Australian wine exports to the USA have been steadily declining for four years, hampered by the impact of the stronger Australian dollar on shelf prices, competition from other “new-world” producers in South America, and a swing in consumer tastes away from the big, bold styles that drove the expansion of the market during the 1990s. However, China, the world’s fastest-growing wine market, has increased more than fourfold over the past five years, and is now Australia’s third-largest wine export customer. “We’ve had a good relationship with an agent there for 16 years, and we’re looking at putting our own people on the ground — sales have been growing well for the past three years, particularly at the high end of our range, and about a year ago they overtook the US,” third-generation winemaker Mitchell Taylor wanted to ensure his family-owned company was ready to make the most of the opportunities presented by China’s growing thirst.”It’s not going to be a quick fix – we need to be very strategic and not just dump excess bulk wine into that market,” he says.
