardest hit, with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay also expected to be well down,” he said.

With the first of the 2015 wines about to be bottled, Pickens said Marlborough winemakers are expressing excitement and looking forward to drinking the fruits of their labour.

Marcus Wright, Lawson’s Dry Hills winemaker said things were looking great for 2015.

“A few of the old hands are looking June 2015 – Issue 617

The first day of harvest at Mischa’s Vineyard. CREDIT: Mischa’s Vineyard

back and saying this looks like ‘97, which was a really stunning vintage.”

Canterbury & Waipara Valley This year has seen great grape growing weather for the entire Canterbury region.

A hot dry extended summer with great conditions for flowering and fruit set period has led to a great season with a number of vineyards picking a fruit a lot earlier than normal.

Whistling Buoy owner Neil Pattinson described his season in one word “stunning” while Melton Estate Vineyard owner, Philip Caunter elaborated further saying “we have had an excellent vintage in terms of quality and quantity. Looking back over 13 years, the best yet”.

Central Otago: It was an ‘’intense’’ wine harvest for Central Otago vineyards this year but fruit quality is ‘’exceptionally good’’, according to James Dicey, Central Otago Winegrowers Association president. ‘’We are overjoyed with the quality and quantity with what we have got,’’ he said.

Grapes going through fermentation were very aromatic with concentrated and intense colours, Dicey said.

A cold snap which hit the region early, after harvesting had begun, meant six weeks of work was squeezed into four, with nine- to 10-hour days. ‘’We worked non-stop from Easter weekend to Anzac weekend,” Dicey said.

But while the frosts put pressure on harvesters to get the job done quickly, it did not affect the vintage. www.winebiz.com.au

‘’We were picking in snow, which was very unpleasant.’’

Overall, the vintage was ‘’benign’’ due to dry, warm weather. The region had reached ‘’optimal tonnage’’ but was slightly down on last year. ‘’The last crop was generous but this year we are hitting our targets at both ends, with a lower yield for high-end wines and generous yields with the entry-level wine,” Dicey said.

According to Misha Wilkinson, Misha’s Vineyard owner, the 2015 growing season in Central Otago was really the game of two halves – initially very cold and dry and then much warmer than normal in the latter half.

“We experienced dry conditions all through the growing season with only 100mms of rain recorded,” Wilkinson said. “The early cool temperatures meant canopy growth started much later than usual but then we finished the season with probably the best canopy growth we’ve ever seen.”

Wilkinson said when it came to harvesting the fruit, the conditions were the best the vineyard had ever seen.

“The acids were slightly lower than normal and sugars slightly less than average with early indications in winemaking showing good fruit expression across the varieties,” she said.

Although fruit set was good, the Pinot Noir bunch weights were slightly down and total yields were likely to be less than normal across the region.

“But our white varietals’ yields were up slightly from last year, so overall we’re delighted with how harvest went.”

Grapegrower & Winemaker

17

news PRODUCT/SERVICE UPDATE

Support to deliver

export

contracts CASSEGRAIN is a multi-award winning winemaking company based in Port Macquarie, NSW, which is growing its exports to Japan and China in response to high demand.

Cassegrain produces a large range of wines, doing everything from crushing the grapes through to bottling and distributing the wines.

Having established the business in 1984, Cassegrain started exporting in 1987 in response to specific demand from a Japanese buyer. Since then, the company has been successfully exporting its wines to Europe, UK, North America and Asia for a number of years. Japan remains its main export market, representing around three quarters of its export products.

Currently, exports represent 30 per cent of Cassegrain’s sales but the company is aiming to increase that to 70 per cent in five years’ time.

GROWING EXPORTS Faced with growing demand from buyers in Japan and China, Cassegrain was worried about matching product supply to the purchase orders it was receiving.

The wine industry has a significant lag phase, as the harvest cycle doesn’t necessarily align with demand for product and the lead time from production to supply can vary significantly. For the higher quality wines, the grapes mature in barrels prior to bottling and distribution, meaning a longer lead time on the product supply. This means that Cassegrain has to invest in manufacturing its wines before receiving orders, to have sufficient product to fulfil a contract when it comes in.

In order to realise its potential growth in Japan and China, Cassegrain needed

18 Grapegrower & Winemaker

working capital to pay suppliers and keep production running smoothly.

“With the support of Efic, and boosted by the free trade agreements recently signed with Japan and China, we’re anticipating that our exports will double over the next two years,” said John Cassegrain, the sole director at Cassegrain.

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An Export Contract Loan is a direct loan available to SME exporters to provide working capital finance for a specific export-related contract.

“Cassegrain is a great Australian success story receiving significant overseas interest and our support will ensure that they can deliver on a wide range of export contracts”, Efic’s Colin George commented.

Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (Efic) provided Cassegrain with a $500,000 Export Contract Loan to enable the company to deliver on its growing export contracts in Japan and China by investing in its manufacturing

For more information about the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (Efic), contact E: info@efic.gov.au P: 1800 093 724

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June 2015 – Issue 617

When the world beckons, find a partner who understands.

Efic is a specialist financier that delivers simple and creative solutions for Australian companies – to enable them to win business, grow internationally and achieve export success.

To find out how Efic can support your next wine export, visit www.efic.gov.au/wine or call 1800 093 724

REGIONAL ROUNDUP

Regional Roundup: South Australia Langhorne Creek wine show EXCEEDING expectations set at last year’s inaugural event, the Langhorne Creek wine show saw 185 regional wines entered for judging with 113 medals awarded, 20 of which were gold.

Without a dominating winery, judges said the award for producer of the year was hotly contested and very close with Bleasdale Vineyards taking it out following a tense wine taste-off.

A luncheon was hosted to announce all of the winners and present trophies to the champions of the day.

Gipsie Jack was awarded the coveted William Buck Champion Wine of Show trophy for their 2013 Shiraz, scoring an impressive 56.0.

Sarah Andrew, associate judge, said she was a passionate fan of wine from Langhorne Creek long before the wine show and approached the region to confirm her place on the judging panel.

TROPHY WINNERS: Paul Hotker, producer of the year; John Glaetzer and Ben Potts - champion wine; and Brad Case, vigneron of the year. Photo courtesy of Orana Studios.

“The competitive nature of the golds were really challenging for the whole team,” Andrew said. “For me, Malbec in Australia is Langhorne Creek, they are synonymous.”

Ben Potts, Langhorne Creek Winema kers’ committee chair congratulated the region’s winemakers and said the results were a source of great pride for the region.

A vintage graced by radiance THE 2010 vintage of one of Australia’s greatest wines, Henschke Hill of Grace has been released to critical acclaim with several wine critics scoring it 99/100.

Stephen Henschke, Henschke winemaker, said the wine matches the 2002 and 2005 vintages and described the 2010 vintage as having “radiance”.

“2010 is a beautifully balanced wine from a season that was perfect in many ways,” he said. “These amazing old vines really delivered in this year, with a complex palate of dark brooding flavours, texture and refined silky tannins with

incredible length.”

Critic Nick Stock praised the wine with a score of 99, describing it as the Eden Valley equivalent of Burgundy’s Le Chambertin.

“A bottomless well of flavour, elegant yet profoundly powerful and another brilliant addition to a superb run of recent vintages,” Stock said.

Hill of Grace comes from four hectares of 150-year-old dry grown Shiraz vines across the road from the Gnadenberg Lutheran Church east of Angaston. The church, a few ruins and the Henschke

vineyards are all that remain of the village with the German name that translates to 'hill of grace'.

Veteran critic Winsor Dobbin said the wine had remarkable intensity and was destined to be rated with the greatest Hill of Graces.

“A wise wine, one that is comfortable in its skin even in its youth, with dark berry notes, a melange of Asian spices, cedary oak and silky tannins.”

Winsor Dobbin says the wine will “emerge and flourish over the next couple decades”.

Adelaide winemaker secures multimillion dollar China deal RANDAL Tomich, owner, winemaker and viticulturist of Tomich Wines, has secured a distribution agreement with China’s biggest hypermarket chain, RT-Mart, which is set to deliver more than $500 million in annual sales to Australian food and beverage brands.

The deal will see the establishment of a designated aisle selling “famous Australian brands” including wine among other household items.

RT-Mart, which has outpaced WalMart and Carrefour in sales over the past two years, has 378 supermarkets across China and 3000 convenience stores.

The deal, believed to be the largest of its kind by an Australian food company in China, will benefit from a reduction

20 Grapegrower & Winemaker

in tariffs under the free trade agreement, which is set to come into force mid-year.

Tomich, 46, travelled to China looking to secure a distribution agreement for his family label, Tomich Wines, which is based in the Adelaide Hills.

“We went into RT-Mart wanting to sell wine and ended up signing a food deal.

That’s China,” Tomich said.

RT-Mart is the largest hypermarket chain in China’s highly fragmented food retailing sector, generating sales of $16.25 billion last year.

Tomich said landing the deal with RT-Mart was a combination of timing and having the right local partner.

“I saw a gap in the market (for food) when I was negotiating with RT-Mart to www.winebiz.com.au

get Tomich wines stocked,” he said.

Under the deal, the designated aisle will promote famous Australian brands and be available in five RT-Marts across Shanghai.

Tomich said the company’s research suggested each store would generate annual sales for the iconic Aussie brands of up to $5m.

“It’s taken five years and lots of hard work, but we believe this is a unique opportunity to fast-track Australian products from the farm gate to shelves in China,” Tomich said.

“China is a country of brands without a brand plan and promotion products just sit on shelves,” said Mr Tomich.

June 2015 – Issue 617

Adelaide Hills vineyards test positive to smoke taint TWO DOZEN vineyards in the Adelaide Hills, with grapes that have tested positive to smoke taint, are unlikely to receive compensation, according to a recent ABC report.

Smoke-affected grapes have been a concern for wineries following January's Sampson Flat bushfire. Tom Keelan, Adelaide Hills Wine Region president, said growers had been unable to access

financial assistance, “other than the government-assisted packages that were worked up for all the fire-affected victims".

Keelan said although half a dozen vineyards were physically damaged, independent tasting panels revealed the extent of the damage caused, with up to 25 vineyards affected.

“It’s been a very steep learning curve

in this situation, because there were no real specific zones that were affected or not affected,” Keelan explained.

Keelan said the Adelaide Hills community felt for growers who had been randomly affected, as the region was experienced a great vintage.

“Ninety-five per cent of the Adelaide Hills are singing the praises of the 2015 vintage,” said Keelan.

New centre to help industry make the best wines A NEW centre launched at the University of Adelaide’s Waite campus will help the wine industry address key challenges while producing the wines that consumers want and the market demands.

Supported by the Australian Research Council (ARC) and 12 partner organisations, the ARC Training Centre for Innovative Wine Production aims to build knowledge and technologies that will help the wine industry face the challenges of climate warming, water limitations, changing consumer preferences and increasing production costs.

Key objectives are to better manage flavour and alcohol content in Australia’s

June 2015 – Issue 617

wines despite these environmental and cost pressures.

Professor Vladimir Jiranek, Professor of Oenology in the University’s School of Agriculture, Food and Wine and director of the ARC Training Centre for Innovative Wine Production, said there was a portfolio of 18 projects which take a ‘grape to glass’ approach to tackling key issues facing the industry.

“The knowledge and technologies arising from the Centre will help the industry make the best wines that will be sought after domestically and internationally,” Jiranek said. “We aim to underpin and enable more profitable grape-growing and winemaking while achieving the desired flavour and

www.winebiz.com.au

alcohol balance that consumers want.”

According to Jiranek, specific targets include: viticultural practices to optimise yields of flavour-rich grapes that are not necessarily high in sugars; treatments and winemaking practices that will maintain flavour while controlling sugar and alcohol content; and working with producers and retailers to define precisely the type of wines that consumers want.

“The Centre will also strengthen links between research, industry and education and produce highly skilled PhD and postdoctoral researchers honed for working at the industry/research interface,” he said.

Grapegrower & Winemaker

21

my view

A plan for the wine industry or a missed opportunity Stuart Thomson, the former executive director of the Grape and Wine Research and Development Corporation (GWRDC) looks at the issue of the ongoing services and sustainability of Wine Australia.

IN RECENT weeks the Australian wine industry has promoted the Winemakers Federation of Australia (WFA) views on the Wine Equalisation Tax (WET) rebate and their plans to seek tax payer funded increases to the wine industry’s statutory marketing body Wine Australia (or AGWA as it is now known).

Without going into too much detail the WET is a tax on wine consumed in Australia. It is applied based on the value of the wine and generally applies to the last wholesale sale. In an effort to alleviate the burden of WET (particularly on smaller businesses), a producer rebate scheme was introduce in 2004 which enable producers to claim a rebate on the 29% tax incurred on domestic wine sales. A number of producers, including New Zealand producers can apply for the rebate. (A simple overview is provided at www.taxpayer.com.au/ KnowledgeBase/10252/Small-BusinessTax-Super/Wine_equalisation_tax) With trans-Tasman rivalry stoked, the public has been treated to an array of media coverage pertaining to the advantage that New Zealand winemakers receive in Australia, as a result of an “imperfect” WET rebate system. This has resulted in great headlines and exposure for the WET Rebate reformists, but there is an irony in this analogy. As sensational as the headlines are, what appears to have been overlooked are the significant advances the NZ wine industry has made in growing international markets and gaining market share at a time when the NZ dollar has, like the Aussie dollar, been strong against other currencies. Not only have New Zealanders performed well in many international markets, they have also been strong performers in the Australian market place, producing wines that the public want to drink.

In contrast the Australian wine sector has struggled during this period, both domestically and internationally.

While there has been a great deal of focus on cutting the WET rebate to NZ winemakers, there has been little reaction to the much larger cuts proposed to rebates that support the Australian bulk wine sector. There has also been

22 Grapegrower & Winemaker

The intervention by the Federal Government to review the WET Rebate system as part of a broader review of tax should be welcomed.

The ability for independent experts to review the system will hopefully result in structural reforms that will be of benefit to the entire Australian wine industry. limited questioning of a proposal by WFA to supplement the industry funded wine marketing body Wine Australia, with $25M of tax payer’s money.

Like most taxation measures, the WET rebate is complex and has its nuances.

While there is no doubt the WET rebate can skew market forces and in some cases ensures some unprofitable businesses remain in operation, the proposal by the Winemakers Federation to primarily target WET rebates that apply to the bulk wine sector will undoubtedly impact on inland and commercial wine (lower priced wine) producers in already struggling regions, while the medium to premium end of the market will continue to live with a skewed and imperfect WET rebate, all be it benefitting from the proposed reductions to the bulk wine sector. Therefore, the intervention by the Federal Government to review the WET Rebate system as part of a broader review of tax should be welcomed. The ability for independent experts to review the system will hopefully result in structural reforms that will be of benefit to the entire Australian wine industry.

Of all the measures proposed by the Winemakers Federation, the most www.winebiz.com.au

interesting is the call for $25M of tax payer dollars to be used to fund generic Australian wine marketing campaigns internationally. The Australian Grape and Wine Authority (AGWA) and its namesake Wine Australia, are charged with organising an array of marketing programs internationally. Funding for Wine Australia’s marketing activities come from industry coffers through a number of industry sanctioned levies that are applied to winemakers and exporters.

At various points in the supply chain, levies are collected by the government on behalf of industry. These funds are then used for industry promotions.

Two critical issues have affected the quanta of levies collected; the drop in the volume of wine exports due in part to the strong Aussie dollar and the fact that some levies have not been indexed to inflation. The latter is problematic because changes to levies typically require an almost unanimous agreement from industry to enable changes to be invoked. The process is therefore time consuming, difficult, and infrequently attempted. Essentially the compounding effects of inflation coupled with the decrease in international market share have whittled away Wine Australia’s market spend.

At present the significant drop in the Aussie dollar has resulted in a rebounding of Australian wine sales internationally. The wine sector would appear to be in a period of recovery and this will likely continue for the foreseeable future (so long as the dollar remains at present levels). With so much industry support for increased generic marketing through Wine Australia, there exists a prime opportunity to rectify the lack of levy funds by: • Increasing current industry marketing levies on winemakers and exporters; and • Indexing future levies to inflation (CPI).

Structural reforms of this nature would ensure the ongoing services of Wine Australia are sustainable in decades to come without having to rely on a short term tax payer funded bailout.

June 2015 – Issue 617

Product Update

Take your business to you customers IF YOU require a functional and attractive ‘pop-up’ facility, there’s a new option that takes extra space to a new level in Australia and New Zealand.

Designed and produced in Europe, it has been distributed to a range of countries across the past 18 years, The Arch House’s environmentally friendly construction is unique to the local market.

The Arch House has been used as an exhibition arena, additional office space, showroom, café just to name a handful of situations. It meets the needs of businesses that require extra space – and it’s both attractive and functional.

The Arch House designers have created a structure that integrates modern convenience into a valuable extension to your current business.

The Arch House has been set up from the Spanish Riviera to Austrian Alps and adapted it for bars, cafés, wedding venues and function centres. It has been a key element of various product launches, sporting events and product tasting/ sampling experiences.

It has arrived in the Australia for the first time and is now available for lease (starting from $1950 per month) or sale.

Because it is a temporary structure, The Arch House can be moved between winter and summer seasons. But it is an ‘all season’ product with all windows able to be opened to give a great summer outdoor feel and closed for cooler winter days. It is available in two sizes, its nine metre round-base shape offering 63 square metres and the 12m base giving 119 square metres of workable space. Due to the modular design and symmetrical structure, The Arch House can be configured in a number of ways, allowing maximisation of space through adjoining structures or additional corridors.

The wooden structure is completed with poly-carbonate windows (which operate hydraulically for ease of opening) to ensure views are not compromised.

And this gives The Arch House a light, environmentally-friendly and sustainable feel.

The Arch House can transform with

the use of its PVC tarpaulin roof cover as an ideal advertising space for permanent imprint or temporary labelling, In addition, modular units can provide extra space for storage or even kitchen/ toilet facilities. A variety of further finishing options and accessories are available.

The set-up is fast, in fact, the assembly of The Arch House structures on the preprepared base takes from 4-6 days for the 9m structure and 7-10 days for the 12m structure. However, if it is to be installed on loose soil, extra work may be required, but all necessary foundation designs as well as any custom work can be arrange

by The Arch House team.

The company also organises the transport, with these costs and the assembly calculated based on each application.

For more information: Visit: www.thearchhouse.com E: info@thearchhouse.com P: 0422 084 359

The Arch House

could be your cellar door or entertaining venue.

• A European Product distributed in over 15 countries in Europe and Asia over past 18 years.

• First and only in Australia with exclusive rights for distribution • All seasonal product with all windows openable to give a great summer outdoor feel and closed for cooler winter days.

• Set up from Spain Riviera to the Austrian Alps with application majoring in bars, cafes, weddings, functions, product launches, sporting events, tasting/ sampling spaces, etc • Temporary structure allowing it to be moved if needed between Winter or Summer seasons.

Contact – T: 03 9372 8252 M: 0422 084 359 E: thearchhouse@gmail.com Web: www.thearchhouse.com June 2015 – Issue 617

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• Sizes available in round base shape are 9m base giving 63m2 and 12m base giving 119m2 of workable space.

• State of the art design includes wooden made arch structure with poly-carbonate windows giving it a light, environmentally friendly and sustainable feel.

• Fast set up (from as little as 5 days).

• Available for Lease or Sale. Lease starting from as low as $1950 per month.

Grapegrower & Winemaker

23

JUNE 2015

R&D work at

The benefits and costs of alternative viticulture Organic and biodynamic viticulture is good for soil, grapes and ultimately the quality of wine – but in the current environment it comes with a potential financial penalty for growers.

That is the key finding of a recently completed six-year project carried out in McLaren Vale by researchers from the University of Adelaide. It was funded by AGWA, with in-kind support from Gemtree Wines, the McLaren Vale Grape Wine & Tourism Association, Peats Soil and others.

With organic and biodynamic practices forecast to grow at more than 11% per annum, the project set out to determine its relative sustainability compared with both low-input and high-input conventional viticulture.

are frequently lower and production costs higher.

During the trial, yields for organic, biodynamic and low-input conventional viticulture were 79%, 70% and 91% respectively of the yields achieved with the high-input conventional viticulture treatment, due to weed competition for soil moisture in the undervine zone. This outcome was reflected in the gross margins analysis, which showed the organic, biodynamic and low-input conventional viticulture systems generated 74%, 65% and 91% of the financial return per hectare of the high-input conventional viticulture system.

The trial was carried out within a 10 hectare planting of 20-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon vines. Initially, it was intended to run for just three years to assess the effects of converting from conventional management to organic and biodynamic management as part of a PhD project undertaken by Luke Johnston. It was extended after changes in soil and vine parameters did not become apparent until the third year.

Higher operating costs associated with the use of tillage for under-vine weed control also contributed to this result. In this calculation there was, however, no premium applied to the prices received for organic and biodynamic fruit. Depending on region these may be up to 100%, which helps compensate for the lower yields and increased production costs. The researchers note that for some growers, other aspects of winegrape production – such as improvements to soil and wine quality – are more important than financial returns.

The final report – prepared by chief investigators Chris Penfold and Dr Cassandra Collins and collaborators Prof Petra Marschner and Assoc Prof Sue Bastian – concludes that while winegrape production is one of the easiest forms of primary production to manage organically or biodynamically, the achievable yields

In this project, sensory evaluation by a panel of local viticulturists and winemakers found significant benefits for wine quality once organic and biodynamic practices have had time to have an impact. Panellists noted little difference between wines made in 2010 (the first year wines were made from the trial) but for the following four years organic and, in

One of the trials at Gemtree Wines.

particular, biodynamic wines were consistently described as being more rich, textural, complex and vibrant than low- or high-input conventional viticulture wines.

‘These findings support anecdotal evidence from winemakers who have used this language as a reason for why they have chosen to make wine from organically and/or biodynamically managed fruit,’ the report says.

‘How wine compositional changes relate to the textural changes perceived by winemakers in the wines made from these systems is yet to be determined.’

Important in the assessment of an agricultural system’s sustainability is its impact on soil properties. In the trial, the maintenance of plant growth undervine and use of tillage rather than herbicides for weed control generated more microbial carbon and larger earthworm populations. While not impacting on vine growth, the application of compost also had desirable impacts on soil quality.

The final report is available at research.agwa.net.au.

Australian Grape and Wine Authority, Industry House cnr Botanic & Hackney Roads Adelaide SA 5000 PO Box 2733 Kent Town SA 5071 | T: 08 8228 2000 | F: 08 8228 2066 | E: research@agwa.net.au | W: www.research.agwa.net.au

LAICanopy app to help optimise vine balance The old saying about ‘the value of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts’ comes to mind when talking with Cassandra Collins and Roberta De Bei about their current AGWA research project.

With a team of colleagues from the University of Adelaide, Treasury Wine Estates and DJs Growers they are working to identify which vineyard canopy measures most accurately indicate optimal vine performance – while at the same time developing a smartphone app that will make recording those measurements commercially practical.

Both endeavours are important and valuable in their own right, but if the two come together as planned it could be a game changer in terms of the industry’s ability to measure vine canopies and manipulate them to maximise grape quality.

Dr Collins is Chief Investigator and Dr De Bei a Postdoctoral Research Fellow for the four-year multi-faceted AGWA-funded project, which is being run at the University of Adelaide’s Waite Campus and at six experimental sites in two states.

As the first of several tools being developed, a smartphone app suitable for estimating leaf area index is due for release in the middle of the year.

‘It is the first part of the toolkit we want to develop’, Dr De Bei said. ‘It looks at the structure and vigour of the canopy and allows you to calculate some measures that are used to decide if a vine is in balance or not’.

Dr De Bei and other collaborators Dr Sigfredo Fuentes and Prof Stephen Tyerman were involved with the app’s early development, which received seed funding through two previous funding programs (Wine 2030 and Vineyard of the Future).

The key is algorithms originally developed in the forestry industry that analyse a photograph you have taken and provide an estimate of the leaf area index and canopy

LAICanopy. Upward looking image of a grapevine canopy obtained using an iPad; LAICanopy home page with function tabs; image uploaded to the app and automatically binarised; instant results containing leaf area index (LAI) and canopy porosity.

porosity. However, the code is too difficult and expensive for practical use.

‘The challenge has been getting code that’s been written for complex and expensive software programs and putting it into an iPhone or iPad that is easy to use and with us every day’, Dr De Bei said. The team hopes to be able to create an Android version of the app in the near future.

While this work has been going on, others have been looking at where such a tool can be used to best effect in assessing quality in terms of vine balance through canopy measurements.

The traditional way to measure vine balance is the Y/P ratio – the relationship between yield and pruning weight – but this is rarely done in commercial settings, because it is much too time consuming. An app would overcome that problem but the Y/P measure may, in fact, not be as important as previously assumed.

Dr Collins said many other vineyard trials have thrown up confusing results with vineyards renowned for consistently producing fruit for top-quality, high-value wines being technically out of balance according to the Y/P measure.

At the same time, an AGWA-funded project being carried out by Masters student James Hook in McLaren Vale is showing a strong relationship between harvest fruit grade and the ratio of leaf area index and yield.

‘In this project, James is assessing a number of vineyards that produce fruit of varying quality and there is this lovely correlation – I didn’t expect it to be so strong’, Dr Collins said. ‘There is also a correlation between these measures and fruit colour.

‘The more we look at all of our trials, the traditional Y/P measure for vine balance doesn’t hold up and this other measure may end up being more meaningful. We are about to analyse the second year’s data and if it holds as strongly as that first year, then I think we are going to feel even more that this is the way of the future’.

Another facet of Mr Hook’s research will be to attempt to manipulate a given vineyard’s quality (for example from C grade up to B grade) by taking these measures and changing the canopy. Can it be done and, if so, at what part of the season?

‘A number of the tools we are looking to develop are around trying to measure early enough in the growing season to make a management decision to get to where you are trying to be in terms of quality or yield’, Dr Collins said.

‘The other side of this project is knowing how to use these tools. We hope we can get to the point where we can say “hey, these are all the different ways that we have been able to use them and what they mean and how you might be able to use them in your business”, rather than just saying “here’s a tool, you work it out”. I hope we’re on track to do this’.

Researcher in focus: Dr Cristian Varela Even in a country that reveres Vegemite, yeast is something of an unsung hero. We know you can’t make beer, most types of bread and wine without it – but hardly see it as central to why we enjoy the taste and diversity of all three.

differences between them. If you get a laboratory yeast strain and drop it into grape juice, it probably won’t ferment – and if it does it won’t make a nice wine. We are going to provide a yeast strain that makes good wine and compare it to the lab strains.

Those in the know however, know the full story. Yeasts are major players that can be used to create everything from biofuels to biodegradable plastic and in the winery they can make very different wines from the same grapes. They also have a lot in common with humans at the genetic level.

‘Hopefully we can find differences between the strains and perhaps explain why one is better at making wine and coping with the stressful conditions that winemaking involves’.

‘There are things you can extrapolate from the way yeast works and use that information to study the genetics of humans and more complex organisms.

There are research groups working on yeast and using that information to study humans or other organisms’, said AWRI senior research scientist Dr Cristian Varela.

Dr Varela will explore his own winebased research in a broader context when he spends four months in Canada this (northern) summer, courtesy of an Australian Government Endeavour Research Fellowship.

The University of Toronto is worldrenowned for its research into yeast genes and the interactions between those genes, in particular yeast strains. It can offer Dr Varela some serious equipment to play with and in turn they are interested in what he knows about wine yeasts.

‘They are interested in studying a real-world yeast strain, and exploring what wine yeast can do is a perfect opportunity’, he said.

‘At the University of Toronto they focus mainly on yeast strains that are used only in the lab. These yeasts can provide lots of information, but they don’t survive and don’t work very well in real-world environments.

‘Although these strains are very similar at a genetic level, there are fundamental

Dr Varela’s interest in yeast began as a student in his native Chile. After completing an undergraduate degree and Masters in biochemistry (the latter focusing on microbiology), he started his PhD looking at industrial bacteria before switching to wine yeast, a move that saw him spend time in both South Africa and France.

He was contemplating postdoctoral work in Denmark in 2004, until an AWRI advertisement caught his attention.

‘It was in wine yeast, an area I knew and enjoyed, and there was little doubt the weather would be better’, he said.

In Adelaide his work has focused on both good yeasts and bad (think Brett). In a current major project he is working with colleagues in Australia, Chile and Spain to study the ability of non-conventional yeasts to naturally produce lower-alcohol wines that are still full in flavour.

The AWRI team recently used a nonSaccharomyces strain to reduce the alcohol level of Shiraz by 1.6% – a breakthrough that made news in such publications as Scientific American. They’ve now improved that to 1.8% in both Shiraz and Chardonnay, while also dealing with an issue to do with off-flavours. Now they are working to replicate that outside the laboratory.

Much of Cristian’s other work focuses on understanding exactly how individual yeast

Dr Cristian Varela

strains behave and how they might be used.

This work will continue in his absence.

‘Some winemakers choose not to add yeast when making wine (relying instead on indigenous microorganisms on grape skins to initiate fermentation), but adding yeast is a common practice that can help to shape wine flavour and style’, he said.

‘It would be really good if, depending on the composition of the grapes or grape juice coming into the winery, we could say “with these grapes if you want to get that wine style then you should choose that yeast strain”. That would be a great tool for winemakers. But you need to link a lot of things to get to that point.

‘At the moment we are characterising lots of yeast strains – some commercially available, some isolated here in Australia, and some from overseas – to come up with a comprehensive list of what these yeasts can do in terms of flavour’.

Climate change focus in clonal trials Dr Michael McCarthy’s latest research is testing his logistical skills as much as his scientific knowledge.

As lead investigator for a major AGWAfunded project assessing clonal variability in Chardonnay and Shiraz, he has to ensure that seven trial sites across three states are picked at similar maturities and that all small lot wines are prepared using similar protocols.

That means getting fruit from the Riverland and Barossa regions, as well as Armstrong, Drumborg and Mt Langi Ghiran in Victoria, to Adelaide’s Waite Campus for processing – often at short notice. WA fruit from Margaret River and Great Southern is sent to Bunbury, where after primary fermentation it also finds its way to Waite for finishing and bottling.

The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) will then undertake sensory assessment of all wines of both varieties for three vintages (2014–16), as well as sequencing selected Shiraz clones to

establish clonal relationships and evaluate genetic diversity across clones.

The project has two aims. The first is to improve our understanding of how clones can contribute to wine style and which clones are best suited to which regions.

Dr McCarthy, Principal Scientist Viticulture with the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI), believes a lack of such knowledge is a major reason why industry uptake of different clones has been slow.

‘With the Australian wine industry seeking more complexity and regional differences in wines, there is the opportunity to demonstrate that clones may bring another level of interest in wines’, he said.

Even more importantly, the research is investigating how knowledge of clonal variability can help the industry prepare for future climate change.

‘The Australian industry is fortunate in that, due to a number of factors, vineyards have greater longevity than in a number of other

countries,’ Dr McCarthy said. ‘However, if climate change projections prove correct, vineyards planted now will experience warmer and probably drier conditions throughout their lifetime.

‘The challenge, therefore, is to know which clones should be planted now for this future. Can we use existing differences in the present climate between geographically separated sites as a surrogate for climate change and gain some insights about how clones may perform in this future climate?’

The four-year project, which began in June 2013, is evaluating clones from mature field plantings. A standard set of viticultural observations is made for all clones at each site and data loggers record canopy temperatures during the growing season.

Nearby automatic weather station data is used to describe the regional climate.

Dr McCarthy says progress to date has been ‘incredibly smooth’ due in no small part to the enthusiasm of everyone involved.

Drumborg suffered an unexpected cold snap in 2014, but all other sites were harvested and the wine processed. Sensory analysis of the Chardonnay was conducted late last year and the Shiraz early this year.

The researchers are currently working through the AWRI’s reports.

All sites were harvested this year and the 2015 wine is now being made by Michael Coode, of WIC Winemaking, at the Waite Campus and Richard Fennessy, from the WA Department of Agriculture and Food, in Bunbury.

The project’s other main collaborators are viticultural consultants Libby Tassie (SA), John Whiting (Victoria), and Dr Simon Schmidt from the AWRI.

Project team members at Voyager Estate in Margaret River last October.

Left to right: John Whiting (VIC), Richard Fennessy (WA), Liz Waters (AGWA), Mike McCarthy (SARDI) and Glynn Ward (WA). Absent: Libby Tassie (SA).

In May, two wine tastings were held in Victoria in collaboration with the AWRI. Regional tastings are planned for later in the year.

Australian Grape and Wine Authority, Industry House cnr Botanic & Hackney Roads Adelaide SA 5000 PO Box 2733 Kent Town SA 5071 | T: 08 8228 2000 | F: 08 8228 2066 | E: research@agwa.net.au | W: www.research.agwa.net.au

news New survey to combine pricing and crush data collection AUSTRALIAN wine producers are set to save valuable time this year with the introduction of a combined Wine Sector Survey to streamline the annual collection of data across the wine community.

The Wine Sector Survey 2015 will combine the annual data collected by the Australian Grape and Wine Authority (AGWA) Price Dispersion Survey, the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia Vintage Survey, the South Australian Crush Survey and the Murray-Darling / Swan Hill Wine Grape Crush Report.

Andreas Clark, AGWA chief executive officer, said the move should help lighten to load on wineries this year.

“We’re extremely pleased to work

together to improve the collection of data across the sector,” he said.

“AGWA is collecting the information on behalf of all participating organisations and we are broadening the survey to all wineries so that we can calculate accurate production figures by region and variety.”

Paul Evans, Winemakers’ Federation of Australia (WFA) chief executive, said the survey would help deliver a WFA Action Plan recommendation giving grapegrowers and wine producers access to better data to base their decision making.

“To track progress in the industry we need robust data so producers can consider adjustments ahead of next

vintage and take action where necessary,” Evans said.

According to both Brian Smedley, South Australian Wine Industry Association chief executive, and Peter Hackworth, Wine Grape Council of South Australia executive officer, moving the South Australian Crush Survey into the Wine Sector Survey means local grape and wine producers only need to provide their information once, saving time and reducing paperwork.

Mike Stone, Murray Valley Winegrowers executive officer, said the collaboration is the first step in building a relationship on data collection that will provide growers with an improved barometer of industry performance.

Yellow Tail reaches UK milestone YELLOW Tail is the fastest growing wine in the UK, according to Casella Family Brands, and has already sold more than a million cases (12 million 750ml bottles) throughout the 2014-15 financial year.

John Casella, Casella Family Brands managing director, said the UK was the second largest market for Yellow Tail, by volume. Casella’s marketing team

has worked closely with the Percy Fox & Co to build the brand during a tough economic environment, according to John Casella, who said there was a focus on growing awareness and brand affinity for Yellow Tail] amongst consumers and retailers alike. “We are grateful to our distributor partner, Percy Fox & Co, and our customers, for all their effort and commitment in helping us reach this

milestone and we are very excited about what the future holds for the brand,” John Casella said.

John said, when it came to Yellow Tail, the aim is to provide consumers with a quality product at a low price.

“We never compromise on the quality or style of the wine and I believe that’s why Yellow Tail remains so popular amongst consumers worldwide.”

National workplace relations laws need to change, SAWIA chief A SUBMISSION from the wine industry to the Productivity Commission’s national workplace relations review has highlighted the need for comprehensive reforms to the federal workplace relations laws.

The detailed submission prepared by the South Australian Wine Industry Association (SAWIA) in collaboration with the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia (WFA) contains 22 recommendations.

“We have identified a range of changes that need to be made to get flexibility and balance back into the system, lift productivity and cut red-tape and compliance costs, particularly for many of the small businesses in the wine industry,” Brian Smedley, SAWIA chief executive, said. “For example awards are still complex, inflexible and overly

prescriptive despite numerous reforms to the award system over the last three decades.”

Smedley said a new approach is required and the award system should be largely replaced by clear legislated minimum standards.

“We need legislative changes that support employers implementing smarter, more efficient and productive work practices,” he said. “Enterprise agreements should ref lect core employment conditions and not be used as a vehicle to ban the use of contractors, casual employees or labour hire staff – a supplementary workforce is an essential part of the modern workplace.”

Employers and employees should be allowed to agree to individualised working arrangements that are stable, meaningful and mutually beneficial,

according to Smedley.

“Therefore the Individual Flexibility Agreements (IFAs) must be given wider scope to work as intended.”

Smedley said the wine industry also needs a system that caters for seasonal fluctuations.

“For example, vintage is dictated by weather conditions and as such days and nights of the week have no real meaning if grapes need to be picked in the coolness of the evening or pressed on a weekend,” Smedley said. “For cellar doors, weekends and public holidays are the peak periods for tourists. Yet, the award system penalises the industry for weekend and public holiday work, requiring penalty rates of up to 250 per cent per hour.”

To view the full submission, go to www.pc.gov.au and follow links.

Wine industry leaders’ meeting to focus on action A WINE industry leaders’ forum held in August will unite industry bodies to discuss key issues and offer solutions.

With two main objectives, ‘Grape and Wine 2015 - A Focus for Action’, will look for ways to accelerate return to profitability and reach agreement on an

28 Grapegrower & Winemaker

optimal future representative industry structure to maximise resources and influence.

Grape & Wine 2015 will be held in Adelaide at the National Wine Centre and attended by approximately 40 national, state and nominated regional industry www.winebiz.com.au

organisations to enable open discussion and achieve meaningful outcomes.

An independent consultant will help facilitate the event and carry out work to identify key issues facing industry and what can be done to improve alignment and collaboration.

June 2015 – Issue 617

T

he WineTech2015 Trade Show will showcase the full spectrum of products and services across the entire value chain of the wine industry. It provides a one-stop-shop to see, hear, touch, feel, and learn about the innovative and proven products and services that can help our industry prosper. WineTech is the premier wine industry supplier trade show and has a proven history of providing a platform for the latest innovations to be showcased alongside recognised brands and technologies in the one easy to attend location.

WineTech attracts key decision makers who are seeking opportunities to increase efficiencies and improve quality and profitability.

It is a destination for industry to gather, network and find solutions to challenges they face on a daily basis.

WineTech is a required destination of those in industry that wish to remain one step ahead of their competition and to drive profitability and growth within their business.

Get motivated to attend WineTech2015 Recently announced tax breaks for small businesses look set to attract investment at WineTech2015. Businesses with a turnover of less than $2million can now claim a tax deduction on capital purchases for business assets of up to $20,000.

Matthew Moate, Wine Industry Suppliers Association (WISA) executive officer, said the tax incentive could be “a major new driver of investment in plant and equipment supporting the wine sector and it is a very welcome development in the lead-up to WineTech2015.”

“It will certainly encourage grapegrowers and winemakers – indeed participants along the entire supply chain – to attend the event to consider purchases of latest products and technologies,” Moate said.

“The $20,000 tax incentive is just the boost we needed to raise confidence in the industry and it will translate into new investment and turnover that will benefit business owners and the economy in general.”

This comes on top of a survey of Grapegrower & Winemaker subscribers that found more than 40 per cent of the readers were planning to make a capital purchase within the next 12 months. An additional 20 percent were undecided, but it is worth noting the answers were provided before the tax incentives were announced.

The survey also asked what equipment was on the shopping list. The top three winery items on the list were tanks, pumps and filtration equipment. More than 55% of those surveyed indicated they would be

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looking to purchase tanks within the next 12 months. The top vineyard items on the list included irrigation and spaying equipment as well as tractors. In fact, more than 23% of those surveyed indicated they would be purchasing a tractor.

All this suggests that grapegrowers and winemakers are set to benefit from the timing and the range of exhibitors at WineTech2015. More than 150 suppliers will be on show at the wine industry’s flagship trade show hosted by WISA in Adelaide from July 14-16.

Both Australian and international suppliers are preparing to showcase products and technologies designed to enhance the operational capacity of businesses across the wine sector.

“WineTech2015 will be a timely opportunity for participants in the wine sector to keep abreast of innovation, and to discuss latest products and developments with industry leaders,” Moate said.

“There has not been a better opportunity to look, learn and buy from a floor show with a direct operational focus.”

The event will be held at the Adelaide Showground, and will be supported by the Australian Grape and Wine Authority (AGWA), Winemakers’ Federation of Australia (WFA), Wine Grape Growers Australia (WGGA) and Wine Communicators of Australia (WCA).

In addition to supplier presentations, WineTech2015 will also offer a seminar program to tackle a range of topics, including: • W hat can we learn from our allies in industry – food, beverage and agriculture? Are there solutions and inspiration in their stories and experiences not yet considered?

32 Grapegrower & Winemaker

• Why it pays to create a memorable cellar door experience and how to achieve it; • Wine Retail – The digital space; • Influencing purchasing intent through social media and storytelling; • Future generation providing insights into how the industry can assess its needs now and into the future; and • Support for export and investment with Korea and Japan through free trade agreements.

(For more information about the seminar program, turn to pages 56 and 57) In this WineTech2015 preview we have listed every exhibitor, which will help you plan your event experience. While everybody who attends will look to make the most of their time on the trade show floor and participate in other seminars and discussions that are relevant to them, it is worth remembering there are also a few social and networking events to book tickets for, including: • The Industry Breakfast on July 14, starting from 7.45am; • The Yeastie Boys concert from 8.30pm on July 14 at The Gov (59 Port Road, Hindmarsh); and • The Industry Fundraising Luncheon on July 16 from 11.30am to 2.30pm.

Everything you need to plan for, and get the most from, WineTech2015 can be found at www.winetechaustralia.com.au. Here you can find information about the venue, including the exhibition floor map; options for commuting to the venue via tram and taxi; and accommodation offers through Accor Hotels.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

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Hub for networking and developing ideas WINETECH 2015 in Adelaide in July will provide a dynamic forum for stakeholders in the Australian grape and wine sectors to engage directly and share ideas with peak industry bodies.

An interactive industry hub will include senior representatives of the Australian Grape and Wine Authority, Wine Grape Growers Australia, Winemakers’ Federation of Australia and Wine Communicators of Australia.

WineTech2015, the nation’s premier wine industry trade exhibition, will be presented at the Adelaide Showground from 14 to 16 July by Wine Industry Suppliers Australia (WISA).

The event will create a compelling platform for knowledge sharing and the exchange of concepts that will shape the future of the industry as it faces mounting domestic and international marketing and sales challenges.

“WineTech is our major trade exhibition that brings together key decision makers in the industry, but we have built in an associated seminar and workshop program that will keep all participants abreast of latest developments domestically and overseas,” said Matthew Moate, WISA executive officer. “WineTech2015 offers a unique opportunity for growers, winemakers and suppliers to discuss key issues directly with the peak industry organisations.

“The industry hub in particular will be a powerful forum to share knowledge and sharpen the focus on new technologies, techniques and opportunities to maximise the potential of our sector.

“With growing global recognition of the quality and value of our wines, there is huge potential to build demand, particularly in the key international markets of the United States, United Kingdom and China.

“To improve market access overseas and to promote domestic sales and wine tourism, we need to identify new funding sources and bold marketing directions.

“WineTech2015 will attract industry professionals from all fields, including growers, general and operational managers, winemakers, marketing, human resources and sales leaders.

“Through collaboration within the industry hub and the seminar and workshop program, WineTech represents a landmark event that can take our sector to exciting new levels.”

Paul Evans, Chief Executive of the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia, said WineTech2015 will present opportunities for delegates, sponsors and industry supporters to “roll up their sleeves, network, share and develop ideas”.

“We all share a desire to see Australian vineyards and wineries, and their rich and diverse offerings, continue to be enjoyed responsibly by people across our country and around the world,” said Evans.

Andreas Clark, Australian Grape and Wine Authority chief executive, said he was supportive of this industry and thanked WISA for the “opportunity to work collaboratively with them in developing an industry hub, along with seminars and presentations, to aid in sharing knowledge”.

Lawrie Stanford, Wine Grape Growers Australia executive director said he supported the “whole-of-value chain nature of WineTech 2015 and the networking opportunities that such events create, and the contribution to innovation that is required in the wine sector”.

Angus Barnes, Wine Communicators of Australia chairman, pointed out that WineTech is a valued and critically important wine industry event.

“It puts our members in the same room as suppliers whose products and support assist the industry to innovate, improve product quality and create a more sustainable and profitable future for the sector,” Barnes said.

WineTech is an initiative of Wine Industry Suppliers Australia Inc (WISA). As a not for profit independent membership association, WISA provides benefits to members focussing on recognition, promotion, education and advocacy. WISA represents and supports suppliers that operate anywhere along the wine industry value chain.

08 8240 3333 winesolution@coldlogic.com.au www.coldlogic.com.au

Design - Install - Preventative Maintenance - Service 34 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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June 2015 – Issue 617

3627QM_272x90_GGWM 2015-04-22T10:54:22+10:00

3M Purification Pty Limited 140 Sunnyholt Road, Blacktown NSW 2148 www.3mpurification.com.au P: +61 2 8825 3538 E: p.mcnicholas@mmm.com

Stand 104

3M Purification is recognised as a long standing supplier of filtration products to winemakers and bottling lines alike. With a sales team in every mainland state supported by a strong technical team, 3M Purification provide a level of service second-to-none in the filtration market. 3M Purification take a systems approach to helping winemakers optimise their filtration. The company works with the winemaker to design an optimum system for clarification, pre-filtration and final filtration.

A&G Engineering Pty Ltd 23 - 25 Lenehan Road, Griffith NSW 2680 P: +61 2 6964 3422 www.agengineering.com.au

QUANTUM MIST ™ THE TOP PERFORMER IN GRAPES

Stand 14

AB Mauri 15 Grand Avenue Camellia NSW 2142 P: 02 9888 0249 www.maurivin.com

Stand 166

ABEVE 10 Harbourne Street, Macleod VIC 3085 P: 1300 768 976 www.abeve.com.au

Stand 149

AEB Oceania Pty Ltd 113 Hanwood Avenue, Hanwood NSW 2680 P: 1300 704 971 www.aeb-group.com

Stand 195

AIM Scientific 274 Prospect Road Prospect SA 5082 P: +61 8 8342 5870 www.aimscientific.com.au

Stand 185

Amorim Australasia Pty Ltd Stand 188 44-46 Tikalara Street, Regency Park SA 5010 P: +61 8 8340 9033 www.amorimcork.com.au

Don’t take any chances with your grapes – the Quantum Mist is unmatched in coverage for viticulture application worldwide. More growers are discovering the financial and time saving benefits gained from the Quantum Mist’s ability to spray large areas precisely, at faster travel speeds, all while using less energy. With its high volume, turbulent, directional air – the proof is in the harvest.

Visit Croplands at WineTech 2015 on site 226 Freecall 1800 999 162 Freefax 1800 623 778 Email sales@croplands.com.au www.croplands.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

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Apal Agricultural Laboratory 489 The Parade, Magill SA 5072 P: +61 8 8332 0199 www.apal.com.au AMSL Scientific 2 McCabe Place, Chatswood NSW 2067 www.amsl.com.au P: +61 2 9496 1414 E: amsl@amsl.com.au

Stand 39

Stand 122 AusIndustry - Entrepreneur Development Level 4, 341 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000 P: 13 28 46

AMSL Scientific provides wine quality assurance solutions to winemakers and laboratories. Their products offer faster and more convenient results compared to conventional methods. The company can save you time and money as well as help prevent contamination and recalls. Come and see AMSL Scientific to talk about same-day Brettanomyces tests, suitable for labs and wineries of all sizes; next-day sterility confirmation tests of filtered or finished product; same-day allergen detection tests in product or on equipment; real-time hygiene monitoring tests to confirm cleaning effectiveness as well as sample collection and processing products.

Australia Trade Tasting (Beverage Trade Network) Level 1, 20 Queens St, Melbourne VIC 3000 P: +61 450 856 094 www.australiatradetasting.com

Stand 209

Stand 80

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36 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Australian Grape and Wine Authority PO Box 2733, Kent Town SA 5071 P: +61 8 8228 2000 www.agwa.net.au

Australian & New Zealand Winemakers Stand 118 24-26 National Boulevard, Campbellfield VIC 3061 www.ausnzwinemakers.com P: +61 3 9924 4060 E: info@ausnzwinemakers.com Since 1966, Australian & New Zealand Winemakers have been committed to working with customers to achieve their goals.

With a team of highly skilled engineers, technicians, winemakers, advisors and spare parts specialists, Australian & New Zealand Winemakers provide innovative, quality and complete winemaking equipment solutions to large and small wineries. Their extensive and exclusive range includes: tanks, oak products, bottling lines, amphorae, crushers/destemmers, ceramic eggs, presses, filtration, distilling equipment, cider equipment, sorting lines and a wide assortment of accessories from pumps to plungers. The company also offers industry leading back-up and support, with personnel based in both South Australia and Victoria.

Stand 90

Australian Tartaric Products 33 Madden Ave Mildura, VIC 3500 P: +61 3 5029 1450 www.australiantartaric.com.au

Stand 183

AustSafe Super 45 Gurwood St, Wagga Wagga NSW 2650 P: +61 400 979 942 www.austsafe.com.au

Stand 221

Ausvat 7 Waye Court, Willunga SA 5172 P: +61 8 8557 1022 www.ausvat.com

Stand 124

Ausvine Machinery Pty Ltd Stand 138A 560 Harmans Mill Road, Busselton WA 6280 P: +61 427 663 330 www.collardaustralia.com

Innovation in Food & Beverage Machinery At Directus we have a global knowledge when it comes to the food and beverage industry, and over 30 years of experience backing us. With offices around the Asia-Pacific Rim in China, the USA, Australia and New Zealand, we supply ingredients and finished products to numerous great companies around the world. We also have the ability to provide process and pack technologies, along with product innovation and development.

Process Pack Optical Sorting Centrifuges Decanters Waste Water Bio Digesters

Directus International: Ph: +64 9 309 7783 | sales@directus.co.nz | www.directus.co.nz Directus Australia: Ph: +61 2 9844 2100 | sales@directus.com.au | www.directus.com.au June 2015 – Issue 617

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BA Group Australia Stand 138 13-14 Hume Reserve Court, North Geelong VIC 3220 P: 03 5278 9033 www.bertolini.co.nz Bedford Phoenix 615 Goodwood Road Panorama SA 5041 P: 08 8275 0211 www.bedfordgroup.com.au

Stand 141

Bibber International 1138a South Road, Clovelly Park SA 5042 P: +61 8 8374 0077 www.bibber.com.au

Stand 164

BOC Ltd P: 131 262 www.boc.com.au Bronson & Jacobs www.bronsonandjacobs.com.au Burkert Fluid Control Systems 15 Columbia Way, Norwest Business Park, Baulkham Hills NSW 2153 P:1300 888 868 www.burkert.com.au

Stand 58

Stand 194A

Stand 119

Buschutz Engineering Pty Ltd PO Box 49, Eudunda SA 5374 www.buschutz.com.au P: +61 8 8581 1073 E: buschutz@buschutz.com.au

Stand 36

Buschutz Engineering Pty Ltd, although located in the regional area of Eudunda South Australia, has become a significant manufacturer of small to large storage, dewatering and condensate oil and fuel tanks Australia-wide. The company has introduced their “Best-Vessels™” (Buschutz Engineering Storage Transportable –Vessels) range of stainless steel Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBC’s). These products are made in Australia under licence from their experienced American partners, Custom Metalcraft. As a new comer into the wine industry with their wine fermentation tanks, Buschutz Engineering view the upcoming wine exhibition in Adelaide as a unique opportunity to broaden their knowledge of all facets of the wine industry.

C.E. Bartlett Pty Ltd PO Box 49, Wendouree VIC 3355 P: +61 8 8568 8800 www.bartlett.net.au

Stand 44

CCL Label International 19 Railway Terrace, Nuriootpa SA 5355 P: +61 8 8562 1300 www.ccllabel.com

Stand 172

Chr. Hansen Pty Ltd PO BOX 591, Bayswater VIC 3153 P: 03 9762 9600

Stand 175

Clemens technologies Australia 33 Milnes Rd Strathalbyn SA 5255 P: 08 85363733

www.chr-hansen.com Stand 189 www.Clemens.com.au

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Cold Logic 24 Francis Street, Port Adelaide SA 5015 3 Adina Court, Tullamarine, VIC 3043 www.coldlogic.com.au P: +61 8 8240 3333 E: solutions@coldlogic.com.au

Stand 40

Cold Logic has a proud 30-year history of providing the best refrigeration solutions to the Australian market through leading design and engineering. The company designs equipment to promote longevity and system efficiency, while still being conscious of operating costs. Whether it be a Freon (HFC) refrigeration plant, an environmentally friendly ammonia (NH3) plant or CO2 system, Cold Logic has the ability to design and engineer a solution that will ultimately give consumers the desired results in a cost effective manner.

Collotype Labels Adelaide – Barossa – Griffith P: 08 8405 0500 www.collotype.com.au

Stand 240

Columbit Australia 3/38 Morley Ave, Roseberry NSW 2018 P: +61 2 9700 7666 www.columbit.com.au

Stand 192

Costa Enterprises 22-24 Kinkaid Avenue, North Plympton SA 5037 P: +61 8 8295 8920 www.costaenterprises.com.au

Croplands Equipment 50 Cavan Road, Dry Creek SA 5094 www.croplands.com.au P: +61 8 8359 9300 E: sales@croplands.com.au

Stand 07

Della Toffola Pacific Stand 116 24-26 National Boulevard, Campbellfield VIC 3061 www.dtpacific.com P: +61 3 9924 4000 E: info@dtpacific.com Della Toffola Pacific was launched in early 2010 to focus on the Australian, New Zealand and emerging Asian markets. Serving both large and small wineries, Della Toffola has over 40 years of experience in winemaking and stainless steel processing.

Their extensive product range includes crushers/destemmers, pumps, presses, flotation systems, filters, storage, stabilisation, refrigeration and fermentation equipment, as well as complete turnkey solutions. With an emphasis on innovation, Della Toffola has developed exclusive and unique technologies to make the winemaking process more efficient and environmentally friendly. All equipment is backed by expert local technical and engineering support with a wide range of spare parts available.

Stand 42 Deltagen Australia Pty Ltd 14 Pacific Place Kilsyth VIC 3137 www.deltagen.com.au P: 03 9728 3038 E: info@deltagen.com.au

Stand 226

Croplands Equipment was established in 1972 and is one of Australia and New Zealand’s leading manufacturers of spraying equipment for viticulture. In 2002, together with the South Australia Research and Development Institute, Croplands designed the revolutionary fan for the Quantum Mist grape sprayer. The unique five-blade, one-piece concept remains unmatched for coverage in viticulture application across the world. The Quantum Mist technology has transformed the way vineyards are now sprayed and earned Croplands the 2009 Innovation Award from Wine Industry Suppliers Australia Inc.

June 2015 – Issue 617

cru.io Rear 229 Chapel Street, Prahran VIC 3181 P: +61 3 9013 5169 http://cru.io/

Stand 151

Deltagen Australia has been servicing the wine industry for over 20 years and are agents for Megayme rapid enzymatic wine analysis kits and complimentary AwareTech wine analysers.

Enzymatic bio-analysis plays a vital role throughout the whole of the winemaking process and Megazyme has in excess of 20 analytical kits suited for manual and automated analysis.

Deltagen also formulates specific Pectinase and Cellulase liquid enzymes in their Melbourne facility. The company import enhanced stability, powdered enzymes from their sister company Biocon Espanol. Deltagen have supply flavours and colours for RTD’s and other formulated beverages available.

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Directus Group Suite 2, Level 1, Heards/ 168 Parnell Road, Parnell Auckland 1052 www.directus.co.nz P: +64 9309 7382 E: corporate@directus.co.nz

DO Consulting P: +61 417 803 963 www.doconsulting.com.au

Stand 11

Dominant Australia 12 Coglin Street, Brompton SA 5007 www.domchem.com P: +61 8 8245 6900 E: enquiry@dominant.com.au

Stand 43

Stand 82

Directus have global knowledge when it comes to the food and beverage industry, with more than 30 years of experience.

With offices in China, USA, Australia and New Zealand, Directus supply ingredients and finished products to great companies worldwide. They also have the ability to provide process and pack technologies, along with product innovation and development. Stop by Directus to see their process, pack, sorting, centrifuges, decanters, waste water and bio digester machinery. Directus are proud to represent Pieralisi, Claber, Raytec, Paver and CFT in Australia and New Zealand.

Commencing business in 1958 as a manufacturer of commercial cleaning and sanitation products, Dominant has grown to be recognised as a leader and innovator in food and beverage safety, with an enviable reputation for quality products and service. With a focus on cleaning and sanitation standards, procedures, systems and training, Dominant is experienced in quality hygiene solutions, validation systems and full reporting processes required to achieve food and beverage safety standards. Dominant is equipped with a full research and development facility onsite allowing continuous product improvement and outstanding service for customers with specific cleaning and hygiene needs.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Dominant also has an ongoing commitment to quality products and services and is Quality Certified to ISO9001:2008 and Codex HACCP Food Safety Certified.

DW Fox Tucker Lawyers L14, 100 King William Street, Adelaide SA 5000 P: 08 8124 1811 www.dwfoxtucker.com.au

Eclipse Enterprises (Australia) Pty Ltd 1 Marlow Road, Keswick SA 5035 www.eclipseenterprises.com.au P: +61 8 8351 8611 E: info@eclipseenterprises.com.au

Stand 22

Stand 47

Stand 246

Eclipse Enterprises (Australia) Pty Ltd has been an importer, wholesaler and distributor of professional viticultural equipment for more than 30 years. Their brands and partners include Campagnola srl, who pioneered pneumatic secateurs and loppers and SIMES/Agrifast, who are well known for their fastening equipment when it comes to vine training/tying and also offer an excellent solutions to attaching irrigation hose to the wire. Additionally, the company represents US brand Barnet International who have a range of picking snips, saws and roll handle secateurs and Falket with their excellent grafting knives and compound action manual loppers.

June 2015 – Issue 617

ECO TRELLIS ÂŽ 2-14 Port Road Seaview, Lower Hutt Wellington 2010 NEW ZEALAND T: +64 4 576 1800 www.ecotrellis.com Enartis Pacific Pty Ltd www.enartis.com

Stand 150

Enoltech 90 Wedgewood Rd, Hallam VIC 3803 P: +61 3 8786 4300 www.enoltech.com.au

Stand 211

Enomatic Australia Ltd T: 1800 130 395 E: info@enomatic.com.au

Stand 38

Enoplastic 57c Kensington Road, Norwood SA 5067 P: +61 8 8331 1700 www.enoplastic.com

Stand 236

Ezy Systems 17 Hopetoun Street, Bendigo VIC 3550 P: +61 3 5441 2044 www.ezysys.com.au

Stand 224

EXBANOR ZI de Beuvillers, LISIEUX 14100 France P: +33 231 485 752 www.exbanor.com

Stand 202B

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GEA Westfalia Separator Australia Pty Ltd

No. 1 Wine Centrifuge

F. Miller & Co 28-34 Neptune Terrace, Ottoway SA 5013 P: 08 8245 2100 www.fmiller.com.au

Stand 71

Felco Australia Pty Ltd 23 Manton Road, Oakleigh South VIC 3167 P: +61 3 9544 6976 www.felco.com.au

Stand 184

Fermentis/Springer Oenologie® PO Box 558 Busselton WA 6280 P: 08 9755 0500 www.portavin.com.au

Stand: 244

Flexcube - the new cooperage 1 / 26 Grosvenor Street, Abbotsford VIC 3067 P: +61 3 9428 5842 www.flexcubegroup.com

Stand 100

FMR Group Ltd 53 Oborn Road Mount Barker 5251 Australia T: 1800 269 773 E: info@fmrgroup.net.au www.fmrgroup.net.au

Stand 49

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GEA Mechanical Equipment GEA Westfalia Separator Australia Pty Ltd 47 Northgate Drive, Thomastown, Victoria 3074 Phone: 03 8877 9924, Fax: 03 9464 5455 Mobile: 0408 322 524 Email: kevin.dawe@gea.com, www.gea.com

FMR is an Australasian importer, manufacturer and distributor of vineyard management equipment based in South Australia’s Mount Barker and Marlborough in New Zealand. FMR represent some of the world’s best-known equipment brands, and develop their own technology in-house to meet the more specific and often unique requirements of viticulture in Australasia. FMR have a range of leading viticulture equipment on display at WineTech 2015.

FOSS 5 / 3-4 Anzed Ct, Mulgrave VIC 3170 P: +61 3 9565 5516 www.foss.com.au

Stand 169

engineering for a better world

42 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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June 2015 – Issue 617

GEA Westfalia Separator Australia Pty Ltd 47 Northgate Drive, Thomastown VIC 3074 www.gea.com P: +61 3 8877 9999 E: sales.au@gea.com

Gorilla Products Australia PO Box 22, Mt Gambier SA 5290 P: 1300 548 743 www.gorillaproducts.com.au

Stand 75

Stand 142

GEA Westfalia Separator is a global technology leader in the manufacturing of high-performance centrifuges to the food and beverage industry with more than 100 years of experience.

GEA Westfalia Separator is a market leader in the wine industry and supply’s centrifuges for juice, wine and sparkling wine clarification as well as lees processing and a special process for tartrate stabilisation. Sustainable success is the best basis for long term co-operation; this is why GEA Westfalia Separator are consistently working on innovative solutions to strengthen their competitive edge. This approach has made the company a global technology leader in mechanical separation technology.

Grapeworks 18/260 Wickham Road, Highett VIC 3190 www.grapeworks.com.au P: +61 3 9555 5500 E: info@grapeworks.com.au

Stand 125

Grapeworks’ product range includes winemaking yeast and ingredients, cleaning chemicals, Pall filters and housings, packaging consumables, Cellastac bottle storage, Europress and grape handling equipment. The company also offer machinery and equipment for still and sparkling wine production and bottling, including beverages such as cider, beer, juice and water.

Grapeworks’ mission is to provide excellent service, together with innovative and premium quality products and equipment to add value to customers business now and into the future.

Storage - Fermentation Stainless and Mild Steel Fabrication

TANKS & CATWALKS Jury Road, Berri SA. Ph 08 8582 9500 Ivan 0429 697 219 Mark 0408 822 434 jma@jmaeng.com.au www.jmaeng.com.au

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June 2015 – Issue 617

VITICULTURE. IT’S ALL WE DO.

PRUNE BACK YOUR VINES ...

AND YOUR COSTS! WITH OUR

BARREL PRUNERS

ERO BARREL PRUNER VSL HD ¥

New XHD mast system with side shift, width & height adjust

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High speed saws, mounted on their own independent suspension system which allows them to closely follow the cordon & provide a clean box cut result

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Breakaway system to protect the machine from damage in event of impact

¥

Heavy duty 1.1m reciprocating side cutters available instead of side saws

ERO BARREL PRUNER VSL 07P ¥

Quick and clean cutting action for efficient and effective results

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Modular design allows Barrel Pruner to be customised to your requirements

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Simple to operate

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Floating head and Parallelogram linkage for contour following

THE ERO BARREL PRUNER - PREMIUM QUALITY GERMAN ENGINEERING TOGETHER WITH INNOVATIVE CUSTOMISATION FOR THE NEEDS OF AUSTRALIAN GRAPEGROWER. VISIT US AT WINETECH - 14TH TO 16TH OF JULY 2015 - IN ADELAIDE. AUSTRALIA: 1800 269 773 OR VISIT WWW.FMRGROUP.NET.AU | NEW ZEALAND: 0800 367 583 OR VISIT WWW.FMRGROUP.CO.NZ

GreenTech 108-112 Wing Street, Wingfield SA 5013 P: +61 8 8359 5362 www.greentechspraysystem.com

Stand 159

Hangzhou Cobetter Filtration Equipment Co. LTD Stand 178 16/F, Longhe International Building, No.1961, Jianghui Road Binjiang District Hangzhou 310052 CHINA P: 86-571-87704295 www.cobetterfilter.com Hanna Instruments 18 Fiveways Boulevard, Keysborough VIC 3173 P: 03 9769 0666 www.hannainst.com.au

Stand 148

Hoshizaki Lancer 5 Toogood Avenue, Beverley SA 5009 P: +61 8 8268 1388 www.lancerbeverage.com

Stand 179

Hunter Express 344 Findon Rd, Kidman Park SA 5025 P: +61 8 8219 8900 www.hunterexpress.com.au

46 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Stand 143

IMCD Australia Ltd 1st Floor, 372 Wellington Road, Mulgrave VIC 3170 P: 1300 655 328 www.imcdgroup.com

Stand 25

Ingenia Level 1, 527 Glynburn Road, Hazelwood Park SA 5066 P: 08 7221 9970 www.ingenia.com.au

Stand 10

Inspection Systems Pty Ltd 273 Holt Parade, Thomastown VIC 3074 P: 1800 354 302 www.inspectionsystems.com.au

Stand 140

Insul-Dri Systems Pty Ltd 65-67 Sheehan Road, Heidelberg West VIC 3016 P: 1300 664 271 www.insuldrisystems.com.au

Stand 225

International Mowers 22 Hidrive Close, Dandenong VIC 3175 P: 03 9799 9511 www.intmowers.com.au

Stand 191

www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

Elegant protection.

Nature so often gets it right - the perfect combination of function and design.

That’s our goal too.

At Interpack we protect your precious wines and brews with beautifully crafted screwcaps and crowns. We promise you more choice with greater efficiency.

To find out what we can do for you, visit interpack.net.au

The Interpack design and manufacturing process utilises state-of-the-art technology to create, decorate, inspect and pack to a new standard of excellence.

Our unique systems have been designed for complete plant optimisation. This allows for flexibility from short to long runs, including multiple top and side printing and embossing.

Australian Owned. Australian Made.

Interpack 1-11 Carson Road, Deer Park VIC 3023 www.interpack.net.au P: 03 8358 4444

Stand 117

Interpack manufacture, print and emboss a range of products including metal closures for wine bottles, crown caps for beer and printing for cans. Their state-of-the-art Melbourne complex has been designed as a technical hub and a global centre of excellence with substantial international alliances. It boasts steel mills, aluminium sheet suppliers, liner manufacturers as well as ink and coating companies. The facility can resource all possible customer needs, yet remains sustainable, efficient and flexible, offering better products at less cost.

JMA Engineering PO Box 452, Berri SA 5343 www.jmaeng.com.au P: +61 8 8582 9500 E: mark@jmaeng.com.au

Stand 84

JMA Engineering is a national company based in Berri South Australia. For more than 30 years JMA Engineering has specialised in the supplying stainless steel wine, fermentation and liquid storage vessels to all states of Australia. To complement the stainless division, JMA has a mild steel structural and construction division that manufacture pre formed concrete panels delivered and installed by their cranes and a wide load trailers. They specialise in large buildings, sheds and barrel stores. JMA Engineering’s WineTech stand will highlight the diverse range of fermentation options manufactured by the company, including static, open top, sweep arm discharge and the interesting commercial sized ‘Egg’.

Inter-row mulching Organic and efficient.

Machine outrigger width adjustable to your needs.

*

* Contact us for your closest dealer International Mowers Pty Ltd Ph 03 9799 9511 sales@intmowers.com.au www.intmowers.com.au

* Touch sensitive retracing outriggers. * Cultivator heads available.

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* June 2015 – Issue 617

KHS Pacific 1-3 Freight Road, Tullamarine VIC 3043 P: 03 9335 1211 www.khs.com

Stand 198

Mettler-Toledo Limited PO Box 173, Port Melbourne VIC 3207 P: 03 9644 5700 www.mt.com

Stand 120

MGA Insurance Brokers 206 Main North Road, Clare SA 5453 www.mga.com P: +61 8 8841 4200

Stand 176

KLIMA Stand 28 PO Box 381 Blenheim Marlborough 7201 NEW ZEALAND P: 03 3577 5982 www.klima.co.nz Labware Level 1, 1013 Whitehorse Road, Box Hill VIC 3128 P: +61 3 9490 7744 www.labware.com

Stand 168

Linde Material Handling Pty. Ltd. 6 Berger Road, Wingfield SA 5013 P: +61 8 8360 2900 www.lindemh.com.au

Stand 78

MEA 41 Vine Street Magill SA 5072 T: 08 8332 9044 www.mea.com.au

Stand 29

Measurement Engineering Australia 41 Vine Street, Magill SA 5072 P: +61 8 8332 9044 www.mea.com.au

Stand 29

MEP Instruments Pty Ltd PO Box 2173, Boronia Park NSW 2111 P: +61 2 8899 5205 www.mep-instruments.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

MGA Insurance Brokers have a strong affiliation with the wine industry, dating back to 1978, when an office was opened in the Clare Valley. Since then, MGA has grown to 35 branches across Australia, with experience in sourcing and placing insurance covers for growers, wineries and suppliers to the industry. Being local is a huge advantage to MGA, allowing them to assess the risks that are unique to each area while remaining available to clients should they need assistance. MGA pride themselves on delivering quality products to their clients in the most cost effective manner available.

NOV Mono 75 Frankston Gardens Drive, Carrum Downs VIC 3201 P: 1800 333 138www.monopumps.com.au

Stand 61

Ocloc - Vineyard Post Repair System PO Box 1021, Aldinga Beach SA 5173 P: +61 424 112 120 www.ocloc.com.au

Stand 19

Stand 223

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

49

Oomiak Refrigeration 97 Harrison Road, Dudley Park SA 5008 www.oomiak.com.au P: 1300 731 699 E: customerservice@oomiak.com.au

Stand 30

Oomiak Refrigeration is a national leader in industrial refrigeration.

A full service provider in industrial refrigeration, Oomiak offer tailored design and professional engineering as well as installation and ongoing maintenance. Oomiak’s technicians and engineers are hand-picked and have spent many years specialising in the sector. They operate from Oomiak’s fully-equipped workshops, and are qualified to work with freon, ammonia and secondary refrigerant systems and major equipment brands. Oomiak has teams in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Mildura, Perth and Rockhampton and works with customers throughout Australia and Asia. Oomiak are experienced with refrigeration in the winery industry and as a result the company works with wineries on large and small projects.

50 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Pall Corporation 1-2 Wandarri Circuit, Cheltenham VIC 3192 P: +61 3 9584 8100 www.pall.com

Stand 01

Parcel Nest Australia Pty Ltd 26 Haig St, Netherby SA 5062 P: +61 430 308 963 WWW.parcelnest.com.au

Stand 13

Patrick Iland Wine Promotions Pty Ltd PO Box 131 Campbelltown SA 5074 P: 08 8337 1484 www.piwpwinebooks.com.au

Stand 164

Peak Scientific Instruments Pty Ltd 737 Burwood Rd Hawthorn East VIC 3122 P: 1300 965 352 www.peakindustrial.com

Stand 145

Pellenc Australia Pty Ltd 14 Opala Street, Regency Park SA 5010 P: +61 8 8244 7700 www.pellenc.com.au

www.winebiz.com.au

Stand 70

June 2015 – Issue 617

Phil Hoffmann Business Travel Stand 123 Level 2, Bayside Village Corner Jetty & Brighton Road Glenelg SA 5045 P: +61 8 8179 9666 www.businesstravel.pht.com.au Prochem Pipeline Products 3A CB Fisher Drive, Cavan SA 5094 P: +61 8 8241 7633 www.prochem.com.au

Stand 186

Randox Food Diagnostics www.randoxfooddiagnostics.com

Stand 197

Rapidfil Pty Ltd 30B Korong Road, Heidelberg West VIC 3081 P: +61 3 9455 3339 www.rapidfil.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

Stand 83

Redox Pty Ltd 178 Cavan Road, Dry Creek SA 5094 P: +61 8 8349 5299 www.redox.com

Stand 167

Renaissance Yeast Stand 27 410-2389 Health Sciences Mall, Vancouver BC 6T 1Z3 P: +1 604 822 6499 www.renaissanceyeast.com Ridgelea Pty Ltd P O Box 305, Lonsdale SA 5160 P: +61 8 8326 8521 www.ridgelea.com.au

Stand 160

Rivulis Irrigation 13-15 Duntroon Street, Brendale QLD 4500 P: +61 7 3881 4071 http://rivulis.com

Stand 220

Rousseau Oak Australia 53 Andrew Street, Windsor VIC 3181 P: +61 411 187 871 www.rousseauoak.com

www.winebiz.com.au

Stand 46

Grapegrower & Winemaker

51

Rowe Scientific Pty Ltd Stand 15 Lot 7, 41-17 O’Sullivan Beach Road Lonsdale SA 5160 P: 08 8186 0523 www.rowe.com.au Ryset (Aust) Pty Ltd 30 Kolora Road, Heidelberg West VIC 3081 www.ryset.com P: +61 3 9457 2982 E: info@ryset.com ROXSET Health & Safety Flooring 19-23 Bridge Street Pymble NSW 2073 www.roxset.com.au P: 1800 769 738 E: susan@roxset.com.au

Stand 222

Roxset’s Health and Safety Flooring has been the number one applicator of seamless non-slip coatings to the wine industry for over 25 years. Roxset has been formulated to protect floors from spills and staining as well as heavy foot, cart and forklift traffic.

Strong acids, caustic chemicals, high-pressure washing and sanitising take their toll on concrete slabs. To meet compliance regulations of AGWA, winery floors must be durable and provide a high level of cleanability for sanitisation. Roxset is specially designed to meet these needs while offering aestheticallypleasing finishes and decorative options.

The Safe, Durable & Ultra-Clean Flooring Solution.

Wineries in Australia spend millions of dollars repairing or replacing failed concrete cellar floors. Winery floors not properly maintained offer an ideal breeding ground for wild yeast and bacteria.

The ROXSET flooring solution meets with stringent Export, OH&S, HACCP and AGWA compliance.

Our experienced team can transform your production and cellar floors with minimal disruption to your day to day operations.

Contact us today for more information about how we can help.

1800 769 738 roxset.com.au 52 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Stand 4

Ryset is a proud Australian-owned, family company with more than 80 years of experience. They specialise in the manufacture and wholesale distribution of tools and equipment for the Australian horticulture industry. Ryset’s objective is to provide a broad range of quality, specialised tools for use in vineyards, orchards, and nurseries. Ryset has a broad range of products and solutions available. Australian agents for a number of worldrenowned manufacturers, Ryset represent French company Electrocoup, Germany’s Lowe, Lisam from Italy, Corona from America, Bovi products from Spain and Vinetech which is completely made in Ryset’s Heidelberg factory.

Scholle Packaging 32 Hewittson Road, Edinburgh North SA 5113 P: +61 8 8255 4366 www.scholle.com

Stand 59

Seasol International 1027 Mountain Highway, Bayswater VIC 3153 P: +61 3 9729 6511 www.commercial.seasol.com.au

Stand 161

Seguin Moreau Australia 66 Ninth Avenue, Woodville North SA 5012 P: +61 8 8406 2000 www.seguin-moreau.fr

Stand 227

SHuR FARMS Frost Protection 1890 N. 8th Street Colton CA 92324 USA P: 909 825 2035 www.shurfarms.com

Stand 45

Silvan Australia PO Box 4453, Dandenong South VIC 3164 P: 1300 745 826 www.silvan.com.au

Stand 81

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Spraygro Liquid Fertilizers Stand 173 PO Box 494, Port Adelaide Business Centre SA 5015 P: +61 8 8447 7266 www.spraygro.com.au Tarac Technologies Pty Ltd PO BOX 78, Nuriootpa SA 5355 P: +61 8 8568 6500 www.tarac.com.au

Stand 187

The Solar Project Stand 163 Innovation House, 50 Mawson Lakes Boulevard, Technology Park Mawson Lakes, SA 5095 P: +61 8 8260 8230 www.thesolarproject.com.au

Travhotec 25 William Street, Alberton SA 5014 P: +61 8 8240 3029

Stand 181 www.travhotec.com.au

VA Filtration / Memstar Stand 110 PO Box 794, Nuriootpa, South Australia 5355 P: +61 8 8562 1139 www.vafiltration.com.au Velocity Scientific Solutions PO Box 1547, Canning Vale DC WA 6970 P: 1300 855 315

Stand 48 www.vgaf.com.au

The Le Mac Australia Group Stand 194 Cnr Railway Road North & Hudson Place Mulgrave NSW 2756 P: 02 4577 4799 www.lemacaustralia.com.au

Victus International Stand 182 37-39 Aberdeen Road, Altona VIC 3018 www.victus.com.au P: 1300 842 887 E: sales@victus.com.au

Thermowrap Australia Pty Ltd 1 Harris Close, Irymple VIC 3498 P: +61 3 5024 7400 www.thermowrap.com.au

Victus International is the leading supplier of the world’s best technologies in the Australian wine markets. Their range allows winemakers to grasp the leading edge in producing high quality wines throughout Australia. Victus International provide winemakers with the peace of mind that they will have a reduction in quarantine time, a reduction in the risk of recalls and loss of reputation, all the while ensuring there is not an impact on taste. Their products include the trusted Erbslöh & Lanxess range of beverage treatment agents which consist of fining agents, filtration aids, stabilisation and biotechnologies, such us enzymes, yeasts, yeast nutrients & malolactic bacteria.

Stand 20

TracMap NZ Ltd Stand 217 21B Gladstone Road South Mosgiel 9053 NEW ZEALAND P: +64 3 489 2952 www.tracmap.com

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VinCru 18 Raymond Road, Laverton North VIC 3026 P: +61 3 9931 2200 www.eem.com.au

Stand 174

Vintessential Laboratories 13/143 Point Nepean Road, Dromana VIC 3936 P: 03 5987 2242 www.vintessential.com.au

Stand 206

VINX2 Winery Software 2/237 Young St Fitzroy VIC 3065 www.vinx2.com P: +61 3 9015 9625 E: sales@vinx2.com

Stand 177

VINx2 is a leading Cloud-based wine production system that will save time, keep consumers compliant and reward users with key management information. Winemakers will love their very own dashboard, bursting with relevant charts, analysis and status information. Work orders for the cellar are easy to file, ensuring users are prepared for any audit. VINx2 tracks all inventory, lab work, grower contracts, purchases and sales and can even bill custom crush customers. As a sub-ledger to an accounting package or ERP, VINx2 will show users exactly how much wines have cost to produce.

Vinvicta Products Unit 2, 19 Macquarie Drive, Thomastown VIC 3074 P: 1300 360 353 www.vinvicta.com

wildeye soil moisture 238 (rear) Stirling Highway, Claremont WA 6010 P: 08 61424961 www.mywildeye.com.au

Stand 244

Wine Barrel Cleaning 8/177 Beavers Road, Northcote VIC 3121 www.winebarrelcleaning.com.au P: 1300 577 722 E: info@winebarrelcleaning.com.au

Stand 219

Wine Barrel Cleaning (WBC) specialise in high temperature, dry steam machines that clean, sanitise, detartrate and re-hydrate wine barrels. Through its umbrella company Duplex, WBC has over 25 years of experience in the distribution of high temperature, dry steam machines. The ‘Bacchus Dry Steam Systems’ reach temperatures of more than 180°C to simultaneously wash and steam barrels for a deep clean which kills brettanomyces. It uses 90 per cent less water than traditional methods and is a chemical-free process.

The manufacturer of WBC’s machines is a third generation Italian wine grower and producer who bring generations of wine producing knowledge to the design and operation of the machines.

Wine Communicators of Australia PO Box 425 Church Point NSW 2105 P: +61 488 441 290 www.winecommunicators.com.au

Stand 90

Stand 94 Wine Energy Pty Ltd 266 Doncaster Ave, Kensington NSW 2033 P: +61 407 400 728 www.wineenergy.com

Stand 190

A NEW GENERATION OF OAK FOR OENEOLOGY Since your wines require the greatest attention right up to their final production stages, SEGUIN MOREAU has developed OENOFIRST Finisher, an oak chip formulation for treating wines in the finishing stage.

OENOFIRST Finisher gives wines intended for quick consumption (one year in the bottle) a very stable sensory profile.

SEGUIN MOREAU 54 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Po Box 177, Kilkenny SA 5009 • P: 08 8406 2000 • F: 08 8406 2001 admin@seguinmoreau.com.au • www.seguin-moreau.com www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

Wine Grape Growers Australia (WGGA) Stand 90 Level 1 Industry House, National Wine Centre, Cnr Botanic Rd & Hampstead rd Adelaide SA 5000 P: +61 8 8133 4400 www.wgga.com.au Wine Industry Classifieds www.wineindustryclassifieds.com.au

Stand 12

Wine Industry Services Pty Ltd 5 Edison Dve, Golden Grove SA 5125 P: +61 8 8251 5055 www.wineindustryservices.com

Stand 31

Winemakers’ Federation of Australia PO Box 2414, Kent Town SA 5071 P: +61 8 8133 4300 www.wfa.org.au

Stand 90

Winequip 59 Banbury Road, Reservoir VIC 3073 P: +61 3 9462 4777 www.winequip.com.au

Stand 146

Winetitles 630 Regency Road, Broadview SA 5083 P: +61 8369 9500 www.winebiz.com.au

Stand 171

WiSA Irrigation Solutions PO Box 592, Echuca VIC 3564 P: 1300 887 380 www.irrigatewisa.com.au

Stand 165

Woodshield 52 Formation Street Carole Park QLD 4300 www.woodshield.com.au P: +61 7 3271 5575 E: info@woodshield.com.au

Stand 213

Woodshield is an Australasian company manufacturing a sustainable trellis post. A non-treated timber post encased in recycled plastic, Woodshield joins the best of both worlds using the rigidity and strength of wood with the toughness and resilience of plastic. The Woodshield posts have a life span of approximately four to five times longer than a treated timber post and a 100 per cent greater breaking angle. This means they will ‘give’ a little rather than crack and snap. No rot, no rust, no termite issues, no chemical issues and no disposal issues, Woodshield’s posts are superior in strength, weather resistant, easy to handle, OH&S approved and can be used with standard fasteners.

SEAMLESS INTEGRATION

TracMap’s wirelessly integrated gps in-cab display and cloud based job management software delivers an unrivalled and complete solution for viticulture operations.

“TracMap’s system has absolutely added value to our business - through increased efciency in scheduling, monitoring and reporting when we have multiple jobs running” Charles Rosback, Grape Logistics, South Australia

Come talk to us WineTech 2015 Site #217

www.tracmap.com June 2015 – Issue 617

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WISA WineTech2015 Seminar Series The WineTech content program aims to address a number of key topics covering Wine Tourism, Work Force Development, Marketing, Digital Innovation and Export and Investment opportunities. The program is designed to be attractive to a wide ranging audience across the value chain.

Cost: $90 per Session / All six sessions (transferrable within businesses) $400 (Inclusive of GST)

1. W hat can we learn from our allies in industry – food, beverage and agriculture? Are there solutions and inspiration in their stories and experiences not yet considered?

When: Tuesday 14th July 11am-12pm The Australian wine industry is not ‘Robinson Crusoe’ in its need to remain competitive in a domestic and international market. It’s also not the only industry that requires a focus on markets, innovation, and sustainable use of natural resources.

Join Wine Communicators of Australia at WineTech as we host a special panel of experienced and

engaging food and beverage experts to reveal their stories and discuss the opportunities for shared learnings across industries and businesses.

Host and panel will discuss topics, such as: •M anaging family-owned brands; •M arketing and brand engagement; • E ntering and managing export markets; •D istribution and brand challenges;

• Research and innovation outcomes; and • Festivals and tourism experiences.

Speakers: Facilitator Nic Carne – Wine Communicators of Australia; Catherine Barnett – Food SA; Rob Kerin – Primary Producers SA; and Alex Knoll – Barossa Fine Foods

2. W hy it pays to create a memorable cellar door experience and how to achieve it When: Tuesday 14th July 2-3pm This seminar will present a compelling case for developing and delivering brag-worthy cellar door experiences, backed by new research from the Australian Grape and Wine Authority. Find out the answers to these and many other questions: • What makes a cellar door visit memorable?

• How can you unlock the full potential of your cellar door without breaking the bank?

• What constitutes an exceptional, world-class wine tourism experience?

• How much does a cellar door visit influence future buying behaviour?

The session will provide a mix of research and

practical steps to help you elevate the cellar door experience for your visitors and provide tangible business outcomes.

Speakers: Robin Shaw – CEO Adelaide Hills Wine Region; and Kym Brown – Owner Tour Barossa

some key information on the wine industry digital retail space and his engagement as the business lead for Dan Murphy’s Connections Program.

This session will focus on the importance and opportunities online has to offer wineries - Present examples of innovation within Dan Murphy’s online e.g. click & collect. Discuss examples of innovation

outside the liquor category & identify opportunities for wineries to engage with customers through video, content & the cellar door.

Speaker: Sam Willard – Senior Business Development Manager, Woolworths Liquor Group

3. Wine Retail – The Digital Space When: Wednesday 15th July 11am-12pm Selling wine online isn’t a new phenomenon but for many small to medium sized wineries it is still a largely untapped opportunity. In this session Sam Willard, the Senior Business Development Manager – Digital Development & Innovations at the Wine Quarter (Woolworths Liquor Group) will provide

4. Influencing purchase intent through social media and storytelling When: Wednesday 15th July 2-3pm Sponsor: Cru.Io Nick Bowditch is the only person in Asia-Pacific to have worked at both Facebook AND Twitter.

Moreover he is the only person in the world to have worked in marketing at both brands.

He is a thought-leader in social media, works extensively in the start-up ecosystem in Australia and internationally as both an advisor and investor, and is a sought-after keynote speaker.

WISA Exhibitor Presentation Supplier lead innovation and commercialisation often complementing national R&D initiatives is critical for the success of our industry. WineTech is providing the opportunity for exhibitors to present on the exhibition floor throughout the three days and below is a list of companies and topics being presented on.

56 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Nick will be presenting on using social media platforms to not only build your community of brand advocates but implementing strategies to convert them to long term customers through storytelling.

This unique one-of-a-kind seminar with one of the southern hemisphere’s leading social media experts is specifically created for the wine industry. It will cover choosing the right platform for your social media messages, how to tell effective stories and much, much more. You’ll walk out of this seminar

Chr Hansen 14 July 10:00am-10:45am Bringing Significant efficiency to the process of Malolactic Fermentation using Viniflora NoVA Australia Trade Tasting 14 July 11:00am-11:45am Setting up a sales process for your winery.

with the confidence and the tools to grow your organisation on social media, straight away.

Storytelling as a business tool has been something successful brands have done since the early days of marketing. Nick will drill down on not only WHY it’s important to communicate through storytelling but HOW to implement it into a successful social media and communication strategy.

Speaker: Nick Bowditch – Social Media ThoughtLeader.

Flexcube 14 July 12:00pm-12:45pm Put a barrel in your wine.

IMCD & Lallemand 14 July 1:00pm-1:45pm 16 July 11:00am-11:45am It’s all about the taste – Wine Evaluations with Lallemand.

Interactive tasting.

Deltagen 14 July 2:00pm-2:45pm Advanced Enzymatic Wine Analysis.

Jx2 14 July 3:00pm-3:45pm 15 July 2:00pm-2:45pm Take control of your wine costing.

The above sessions are FREE OF CHARGE and are available to attend at the WineTech Seminar Area on the trade show floor. www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

5. Future Generation Session When: Thursday 16th July Morning Session (11am-12pm) Where is the wine industry’s next generation of talent coming from? This session is aimed at providing an insight on how the industry can assess its needs now and into the future, opportunities to attract and to nurture our industries next generation. The session will provide insights at both an industry level along with providing take home practical information on how you can benefit by attracting, improving and retaining the best people in your business.

Key points include: • Identifying sources of labour, and initiatives to attract new workers; • Confirming entry level and other skills essential to the profitable operation of businesses; • Projecting future skill requirements to meet changing legislative requirements, consumer preferences, adoption of new technologies;

• I dentifying the potential of future work force participants while they are still at school; •D eveloping students with beneficial outcomes for the apprentice/trainee, your business and your industry; • L eadership and professional development programs such as Nuffield Scholarship and Industry’s Future Leaders Program; • A ssessing potential talent; • T echniques to ensure your job offer is your candidates first choice; and • K ey ingredients to retain key individuals long after you’ve found them.

Speakers: Facilitator Mary Retallack – Retallack Viticulture Managing Director; Ross Ord – AgriFood Skills Australia Senior Manager, Workforce Development; Harry Moate – Trade Schools for the Future Apprenticeship Broker; Anne Duncan – Australian Grape & Wine Authority Program Manager; and Nicole Underwood – nicoleunderwood Pty Ltd Managing Director.

6. Support for export and investment with Korea & Japan FTA’s When: Thursday 16th July Afternoon Session (2-3pm) The recent free trade agreements with Japan and Korea are providing some excellent opportunity for wine exporters to break into these lucrative markets. This session aims to assist exporters to understand the opportunity and the relevant support available from government and industry in regards to exporting their products along with positioning your business for inbound investment.

Key points include: • Getting involved in the TradeStart network and opportunities created by the Export Partnership Program; • Outbound SA Government Trade Missions; • National financial assistance programs and activities;

• U nderstanding ‘Asia’ is not uniform & understanding cultural, language and cutural differences; • J apan and South Korean market snapshots; • A ustralian industry responses to opportunities and challenges; and • P lanning and goals, financial intentions, management & succession, projections, information manager and targeting investors for inbound investment.

Speakers: Nicola Kelly – TradeStart Export Advisor, Department of State Development; Linda Marchesan – Trade Advisor (Food & Agribusiness), Austrade; Hiro Tejima – Regional Manager Asia, Australian Grape & Wine Authority; Tim Siebert – Director, Moore Stephens Adelaide.

The complete range of quality Erbslöh products is now available through Victus International, to meet your highest quality demands in beverage technology.

Please contact us for all sales, technical enquiries and support on 1300 VICTUS (842887) Trenolin® Frio DF

Effective enzymation already as of 5ºC.

Oenoferm® Freddo

White wine yeast for the aromapromoting cold fermentation.

Vita Drive F3®

Yeast activator for increased yeast performance.

Litto Levure

Oenological yeast.

Granucol®

Specialty activated carbon powder.

Wine Communicators of Australia 14 July 4:00pm-4:45pm Discount Demand: Ways for the Wine Industry to survive & prosper.

Cru.Io 15 July 1:00pm-1:45pm Closing the loop from cellar door to online sales and the digital channel.

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grapegrowing The relative sustainability of organic, biodynamic and conventional viticulture Part 2: Vine health and grape yields This is the second article based on recent research to establish what impact different viticulture techniques have on the impact of soil health, vine health and wine characteristics. The principal researchers were Christopher Penfold, Luke Johnston, Professor Petra Marschner and Associate Professor Susan Bastian, the project supervisor was Cassandra Collins, all from the University of Adelaide.

Organic and biodynamic viticulture is forecast to grow at more than 11 per cent each year, yet there is little information on the benefits or otherwise that can be attributed to these systems of grape production. With industry funding, a six-year trial at McLaren Vale in South Australia investigated the changes in soil health, fruit production and wine quality. The trial results showed that organic and biodynamic production led to improved soil quality, with more soil organisms including much greater earthworm populations. Wine quality was also improved, but in the absence of price premiums, this was achieved at a financial penalty to the grower through reduced yields and increased production costs.

PAST TRIALS and surveys have found organically produced grapes yielded less than conventional production systems.

Those outcomes were supported in this trial, where the organic (ORG), biodynamic (BD) and low-input conventional (LCON) systems yielded 79, 70 and 91% respectively of the high-input conventional (HCON) treatment, probably due to reduced soil moisture availability at budburst. Traditional measures of fruit quality such as total soluble solids, pH, titratable acidity, anthocyanin and phenolic levels in the juice and berries were not found to be consistently different between management systems and with or without the addition of compost. Differences in wine compositional analysis were observed in some seasons.

Wines made from HCON management were generally higher in alcohol as well as anthocyanin and phenolic levels compared to the other management systems.

Wine sensory evaluation was performed by a panel of viticulturists and winemakers that were asked to undertake a blind tasting of all wines and write down any attributes they perceived in wines. This language was then analysed using word frequency analysis to determine if certain descriptors were used more often for particular wines and if this corresponded to the management treatments.

No differences in the language used to describe the wines made in 2010 were found. In the 2010-2014 wines ORG and in particular BD wines were consistently described as being

more rich, textural, complex and vibrant than LCON and HCON wines. These findings support anecdotal evidence from winemakers who have used this language as a reason for why they have chosen to make wine from organically and/ or biodynamically managed fruit. How wine compositional changes relate to the textural changes perceived by winemakers in the wines made from these systems is yet to be determined.

A critical aspect for growers considering the adoption of alternative management practices is knowing whether it will be financially beneficial. In this trial, a gross margins analysis showed the ORG, BD and LCON systems generated 74, 65 and 91% of the financial return per hectare as the HCON system. This was principally due to reduced yields and higher operating costs associated with the use of tillage for under-vine weed control. However, it is also possible that the payment of premiums for higher quality ORG or BD fruit would help redress the higher costs of production.

For some growers a move to organic or biodynamic production has enabled them to access alternative market opportunities for their fruit and /or wine. Growers already using a low input production system may accommodate this change quite readily, as many of the practices and allowable inputs are similar. The use or organic practices to enhance ecosystem services and potentially create a truly sustainable production environment is therefore worthy of further investigation.

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Research to evaluate the effects of management systems on vine and grape parameters have mostly been conducted in Germany (Corvers 1994, Hofmann 1991, Kauer 1993), northern Italy (Malusà et al. 2004) or north-east United States (Pool and Robinson 1995). Generally it has been shown that overall vine growth and yield can decrease by 15-30% when organic/ biodynamic management practices are used (Hofmann 1991, Kauer 1993, Pool and Robinson 1995, Malusà et al. 2004). This reduction in growth was more pronounced in dry seasons, with soils of low nitrogen and clay content, and when the cover crop competed with the vines for nutrient and water.

In Australia, where growing season rainfall is often very low and supplemented by irrigation, the effects of organic practices are not well researched. Tesic et al. (2007) compared a permanent sward (similar to the organic system in this trial) to a bare under-vine (similar to the conventional system) on vegetative growth, yield and fruit composition in both Wagga Wagga (dry climate) and at Tumbarumba (wet climate) in NSW, Australia. The permanent sward (organic) significantly reduced shoot growth, pruning weights and soil moisture content compared to the conventional treatment in the dry climate, however, under-vine treatments had minimal effect in the wet climate at Tumbarumba. Studies have also researched how management systems affect berry and wine composition (Otreba et al. 2006, Vian et al. 2006) and wine quality (Dupin et al.

2000, Henick-Kling 1995, Lante et al. 2004). Results have been inconsistent and inconclusive.

VINE GROWTH, NUTRITION AND BERRY COMPOSITION Vineyard management system had no consistent effect on berry composition over the conversion period. This result is similar to previous studies that found no differences between management systems in TSS, pH and TA (Corvers 1994, Hofmann 1991, Kauer 1993, Malusà et al. 2004, Reeve et al.

2005). Interestingly, despite yield being reduced in ORG and BD by approximately 20% in 2010/11, no change in TSS, TA or pH was found compared to LCON and HCON. In 2008/09, HCON had higher anthocyanin and phenolic concentrations than LCON, ORG and BD management systems.

However, this was not the case in the other seasons. Malusà et al. (2004) found organically managed grapes to have higher

Growers should not enter into growing organically with the expectation of substantial financial reward without doing lots of background research first. anthocyanins and flavonoids than conventionally managed grapes. The opposite was found by Vian et al. (2006) with higher levels of berry anthocyanins found in the fruit from conventionally managed treatments compared with those managed using organic practices. Reeve et al. (2005) compared ORG and BD management systems and found higher sugar, total phenols and total anthocyanins levels in wine made from the BD managed vines.

Management systems had no effect on juice yeast assimilable N (YAN) concentrations over the conversion period. YAN should range between 200-480 mg N/L, with an optimum around 300 mg N/L (White 2009). In this trial, YAN was around 100 mg N/L indicating that they are deficient. YAN is an important measurement for grape quality as it represents the amount of available N for yeasts to metabolise (Jiranek et al. 1995). Despite the under-vine weed growth in 2010/11 in the ORG and BD treatments reducing soil moisture and petiole N in all systems, YAN was not affected.

Juice analysis showed that management system had no effect on Ca, Cu, K, Mg, Mn, P and Zn and only slight effects on Al and S. Mineral elements have been found to follow differing trends during winegrape maturation (Esteban et al. 1999). While K has been found to increase over time, Ca was found to decrease (Hrazdina et al. 1984, Esteban et al. 1999), which opposes the findings of the current study.

While compositional factors may follow trends during winegrape maturation, variations which may occur within short periods reinforce the importance of precise harvest timing for ideal grape composition.

Determination of causes in short-term variation of grape composition demands further research.

Growers should not enter into growing organically with the expectation of substantial financial reward without doing lots

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grapegrowing WINE SENSORY ATTRIBUTES

of background research first. Nature does place obstacles in the way of a smooth transition to an organic system which can increase the risk if the tools are not available to deal with the problem. For example, weeds can be an issue, but with heavy mulching or mechanical devices they can generally be dealt with, but at a cost. Premiums may not always be available to counter the higher costs of production, but demand is presently strong enough that growers should always have a market for quality certified grapes.

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In January 2011, wines made from 2009/10 were evaluated by 10 wine experts who noted descriptors of aromas and palate, and scored wines using a 20-point scale. In May 2012, wines from the 2010/11 were again evaluated by 10 wine experts using the same procedure.

Each wine was firstly assessed using the Australian wine show standards twenty point score system (Dunphy and Lockshin, 1998, Ewart et al. 1993). Judges were then asked to provide a written description of attributes that best describe the wine. Where similar terms for certain attributes were used these were grouped together.

Wine analysis was performed on all wines in the 2009/10 and 2010/11 vintages. Alcohol content, total anthocyanin, total phenolic colour density levels were all significantly higher in the HCON treatments when compared to other management systems. No significant differences were observed between treatments for pH, TA and Hue. Vian et al. (2006) investigated the effect of ORG and/or BD on wine composition relative to conventional management but results were inconclusive.

Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to identify possible relationships between management system and significantly different sensory attribute descriptors used by winemakers in both 2009/10 and 2010/11. No significant differences in the language used to describe wines from 2009/10 were found between treatments. In 2010/11 significant differences were observed between the different management systems. The principal component analysis for the first two components accounted for 92.81% of the variation in the data.

Wines made from each of the management system were not described differently by the panel in 2010. However, ORG and BD wines from 2011 were more frequently described as textural, rich, vibrant and spicy compared to LCON and HCON. ORG and LCON wines were also described as more earthy than other BD and HCON. HCON and LCON wines in 2011 were more frequently described as green, unripe and having fine tannin.

In this trial, management systems did not affect vine measurements and wine quality until the final season of the conversion period and no consistent differences in berry composition and nutrition were observed. It appears that changes in vine growth had a direct impact on wine quality rather than our more traditional measures of berry quality such as pH, TA and sugar levels.

It may be argued that the conversion period is not long enough for a perennial crop such as grapevines, where the impacts of management changes are delayed. Of importance to the consumer is the absence of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers in the production system, which the conversion period accommodates, so long as there are no long term residuals in the system. The soil and vines will continue to evolve towards a mature state of equilibrium beyond the three year conversion period, and the resultant wines are likely to display this change.

The final three years of the trial showed organic and biodynamic production led to improved soil quality, with more organic carbon and soil organisms including much greater earthworm populations. Wine quality was also improved, but in the absence of price premiums, this was achieved at a financial penalty to the grower through reduced yields and increased production costs.

The justification for this project is succinctly expressed

by Gilles Lapalus of Sutton Grange Wines in Central Victoria, who said: “We’re using biodynamics for three reasons. For the environment, for better wine quality, and for the wellbeing of the people who work here.”

Globally there is a move towards organic and biodynamic agriculture as cracks appear in the conventional production

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Organic and biodynamic wines were consistently and more frequently described in winemaker tastings as being more complex, textural, rich and vibrant compared to the conventional wines. This validates the belief of some growers that producing organically was the only way to achieving the fruit quality they required. systems. In part this movement is consumer driven, with support from large retailers such as Tesco and Sainsburys in the UK. With an emphasis now placed on sustainability, improving the soil, reducing pesticide use and enhancing vineyard biodiversity are all promoted as best practice vineyard management. By more than coincidence these are all requirements of organic and biodynamic management as well, for which certification schemes ensure the product is true to label on its environmental credentials.

Despite the widespread interest in organic and biodynamic grape and wine production, there was a paucity of scientific information to support or otherwise the claims of improved soil, grape and wine quality coming from those systems.

VINE PRODUCTIVITY AND FINANCIAL ANALYSIS The ORG, BD and LCON systems yielded 79, 70 and 91% respectively of the HCON treatment over the trial period.

Lower yields on the ORG and BD systems were a product of less bunches which were also lighter. Fewer canes that were lighter and shorter on the ORG and BD systems provided further evidence of the reduced vigour on these treatments. Compost increased both bunch and pruning weights but this did not increase fruit yield.

The reasons for entering into organic production systems are numerous, but for some growers, financial returns are an important driver. The financial outcomes from this long-term trial would suggest that by using the practices employed in this project and in that particular grape growing region, less money will be generated for the grower than a LCON or HCON system.

The reasons for this are two-fold – lower incomes through reduced yield, and higher costs resulting from mechanical weed control. In some instances the reduced yield can improve fruit quality (Wheeler and Crisp 2009) and possibly generate

better prices. A premium price for certified ORG or BD fruit is also possible, but as they are not reliably achieved it was not included in this analysis. Corsi and Strom (2012) for example in Italy found no overall premium being paid for organic wine, but there was a large range (0.8 – 21 euros/L) suggesting premiums were being realized by some producers. Delmas and Grant (2014) however found there could be substantial price benefits from wine labelled certified organic or biodynamic.

In this case, if premium prices were available, they would need to be in the order of 54% ($1959 c.f. $1271 $/t) for the BD system and 37% (ORG) to return the same gross margins as the HCON system. If however, if the LCON system is taken as standard practice in the region, the premiums required are reduced to 40% ($1779) for the BD system and 23% ($1559) for the ORG system to equate with growers using conventional practices. With premiums of up to 100% in some regions, the required amount is potentially achievable, but supply, demand and the fruit quality will ultimately drive the final price achieved. Where vertical integration enables value adding on the wine, either as “wine made from organic grapes” or as organic wine, a premium may also be realized but this is also not guaranteed.

Alternatively, costs can be reduced and/or yields increased to improve the gross margin. As noted earlier, given the apparent importance of a soil profile at field capacity during budburst, supplying the vines with supplementary irrigation at this time is likely to increase grape yields.

Organic and biodynamic wines were consistently and more frequently described in winemaker tastings as being more complex, textural, rich and vibrant compared to the conventional wines. This validates the belief of some growers that producing organically was the only way to achieving the fruit quality they required. The combination of environmental and quality benefits ascribed to the organic and biodynamic production systems legitimises their stake as valid viticultural production systems for much of southern Australia.

CONCLUSION The production of wine grapes using organic and biodynamic practices was investigated over a six year period in a large scale field trial at McLaren Vale. They were compared with a lowinput system aiming to mimic the conventional practice now implemented in the area, and a high input system as previously used by many growers. The final three years of the project assessed systems that were through their conversion period and in a commercial vineyard would have enabled organic and biodynamic fruit to be sold as certified product.

The project aimed to compare the four systems for a range of sustainability criteria including their impacts on the soil, fruit

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grapegrowing production, its quality, invertebrate populations and financial returns. While soil chemistry was not affected, the biology did improve on the alternative systems.

Improvements in soil quality did come at some cost however, as reduced soil moisture levels in the top 40 cm reduced bunch numbers, vine vigour and ultimately fruit yield. It also impacted on the potential financial returns that would be realised in a commercial vineyard. The use of herbicides to control undervine growth, from a financial perspective, is more cost-effective than mechanical control. The combination of higher costs and lower yields reduced the financial returns to the organic and biodynamic systems, but this was in the absence of a premium for the fruit, which growers can often obtain.

As with any comparison of agricultural systems, there are many permutations which could be examined. All of the treatments could have been implemented differently, which may have generated results conflicting with those obtained in this trial. A trial implemented the same way in a different region may also have quite different results. However, the outcomes generated in this project will provide the viticultural industry with empirical evidence of the potential impacts that will occur when adopting an organic or biodynamic viticultural system.

There were no consistent differences in pH, TA and Alcohol between treatments. Total anthocyanin and phenolic levels were higher in HCON treatments in most seasons. In all three seasons ORG and in particular BD wines were described as being more rich, textural, complex and vibrant than LCON and HCON wines. These findings support anecdotal evidence from winemakers who have used this language as a reason for why they have chosen to make wine from organically and/ or biodynamically managed fruit. How wine compositional

changes relate to the textural changes perceived by winemakers in the wines made from these systems is yet to be determined.

There has been much advancement in berry and wine sensory techniques which have been made possible through the use of various statistical models and techniques (Cadot et al.

2010, Johnson et al. 2013, King et al. 2011, Olarte Mantilla et al.

2012, Perrin et al. 2005, Siegrist and Cousin 2009, Verdu Jover et al. 2004). However, one of the limitations to many of these methods is the cost and time taken to perform the analysis.

This project did not have the budget to undertake a descriptive analysis on the wines made during the project. This led to the development of the method described above which as shown can discriminate between wines made from fruit grown using different management practices. While not as informative as more traditional methods like descriptive analysis this method has potential to be used as a screening tool to determine if any differences are perceived between wines before investment is made in more costly and time consuming methods.

These findings support previous research that found more traditional measures of quality did not reveal differences between alternative and conventional management treatments.

The sensory evaluations made during this study also potentially support anecdotal evidence that ORG and BD management can improve certain wine sensory attributes and this should be explored further. This method of assessing wines has potential to more cost-effectively assess experimental wines before undertaking more detailed sensory analysis.

The complete research report, including a full list of references, can be downloaded from the Australian Grape and Wine Authority research website: www.research.agwa.net.au/completed projects/.

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drumMUSTER is leading the way in product stewardship. The program, run by Agsafe, has recycled over 30,000 tonnes of plastic since it was established in 1999. On our websites you can locate your nearest drumMUSTER collection site with an interactive map. You can also find out the status of the next ChemClear collection in each state. It’s quick and simple.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Drum Muster celebrates milestone FOR THE PAST 16 years, thousands of chemical users have relied on Drum Muster to regularly dispose of their empty agvet chemical containers.

During this time the program, which is run by Agsafe, has grown to become the most successful agvet container recycling program in Australia.

Back in March, Drum Muster’s 25 millionth drum was delivered to a collection site in Western Australia.

Drum Muster National Program Manager Allan McGann said the program has come a long way since the first collection in early 1999.

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“This goes to show the growing support Drum Muster has garnered.

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We have seen a noteworthy increase in participation over the past few years with 119 community groups now involved in the program. They have collected an impressive 3.5 million drums and raised $880,000 between them,” said McGann.

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grapegrowing

Delayed pruning shifted Shiraz maturity by two weeks in 2015 HARVEST records show that the gap between maturity of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon in Coonawarra has been compressed from 12 to three days in the last 20 years whereas the gap between Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon in McLaren Vale has reduced from 21 to nine days in a similar period.

The numbers highlight a problem wineries were all to aware of during the 2015 vintage - harvesting and crushing capacity is struggling to deal with a narrowing harvest window, leading to fruit becoming overripe and a reduction in quality. The solution, through the expansion of processing facilities will place more strain on a capital-intensive industry.

In a project funded by AGWA, Victor Sadras and Martin Moran, from the South Australian Research & Development Institute; together with Paul Petrie, from

Figure 1 Trial at SARDI’s Nuriootpa vineyard combining two thermal regimes (heated with open top chambers and unheated controls) and three pruning dates. The vine at the forefront was pruned at 2-3 leaf stage and the vines in the background are controls with conventional winter pruning.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

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Figure 2 Dynamics of TSS in berries of Shiraz as affected by pruning time and temperature. Error bars are 2 standard errors.

Table 1. Yield and yield components of Shiraz vines at Nuriootpa, 2015 in response to temperature and pruning time. Values are means and standard errors of three replicates, each comprising four vines. P indicates the significance of treatments: temperature, pruning time and interaction.

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the Australian Wine Research Institute, are testing the impact of delayed pruning on maturity, and its implications for yield and wine attributes.

A three-year trial with Shiraz at Nuriootpa involves the factorial combination of three pruning dates (winter, budburst, and 2-3 leaves) and two thermal regimes (control, heated) with three replicates (Figure 1). Each replicate includes six vines of which the four central ones are used for sampling.

Here, the researchers report results from 2015.

In comparison to standard winter pruning, delayed pruning delayed nominal maturity (14 oBe) by 16 days June 2015 – Issue 617

under ambient temperature and by 13 days under elevated temperature (Figure 2). Yield increased in vines pruned at budburst relative to both winter pruned vines and vines pruned at 2-3 leaves (Table 1). This was related to both more bunches and more berries per bunch.

Yield did not respond to temperature or pruning time x temperature interaction.

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Below the

surface MANAGEMENT of soil nutrition and irrigation planning is a lot easier when you know your vineyard well. Most grapegrowers and vineyard managers spend plenty of time in their blocks and might use a combination of moisture probes, aerial photos and even soil tests to help them make decisions.

But there’s an extra way to get to the ‘root’ of what is happening in the vineyard. You just need a backhoe.

And that is how the team at James Estate Wines ended up looking at the soil profile in 10 soil pits across their Upper Hunter vineyards. Graeme Scott, the senior winemaker and general manager, was joined in the pits by Liz Riley, Vitibit vineyard management consultant, and Brian Thomson, Porosity Agricultural Services irrigation consultant.

The main purpose of the vineyard soil pits was to look at the soil moisture profile and start to make some informed irrigation plans.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

“James Estate has been through an ownership transition in the past 12-18 months and last year they ran their irrigation program on by a ‘wing and a prayer’,” said Liz Riley.

The soil pits were dug to 1.2 metres and the consultants, vineyard crew and even the winemakers were able to look at the different soil structures and the root structures as well as plan for what depths the moisture probes would be installed to.

“It’s a great thing to do, if you can, but having the equipment to dig the holes is always the biggest issue. We were lucky they had a backhoe at James Estate,” said Riley.

“We looked at all aspects of what was happening under the surface. And things were a lot more – hugely more – variable than I expected, but Graeme was not as surprised.

“We had a couple of the young blokes from James Estate with us as well and it was really good for them to be able to see what was happening.”

Riley said everybody involved got a better understanding of the characteristics of each different block and there was some important education involved. She said the vineyard team got to see how important irrigation plans are, and how sticking to them is vital. For example, in some areas it was clear that more regular, but lighter, irrigation would be more beneficial than less frequent, heavy water applications.

“I’ve also been harping on about the problems with Couch and Rhodes grasses with these guys, and we found grass roots regularly down to 30cm and some as far as one metre,” said Riley. “So they got to see that in some areas with a short irrigation probably half of that was just going to the weeds. It means they need to more efficiently manage the process by keeping the weeds down.”

Across each of the 10 pits dug, Riley made notes on soil types and colours, root depths and also recorded her thoughts on irrigation plans to match those conditions.

“It was good to go through with the winemakers and some of the vineyard crew, but before they fill the holes in Graeme will take his whole team around to show them what is happening,” Riley said.

“We found some blocks with shallower soils, others with harder clays and even rock. One of the surprises for me, one of the cool things, was finding limestone a lot closer to the surface than we expected.

“We found one spot where there was limestone at 40cm, another at 80cm. As a result, in those areas there will also be changes in the way the irrigation is managed. Now we’ve done the initial digging we will be doing some targeted soil analysis as well.”

There are lots of benefits for vineyard management provided by the opportunity to look at the dirt and the roots, rather than relying on just what is happening in the canopy.

“You get to see where the roots are and that gives you more information for how to manage your nutrition spend, because it does go up and down depending on the season,” Riley said.

The dormant season is the time for digging soil pits and having a look below the surface.

“Right now is a really good time of the year to do it,” said Riley. “But even doing it closer to budburst is still an option.

We’ve taken lots of photos, of the canopies and the dirt, as reminders of what we’ve seen and that will give us the opportunity to look back regularly. I think taking photos was just about the most important thing, but we had a few people there and we were all taking lots of notes.

“If you don’t have access to a backhoe, you can just get a local backhoe operator in because it’s not a tricky process... as long as you don’t have a heap of rain and all your holes fill up with water!”

June 2015 – Issue 617

A good time to invest in people skills Winter is an ideal time to train, develop and invest in your staff through the various accreditation and stewardship programs available. Crop protection is an important area to consider, because better knowledge pays dividends and “getting it right” is often central to a good, clean harvest.

Choosing the right product to control a weed, pest or disease is only a small part of the bigger overall picture. Having sound knowledge of all the factors is an important asset for staff responsible for these operations within and around the vineyard.

Firstly, it’s important your staff understand “risk management and all things health and safety”. In fact, this has to be the precursor before moving on to how to obtain good control of any pest or disease.

Having more than one person well-trained in crop protection is strategically a very good thing. When the pressure is on and someone needs to take leave, you don’t want to be left exposed.

Chemcert offers well-structured courses that cover many key areas including risk management, environment, application, IPM, labels and safety data sheets, formulations, transport and storage, legislation and everyone’s favorite - record keeping.

Depending on which state you operate in will determine your legal responsibilities for having trained operators to handle and apply crop protection products.

Maybe your business would benefit from taking this further with someone taking on a TAFE course and working towards a Diploma in viticulture. This could be done as a part-time course while still remaining in normal employment.

A sideline benefit for any training program is the opportunity to network with others in the agricultural industry. Often friendships are made and fun can result from attending a course. Another outcome is the important area of personal development. An employee can feel a sense of achievement and that they are valued by the business enough for the business to invest in their development.

For those wanting more specific information, Syngenta has expertise in spray application and stewardship as well as many other related topics and has hosted many informative group sessions for growers and industry. Contact your local Syngenta Territory Sales Manager should you be interested in pursuing this further.

The Chemcert website is another valuable source of information. http://www.chemcert.org.au/

Vine Talk is compiled by Dave Antrobus, Syngenta Solutions Development Lead dave.antrobus@syngenta.com 0429 133 436

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All the information you need in one place PRINT & ONLINE

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Michael Pascoe to present at Winegrape Growers Summit An in-depth examination of the major grape varieties and how they have performed by region in South Australia and by price point will be a special focus of one of the sessions.

“We will not only look at which varieties are in demand and which are flat or declining, but also at the buying intentions and marketing directions for 2016 by the top purchasers of winegrapes in SA,” said Hackworth.

KEYNOTE: Michael Pascoe will be the keynote speaker and lead a panel discussion on innovation at July’s Winegrape Growers Summit.

ONE OF Australia’s most respected and experienced finance and economics media commentators, Michael Pascoe, will be a keynote speaker and lead a panel discussion on innovation at the SA Winegrape Growers Summit on July 17.

Pascoe will speak on the challenges and opportunities for small businesses In Australia and relate them to the issues confronting winegrape growers. A regular on Channel 7’s Sunrise and news programs, Pascoe is also a contributing editor at the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age BusinessDay.com.au sites and a popular commentator and columnist across other Australian media.

The full program for the Summit has now been released and Peter Hackworth, Wine Grape Council of SA executive officer, said there will be five keynote speakers in the program along with two sessions for discussion with panellists and growers.

“The program speakers will tackle the global, national, state and local issues confronting winegrape growers, while the sessions will look at the implications for the 2016 vintage and beyond, and the role innovation can play,” said Hackworth.

June 2015 – Issue 617

Apart from Michael Pascoe, the other keynote speakers will include: • Brett McKinnon, Pernod Ricard Winemakers global operations director, who will provide a winery perspective on how best to respond to the global market conditions; • Jim Moularadellis from Austwine; Peter Bailey, Australian Grape and Wine Authority; and Sandy Hathaway from WGCSA will provide a three-way analysis of 2016 demand by variety and region... combining information from wine sales, inventories, grape tonnages, prices and customer demand; • Stephen Strachan, Gaetjens Langley director, who will provide a unique insight into vineyard values and how they have changed over time; • Professor Kym Anderson, who will update his comprehensive research into the real impact of exchange rates in the global marketplace and what does a falling Australian dollar really mean for grapegrowers; and • Marc Soccio from Rabobank, who will give an overview of global and Australian economic outlook and trends, and the implications for the international wine trade.

The inaugural Vinnovation Award will also be presented at the Summit. It will be awarded for a change in practice or a technical breakthrough that creates positive change for grape growers in South Australia. The Winegrape Growers Summit is being held on July 17 at the Adelaide Oval.

For more information and a full Summit program visit www.wgcsa.com. au or contact: P: (08) 8351 4378 E: admin@wgcsa.com.au www.winebiz.com.au

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Pre-assembled protection… in a SNAP

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grapegrowing

Vineyard Machinery

Quantum Mist – a quantum leap in horticultural application CROPLANDS began working with the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) in 2002 to develop the Quantum Mist™ fan for horticulture. Today more than 14,000 Quantum Mist fan heads have been sold worldwide.

The Quantum Mist™ technology is ideal for a variety of applications and the system can easily match grower needs across all conditions. It is widely used in vineyards in single, two and three row combinations.

Fluro dye tests have proven that the Quantum Mist™ penetrates deeper within the canopy and spray actually reaches its intended target. The lightweight axial Quantum Mist™ fans are easily set to the angle, size and height of the crop,

minimising chemical drift and chemical waste.

“The advantage with this technology is we can adjust fan speeds down low to reduce drift, match the spray heads to the height of the bushes and get chemical spray straight to the leaf area”, said George Jessett, the BerryExchange Horticultural Manager who introduced the Single Row Quantum Mist™ Sprayer to Australia’s largest commercial Blueberry farm.

Offering flexibility with fan speed and spray application rates, the Quantum Mist™ fan heads deliver high volume, turbulent, directional air that provide up to thirty percent more coverage than traditional sprayers, resulting in optimum plant protection and disease control.

VINEYARD CANE RAKES • Very efficient at raking canes and debris • Rake and mulch in one pass • Single or double sided with swing back protection system

An innovative solution for processing pruned canes from the vineyard floor

72 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Jessett points out flexibility with spray volume and improved efficacy are major advantages in using Quantum Mist™ as part of his plant protection program.

The Quantum Mist™ technology has revolutionised the way vineyard and orchards are now sprayed and has won Croplands the 2009 Innovation Award from Wine Industry Suppliers Australia Inc. It continues to advance with a new Cable-drive System for increased savings in power requirements and fuel use.

For more information about the Quantum Mist™ range of horticultural sprayers contact Croplands: P: 1800 999 162 E: sales@croplands.com.au

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• Affordable modular system - add as you go • Available in four lengths and multiple configurations • Medium or heavy duty • Between the post and minimal pruning systems • Easy mounting to tractor with hydraulic masts • Versatile – Use or pruning or trimming • Robust construction, low maintenance The extra edge in productivity and canopy management

June 2015 – Issue 617

Product update

Getting it right for the growers SUBTLE but substantial improvements have further enhanced reliability and functionality with Gregoire’s latest G9 model, according to Lee Seatter, Gregoire’s Australasian viticulture product manager.

“We know from trials and end user testimony here in Australia that with the G9.330 we have a harvester that can handle good tonnage at a better forward speed, clean the sample well and keep the chaser bins rolling,” Seatter said.

Growers agree. Long term Gregoire user Gareth Evans from Willunga, South Australia, bought his first G9.330 in time for this year’s harvest. He visited another G9 owner before he bought the machine and was impressed by the technology, fuel efficiency and picking ability at good speed.

“I like to keep up with the times and all the new mod cons,” Evans said. “I’ve had plenty of experience with Gregoire harvesters over the years and never had any trouble. Parts are easy to get. I just do the usual maintenance and I’ve had a really good run with them. We grow several grape varieties and also do contract harvesting. I do 90 per cent of the driving myself and the fruit was falling off beautifully at 4km an hour.

“The cab is so quiet I could take calls from people wanting contract harvesting while I was actually harvesting. This harvester is very easy to use and no trouble for a new operator to pick up, and the visibility is magnificent. I used a lot less fuel this year too. The G9.330 is much more fuel efficient and we were picking so much faster. It was picking clean with

everything going well. And you haven’t got drivers sitting around for ages waiting for bins to fill up.”

Across Australia, five SELECT Gregoire dealers are handling Gregoire sales for importer PFG Australia, with parts and after-sales service also supplied by a nationwide Gregoire dealer network. The five SELECT dealers: Serafin Ag Pro in New South Wales; GFT Sales and Service in Mildura; Vinetech Machinery in South Australia; Grogan’s Machinery in Victoria; and Cowaramup Tractors in Western Australia, arranged several successful G9.330 demonstrations earlier this year with support from Gregoire International.

Seatter said growers commented particularly on the comfortable user-friendly layout and the new parallel adjusting picking head.

“Growers like the new picking head a lot because it’s consistently giving them a better quality of pick,” he said. We had two sales off the back of the demos and plenty of enquiries.

We’re taking orders now for next season. Worldwide, Gregoire has had one of the best years of production and sales they’ve had in a long time. Here, there’s a lot more openness about what growers need. The market has really stepped up for Gregoire because growers can see they’re getting things right, and the sales reflect this.”

For more information, contact your local Gregoire dealer; visit www.gregoire-australasia.com; or call Lee Seatter on 0417 868 413.

PERFORMANCE, PRODUCTIVITY AND COMFORT The new Farmall C from Case IH helps you get all your jobs done while being efficient, comfortable and easy-to-operate. User-friendly features include a power clutch for easy shifting, and advanced internal control ergonomics that include easy-to-read instrument data within the steering column and more accessible remote valves. Its unique fuel injection system provides greater fuel savings, even with higher horsepower levels. For more information, see your Case IH dealer.

Case IH Australia

June 2015 – Issue 617

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73

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grapegrowing

Tom Stephens' life in the vineyard turns full circle WHEN TOM Stephens graduated, from Charles Sturt University (CSU) with a degree in viticulture, his first jobs were planting vineyards with contract teams. Today, he runs one of the most recognised and trusted vine removal businesses in Australia. And when CSU decided to discontinue its involvement in commercial vineyards, it turned to Vine Sight to remove the vines at Wagga Wagga and Orange.

As Alison Stephens (Tom’s wife and business partner) explains, Tom’s university degree and his vineyard experience “has helped to build the reputation of the Vine Sight business”.

“Vine Sight prides itself on removing vineyards & re-working vineyards properly, we have really good processes and equipment that delivers quality results,” said Alison.

“All of our customers are grateful for Tom’s services, because he works hard, listens to our customers and provides professional and affordable options for them.”

Tom first went to CSU to study viticulture because he was keen on being involved in some form of agriculture and because he was encourage by a family friend in the wine industry. After working for contractors in Orange and the Upper Hunter he went was looking for a role in a bigger vineyard and an opportunity in the Cowra region presented, with a 400 acre vineyard.

“That was a big jump up in size,” Alison said. “But Tom worked his way up into management at a time the industry really started to face some uncertainty and the vineyard he was working for no longer had contracts to supply grapes. That was in 2009 and we’ve been working in the Vine Sight business every day of the year since then.”

The new business plan made sense, Tom had the practical viticultural experience and the hands-on experience with the machinery required for vine removal.

“We had to look at an Australian-wide business model, we

HANDS-ON: Tom Stephens from Vine Sight, knows his degree in viticulture from Charles Sturt University gave him a great start in the wine industry.

couldn’t set up in one region and only work in one place because there’s a bit of a lack of return business,” Alison said.

“In our first couple of years we had one team and one set of equipment and machinery, but we were busy enough. There

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Every story behind every vineyard is different, but at the end of the day there are people who have to make good business decisions for the property. And if that means removing a block of vineyard, we can provide a really professional service. was a bit of a plateau when there was some more optimism in the industry before 2013, but since then we’ve had two different teams out there full time, usually in two different states.

Enquiries are still coming in thick and fast.

“We did start locally before we started travelling right across Australia and even to New Zealand for one job last year.

“In the beginning we found people were very shy when talking about removing vineyards, probably because it does tend to look like a failure, but we know it’s often a really intelligent business decision.

“And because of Tom’s background, he does have an instant connection with our clients.”

Vine Sight has recently removed the CSU vineyards at Wagga Wagga and was still working on the removal project of the university’s Orange vineyards in late May and early June.

June 2015 – Issue 617

“The university appointed Vine Sight, not because Tom was a student there, but because of his skills in the business. The skills he started developing at CSU,” Alison said.

Today, Vine Sight works with different client for all a whole variety of reasons.

“Some have got a variety in the wrong spot that needs to be removed; others are looking to change to a different land use; some people are pulling out their vines to make their property more saleable, while others have just bought a patch of land and don’t want the vines that came with it; and some people are just getting out of growing grapes altogether,” Alison said.

“Every story behind every vineyard is different, but at the end of the day there are people who have to make good business decisions for the property. And if that means removing a block of vineyard, we can provide a really professional service.”

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grapegrowing Product Update

Soil conditioners key to soil health GREAT benefits come from increases in soil health. Improved Soil soil fertility, increased Management water-holding capacity, better soil structure, higher yields and superior fruit quality.

All of these benefits can be achieved with the application of compost and mulch. However the ability of these soil conditioners to improve a plant’s access to nutrients is often overlooked.

Soil conditioner is added to the soil to increase organic matter including soil carbon – which in turn increases water-holding capacity and improves soil structure. This is achieved by encouraging the formation of soil aggregates – clusters of soil held together as a result of fungal hyphae and bacteria ‘gluing’ organics together – which hold water while allowing air to penetrate, facilitating drainage and salt removal and allowing roots to penetrate.

Importantly, these soil microbes can improve nutrient cycling by breaking down organic matter and providing nutrients in a plant available form.

Compost and mulch supplies microbes to the soil and also provides a food source in organic matter. This increases the activity of the added microbes and those already present in the soil.

Microbial activity will vary with environmental conditions, soil type

MULCH: Jeffries Dura Mulch applied in the Peter Lehmann Wines vineyards.

and vineyard management techniques, however compost and mulch consistently provide a source of microbial activity, soil carbon and slow release nutrients – some of which is available immediately in the first year of application, and with ongoing benefits continuing for up to

five-to-seven years after application.

For more information contact Brian Silvy from Jeffries Compost, Soil and Mulch P: 0421 250 686 E: bjs@jeffries.com.au

Compost & Mulch - one of the best investments you can make for your soil South Australia’s premium compost and mulch producer bjs@jeffries.com.au | 0421 250 688 | www.jeffries.com.au 78 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Product Update

Have you made your nutrition deposits for this season?

AT BUDBURST, vines require stored nutrients to feed the spring growth until the roots become active and start the process of photosynthesis, working with the fresh foliage to build sugars and food for the current season.

The stored nutrients are collected in tree prior to dormancy, so that deposits you make to the nutrient bank prior to dormancy are all important.

Now is the time to consider your bank balance of nutrients and ensure that you don’t take your account into overdraft in the spring.

The amount of nutrient removed by a vine crop (for example) is shown in the table below.

Dormant Treatment of Vines with BudFeed Plus Grapevine (Nutrient Removal) Nutrients Removed Per Ton of Grapes (kg) Nitrogen

2.13

Phosphorus

0.33

Potassium

3.34

Magnesium

0.15

For every tonne taken off at harvest, nutrients are removed.

The aim is to ensure that none of these elements becomes a limiting factor for production.

For each variety and region, the recommendations will differ as to the rates and timing of inputs. The main thing is to be aware of the needs of the vine and to ensure everything is furnished for healthy growth and optimal production and quality.

Number one is to be sure that irrigation and other farm management items are taken care of. Next consider the overall fertiliser inputs of N, P and K which can be supplied as solid fertilisers, through liquid injection and in some cases with foliar top-ups.

Then the secondary and micro nutrients need to be attended to. If you are not sure, then an early tissue test, along with visual observation can allow last minute correction of these elements through soil or foliar application.

Observing the leaves can often indicate the limiting factors affecting the vine.

NUTRIENT REPLACEMENT: Dormant treatment of vines with BudFeed Plus.

Finally there are quality and crop performance considerations.

Is there adequate calcium and boron available for healthy bunch development? Is nitrogen being balanced in order to maintain required supply but not trigger excessive vegetative growth?

Are all necessary elements available to assist pollination and to minimise stress at critical crop stages? Are elements such as potassium and magnesium available to help with the bulking of fruit?

Stoller Australia focusses on helping a crop reach its full genetic potential by addressing limiting factors and minimising the impact of stress.

Stoller’s philosophy is to promote continuous healthy root growth through stress management and the application of key soil nutrients products such as Stoller’s Nutri-pHLow and RootFeed. In addition ensuring nutrients are in good supply through foliar treatments such as Stoller’s Foliar Plus and treating the foliage with sprays of Calcium and Boron in the form of Stoller’s SETT/CaB can help with pollination and final fruit quality.

Stoller’s Post Harvest 23 is a fertigation treatment designed to feed reserves to the roots and supply inputs that can be used in the following season. Another unique option is the dormant application of Stoller’s BudFeed Plus which feeds essential elements to the dormant wood prior to budburst.

For more information, representative: W: www.stoller.com.au P: Freecall 1800 Fertiliser E: info@stoller.com.au

contact

a

Stoller

Australia

ARE YOU GETTING THE MOST FROM YOUR VINEYARD?

Ask for a ur copy of o e winegrap ! program June 2015 – Issue 617

Stoller has nutrient programs to: • optimise spring growth • eliminate nutrient deficiency symptoms • improve bunch formation and retention • lessen the impact of stress • aid proper ripening • Deliver maximum return for farmers.

CONTACT STOller AUSTrAlIA ON freeCAll 1800 337 845 Or info@stoller.com.au www.winebiz.com.au

Zinc deficiency

Manganese deficiency

Iron deficiency

Magnesium deficiency Grapegrower & Winemaker

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winemaking

Winemaker Craig Viney

On the right road at Murray Street Sitting with Anthony Grundel and Craig Viney from Murray Street Vineyards, you get the feeling the pair run a very smooth operation. Grundel, the general manager, is just as comfortable talking about the importance of the winery’s mailing list as he is discussing their plans in China. Viney, who drives a VW Kombi and rides a skateboard, has a sample from the final press of the 2015 vintage on the coffee table. The pair spoke to Nathan Gogoll about making wine, selling wine and capability – rather than potential.

IN A NEAR-new winery in Greenock, Murray Street Vineyards crushes about 230 tonnes each year. Its own vintage numbers are boosted by a range of small producers who also make their wines in this modern facility. The winery already has storage space for one million litres, but is seeking to increase its licence to 1000 tonnes. There are plans to plant an extra vineyard on the Greenock property and to make sure the nearby Gomersal vineyard is performing at its best, which will probably result in some grafting or replanting in the near future. The winery has already paid its growers for the fruit they delivered for the 2015 vintage. And there are also plans to increase the number of cases of premium reds produced, aiming to hit the export market with more Shiraz at around $25 per bottle.

They don’t talk about waiting for more opportunities at Murray Street

80 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Vineyards, they talk about getting ready for them.

“It’s not about opportunity, it’s about capability,” said Grundel.

“As a winemaking facility we are looking to increase our licenced capacity to 1000 tonnes. And that will allow us to push more of our Black Label range.”

The Murray Street journey began in 2001 when Bill Jahnke, a US investment banker, partnered with Andrew Seppelt, whose ancestors were very important pioneers of the Barossa wine industry. It started with a vineyard at Gomersal and within a couple of years was expanding into Greenock and shipping the first export orders to the US and Asia. By the time the 10-year anniversary arrived, the wines had earned a range of international accolades; the wines were being made in a brand new winery and the Greenock tasting room had earned the title of ‘Best Cellar Door in the Barossa’. www.winebiz.com.au

Today, it is the Jahnke family that owns 100 per cent of the business and Bill not only “really engaged”; he is setting up for the next generation of his family to takeover. It’s no secret the winery was on the market only 18-months ago, and had attracted serious interest. But Viney reckons a visit to the winery during vintage change Jahnke’s mind – the sights and smells hooked him back in.

When Bill Jahnke returned for the recent Barossa Vintage Festival, Grundel said he brought a buzz of family ideas and energy with him.

The long-term goal is to grow this range to sales of 20,000 cases, which will rely on extra capacity from the estate vineyards and extra supply from other Barossa grapegrowers. Murray Street owns about 130 acres of vineyard and last year contracted out the vineyard management.

“The costs are arguably like-for-like, June 2015 – Issue 617

but the value of no stress on that part of the business is amazing,” Viney said.

“The first vintage played out so well.

Yields went up without compromising quality.”

There is expected to be more improvement from the vineyards, with blocks like their young dry-grown bushvine Mataro just starting to hit its straps.

“We were really happy with the Mataro this year, we picked the best fruit I’ve seen from it yet,” Viney said.

There’s a focus on “getting the right things in the right places” and putting in more Shiraz “because it’s selling”, according to Grundel. However, if the growth happens according to plan, more fruit will need to be sourced from other growers.

“We’ve always been happy to pay the right amount for the right fruit,” said Grundel.

And pay quickly, which Viney admits does keep his phone ringing as each vintage approaches.

Murray Street currently has a dozen fulltime staff members. There are four team

members in the winery, supplemented by a bunch of extra winemakers sharing space for their own projects.

“At the moment we do a bit of contract winemaking as well,” Viney said. “But our number one priority is to work with people who really fit in with what we are doing.”

Having a group of other small producers in the winery has proven to be a positive experience, with a range of different approaches being adopted by the various winemakers and varieties which aren’t part of the Murray Street range, also arriving.

“It’s really good to bounce ideas off the other guys while they’re here during vintage,” Viney said. “I like to call the small winemaker section of the winery the ‘gourmet kitchen’. There were about 10 other brands using the space this vintage and it gives us space to do little batches as well, at one stage I think I had 14 little parcels on the go. We’ve got storage space for a million litres, but the biggest individual tank has a capacity of 18,000 litres.

“It means you can try a few things like a parcel of Grenache with a percentage of whole bunch in the ferment. We’ve got the space to do something a little bit left of centre, something quite unique.

“I still get excited about seeing parcels of fruit from different patches of dirt with all the different styles you can see from across the Barossa.

“And as far as our cellar hands go, I reckon they’ve got one of the best wineries to work in.”

Viney has been with Murray Street Vineyards for more than eight years and assumed the responsibilities of chief winemaker when Andrew Seppelt departed. During his time in the Barossa he has managed to sneak in a Northern Hemisphere vintage, 2008 in Walla Walla Valley, Washington State, and the international winemaker swap with L’Ecole No 41 enabled the two wineries to share information and technical expertise.

The new winery sits in an elevated position on the Greenock property, overlooking the tasting room. From every

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June 2015 – Issue 617

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winemaking

angle it’s an idyllic setting and a drawcard for visitors. The cellar door doesn’t have a tasting bench; instead guests are seated for a ‘hosted’ experience.

“We led the curve, set the bar, with the way we set up our cellar door,” said Grundel, who has extensive retail experience on his resume. “We’ve seen other Barossa wineries come along with lots of other great things and that has all added to the strength of the region.”

The setting and the experiences go well with the sub-regional focus of the wines available in the cellar door. This theme gets a boost from the setting; and the fact the small township of Greenock has more and more for visitors to see and do.

“There are a couple extra cellar doors in town now and it’s looking like we will get to five or six,” Grundel said. “And when visitors find out where we are, we think we’re actually one of the easiest cellar doors to find. So we are getting busier and busier and we’re now getting into events, looking at weddings and conferences.

“Our range of wine is structured so the MSV range is primarily direct sales, driven by our tasting room and our mailing list.

“We’ve been headhunting people for different roles and have moved to a flatter style structure where everybody is a salesperson.”

Things are tracking well in the cellar door and the team is happy to keep engaging customers on the back of good regional promotion, but there is an understanding the brand needs to work on its national and international awareness.

The winery recently appointed a PR company to help get the message out, with the task to improve the situation where it’s currently “not really on the radar in Sydney”.

At the same time as the winery grows it’s highly rewarding direct sale opportunity, work is also being done to drive export demand.

82 Grapegrower & Winemaker

“We are really happy with the energy building to attract visitors to the Barossa and we know when you look at that regional picture ‘Brand Barossa’ is well ahead of other regions,” Grundel said.

“But we also know that when we go overseas there are some people who ask ‘doesn’t all Australian Shiraz come from the Barossa?’ We know that’s a huge advantage, but we also know it will be a long-term fight for our brand to be recognised.”

The winery has been designed to maximise efficiencies, so the thought of scaling up production doesn’t faze the winemaker or the GM. “Our Black Label, which started in 2008 and was built up from 2010, is aimed at people looking for Barossa Shiraz,” Grundel said. “For the Black Label, the ultimate goal is 20,000 cases – but give us five years.

“Moving up to a 1000 tonne capacity in the winery is all about being set up to meet opportunities.”

There is real experience in building the domestic market and Grundel said Dan Murphys “had been nibbling for a while before we had the capacity for them”. And the lessons are being used to guide the export focus. The plan is to retain as many direct-to-consumer export options as possible because “in China and Hong Kong delivery costs are really cheap and orders of a couple of bottles, rather than a dozen, can work”.

There are a few export markets ticking along and Grundel believes the Black Label Shiraz is central to the growth plan. The groundwork into export markets is often laid by visiting big international wine shows, before actually booking a stand. And Murray Street has also partnered with Wine Australia and wine brokers to have a presence at shows like ProWine, Vinexpo and the Hong Kong International Wine and Spirits Fair.

When the Murray Street journey began in 2001, the plan was to divide the sales three ways… one third domestic; one www.winebiz.com.au

third to the US; and one third to the rest of the world.

“We had just started ‘making it’ in the US when the GFC smashed,” Grundel said.

The focus shifted to China and the winery has started to make in-roads.

And more recently, there have been more encouraging signs from traditional export markets.

“The week the Australian dollar dropped [the third week in January this year], the phone started ringing again and we sent our first order to the UK in four years,” Grundel said.

“Europe is now back in play,” said Grundel, and what was a three way split distribution ambition has been adjusted to a 60/40 plan – with domestic sales having the larger share, for now.

“There are still some issues with some international markets. In China it’s easier to move a $60 case or trophy wine – things that rank as tier one and two,” Grundel said. “There’s a lot of talk about China changing to a consumer-driven market and the austerity measures took out the speculators and entrepreneurs, but we are now seeing more distribution businesses popping up. Our experiences with Amazon China have been interesting, they’re respecting our brand and we’re happy with the prices we are seeing on our wines.

“We’ve been lucky to get on board with a couple of airlines, which I don’t think from an Australian point of view we place enough value on. I think Australian wineries think it’s good, but I’ve seen French producers who are gutted to see an Aussie wine take the place of something French on an international airline wine list – they really rate it very highly.”

When Murray Street’s five-year growth targets are achieved, it won’t come as a surprise to anybody in the winery. They are building the capability that has the winery ready to grab its opportunities.

June 2015 – Issue 617

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winemaking

New test in the battle against Brettanomyces THE MOLECULAR biology technique PCR has now been applied to the determination of Brettanomyces bruxellensis yeast in wine. A kit system is now available in Australia and has been used in our labs to determine the number of viable Brett yeast cells in wine with very good results. This is a rapid and very specific technique. As such, it is another great tool to use in the continuing fight against this pesky spoilage yeast. Greg Howell, from Vintessential Laboratories, reports.

WHAT IS PCR? Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was developed in the USA by Kary Mullis, who shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1993 (1) for its discovery. PCR is an enzymatic molecular biology technique that detects a DNA (or RNA) sequence and so identifies a particular species or individual. This technique has been widely used in areas such as forensics, medicine, food safety and microbiology since the 1990s.

The basis of the technique is the detection and amplification of a particular sequence of DNA from an organism. The amplification is achieved by using the single strand DNA as a template to build more identical strands from building blocks that are included in the test media. The technique is very powerful because only a very small amount of DNA is required and this can be amplified by up to millions of times and then used to identify the species, gene or strand of interest.

USING PCR FOR BRETT DETECTION The use of PCR techniques for the determination of B. bruxellensis (commonly and simply referred to as Brett in the wine industry) has been used in the USA for several years and is widely accepted there as a routine tool in the fight against Brett.

There was an attempt to use a kit from one of the commercial American wine labs in Australia a few years ago, however this kit was apparently a bit unwieldy and was introduced by a nonwine testing laboratory. Unfortunately, this technique has not, until now, become popular.

The PCR technique uses several key items and materials. One of the main items is the primer – this is the same sequence as a small strand of DNA from B. bruxellensis that is used in the multiplication step for the detection of Brett cells via their DNA. There is now available from a local distributor (2) a US made kit (the Veriflow Brett Test System) that includes all the necessary reagents and equipment needed to measure Brett

by PCR. We have recently trialled this in our own laboratory and have been impressed by the speed and accuracy of the technique. In fact we have implemented this system now in all three of our laboratories as an extra way to ascertain the level of Brett in wine samples and have started offering this new test to our many customers.

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Figure 1: Part of the PCR kit showing the cassette where the results can be read

To be able to use the kit, an instrument for the thermo cycling stage of the PCR technique is required and is supplied separately for around $5000. Another instrument - a reader, can also be obtained to better determine the results in a semi quantitative way, rather than doing this by eye. The reader sells for around $9000. The test, although very simple to use, does require good lab skills as very small volumes are used and some specific testing techniques are required.

So the full package that is available includes the following items: • Thermo cycler; • Reader; and • A kit that include buffers, primers and indicators for 24 tests.

THE BENEFITS OF USING PCR FOR BRETT IN WINE The main benefit of the PCR technique for Brett detection in wine is speed. A result in cells/mL of Brett in a wine can be achieved in one day by PCR. When compared to the traditional technique of plating, which takes up to 10 days for the Brett colonies to grow, this can be a huge advantage. We have certainly had customers who are ready to bottle wine and cannot wait 10 days to get a plating result and so do not get any testing done at all, therefore taking a risk that no viable Brett is present. The PCR technique would be very valuable in this situation.

OTHER BRETT TESTS The other popular technique related to Brett is the determination by Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GCMS) of 2 phenol compounds (4 ethyl phenol and 4 ethyl guaiacol – 4EP & 4EG) as a measure of the taint caused by the Brettanomyces yeast in the wine.

Whilst plating and GCMS are still very useful for Brett management, the PCR technique adds another very useful way to measure Brett cells/mL in wine. As stated this can be produced in a relatively fast measurement compared to plating.

VIABLE BUT NON-CULTURABLE CELLS One interesting aspect of this PCR work (3) is on the issue

84 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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June 2015 – Issue 617

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Figure 2: Plate showing Brett colonies

of Viable But Non-Culturable (VBNC) Brett cells in wine. This study demonstrated that Brett can exist in the VBNC state, and that Brett in this form can be determined by quantitative PCR. The ramifications of this study are yet to be fully explored, however it has been suggested that some Brett cells can exist in wine but cannot be detected by traditional plating techniques as they will not grow on plates of selective media. That is, they are viable, but they are not culturable. The implication is that there may be more Brett cells in the wine that are not picked up by the traditional plating technique. It seems further research work needs to be done to better confirm these findings.

It has also been demonstrated (4) that these VBNC Brett cells can change back to viable and culturable state if the conditions in the wine change. This is an ongoing and interesting area of research on this rather annoying spoilage yeast.

“A proudly 100% Australian owned company, servicing scientific laboratories since 1987.”

CONCLUSION A new and well produced PCR kit for determination of Brettanomyces bruxellensis has been introduced to the Australian market. Validation of this kit and ancillary equipment has been performed in our laboratories. The results are very exciting as there is now a new way to measure Brett cells in cells/mL in wine quickly and reliably. This test should be of interest to many winemakers and winery lab managers as another tool to use in their ongoing management of this difficult wine spoilage yeast.

REFERENCES

1. http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1993/mullislecture.html 2. Veriflow Brett Test System, available from Australasian Medical and Scientific; see www.amsl.com.au 3. Characterisation of the “viable but nonculturable (VBNC) state in the wine spoilage yeast Brettanomyces, Serpaggi V et al; Food Microbiology 30, (2012), 438-447 4. Quantitative PCR: An appropriate tool to detect viable but non culturable Brettanomyces bruxellensis in wine, Willenburg E, Divol B; International Journal of Food Microbiology 160, (2012), 131-136

Greg Howell is the founder and Managing Director of Vintessential Laboratories. He can be contacted by email on greg@vintessential.com.au. More articles on related topics are available on the Vintessential website: www.vintessential.com. au/resources/articles/ June 2015 – Issue 617

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winemaking

There’s no middleman when it’s straight From the Producer ONLINE wine sales have become more popular than direct purchases for the first time ever, according to a recent report

by Wine Intelligence, with one-in-five wine drinkers shopping online. Market estimates put the size of the Australian online wine market at about $500 million with annual growth at 20 per cent. While the numbers are up, many online wine channels drive prices down, and the returns to the winery in a heavily discounted environment are meagre. From the Producer is a wine buying portal which aims to change the face of online selling for local producers. Essentially cutting out the middleman, the website hands selling power back to the wine (as well as cheese, olive oil, cured meat) producers through a free, easy to use platform driven by self-promotion. Emilie Reynolds spoke to John Cameron, From the Producer founder, to see how the project is faring one year on and get an idea about where the future is headed.

FOR THE PRODUCER The premise behind From the Producer is all about offering direct access between customers and producers. Its founder, John Cameron, admits it began with his own desire to make local produce more accessible.

BUYERS’ GUIDE For experienced wine & grape industry suppliers

My idea was to use technology to provide an automated, and therefore low cost – preferably free, sales channel that any producer can use to make contact with and potentially sell to customers.

“I was motived by self-interest,” Cameron said. “I love my food and wine and appreciate the skill that goes into making a great wine or cheese. If somebody has the knowledge, talent and inspiration to make a great wine, I want that person to be able to make a living doing just that – so that I can have the pleasure of consuming the fruits of their labour!”

Cameron said he would often visit local farmer’s markets, where owners would explain how hard it is to establish relationships with supermarket chains.

“It is becoming increasingly difficult for small producers to get started and make a living at what they do,” Cameron said. “It is not efficient for large retailers to deal with small producers and it is the large retailers that dominate the market.”

Hit with a brainwave and a genuine desire to help these people out, Cameron used his knowledge of software development to craft a solution.

Far from a wine industry expert, Cameron’s background is in the IT business. He previously fronted a project that lead to the world’s first fully automated trading system for the Australian Stock Exchange and now runs his own IT consultancy firm, Cameron Edge.

“My idea was to use technology to provide an automated, and therefore low cost – preferably free, sales channel that any producer can use to make contact with and potentially sell to customers,” Cameron said. “If you can make something that people like and are prepared to pay for, then you should be able to concentrate on what you do best and make a living at it.”

The website is free to use, self-sufficient and completely automated. Cameron stresses that he just created the technology and the sales and marketing aspect is up to the producers.

“The website is driven by the producers themselves and their customers,” Cameron said. “The cost of running it is essentially just the cost of hosting a website.”

Creating the website in the first place cost a reasonable amount of time and money, which Cameron fronted himself.

“Now that it is up and running the ongoing costs are negligible,” he explains. “It does not rely on making money to exist.”

SETTING UP SHOP

www.winebiz.com.au/guide 86 Grapegrower & Winemaker

From the Producer was fully functional before it was endorsed by the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia (WFA).

Cameron met Tony D’Aloisio, the WFA president, on the board of a computer software company and “jumped at the opportunity” to share his idea.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

“I asked Tony what he thought of the website, and he invited me to pitch to the WFA,” Cameron said. “Some winemakers were pretty sceptical at first, but once they understood that this was about helping smaller producers sell more wine they were quite supportive.”

While Cameron needed a way to check supplier bona fides, the WFA suggested opening the website to members of the organisation, a move that prompted rumours the initiative was a member’s push for the WFA. “It was just a good opportunity,” Cameron said. “I didn’t receive any funding from the WFA, but the organisation helped me get the website off the ground with a bunch of good producers supporting it from the beginning.”

D’Aloisio said the WFA has been John Cameron pleased to work with Cameron to introduce a new channel of retailing. “Being part of From the Producer during its pilot has been a way of assisting smaller wineries and young winemakers in particular gain consumer access when they otherwise might not have had a retail distribution network, shelf space or a cellar door of their own,” D’Aloisio said.

A YEAR ON Cameron said the website is beginning to gain traction as more consumers become aware of what it’s all about.

“Once people understand this is not just another online wine site run for profit at the expense of producers and their customers, they tend to want to help spreading the word,” he said.

“Producers have a role to play by mentioning From the Producer in their own marketing. So far we have not seen much of that but it is early days.

Producers are still getting their heads around how they can best take advantage of the website.”

At this stage, Cameron said the website has around 1000 subscribers and sells a few thousand dollars’ worth of wine each month, a figure which continues to rise.

“It is another sales channel,” Cameron said. “Not a very big one right now, but potentially a very important one.”

Cameron concedes that the ‘high street retailer’ is always going to be a very important sales channel for producers, but the online market provides an opportunity for producers themselves to have the lion’s share of sales.

“Online sales through From the Producer are truly ‘direct’... from the producer, direct to the customer with nobody in-between.”

Cameron admits there have been mistakes along the way, but said From the Producer is a learning experience and a platform which won’t be disappearing any time soon.

“There’s no guide book for this project,” Cameron explains.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

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winemaking It provides another avenue for sales and the more wineries that are represented on the site, the better it will do.

“The nice thing is, we have plenty of time to find our own way.”

FROM THE PRODUCERS Cameron said around 60 producers have jumped on board the initiative, eager to test drive the future in online wine sales.

Ian Firth, Fowles Wine customer service manager, said his team fully supported the website and saw it as a great avenue for wineries to market their wine.

“All of the profits go straight back to the winery, which is a great concept,” Firth said. “It has the potential to broaden audience reach on a platform which is the fastest growing area in wine retail.”

Firth said with no margin, the winery has total control over the cost and can run promotions through From the Producer.

“John Cameron is doing this for the wineries,” Firth said. “He clearly has our best interest at heart and is using his skills in IT to support the wine industry because he believes in it.”

Corrina Wright, Oliver’s Taranga winemaker, said the idea reminded her of a farmer’s market for wines.

“I like the concept of people being able to access producers direct,” Wright said. “I also think that John Cameron, who developed the idea and designed the website, completely at his own cost, and who takes no cut from wine sales, is a bit of a legend.”

Wright said the format is easy to use for both consumer and producers, but improvements could be made in the promotion of the website.

“It has the potential to stand next to the larger corporate wine sales websites,” she said. “Perhaps the website doesn’t look as pretty – but all of the profits go straight to the producer themselves, which has to be a good thing.”

While Wright said she has so far only sold about five dozen bottles of wine, she is happy to be supporting an initiative aimed at helping the industry.

“There’s no skin off your nose as there is no cost,” Wright said. “It provides another avenue for sales and the more wineries that are represented on the site, the better it will do Google-wise, which will drive more traffic to the site and the wineries in turn.”

As well as providing direct sales for producers, Cameron said the website has a few tools to ensure a competitive price point.

Automatically scanning other online wine outlets, From the Producer can adjust the price of wine to match other discounted rates if the seller chooses.

“From the Producer does some automated marketing that does not cost anything – such as the automated newsletter which is built from an automated scan of well-known wine blogs for mentions of producers listed and updating prices each night to Google and other leading feeds.”

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88 Grapegrower & Winemaker

The first step for the future has been lifting the restrictions on who can get involved, according to Cameron.

“With the full support of WFA, we have opened From the Producer up to many more wineries,” he said. “In order to participate producers need only show that they are members of their recognised regional industry association. Ultimately, every legitimate Australian wine producer should be represented on From the Producer.”

Apart from opening the website up to the masses, Cameron said a new reward scheme will see a greater transparency between consumer and seller.

“This will allow producers to share with their customers the savings they make from selling direct,” Cameron said.

“We also plan to build on the reviewing capability of the site.

Customers can review the wine they have bought – similar to a Trip Advisor style model. In addition to customer reviews we want to encourage professional reviews of wines listed on From the Producer.”

Cameron said the future of the website will be based around the concept of building a community.

“It is what the world is all about right now,” he said.

“We’re trying to build a community where buyers and sellers are communicating with each other, because that’s a really powerful model.”

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June 2015 – Issue 617

VINTESSENTIAL FAMILY: Jenny Stonier, Elke, Eve and Greg Howell.

Vintessential survives 20 years of testing times for the wine industry BACK IN 1995, Wine Spectator magazine named the 1990 Grange its ‘red wine of the year’, suddenly giving the rest of the world cause to re-evaluate Australian wine.

Within Australia, however, there was a different kind of re-evaluation going on.

Having recently returned from the 1994 vintage in Burgundy, a young oenologist and qualified chemist, Greg Howell, saw an opportunity to replicate the model of regional wine laboratories he’d witnessed in France.

While he figured Australia probably didn’t need yet another young winemaker, it really did need another source of testing, science and advice for those practising the black art of winemaking.

And so, Vintessential Laboratories was born, with the first lab established on the Mornington Peninsula.

This is where Howell met his partner and now joint-owner of Vintessential, Jenny Stonier, a scion of one of the Peninsula’s founding wine families and a respected wine marketer.

In time, the Mornington lab would be followed by two more in Margaret River and the Granite Belt of southern Queensland.

At first, Vintessential only offered a testing service, but Howell and his growing team have a reputation for listening to customer’s requests and shrewdly observing their unspoken needs.

Accordingly, they started supplying the same laboratory reagents and equipment they used themselves to the winemakers who carried out their own testing.

It didn’t take long before Vintessential decided to manufacture its own Enzymatic Test Kits, the only ones made in Australia exclusively to test wine.

Not only are these now sold worldwide but also won the company the Export Award at WISA’s Supplier of the Year ceremony in 2013.

Expanding on its services but remaining true to its core, Vintessential Laboratories now analyse water, soil and plant vine material, as well as distribute the famous Oenobrands products of Anchor Yeast and Rapidase Enzymes nationally.

“So, while our industry has faced the problems of drought, floods, bushfires, smoke taint and the Savagnin debacle, June 2015 – Issue 617

Vintessential has slowly made itself an absolutely Vintessential part of the solution over the last two decades by focusing on the needs of the brave men and women who quench our thirsts,” Howell said.

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young gun

Fresh.

Energetic.

Altmann.

Vanessa Altmann got her big break at age 19, working as David Bruer’s personal assistant.

Making wine, saving the world.

It’s all in a day’s work for Vanessa Altmann. Emilie Reynolds caught up with the Langhorne Creek winemaker to chat about her journey so far and the exciting chapters to come.

Vanessa Altmann’s passion for organic wine drove her to create her own wine label, Switch.

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VANESSA ALTMANN says sometimes it’s the wines you least expect that surprise you. Perhaps, sometimes it’s the same with winemakers.

At 32 years of age, Altmann has been in the wine industry for 14 years but her journey into winemaking was certainly unique. Too busy serving wine to study it, Altmann said she caught a big break when she was just 19-years-old.

“I wanted to move into the wine industry and was offered the opportunity to work at Temple Bruer, as personal assistant for the chief executive officer,” Altmann explained. “This was really my foot in the door to learn the business.”

Altmann said the unpredictable nature of her position allowed her to develop a range of skills in the winery.

“If you look hard enough there’s always tasks that no one else wants to do in a winery, so I did them!” Altmann said. “From lab analysis to washing barrels and along the way I soaked up all the knowledge I could from one of my greatest teachers, David Bruer.”

Obviously impressing Bruer with her hard-working attitude, Altmann was quickly promoted to a position which opened her eyes up to the world of winemaking.

“After a year or so I moved to the role of trainee winemaker and have progressed along into the position of winemaker and quality manager,” she said. “The energy of vintage, the want to create wine adventures and to see a wine through from vineyard to bottle all inspired me to follow this career.”

June 2015 – Issue 617

Since then, Altmann has worked 14 vintages at Temple Bruer and has been a firm believer in the sustainable practices of the winery. From early on Temple Bruer adopted certified organic grape and wine production to protect consumers, employees and the wider environment.

“I love Temple Bruer for everything they’ve done, continue to do and everything they stand for when it comes to organic wine production.”

Altmann said in a sense organic growing and winemaking was the only way she knew, but her passion for the practices were deep-seated.

“It has become ingrained in my ethos not only for winemaking, but also for the food that I eat and the types of business that I want to support,” Altmann explained. “For me it’s more than an interest, it’s a choice about how I want to live my life and my hopes for our future.”

Organic winemaking has been a growing movement over the past few years, and Altmann said she hoped it doesn’t slow down any time soon.

“Certified organic wines don’t contain synthetic herbicides of fungicides,” she said. “For me it is key that both our human health and our planets health benefit from organic wine production.

Advocacy for organic agriculture will keep the momentum going, furthermore I hope this groundswell will highlight the symbiosis between being a carbon neutral and certified organic wine business.”

A natural wine adventurer, Altmann began working on a personal wine label which reflected the organic winemaking techniques she had learnt with Bruer.

The venture, named Switch Wines, came to fruition in 2011 after Altmann made a few sacrifices to get it off the ground.

“Well the first thing I did was sell my car, you need cash to start a wine label!”

Altmann said.

“When you’re starting it takes support, family, friends and most importantly drinkers.”

Describing her brand as a “two barrel wine empire”, Altmann said Switch Wines were living bottles of adventure and purity.

“They are wholehearted wines from the growing to the drinking,” she said.

“The wines are created in small parcels using elements of my environment or terroir such as grape skins or stalk to build structure rather than factory adds.

This gives the wines freedom in its own right to be diverse and powerful as the vintages come and go.”

Altmann said outside of working at Temple Bruer, Switch takes up most of her spare time.

“Any other time is spent with family, at the gym or in my veggie patch.”

As well as personal success, Altmann was recognised on a national scale in 2013 when she was named a young gun of wine finalist and became an alumni of the Governor’s Leadership Foundation.

Citing Switch as one of her biggest accomplishments to date, Altmann said although the journey hasn’t been easy, it has been worth it.

“Making wines under my own label has been one of the most challenging and rewarding achievements so far,” she said.

She implored young winemakers to remember to keep their dreams alive and remain true to their personal philosophy.

“Don’t get stuck, keep reinventing and experimenting,” she said. “Sometimes this is hard, but try and find space to forget everything that you think you know about wine and make what you dream.”

Looking to the future, Altmann said her ultimate goal remains simple.

“To make wines that people love to drink,” she said. “My greatest achievement will be sustaining a balance between the financial, environmental and social impact of the wine industry and engage with those who I come across with authenticity and mutual support.

“These are my hopes for a great career.”

It has become ingrained in my ethos not only for winemaking, but also for the food that I eat and the types of business that I want to support. For me it’s more than an interest, it’s a choice about how I want to live my life and my hopes for our future.

SWITCH: An electric mix of variety and region.

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ask the

Trouble-free packaging THE AWRI helpdesk team often receives questions about packaging and avoiding problems when wine goes from tank to bottle and beyond. Some of the more common ones are outlined below.

HOW MUCH SO2 IS LOST DURING PACKAGING?

This will depend on how carefully a wine is protected from oxygen, and can vary from 5 mg/L free SO2 up to 10 mg/L and more. Oxygen is the biggest enemy at packaging, and it is important to minimise oxygen exposure during storage, transport and the lead-up to packaging – both by using appropriate inert gas coverage and keeping wines on minimal ullage. A general recommendation for maintaining adequate SO2 in wine post-bottling is to adjust the free SO2 prior to bottling to a level 5 mg/L higher than the desired post-bottling level. Note that if a wine has been exposed to high amounts of oxygen during storage, transport or in the lead-up to bottling, the rate of SO2 loss post bottling can be quite dramatic and may not follow typical patterns of consumption.

are altered enough to cause a shift in stability. It is unlikely that a small addition of 0.5% GJC will affect wine stability; however, for additions of 1% or greater, the chance of instability becomes higher and it is recommended that cold and heat stability be re-checked.

AFTER MY WINE WAS BOTTLED WITH NATURAL CORK CLOSURES THE BOTTLES WERE LEFT UPRIGHT INSTEAD OF INVERTED, IS THIS STANDARD PRACTICE? Upright storage for 24 hours post-bottling is standard practice.

This allows the corks to expand after being compressed for insertion, ensuring they provide the seal they are designed to achieve. If you do not invert or lay the bottles down after 24 hours, and keep the wines stored in an upright position for an extended period of time, this can allow the corks to dry out, making them much more susceptible to oxygen permeation.

The worst case scenario is that the corks dry out, oxygen enters the bottles, acetic acid bacteria proliferate at the surface, and the wine loses its sulfur dioxide and becomes volatile. The helpdesk’s recommendation is always to store wine under cork closures lying down or inverted after the initial 24 hours standing upright.

MY EMPTY GLASS BOTTLES HAVE BEEN STORED OUTSIDE FOR A LONG TIME, IS IT STILL OK TO USE THESE?

I NEED TO ADD SOME LAST MINUTE COPPER SULFATE TO MY WINE, SHOULD I PUSH MY BOTTLING DATE BACK? It is a good idea to let the wine re-stabilise after a copper sulfate addition, as late additions can see the risk of a copperrelated haze increase. Many of the cases of copper haze investigated at the AWRI have been related to the addition of copper sulfate immediately before bottling, often as ‘protection’ against a sulfide problem that might occur. To avoid this issue the helpdesk team recommends delaying your bottling schedule by at least a week if you need to add copper sulfate immediately prior to bottling.

DO I NEED TO COLD STABILISE AGAIN IF I’M SWEETENING MY WINE UP WITH GRAPE JUICE CONCENTRATE JUST BEFORE BOTTLING? Good grape juice concentrate (GJC) should be both cold stable and protein stable; however, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the wine will remain stable after an addition. The effect will depend on how much GJC is added and whether or not the critical parameters (pH, alcohol, acid, protein and potassium)

92 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Some care must be taken here to ensure the glass hasn’t become weathered. Amorphous silica can form an unusual deposit in wines which is caused by the phenomenon known as ‘bottle weathering’. When a glass bottle is blown, soda vapour condenses on the inner surface of the bottle and partially reacts with the glass surface to form an alkali-rich skin. Weathering of an empty bottle occurs in humid conditions when water vapour condenses on the inside of the bottle and reacts with the alkali layer. With a low level of weathering, a sodium carbonate layer forms on the inside of the bottle, known as a ‘bloom’, which is easily removed during bottle washing pre-filling. When there is a large amount of water present during storage, this bloom is washed away leaving a silicon-rich layer which subsequently can lead to the formation of needle or scroll-like amorphous silica structures in wine.

HOW USEFUL IS FILTERABILITY TESTING PRIOR TO BOTTLING? If performed correctly filterability testing can be very useful and provide a great insight into whether or not a wine is likely to foul a membrane filter. A key point to remember is that when measuring a wine’s filterability index prior to bottling, the best information will be obtained if the test filter is identical to the bottling filter you intend to use.

MORE QUESTIONS? For more information about trouble-free packaging, contact the AWRI helpdesk team on helpdesk@awri.com.au or 08 8313 6600.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Kemble rekindles his winemaking with latest drops AFTER a brief hiatus, celebrated winemaker John Kemble has returned to his first love by launching ‘Big Bunch’ - a vibrant range of Hawkes Bay varietals.

The downturn in the New Zealand wine market caused Kemblefield Estate to refocus and Kemble left the business in 2010.

Since that time he has been working in the organic food production industry, but has been looking for opportunities in the wine trade. Big Bunch has given Kemble a vehicle to return to his first love.

“Winemaking will always be my first passion and love; it’s great to be back in the game and I only hope people enjoy the wines as much as I have enjoyed developing them,” Kemble said.

With more than 30 years of winemaking under his belt, Kemble learnt his trade in Sonoma, California before he arrived in New Zealand and founded Kemblefield winery in 1992.

Kemble says it’s been wonderful reconnecting with friends in the winemaking industry after taking a few years off.

The collection includes a 2014 Sauvignon Blanc, 2014 Syrah, 2014 Pinot Gris, 2013 Chardonnay, 2013 Merlot and 2014 Rose. All of the wines are made using top-quality grapes from a range of Hawkes Bay vineyards and feature Dick Frizzell designed label art.

The wines, launched into the marketplace earlier this year, have been well received. Both the Chardonnay and Merlot have garnered Five Star reviews while Big Bunch 2014 Sauvignon Blanc scooped a Gold medal at the 2015 Royal Easter Show Wine Awards.

“I couldn’t be happier the range has already received recognition by the wine industry – it’s a real buzz and very important to me that the quality of the wine is nothing but exceptional,” Kemble

John Kemble has returned to winemaking with ‘Big Bunch’ wines from Kemblefield Estate.

said. “The name ‘Big Bunch’ derives from my passion to make outgoing wines, full of character, colour and with a big bunch of flavour.”

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June 2015 – Issue 617

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

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people & places

AWRI's 60

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birthday A DINNER to mark the AWRI’s 60th birthday was held at the Mortlock Chamber of the State Library of South Australia to thank past and present councillors and board members for their service to the AWRI and the wine industry.

Geoff and Judy Weaver with Terry Lee, past AWRI managing director.

Mark Watson, AWRI board member, with Kathryn Watson, John Angove and Claire Angove

Philip Laffer, past chair of the AWRI board; Robert Hesketh, Dr John Possingham.

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94 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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June 2015 – Issue 617

A U S T R A L I A

A U S T R A L I A

The long table setting in the Mortlock Chamber of the State Library of SA.

Louisa Rose, chair of the AWRI board; and Vince O’Brien, AWRI business development manager.

Dan Johnson, AWRI managing director; and Mary Retallack, AWRI board member.

Sakkie Pretorius, past AWRI managing director; Dan Johnson, AWRI managing director; Terry Lee, past AWRI managing director and Peter Høj, past AWRI managing director.

June 2015 – Issue 617

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winemaking

Developments in destemming and sorting technology Part one: In the winery DESTEMMERS are devices that detach grapes from stems and separate the detached stems from the grapes. Sorters are devices that remove further vegetal matter (stem fragments, petioles and leaves), other contaminants (e.g. insects) or undesirable grapes and parts of grapes (e.g. diseased or unripe grapes). The past 10 years have seen major developments Crushing in grape destemmers and sorters and some shift from these devices being located at the winery to some being mounted on machine harvesters. This article by Simon Nordestgaard, Australian Wine Research Institute senior engineer, reviews developments in winery-based destemming and sorting equipment. A second article, to be published in the next issue, will review developments in harvester-mounted destemming and sorting equipment.

Winery destemmers (including those with integrated sorters) Rotary destemmers have been widely used for destemming since at least the 1920s (Figure 1). In these devices a rotating shaft with beaters detaches the grapes from the stems. The

Figure 1: Roller crusher-rotary destemmer, c.1920s (Fabre 1929)

grapes then fall through holes in a cage, while the stems are conveyed out the end of the cage. Rotary destemmers have been used to destem prior to crushing (a destemmer-crusher), after crushing (a crusher-destemmer), or during crushing (using a high beater speed). The most common design in recent years has been destemmer-crushers where the cage turns in the same direction as the beater shaft, just at a slower speed. The destemmed grapes are then crushed by pairs of removable rollers integrated underneath the destemmer (Figure 2). The rotary destemmer concept is relatively simple, robust and scalable with models available capable of processing over 100 tonnes/hour.

For further information, please contact Kauri AUS Tel: 1800 127 611 AUS Fax: 1800 127 609 Email: winery@kauri.co.nz

96 Grapegrower & Winemaker

NZ Tel: 0800 KAURIWINE NZ Fax: 04 910 7415 Website: www.kauriwine.com

Figure 2: Modern rotary destemmer–roller crusher, (a) System overview, (b) Close-up view of destemmer

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June 2015 – Issue 617

(a)

(b)

(b)

Figure 4: Milani Estasi destemmer (a) System overview, (b) Close-up view showing knobbed bunch/stem conveyor and swaying destemming grille Figure 3: Scharfenberger EuroSelect destemmer (a) System overview, (b) Close-up view with hood open showing destemming finger wheels and bunch/stem grid conveyor (licensed from Socma)

Figure 5: Armbruster Rotovib destemmer

be treated with some caution. In some cases they may overstate the capacity at which desirable separation performance is achieved.

Milani introduced another style of destemmer around 2006 (Figure 4). In this device bunches are loaded on top of a knobbed conveyor. This conveyor then drops the bunches onto a grille that sways from side to side. The knobs on the underside of the conveyor move the bunches/stems along the grille and the

T ENTE

CES

S

P

RO

D

PA

While there have been many incremental improvements to rotary destemmers during the 20th century, fundamentally they still operate on similar principles. Undesirably, they can crush some grapes and stems and some vegetal matter can fall through holes in the cage. There has therefore been some interest in alternative designs. Around 1999 Socma introduced a destemmer where bunches/stems move on a grid conveyor and four sets of finger wheels rotating in the same direction as the conveyor immediately above it detach the grapes from the stems through the grid. Data presented on the Socma website suggest that this destemmer results in less juicing than rotary destemmers and slightly less residual vegetal matter [0.9% compared with 1.5% (by weight) for hand-picked grapes (Socma 2011)]. This destemmer is now produced under licence by Scharfenberger (Figure 3). Scharfenberger states the capacity as being up to 8 tonnes/hour.

As a general point, nominal capacities provided by manufacturers for destemming and sorting equipment should

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winemaking

Figure 7: Socma Cube vibrating destemmer-sorter (a) System overview, (b) Top-view with white vibrating destemming beaters and blue feeding star-wheels, (c) Schematic

Figure 6: Pellenc Selectiv’ vibrating destemmer-sorter (a) System overview with hood open, (b) Vibrating destemmer schematic, (c) Roller sorter schematic

swaying action of the grille detaches the grapes, which then fall through the grille. Milani states the capacity of this device as being up to 5 tonnes/hour.

Higher beater shaft rotation speeds in rotary destemmers have been shown by Vinsonneau and Vergnes (2000a) to result in more burst berries and higher levels of residual vegetal matter.

In around 2006, Armbruster introduced a rotary destemmer whose beater shaft vibrates (Figure 5). This partial use of vibration for berry detachment allows the destemmer to operate at slower beater shaft speeds than standard rotary destemmers.

Armbruster offers three models, with stated capacities of up to 10, 20 or 30 tonnes/hour.

The first destemmer to rely purely on vibration for berry detachment was introduced by Pellenc in around 2008 (Figure 6). This also appears to be the first device where the destemmer is only sold packaged with a sorting system and where the sorting system relies on rollers. In this device bunches/stems are conveyed by a sectioned grid conveyor and an overhead shark fin conveyor. Grapes are detached by one or two pairs of vibrating destemming beater sets. The mode of operation is similar to the beaters on a machine harvester. The grapes fall through the grid and onto the integrated two-section roller sorting table. The first section of rollers is tightly spaced allowing only juice/small materials to pass through. The gaps in the second section of rollers are larger and the grapes fall through, while the vegetal matter that is larger than the gaps is conveyed off the edge. The first section of rollers is specially

98 Grapegrower & Winemaker

shaped to encourage the petioles to orient perpendicular to the roller axes so that they tend to pass across the second section of rollers without falling through with the grapes. This system comes in three models with capacities stated by Pellenc as being less than 4, 3-10 and 7-20 tonnes/hour.

Socma introduced their own vibrating destemmer-sorter in around 2010 (Figure 7). Like the Pellenc system it uses vibrating beaters, but they point downwards. Material is fed from the top and rotating star wheels located between the beaters ensure an even flow rate of material through the destemming chamber.

Underneath the destemming chamber, the detached grapes fall out with stems on top of them. There is a vibrating sorting section where juice/small materials pass through, followed by a roller sorting section with larger gaps where the grapes fall through. The system capacity stated by Socma is 8-10 tonnes/ hour.

Bucher-Vaslin introduced a different style of vibrating destemmer-sorter in around 2011 (Figure 8). In this device, bunches enter an angled cylindrical slotted cage that swings from side to side. Grapes are detached from the stems as bunches/stems travel down through the cage. Stems and grapes all pass onto a single-section roller sorting table, through which the grapes, juice and small materials all fall. Bucher-Vaslin states that its model with a single cage has a capacity of 3-8 tonnes/hour, while the model with dual cages has a capacity of up to 20 tonnes/hour.

There are fairly limited published comparisons on the performance of the newer styles of destemmers relative to rotary destemmers. In one set of French trials with hand-picked grapes (Vinsonneau et al. 2013), the Pellenc Selectiv’, the Socma Cube and the Bucher-Vaslin Delta Oscillys vibrating destemmer-

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June 2015 – Issue 617

sorters were trialled and found to offer broadly similar and satisfactory performance (there were some differences – e.g. the level of juicing – the reader is directed to the original article available online for specifics). Typical residual vegetal matter was 0.3-0.4%. This compares favourably with previous studies using rotary destemmers with no sorting, where for hand-picked grapes there was typically 1-2% residual vegetal matter (Vinsonneau and Vergnes 2000a). For machine-harvested grapes the residual vegetal matter with the new devices would be even lower given the much lower quantity of vegetal matter in machine-harvested fruit than hand-picked fruit. Some of the manufacturers of the new devices also stress that many raisined berries will remain on the stems during destemming and therefore will not end up in red ferments.

The new generation of vibrating destemmer-sorters are approximately two to three times more expensive than rotary destemmers, with models capable of processing nominally 8 tonnes/hour costing in the order of $50,000-$70,000. They also have more moving parts than rotary destemmers, so it is possible that there may be greater maintenance requirements.

Despite this, it appears that vibrating destemmer-sorters are being chosen relatively commonly for new destemmer purchases in low throughput facilities (they are not available in very high throughput models). Currently in Australia there are approximately 20 vibrating destemmer-sorters in use, with about 1,000 in use worldwide.

Winery sorters Manual sorting has been practised in some regions in some form for as long as wines have been produced. This is of course slow and highly labour intensive and requires great concentration. Manual sorting is typically now facilitated

Figure 8: Bucher-Vaslin Delta Oscillys vibrating destemmersorter

by conveying tables that spread the grapes and present them to the people sorting. Belt conveyor tables and/or vibrating conveyor tables (sometimes with draining/small material slots) are used. Manual sorting may be carried out before and/ or after destemming. Automated sorters on the other hand are only employed after destemming. It should be noted that the performance of sorting post-destemming will always be dependent on the condition of the grapes and the gentleness of the destemming process. Sorting performance is likely to be reduced if the grapes have been broken down too much.

The first section of this article presented a number of new vibrating destemmers that incorporate roller sorting and/ or vibratory screen sorting. Similar sorting systems are also available as individual units that can be fitted after an existing destemmer. Some vibrating screen sorters have two sections (Figure 9). In the first section, juice and small materials are

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Figure 9: Enoveneta TSA twosection vibrating screen sorter

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winemaking

Figure 13: Amos Industrie Calibaie grape grading system Figure 10: Vaucher-Beguet Mistral with gravity-fed air-jet sorting following two sections of vibration sorting (a) System overview, (b) Schematic of air-jet sorting section

Figure 11: Bucher-Vaslin Rflow with high-speed conveyor belt-fed air-jet

Figure 12: Amos Industrie Tribaie sorting system schematic (density bath circled)

removed and in the second section, the grapes pass through larger slots or between prongs, with the vegetal matter vibrating off the end. A levelling bar/flap typically ensures that only a single-layer of fruit enters the second screening section, preventing excessive grape losses off the end of the devices. It should be noted, that in the first section of a sorting system, the size of small materials that will be removed with the juice will depend on the slot size. Slots may potentially allow for the removal of some shot berries, small raisins, Botrytis-affected berries, insects, etc. in addition to small vegetal matter. There is also an associated screen underneath where juice can be recovered from the small wastes.

In around 2004 Vaucher-Beguet introduced a system that in addition to using a two stage vibrating screen employed a subsequent air-jet to blow away remaining light materials (Figure 10). This air-jet can remove petioles, leaves, larger raisins and smashed grape skins (Fraser 2012). The air-jet operates on materials as they are falling off an edge. For it to be effective the material must be well spaced as otherwise good components may obstruct the air-jet from removing bad components. The material flow rate therefore has to be fairly slow. Vaucher-Beguet offers single-table models with nominal capacities of 2-3, 5-7 or 6-9 tonnes/hour. An alternative system

100 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Figure 14: Optical grape sorters (a) Low throughput gravity-fed system with integrated overhead pre-draining screen, (b) High-speed belt conveyor fed system (additional pre-draining screen is required but not shown)

also relying on the air-jet concept was introduced in around 2013 by Bucher-Vaslin (Figure 11). Instead of relying on gravityfeeding of the grapes to the air-jet zone, it uses a high-speed conveyor belt to space the material to be sorted. Under the influence of the air-jet the lighter wastes follow a different trajectory off the end of the belt and are removed. This mode of operation allows for a higher throughput per device width. The nominal capacity of the Bucher-Vaslin system is 15 tonnes/hour.

In the sorting systems presented so far, sorting has been related to size, shape and mass and while these systems do have some ability to perform some limited removal of undesirable grape components (e.g. shot berries or raisins), their focus is more on the removal of vegetal matter. In around 2005 Amos Industrie introduced a different style of system, which in addition to several mechanical separation systems, also employs a density bath to separate ripe and unripe grapes (Figure 12). The ripe grapes sink, while unripe grapes float in a sugar or juice solution of set density. The density bath can also be employed to cool the grapes if connected to a refrigeration system. Models with nominal capacities of around 5, 10 and 20 tonnes/hour are available.

Amos Industrie has also recently introduced a device designed to grade grapes into two different diameter categories (Figure 13) that they suggest for use after the density-bath based sorting system. Grapes larger than the set roller gap travel across the top of the roller drum. Grapes smaller than the gap fall into the roller drum at the top and fall out at the bottom. (Springloaded rollers that are held in place by a strap at the top of drum rotation are released at the bottom of drum rotation.) Capacity is listed as being 4 to 8 tonnes/hour.

Optical sorters were introduced to the wine industry in around 2008 by several manufacturers (optical sorting had been used for many years in other industries). Installations have a pre-draining screen, after which material is spread and imaged, these images are processed and defects are removed by corresponding valved air-jets across the width of the sorter.

In some low throughput devices (<5 tonnes/hour) the material is both imaged and defects removed while it is falling by gravity, while in higher throughput equipment (~10 tonnes/ hour) material is spaced out and imaged on a high-speed conveyor belt and the defects are removed as the materials are projected off the belt. Optical sorters can sort by size and shape

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June 2015 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Issue 617

Table 1: Automated winery sorters – costs and adoption Notable mechanism

Rollers

a

Example brand/models

Capacitya (t/hr)

Costb (AUD)

Number of units in Australiac

Number of units worldwidec

Bucher-Vaslin Delta Trio

< 15

$25,000

8

150

20

1,000

Integrated with a vibrating destemmer – Pellenc Selectiv’, SOCMA Cube & Bucher-Vaslin Delta Oscillys

2-section vibrating

Enoveneta TSA

7-15

$30,000

3

150

Grape size

Amos Industrie Calibaie

4-8

$45,000

0

10

Air-jet (gravity-fed)

Vaucher-Beguet Mistral

6-9

$60,000

2

350

Air-jet (fast-belt)

Bucher-Vaslin Rflow

<15

$55,000

0

100

<5

$120,000

< 20

$200,000

0

85

<5

$90,000

<10

$240,000

2

250

Density bath

Amos Industrie Tribaie

Optical

Bucher-Vaslin, Pellenc, Defranceschi, Key, WECO

Models in additional capacities to those shown are available for some equipment listed.

Costs are order of magnitude values for general comparison purposes only.

Numbers of installed units are best estimates based on discussions with major suppliers with some extrapolation where required.

b c

and also by colour. In some devices they also sort based on the principle of red light fluorescing chlorophyll in vegetal matter that is then detected in the near-infrared (e.g. DefranceshciProtec X-Tri). Optical sorters have the ability to remove not only vegetal matter but also other contaminants (e.g. snails) and very unripe and diseased grapes. The settings that determine which material is being removed can easily be modified using software. There have been a couple of anecdotal reports that optical sorters are not very good at removing Botrytis-affected red grapes; however, another optical sorter manufacturer has stated that a setting on their machine relating to shiny/ matte appearance allows for good separation between Botrytisaffected and good red grapes.

Table 1 provides a summary of available sorting systems including throughputs, costs and adoption in Australia and worldwide. The density bath and optical sorting systems are significantly more expensive (~5-10 times) than the more basic mechanical sorting systems. They do however, offer more sophistication when trying to remove very unripe/diseased grapes and contaminants rather than just vegetal matter.

Equipment adoption levels suggest that the principal pathway to the uptake of automated winery sorting equipment, both in Australia and internationally, is through the purchase of vibrating destemmers with integrated mechanical sorters. Table 1 also suggests that there are very few pieces of automated sorting equipment in Australia. This could be a function of

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Wine Solutions: gas, equipment & services

there not having been a huge amount of manual sorting in Australia relative to some other regions of the world, making capital investment in automated equipment difficult to justify because there are no labour savings to offset it.

Whether sorting at all is worthwhile will be dependent on many factors (e.g. wine style, price point, grape condition). For residual vegetal matter, whether white or red wine is being produced is likely to make a big difference. For white wine production, it might be expected that only very high levels of vegetal matter would negatively influence wine quality since there is typically only a very short period of contact between juice and vegetal matter prior to pressing. For red wine production, residual vegetal matter is more likely to impact upon quality, as it will be in contact with juice/wine during fermentation. Anneraud et al. (2012) trialled many of the pieces of sorting equipment discussed in this article. Prior to sorting, vegetal matter fractions ranged from 0.4-1.7% and after sorting the residual vegetal matter ranged from 0.1-0.4% (Note: grape losses ranged from 0.2-4%). Vinsonneau and Vergnes (2000b) have previously reported that 1% residual vegetal matter can have a negative impact on quality for some red wines.

Acknowledgements The author thanks the equipment suppliers and wine industry personnel that provided information for this article.

Equipment images are reproduced with permission from the manufacturers. Much of the material contained in this article was also presented at a recent ASVO seminar and the ASVO is thanked for permission to publish here.

Disclaimer

your needs: Improving wine quality, achieving repeatable results, respecting the environment, implementing efficient solutions: Your needs are numerous; Air Liquide solutions are diverse.

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A new wine technical reference book, “Paths to the peak” is available now. It covers technology associated with the management of dissolved oxygen and CO2 in the wine process

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The information contained in this article should be considered general in nature, and readers should undertake their own specific investigations before purchasing equipment or making major process changes. The dates when different inventions were introduced and the order in which these inventions were made are presented in good faith based on information currently available. Some limited comparisons between different equipment are made and these are again presented in good faith based on available information. It should be noted that there is fairly limited rigorous independent information available on the relative performance of vineyard/ winery equipment, particularly given the importance of equipment performance to all wine producers - both in terms of wine quality and productivity. None of the information presented in this article should be considered an endorsement of any product by the AWRI.

References

Anneraud, C., Vinsonneau, E., Vergnes, M., Priou, F., Desenne, A. (2012) Tri de la vendange, de nouvelles technologies dans les chais. http://www.matevi-france. com/uploads/tx_matevibase/Tri_de_la_vendange_Nouvelles_technologies_dans_ les_chais.pdf.

Fabre, J.-H. (1929) Traité encyclopédique des vins. I. Procédés modernes de vinification. 4th ed. Dujardin Fils, France.

Fraser (2012) automated and manual techniques to sort fruit – an Australian experience.

In Petrie, P. (Ed) Making the best out of difficult vintages: Managing sub-optimal fruit in the winery. Proceedings of a seminar held in Adelaide on 22 November 2011.

Socma (2011) Plan stemmer – Results. http://www.socma.info/en/results.

Vinsonneau, E., Vergnes, M. (2000a) Chapitre 1: Etude des conditions d’utilisation d’un erafloir 1995-1997. http://www.matevi-france.com/uploads/tx_matevibase/ Conditions_d_utilisation_d_un_erafloir_1995_-_1997.pdf.

Vinsonneau, E., Vergnes, M. (2000b) Chapitre 5: Incidence de la qualité de l’éraflage sur la qualité des vins. http://www.matevi-france.com/uploads/tx_matevibase/Incidence_ de_la_qualite_de_l_eraflage_sur_la_qualite_des_vins.pdf Vinsonneau, E., Vergnes, M., Priou, F., Desenne, A. (2013) Egrenage et tri de la vendange: De nouveaux équipements au banc d’essai, Bilan des résultats 2008-2012. http://www.matevi-france.com/uploads/tx_matevibase/Egrenage_de_la_vendange_ de_nouveaux_equipements_au_banc_d_essai.pdf.

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June 2015 – Issue 617

sales & marketing Bottling, Labelling & Packaging

Telling the story of Seabrook generations

THE SEABROOK family have been involved and respected in the Australian wine industry since 1878, starting with a wine merchants business, W. J. Seabrook & Son. Fifth generation family member and winemaker, Hamish Seabrook, resurrected the original label and relaunched the brand in 2005 after several years lying dormant. Today, Seabrook are based in the Barossa and produce artisanal wines made from hand sourced fruit from some of the best regions throughout Australia.

Cornershop were appointed to reposition the Seabrook brand and revitalise the packaging design to be more contemporary whilst maintaining the family’s history as well as elements from previous label designs. The objective was to engage a younger audience without alienating the existing older consumer.

“We really wanted a fresh new design that reflects our brand values: Integrity, quality, tradition, generations, respect, family, artisan, hospitality and elegance,” said Hamish.

Inspired by Seabrook’s labels dating back to the 1940s, Cornershop created a bold solution that builds on traditional values and existing brand recognition.

“After doing research and exploring several possible creative directions, the most effective idea was the simplest one,” said Damian Hamilton, Cornershop designer. “The feature of the label is the family’s unique surname, depicted in bold typography. The year the first company was established sits proudly above the Seabrook name. This is complemented by the family’s crest, simplified for reproduction and finished in gold foil.”

Each label/product pays homage to a generation of the Seabrook wine industry lineage and is distinguished by a unique name on the front label and their story on the back. An original signature from each family member also embellishes the label in gold foil, reinforcing the product quality.

“We are really thrilled with the result and think it is a great balance between where we have come from and where we would like to head. We can’t wait to release our new range as well as roll out the new branding through the rest of our packaging, website, stationary and signage over the next few months,” said Hamish.

June 2015 – Issue 617

QUICK FACTS Label designer: Cornershop Design Printer: Collotype Labels Stock: Velmart Embellishments: Gold Foil Printing Press: Conventional

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Lessons from the craft brewery THERE’S nothing more popular in the food game than creating hybrid versions of classic flavours right now. Heard of a ‘cronut’? A unique blend of half-croissant, half-donut which is smothered in maple syrup topped with bacon bits? How about a ‘luther burger’- a double cheeseburger which sees the boring old sesame seed bun replaced with a glazed donut.

Even Cadbury is jumping on board, raising more than a few eyebrows by mixing Australia’s favourite breakfast spread with their iconic Dairy Milk and creating Vegemite chocolate.

In the beverage world, such quirky hybrids are harder to come by. There’s the snakebite, an old timer which combines beer, cider and raspberry cordial. Or the classic shandy, usually found in the hand of someone on the receiving end of a cheeky dig from their mates.

But one Marlborough winemaker is cashing in on the trend in a way which is sure to capture the attention of the masses- by combining the world’s two favourite drinks- wine and beer.

‘Bine’ or ‘wier’ as it will no doubt soon be dubbed, is the work of Josh Scott, winemaking director at Allan Scott Family Winemakers.

Scott is blending wine grapes with hops to make “craft wine”, a move which he hopes will tap into the craft beer craze.

“The idea was to turn traditional winemaking on its head and have a bit of a play using some craft beer techniques,” Scott told Stuff.

“It came about last year, we were just talking in the winery doing new things building profile in the brand, everyone talks about new product development, engaging with customers and keeping it fresh and I just wanted to do something a bit different.”

Green Hopped Gooseberry Bomb Sauvignon Blanc, made from Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc grapes and Nelson green sauvin hops, is one of Scott’s first craft wines.

“We always do the same thing, so I wanted to show that we can have a bit of fun with wine ... I think we’ve married the two really well together,” Scott said.

Further pushing the boundaries of conventional winemaking, Scott said the wine would not be bottled.

“On tap is the only way to present them in the right condition - out of a keg, into a glass.”

With the target market for the wines set as craft beer bars throughout the

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Josh Scott pouring a glass of Green Hopped Gooseberry Bomb Sauvignon Blanc containing a mix of wine grapes and hops.

country, Scott said he was already getting a positive response and envisaged the wine gaining huge momentum overseas.

“We’ve had a lot of support out of the trade sector and I think that’s because it’s something a little bit different,” he said.

“I see it going really well in the [United] States because they love their craft beer www.winebiz.com.au

... I think it will get lots of legs overseas.”

Allan Scott Family Winemakers would continue to release other “craft wine” varieties throughout the year, including Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewurztraminer (which will be blended with a Belgium beer yeast), as well as a full berry ferment Sauvignon Blanc.

June 2015 – Issue 617

Adaptable cross flow filter THE JIM Barry Winery in Clare has been using a dual-purpose cross flow for the past four years. The Bucher Vaslin filter can be fitted with different membranes which allow it to be used on both finished wine and for removing juice from lees during vintage.

Tom Barry, the winemaker at the family winery, said he did his homework and checked out a few different options before choosing the Bucher Vaslin filter, “because there are a few companies that offer the cross flow filter with interchangeable membranes”.

“The reason we wanted to go for this technology is because we have a really quite reductive process, the way we handle our juices, our Riesling in particular,” said Tom. “We had previously been using a rotary vacuum drum filter for the recovery of our ‘bottoms’, but with that equipment we found the oxidation actually lowered the quality of the juice. We weren’t able to recover A-grade juice from an A-grade ‘bottom’.

With the cross flow we can and we’ve seen improved wine quality.

“We looked at another smaller set up, at Freycinet in Tassie, and that absolutely gave us the confidence to make the decision.

Claudio Radenti, the Freycinet winemaker, said it was a great option for him and he hasn’t looked back since has used it.”

The process is to rack, filter and shandy the ‘bottom’ back into the rest of the clear juice. The Bucher Vaslin filter, fitted with the juice membranes, can handle up to 900 litres per hour, although things slow down to about 600 L per hour if there’s a lot of lees to be removed.

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Once we’ve finished using it on the juice, which is only for about three weeks every year at vintage time, we put the wine membranes in.

Tom said it was a ‘set and leave’ job, which makes it perfect for peak vintage periods. But this cross flow filter serves two roles.

“Once we’ve finished using it on the juice, which is only for about three weeks every year at vintage time, we put the wine membranes in. One of the reasons we went with Bucher is because this filter can do both jobs,” said Tom. “It is pretty expensive equipment and we are pretty careful with where we spend our money, but we are happy to make an investment if we can improve the quality of the wine.”

Tom said the filter has been in action at the Jim Barry winery for the past four vintages and he estimates it has been used for between 30,000 and 40,000 litres of juice as well as “probably five or six million litres of wine”.

“We treat it with a bit of care, but it’s not hard to look after, we just clean the membranes and go again. Working with Bucher Vaslin has been really good, they’ve had all the advice and right from the start we were pretty confident in the decision we were making.”

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business & technology Export, Transport & Logistics

TOP TIPS

Entering Asia

After years of negotiations, deals have been completed with Australia’s big three markets: China, Korea and Japan. The Australian governments push to remove tariffs allowed wine producers to take full advantage of the massive Asian market. While commercial focus centres on China as the Asian powerhouse, the Korean and Japanese wine markets have massive potential for Australian producers.

We’ve compiled the key points from a recent webinar hosted by Wine Communicators of Australia which looked at the likely impact of the FTAs, wine consumption and retail options in the two markets, as well as the essential first steps for entry.

1. KNOW YOUR MARKET Korea Korea is the fourth largest economy in Asia, coming in behind China, India and Japan and is one of the fastest growing

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AT A GLANCE 6 steps for entry into the market 1. Develop a better engagement 2. Position Australian wines logically 3. Meet consumer preferences 4. Market to consumers 5. Be present countries in Asia. After an economic lull through the early 2000s, Korea rebounded in 2013 thanks in part to a pickup in housing developments.

Since then business and consumer confidence has been strengthened and the country is beginning to be viewed as a powerhouse for Australian wine.

According to Associate Professor You-il Lee, deputy director of the Australian Centre for Asia Business at the University of South Australia, the Korean Australian Free Trade Agreement (KAFTA) came at a crucial period for the wine industry.

“The KAFTA has given Australian wine exposure in a time when the industry faces an increasingly competitive global wine market,” Lee said.

“The impact of KAFTA will be significant for Australian wine exporters and Korean wine importers.”

Lee conducted a survey on Korean wine drinkers in Seoul in 2013. Interviewing more than 300 people outside of supermarket chains and specialist wine shops, he found more people shopped for a gift than personal consumption and red wine was the clear favourite.

“White wine was only second to red and sparkling wine was gaining popularity,” Lee said.

Overall, the survey showed Korean wine drinkers preferred sweeter red wines and disliked savoury flavours and strong tannins.

“When you look at the figures of what wine drinkers preferred, it was fruity or sweet,” Lee said. “80% preferred fullbodied red wine with cork closures.”

Sam Holmes, Negociants international sales general manager, said in his experience red wine has dominated in Korea.

“Our Korean partners think red will continue to dominate with a bit of growth in rose and sparkling,” Holmes said.

While presently, grape wine only accounts for two per cent of the Korean alcohol market, Lee said wine has been the fastest

AT A GLANCE KAFTA key points The following taxes apply to wine imported to Korea • Import tariff 15% has been eliminated immediately • Liquor tax 30% • Education tax 10% • VAT 10%

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June 2015 – Issue 617

growing sector, increasing by 350% since 2000.

“Australian wine has a clean image and is regarded as a good quality product,” Lee said. “There has been a steep increase in consumer market awareness, while consumption remains relatively low, I think the KAFTA has levelled the playing field for Australia.

“Wine importers in Korea who have never thought of importing Australian wine are now interested in it. This I believe needs to be continued and I suggest we need to invest more on those marketing avenues.”

Japan Australian wine companies are already beginning to see benefits of the Japan–Australia Economic Partnership Agreement (JAEPA) just months after its initiation, according to The Australian Grape and Wine Authority’s (AGWA) Wine Export Approvals database.

Under JAEPA, the tariff on bulk wine has immediately been reduced to zero, while the 15 per cent import tariff on Australian bottled wine will be eliminated over seven years.

A reduction of 1.875 per cent on bottled wine kicked off the agreement in January and the second round of cuts came into effect in April, further reducing the tariff on bottled Australian wine to 11.3 per cent.

According to Hiro Tejima, AGWA’s regional manager Asia, the Japanese economy was starting to recover after a period of decline.

“The current government has been implementing growth strategies that are working,” he said. “It’s not all happy and merry yet, but with the 2020 Olympics in sight, there is a sense of optimism.”

Japan is the third largest economy in the world with five

AT A GLANCE JAEPA key points The following taxes apply to wine imported to Japan • Customs Duty on bulk wine has fallen from ¥45/ litre to zero • Duty on sparkling wine was ¥182/ litre, now ¥136.5; will be eliminated by 2022 • Duty on bottled wine was 15%, now 11.2%; will be eliminated by 2022 • Liquor tax (¥80 per litre) • Consumption tax (8%) times the population of Australia. While the wine market is showing strength, Tejima said changes are happening slowly.

“Japan changes very slowly,” Tejima explained. “It is often frustrating to many people, especially Australians.”

At a recent lunch hosted by Yalumba in Japan earlier in the year Sam Holmes said the crowd was mostly made up of young professionals, signalling a generational shift in Japanese wine consumption.

“The people that paid and turned up were young and the gender balance was split 50/50,” Holmes said. “We didn’t promote it like that, that’s how it tuned out.”

Holmes said with a solid mix of women and men interested in wine, he ensures there is a range of wines at all Japanese functions.

Tejima, who is originally from Japan, said living in Adelaide has made him appreciate Japan’s uniqueness, which could be an important key for market entry.

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business & technology

All smiles at a recent Wine Australia tasting event held in Asia. CREDIT: Wine Australia

2. KNOW YOUR COMPETITOR Korea Chile, France, United States, Italy and Spain all enjoy the benefits of FTAs with Korea. The main players are France (32%), Chile (22%) and Italy (17%) while Australia shares just four per cent of the Korean wine market.

A big reason for Australia’s low market share in Korea was something Hiro Tejima, AGWA’s regional manager Asia, referred to as ‘The Chile Factor’.

“Chile was the first country to strike an FTA deal with Korea and they have really taken advantage of it,” Tejima explained.

“That has created, in the minds of Korean consumers, an idea that Chilean wine is the FTA wine and to expect cheap and good value from Chile.”

Tejima said FTAs with Korea that followed have had less of an impact on the country.

“Even without the FTA Chile are competitive,” he said.

“Their FOB prices are lower and almost all Chilean wineries are exporting to Korea.”

According to Lee, the emergence of off premise market as a key sales channel has been detrimental for the Australian wine industry.

“The concept of liquor stores are new to the Korean market,” Lee said. “They purchase wines at discount supermarkets who will directly import Chilean wines because they are affordable and easy to sell.”

Lee said Korean consumers weren’t refusing to drink Australian wine, but were more inclined to import Chilean wines that were seen as high quality and low cost.

A perception of Australian wine as expensive has been holding the industry back, according to Tejima.

“Koreans are frustrated at how expensive wine is even with the FTA in place,” he said. “Chile positioned itself well to respond to the issue. Now Australia needs to respond and use this FTA as a trigger to look at the Korean market and address the influential factors.”

Japan Japan has seen a growth of 19 per cent since 2000 and currently the wine market is worth about US$8 billion. The

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major players are similar to Korea with France leading the way with a 26% share of the market followed closely by Chile (25%) and Italy (16%). Australia, ranked sixth, has a four per cent share of the Japanese wine market with 184 companies exporting 1842 products.

Despite developing gradually, Tejima said Japan was beginning to make big changes which would be reflected in the wine industry.

“I’m excited about the changes we are starting to see,” he said.

Japan is a more mature market than Korea, according to Tejima, who said the country has the longest wine history in Asia.

“Japan’s experience has been based on the European wine discipline,” Tejima said. “France has had a huge part in this by working closely with japan sommelier association.”

Tejima said with generational changes happening in the Japanese market, it was a good time for Australian wineries of all sizes to consider entry.

“We have quite a few sommeliers who are getting excited to come to Australia,” Tejima said. “They used to want to go to France, now they want to come here. It’s a good sign.”

3. REPRESENT YOUR BRAND Korea Lee insisted all of the interviewees in his survey responded positively to news about the KAFTA. “Korean’s want to understand the Australian wine industry,” he said. “But this is the most crucial period for the Australian wine industry for the Korean market and there will be no second chances for this opportunity.”

While the industry might be fighting for a slice of the success felt in the early 2000s, Lee said it couldn’t happen without change.

“There has been little chance with the Australian wine image,” Lee said. “It is just seen as expensive.”

The wine landscape is changing in Korea, according to Lee, and Australia need to catch up with the times.

“Importers in Korea think that there is a lack of response from Australia about the changing market over the past decade,”

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June 2015 – Issue 617

Lee said.

Interestingly, Australia might be failing in the way of branding. Lee said Korean consumers didn’t recognise the wine regions of Australia, but were aware of brands.

“They might have heard of Barossa, but if a label said ‘South Australia’ Koreans wouldn’t be able to connect the two,” Lee explained. “Brand recognition is more important than regional recognition.”

Lee suggests Australian wineries develop their brand image into something more high end to garner the attention from Korean consumers.

The hypermarket segment is growing and according to Holmes Australian wineries should tap into its success.

“Larger and medium sized wineries have an advantage with big supermarkets,” Holmes said. “We know how to what brands and wines work in those environments and how to build a reputation.

Holmes said although breaking into the hypermarket world could be rewarding, it has its limitations.

“They know how to squeeze you at every angle,” Holmes explains. “Supermarkets are gaining strength, it’s scary. When you’re in, you’re in and when you’re out, you’re out.”

Holmes said the most important factor was marketing the wine to tell a story and appeal to consumers.

“It’s an issue I see in the UK all the time,” he said. “I have a large supermarket saying ‘I’m not going to tell the story for you’.

You only have three SKUs, you have to find a way to tell the story on the bottle, quickly.”

Japan A recent report by Austrade said in order to be successful in Japan, Australian wine companies must present themselves as ‘competitive, innovative and appealing’. Preparing for the Japanese market described Japan as a “highly sophisticated market, dominated by high-end brands across the fashion, food and wine spectrum”. According to the report, branding and brand image was an important factor to consider.

“It would help if your labels reflected an outstanding design and were image enhancing,” the report read. “Your label should be able to give the discerning consumer a quality image supported by a unique story behind your wine.”

While ‘animal/ critter’ labels were associated with easy to drink low price point wines, the presence of regionality or awards could considerably heighten consumer perspective.

Low GI, low alcohol and low calorie wines have an importance place in the Japanese wine market, and could be considered as “outstanding points of difference, especially in the general supermarket business and in the low priced wine category”.

Graham Holter, associate director publishing for Wine Intelligence, said more Japanese consumers were seeking out unfamiliar wines, such as different varietals and sparkling products, and saw wine as important to their lifestyle.

Despite supermarket dominance, the number of consumers buying from specialist wine shops or online was also growing.

“There is increasing attention being paid to in-store recommendations or awards a wine has won,” Holter said.

A negative factor influencing the Japanese wine market was cost. According to Holter, wine was a pricey purchase for many consumers.

“That means marketing efforts might need to be focused on existing consumers more than is the case in comparable markets,” he adds.

Another issue is relatively low consumer awareness for wine brands among regular wine drinkers compared with other nations. Yellow Tail is the third most recognised wine label in Japan with 29% of consumers knowing its name.

June 2015 – Issue 617

AT A GLANCE There’s more to Asia than China There is no denying that China is one of the most important markets in the world, but Hiro Tejima said sometimes the Australian wine community puts too much attention on China.

“We think Asia is China, that they are synonymous,” he said. “It’s like saying France is Europe, it’s not true.”

Tejima said it can be a dangerous mindset for producers, who should recognise the importance of different Asian markets.

“We may be putting too many eggs in one basket,” he said. “I believe Australia deserves more in Asia and we must make sure our presence remains in several Asian markets.”

Holmes said the global recognition of Yellow Tail isn’t as much of an issue in the Asian markets compared to the US or UK.

4. BUILD RELATIONSHIPS Korea According to Holmes, the most important factor in getting both Korea and Japan to take notice of Australian wines was to be a consistent presence in their market.

“Go off and meet other wineries from around the world,” he said. “In Korea and Japan, one of the best ways to find new partners has come from other friends around the world that we have spent a lot of time talking to.”

Holmes admits Negociants are lucky to have good relationships with the big guns, but it doesn’t stop him from attending global events and meeting new contacts.

“At Vinexpo or the Vancouver Wine Festival we spend a lot of time with export managers for wineries that we feel have a similar presence or place in the world as Negociants.

Holmes describes it as a “give and take process”, and said you have to be willing to share information in order to receive it.

Lee said a local presence of Australian companies was extremely important for success in Korea.

“Establishing and maintaining a strong business relationship is crucial,” Lee said. “I suggest visiting Korea frequently to cultivate contacts and relationships and to better understand business conditions.

“This is what Korean distributors want to see in coming months.”

Japan Holmes said, like Korea, Japan was very price point focused.

“We find our Japan partners want everything to be perfect,” Holmes said. “We fill out a form that goes with every bottle of wine which indicates things like cork weight and everything that’s ever gone into the bottle.

Holmes said Japanese distributors required companies to “tick a box that guarantees no scuffs or scratches on any bottles”.

“The Japanese are very particular about those sorts of things,” he said. “So if they call us up and say ‘we’ve got a bottle of wine with a scuff mark on it’ we will immediately replace it.”

Tejima said it would take a good attitude from the Australian wine community to gain success in Japan.

“There is a real cultural difference so talking to other wine companies who have already succeeded is a great way to gain insight,” he said. “If you can, visit the market so you have the opportunity to immerse yourself in the culture.”

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China set to dominate Asia’s growth in wine imports

NEW PROJECTIONS of growth in global wine markets to 2018 show Asian countries will dominate global wine consumption and import growth, led by a surge in wine consumption in China.

The new study, by economists in the University of Adelaide’s Wine Economics Research Centre, project China’s wine consumption to grow by between 40% and 60% between 2011 and 2018.

“China is set to change global markets for wines dramatically, just as it has been doing and will continue to do for so many other products,” said Professor Kym Anderson, the Wine Economics Research Centre executive director, who is co-author of a working paper with Professor Glyn Wittwer of Victoria University.

“While rice wine has traditionally been the most common in Asia, income growth in China and a preference swing towards grape wine is gradually changing the region’s consumption situation.”

Professor Anderson said China has been rapidly expanding its own production of winegrapes, and is now the world’s fifth largest producer of grape wine, yet its expansion in domestic production has not been able to keep up with its consumption growth.

“It is the sheer size of China’s adult population of 1.1 billion people, and the fact that grape wine still accounts for less than 4% of Chinese alcohol consumption, that makes the import growth opportunity unprecedented,” said Anderson.

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“We project that China’s net imports of wine could rise by between 330 and 790 million litres during 2011-2018 once the full impacts of China’s recent bilateral free trade agreements with Australia, Chile and New Zealand are felt.”

Anderson said Australia, along with France and Chile, stands to gain greatly from this opportunity.

“Exporting firms willing to invest sufficiently in building relationships with their Chinese importer – or in grape growing and winemaking as joint ventures in China – may well enjoy longterm benefits from such investments, just as others have done and continue to do for many other products besides wine,” said Anderson.

Even China’s recent ‘austerity drive’ will not be able to hold back the tide of wine demand growth according to the projections. “The austerity drive has dampened the growth in ultra-premium and iconic wine sales in China, but those quality wines are only a small share of total sales, so we project its impact on the overall volume of wine imports to be minor,” said Anderson.

This research has been supported with funding from the Australian Grape and Wine Authority and the working paper can be freely downloaded at the Wine Economics Research Centre’s website (www.adelaide.edu.au/wine-econ/).

There are wine producers already making progress in China, such as Brothers in Arms Vineyard (Langhorne Creek) and Drayton’s Family Wines www.winebiz.com.au

(Hunter), two wineries generating interest with wholesale buyers through participation at trade shows.

“China is currently the world’s fastest growing wine market with imported wine sales growing faster than domestic brands.

This presents enormous opportunities for Australian wine-makers, but navigating the complexity and costs of the world’s biggest marketplace can be extremely daunting,” said Paula Martin, NSW Business Chamber general manager.

“NSW Business Chamber launched the Export Growth China program to reduce the risks and costs associated with exporting goods to China and provide expert assistance to successful Australian SMEs who are ready to back the strength of their product internationally, but don’t know where to start.

“We provide businesses with a lowcost entry point and essentially ‘hold their hand’ through the entire process; from determining whether they’re ready to export right through to facilitating trade agreements with Chinese wholesale buyers.

“NSW Business Chamber has opened a custom-designed showroom in the heart of Shanghai’s international trading district, which we are currently filling with Australian products, including samples from top Australian winemakers.

“Although the showroom will be officially launched in August, our staff on the ground in China are already proactively marketing these products to wholesale buyers and providing real-time June 2015 – Issue 617

feedback on potential sales leads,” said Martin.

NSW Bu si ness C h a mber representatives recently showcased Australian products at a series of trade shows in Zhejiang Province, south of Shanghai, including at the Hangzhou Wine Fair.

“Drayton’s Family Wines and Brothers in Arms Vineyard were the toast of the Hangzhou Wine Fair. The event had more than 200 wholesale buyers in attendance, and generated 20 firm sales leads which will now be followed up by our specialist trade advisors in Shanghai to ensure these businesses are matched with the right buyers for the best chance at success.

“Given that we are already seeing firm sales leads for some program participants before the showroom has officially launched; it is clear that the Export Growth China program will be an enormous resource for Australian SMEs who are keen to break into the world’s largest consumer market,” said Martin.

The successful trade shows follow the release of new data from the Australian Grape and Wine Authority which shows that the Chinese market for Australian wine has grown by 20 per cent in the past 12 months.

The data shows lower and higher price

segments to be key drivers of growth in China with bottled exports below $A5 per litre up 25 per cent, and bottled exports above $A7.50 per litre up 12 per cent to see China remain the number one export destination for premium Australian wines.

John Drayton of Drayton’s Family Wines said the company joined the Export Growth China program to learn about the market in China and gain greater awareness and exposure of Drayton’s brand products in the Chinese market.

“Drayton’s Family Wines have been exporting to China for over 10 years.

During this time we have been only supplying ‘buyers-own brand’ to Chinese buyers as they approach us, however we have now made a conscious decision to attempt to supply our Drayton brand products,” said John Drayton.

“We feel that the overall Chinese market is still in the early days of maturity and the potential is huge to not only supply softer full bodied red wines but from experienced gained from the Chinese tourist that visit our winery in the Hunter Valley fruitier soft white wines could become popular in the Chinese market.

“From such hands on cellar experience that our staff are experiencing here in

Australia we feel that it is only a matter of time before the market in China starts to accept such softer fruitier style white wines that would go very well with Chinese food.

“We feel that the potential to export wine to the Chinese market will be greatly enhanced from our partnership with the Export Growth China program. Whilst only in the early stages, our experience with the program has been very positive and professional and we look forward to developing this relationship as we move forward together.

In further insight into the power in China’s imported wine market, Wine Intelligence has found a shift towards the burgeoning numbers of younger, less involved wine drinkers who buy wine at mainstream or entry-level price points.

"Over the past three years the Chinese market for imported wine has begun a fundamental transformation. We are moving from the era where prestige wine was only bought as a face-enhancing gift towards a world where consumers care more about how it tastes – because they will be drinking it themselves – and how much it costs, because they are more likely to be paying for it themselves as well,” said Richard Halstead, Wine Intelligence’s chief operating officer.

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calendar

looking back We step back in time to see what was happening through the pages of Grapegrower and Winemaker this month 10, 20 and 30 years ago.

June 1985 No immediate increase in the wine sales tax and more Commonwealth funding for adjustment assistance have been recommended in a report to the state of the Australian grape and wine industries. The McKay report, released by the Minister for Primary Industry, John Kerin, recommends the Federal Government’s contribution to adjustment assistant, including a vine-pull scheme should be increased to $5million. With the states providing $1 for every $2 from the Commonwealth, the amount of adjustment funds for the grape industry would total $7.5m.

June 1995 Australia’s wine producers overwhelmingly support a single volumetric tax rate per litre of wine they produce, a recent poll has revealed. The poll was conducted by the Margaret River Wine Association via a survey distributed to 780 wine producers throughout Australia. Producers were asked to list, in order of preference, their support for four proposed form of taxation, all of which were revenue neutral, or equal to the current wholesale tax rate on wine of 26%. The majority, or 58%, preferred a single standard tax per litre on all wine, cask or bottled, of about 61 cents per litre.

Australia & New Zealand June 17-19 (JD) Cairns Show Wine Awards Cairns Showgrounds, QLD. www.cairnswineawards.com.au

23 Shanghai Chardonnay Dinner Prahran, VIC. www.winetastingevents.com. au/shanghai-chardonnay-dinner-2

20 Hunter Valley Wine Festival Hunter Valley, NSW. www.huntervalleywinefestival.com

26 (CD) New World Wine Awards Wellington, NZ. www.wineshow.co.nz

20-21 Yarra Valley's Shortest Lunch Yarra Valley, VIC. www.yarravalleysmallerwineries.com.au 21-25 (JD) BRISBANE - 2015 Royal Queensland Wine Show Bowen Hills, QLD. www.rqfws.com.au

28-29 (JD) Melbourne International Wine Competition. Melbourne, VIC. www.melbourneinternationalwinecompetition.com 28 Shiraz Extravaganza Lunch Albert Park, VIC. www.winetastingevents. com.au/shiraz-extravaganza-lunch

July 1-31 Coonawarra Cellar Dwellers Various cellar doors in Coonawarra, SA. www.coonawarra.org 3 (CD) The James Halliday Chardonnay Challenge. Healesville, VIC. www.chardonnaychallenge.com.au 3 (CD) Yarra Valley Wine Show Healesville, VIC. www.yarravalleywineshow.com.au 10 (CD) ADELAIDE 2015 Royal Adelaide Wine Show - Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society of SA Wayville, SA. www.thewineshow.com.au

10 (CD) Bragato Wine Awards Hawke's Bay, NZ. www.bragato.org.nz 10-12 The Good Food & Wine Show – Perth. Perth, WA. www.goodfoodshow.com.au 10-11 Mudgee Small Farm Field Days Mudgee, NSW. www.arec.com.au 12 Shiraz Heaven Heathcote Wine Tasting Lunch. North Melbourne VIC. www. winetastingevents.com.au/shiraz-heaven-july 14-16 (JD) The Spiegelau International Wine Competition Marlborough, NZ. www.spiegelauiwc.co.nz 14-16 WineTech 2015 Adelaide, SA. www.winetechaustralia.com.au

International

June 2005

June

Occupational health and safety standards within Australia’s wine industry are being scrutinised in a bid to improve the safety of workers and reduce costs for businesses. The National Compliance Strategy for Wine Producers is a coordinated six-month campaign involving workplace safety authorities in South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and New Zealand. South Australian Minister for Industrial Relations, Michael Wright, said the compliance strategy got under way in the state in April. He expected an approximate 5% of small-to-medium sized producers would be audited.

15-18 66th American Society for Enology & Viticulture Annual Conference Portland, Oregon, USA. www.asev.org

112 Grapegrower & Winemaker

28 The Edinburgh Cellars Shiraz Challenge Mitcham, SA. www.edcellars.com

26-28 Wine & Gourmet Taipei 2015 Taipei, Taiwan. www.winegourmettaipei.com

July 1-2 Muscats du Monde 2015 France. www.muscats-du-monde.com

3 (CD) Japan Wine Challenge Tokyo, Japan. www.japanwinechallenge.com

JD = judging date CD= closing date

For a comprehensive list of events, visit www.winebiz.com.au/calendar www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

FIND YOUR SUPPLIER QUICKLY WITH OUR June 2015 Advertiser List Supplier

Page

Supplier

Page

3M Purification

31

Mallee Point Nursery

114

Adro Grafted Vines

114

MEP Instruments

95

Agrimm

59

MGA Insurance Brokers

50

Air Liquide Australia

102

MIA Vine Improvement Society

114

Alternative Engineering

114

Naissus Trade

93

AMSL Scientific

30

New Zealand Frost Fans

65 63

Australian & New Zealand Winemakers

33

Omnia Specialities Australia

Austwine Exports

107

Oomiak

Braud Australia

2, 67

51

PFG Australia

74, 75

Bruce Gilbert Vine Grafting

114

Plastic Precise Parts

Bucher Vaslin SA

97

Rapidfil

60

Buschutz Engineering

32

Rowe Scientific

CASE IH

73

Roxset

52

C E Bartlett

98

Ryset (Aust)

53

Cold Logic

34

Seguin Moreau

54

Croplands

35

Select Vintners

114

Della Toffola Pacific

116

Simei

13

Deltagen Australia

36

Spagnolo Engineering

12

Directus Group

37

Spraying Systems Co.

87 106

81, 114 85

Dominant Australia

36

Stockwell Storage

Drummuster

64

Stoller Australia

79

Streamline Cartons

114 114

Eclipse Enterprises Aust

15, 41

EFIC

19

Sunlec International

Felco

43

The Arch House

23

Fischer Australis

16

Thorn-Clarke Wines

113 55

FMR Group

45

TracMap NZ

Food Machinery Installation & Services (OXBO)

77

Victus International

57

GEA Westfalia Separator Australia

42

Vine Industry Nursery Association (VINA)

114

Grapeworks

Vine Sight

114

9

Viniquip

105

Groguard Australia

61

Vintessential Laboratories

94

International Mowers

48

Whitlands Engineering

72

Interpack

47

Wine Barrel Cleaning

38

Jeffries

78

Wine Grape Growers Australia

9

JMA Engineering

44

WineTech 2015

11

49

Wine Works Australia

111

Winery Engineering Association

115

Graphic Language Design

Jx2 Technology (VINx2 Winery Software) Kauri Australia

71, 99, 103

89, 96

Ledgard

76

WISA Irrigation Solutions

21

Mait Industries

62

Wood-Shield

58

AUSTRALIAN & NEW ZEALAND GRAPEGROWER & WINEMAKER *Australia's largest circulation wine industry trade magazine celebrating more than 50 years of publication. *Now available online to all subscribers. *All Marketplace adverts also appear on Winebiz Classifieds * For advertising enquiries please call Chas Barter on 08 8369 9513, c.barter@winetitles.com.au

Winebiz Calendar Australia’s most comprehensive wine industry related local and international events and courses – available online FREE! Search for conferences, trade shows, competitions, courses, festivals & Australian & international wine shows.

www.winebiz.com.au/calendar June 2015 – Issue 617

www.winebiz.com.au

Marketplace FOR SALE

2nd Hand Labelling Machine $6800 ono

• Semi-Automatic CDA Ninette II plus • 600-800 bottles per hour • Manufactured 2010 • Barossa Call Alyssa on 08 8564 3034 Or Email sales@thornclarke.com.au Grapegrower & Winemaker

113

All advertisements also appear on www.winebiz.com.au/classifieds/

CABLE TIES FOR SALE Tie up your vines with Quality European Cable Ties/Zip Ties

Marketplace

Buy Online direct from www.cableties.com.au

VINE GRAFTING

$50 Minimum buy and we deliver free to your door. *Aust only.

Check us out on the web NOW !

MIA Vine Improvement Society Griffith, NSW VINEYARD REMOVAL RE-WORKING

AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND TOM 0428 443 263

WWW.VINESIGHT.COM.AU

ADRO

GRAFTED VINES

Specialising in Grafted Vines and Rootlings

Providers of certified, quality vine and prune material. Available in 2015 are rootstocks and vinifera.

For your copy of our 2015 Order Form please contact us!

P 02 6968 1202 F 02 6968 1479 M 0412 699 476 E miavis@bigpond.com

WINE PRESS SERVICING • Preventative maintenance & breakdown repairs for all makes and models.

• 24/7 coverage during vintage • Large inventory of spare parts.

• Membrane replacement.

• PLC upgrades and design improvements.

Electrical & mechanical expertise.

Orders taken for 2015 plantings NOW. Phone 02 6968 1086 Fax 02 6968 1786 Mobile 0428 690 208 malleepoint@bigpond.com PO Box 438, Yenda, NSW 2681

www.vina.net.au

LOOKING FOR COMMERCIAL

VINEYARD

E-mail: adrografted@bigpond.com

MALLEE POINT NURSERY

Vine Industry Nursery Assoc.

FOR LEASE

Ph/Fax 02 6964 4288

brucethegrafter@gmail.com www.brucethegrafter.com

03 9455 3339 • www.rapidfil.com.au

Orders taken for 2015 planting now.

Mobile 0428 447 246 For enquiries please contact Rosanna on

Bruce Gilbert 0428 233 544 Brian Phillips 0417 131 764 fax 03 5025 2321

Expression of Interest

Marketplace

I am looking for a small commercial vineyard of 3 - 6 Ha

• in Yarra/Upper Yarra Region and Canberra or Hilltops Region

For further information, please contact Bibiana M: 0468 431 694 E: bibiana603@gmail.com

114 Grapegrower & Winemaker

www.winebiz.com.au

June 2015 – Issue 617

WINE ENG 2015

NATIONAL

CONFERENCE &

EXHIBITION

Finding a better way.

Excellence in Winery operation and asset management.

August 26th & 27th Chateau Tanunda Winery Barossa Valley

For further information visit www.wea.org.au or contact Trevor Leighton 0417 597 956 tleighto@bigpond.net.au

The holy grail of winery filtration has arrived!

- Lees, Flotation Solids and Wine Filtration All In One -

The unique design advantage of the Della Toffola OMNIA Series filter is that it can process with good flow rates automatically - juice & wine lees, flotation solids and most importantly, also wine. Thus, when the filter is not recovering high solids & lees, the same wide-bore channel membranes can be used to filter actual wine. Moreover, we can interchange the whole membrane module from a wide channel to a wine specific membrane module. This makes the OMNIA Series a cross-flow filter investment that works for the winery every day of the year.

www.dtpacific.com | ph: +61 3 9924-4040 | fax: +61 3 9924-4041 | info@dtpacific.com | twitter: @DellaToffolaPac