“What we have to do and what we have learnt from the UK is that we have to take our whole portfolio into China when we go there. We are not going in with entry level wines and saying ‘this is Australia’. We are going in with our whole range from the start. So I suppose that’s what we have learnt from the UK” reports inspirational Chief Winemaker Neil Mcguigan.
With an incredible track record at CWSA, Neil Mcguigan is one to watch. “It’s great to see our museum releases and current vintages performing well at CWSA. These results will only add to our growing reputation in China.” McGuigan believes that Australian wines are better suited to introducing new consumers to the world of wine than French.“The Chinese have been educated by the French and they have done a good job,” said McGuigan. “They believe the best wine is Bordeaux, and arguably it is. But if you have someone that’s drinking coke and sweet lemonade or those yoghurt drinks and give them a glass of Bordeaux you can scare them off, because that’s not a step into wine, it’s a leap into wine. We can make very approachable red wines and make it work for them as a bridge between many alcoholic beverages into wine. That isn’t to say that they don’t want to buy expensive wines from us as well.”
And indeed they do buy… Australian Vintage (AVL), the parent company of the McGuigan, Tempus Two and Nepenthe wine brands, just sold a 15% stake in the company to Vintage China Fund – a new partnership established by the founders of China’s largest online wine retailer, YesMyWine – for AU$16.5 million. Go Australian Vintage!
