Drinks news December 2017

the drinks association | December 2017

Merry Christmas & a prosperous New Year to our members!

Advent calendars, Christmas crackers, boozy baubles, vino Christmas stockings ... Christmas drinks marketing has come a long way ... We explore a few of the clever ways beverage companies are revamping and innovating their gift offering this silly season.

Read more >>

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nternational Women’s Day lunch with Turia Pitt announced, page 19.

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ow technology is changing the way people interact with alcohol, page 6.

W

e sit down with the 2017 AWIWA winners, page 27.

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the drinks association | December 2017

Christmas ... the most commercial holiday of the year that sees consumers frantically digging deep into their pockets for food, drinks, presents and travel costs.

Traditionally, Christmas drinks gift ideas have included the occasional decorative stopper on sparkling, cocktail gift set or boxed bottle of Page 2

whisky, but drinks companies are becoming much more creative in their approach.

Naomi Kaplan explores just a few of the clever ways beverage companies are revamping and innovating their product offering this silly season. While many have been created for the overseas market, there’s plenty of inspiration for next year!

the drinks association | December 2017

Boozy baubles Pickering’s Gin set social media on fire when it introduced gin-filled Christmas baubles two years ago. Now a variety of spirits brands are getting in on the act.

Pickering’s Gin offers six multicoloured Christmas baubles, each filled with 50ml of Pickering’s gin, making for a vibrant and baubly Xmas.

The Whisky Exchange offers baubles containing a trio of gin, single malts, world whiskies or rums, and each glass bauble is filled with just the right measure of your favourite tipple, ready to pour.

There are also individually boxed baubles available to fill with a liquor of your choice.

Vino Christmas stocking The boozy Christmas stockings pictured on the left are called ‘Santa’s Flask’ and are designed to bring some extra fun over Xmas. The leak-proof stockings hold up to 2.25 litres of booze, which is the equivalent to three bottles of wine!

If alcohol is not your thing, it could easily hold spiced apple cider or hot cocoa. According to the product description, it is also made from BPA-free, FDA approved food grade plastic, which means it is safe to use for all your beverage choices.

Santa’s flask is available on Amazon for $19.99.

Alcoholic Christmas Crackers Moet & Chandon has created a Brut Imperial Champagne Christmas Cracker, designed to add a little extra sparkle to the Christmas dinner table, It contains a baby 20cl bottle of Moet. Make sure to pull the cracker over soft surfaces though! The

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the drinks association | December 2017

crackers are available online from Selfridges.

Meanwhile, Fornum & Mason has created a set of Christmas crackers in classy gold and silver wrapping, containing an entertaining line-up of Hendrick’s Gin, Sailor Jerry Rum, Glenfiddich 15-year-old and Monkey Shoulder.

Alcoholic advent calendars Gone are the days of melting chocolate advent calendars. This year, coming in most popular among the alcoholic innovations is the boozy advent calendar, with loads of companies and beverage categories jumping on the bandwagon.

Melbourne’s Carwyn Cellars has launched the Canvent Calendar, a slab-sized advent calendar with 24 cans of “the most interesting, varied and impressive [Christmas themed] Australian craft beers out there,” as noted on the website.

Half the tins are limited release and cover a broad range of styles, from big hops, malt, high ABV and sours. Each calendar comes wrapped in plain packaging and a personalised note can be included to make it that perfect pre-Christmas gift.

Beer Cartel has also released a Beer Advent Calender.

We’re not going to spoil the surprise by telling you which beers are hiding inside. Expect to find handpicked craft beers from leading Australian and International breweries.

Behind each door of The Pit Stop Superstar Sparkling advent calendar you’ll find a 20cl bottle of sparkling wine waiting - including Prosecco, Cava, sparkling Pinot Noir and bubbly Rosé from Italy, Spain and Australia. What’s more, once you hit Christmas Eve, you’ll find a delicious bottle of Laurent-Perrier Champagne.

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the drinks association | December 2017

There’s also a variety of brands for fizz fans to enjoy, including Gancia, Jacobs Creek, Freixenet, Galanti and Bottega Gold.

Chase Distillery is giving consumers 24 fantastic reasons to enjoy its juicy drops. With something for everyone, friends and family can count down to Christmas Day with Chase Vodka, Marmalade Vodka and even Rhubarb Vodka, while Williams Elegant Gin and Pink Grapefruit Gin is available for those who prefer gin.

The Wine Gallery has created a vino advent calendar featuring a mix of reds, whites, sparklings, and rosé. The Wine Gallery co-founder and sommelier of the Year, Banjo Harris Plane told The Urban List that “we’ve now got tens of thousands of customer wine ratings, and this is the perfect way for us to celebrate some of the standout favourites.”

Giant bottles of fizz ALDI has created a giant three litre Prosecco that will be available at ALDI UK outlets this Christmas.

It averages out to a whopping 24 glasses, bound to make for endless hours of happiness over the festive period.

Aldi’s offering from Italy’s Veneto region is the size equivalent of four bottles. In Australia, ALDI is sticking to magnums of Prosecco this season.

Meanwhile, Selfridges is suggesting the striking Bottega Gold Jeroboam as the perfect gift for the festive season.

Champagne more your style? A jeroboam of G.H.Mumm Cordon Rouge NV - equivalent to four bottles - is available for $249.99 from wine.com.au

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the drinks association | December 2017

How technology is changing the way consumers interact with alcohol From smartphone apps that rate your wine to the involvement of machines in the production process, Naomi Kaplan explores the ways technology is changing the way we interact with alcohol.

The UK-based author of ‘The Complete Encyclopedia of Wine’, believes that AI could soon play the part of a ‘virtual sommelier’, telling The Indian Express that: “AI will revolutionise wine-buying.”

Experts are predicting new technology will revolutionise the way consumers make their purchases, with the potential to make everything from bricks and mortar stores to wine critics redundant.

Joseph believes the next few decades will see unprecedented changes to the wine ecosystem, from the manner in which consumers buy wine, to involvement of machines in the production process, and also the ways AI can drastically alter the way wine buyers and enthusiasts choose the right wine.

Wine expert, producer and author of an upcoming book on the future of wines, Robert Joseph, believes that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to have both positive and negative ramifications on the industry.

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For example, he discusses the ways in which cloud-based voice services such as Amazon’s Alexa or Google Home could change the way we choose our alcohol.

the drinks association | December 2017

“I am going to tell my digital assistant, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri that I want to buy a bottle of red wine and it will say to me, ‘Do you want to have the one you had last time?’,” he said.

“It knows you so well, what you like and what your friends like. And what AI doesn’t know today, it will learn, very fast.”

Taking traffic away from bricks and mortar While this seems positive, IWSR senior analyst Tim Simmons says these services are moving the shopping experience further away from physical stores.

“Ten years ago it was all about bricks and mortar - you had to physically go somewhere to buy a product.

Five years ago, you could search for it online and pick it up. Now, it’s all about apps and taps,” Simmons told just-drinks.

Joseph also discusses ways technology could completely change the process of wine making.

“It will be possible to automate a vineyard completely within five to 10 years,” said Joseph.

“Robots will do the whole thing. Already we are getting drones to do the flying over the vineyards, telling you which vines need water or treating.”

Joseph notes the downside of the technology is that: “Machines will do a lot of the judging in wine tasting. They can judge between an OK wine and a not-so-OK wine pretty effectively.” That could potentially mean that wine critics may become redundant.

Apps and alcohol An increasing proliferation of alcohol apps have

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the drinks association | December 2017

to the alcohol industry.

While Bacardi’s head of brand advocacy Jacob Briars said at the forum that non-alcohol specific apps like Uber are actually helping smaller, local neighbourhood bar scenes thrive, with the ease and economical features of Uber bringing people to neighbourhoods they wouldn’t normally go, he also warned that delivery services such as Deliveroo, MiniBar, Uber Eats have strong potential to hinder the future existence of physical stores.

“All [these apps] have the opportunity to disrupt this business model by sending drinks directly to consumers,” Briars told just-drinks. been designed to help consumers choose the best wines by looking at ratings, impersonate a sommelier by recording and taking notes, suggest food pairings and so forth.

A popular app used by millions around the world is Vivino, a rating based app which allows users to scan any bottle of wine and immediately retrieve user reviews, average ratings and price for the bottle, along with other essential information to help them choose the right bottle. Other wine Apps like Delectable have comparable features to Vivino, but have an added feature of letting consumers see what established sommeliers are drinking.

There are even beer apps such as BeerPal that help you to find the best beer bargains near you, comparing beers from more than 6000 stores across Australia.

However, at the recent Global Drinks Forum in Berlin, there was expert discussion on the ways in which apps also have the potential to be disruptive

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“What will that do to the really vibrant bar and restaurant scene that has built up over the last 10 years?”

Using data to target consumers Pernod Ricard is teaming up with bars to use data to increase traffic through the door and engagement with its brands.

Tim Murphy, VP of Consumer Insights & Planning told eBev 2017: “The true opportunity is targetting - really being able to focus on a specific consumer, a specific occasion and a specific behaviour.”

The company has been offering free wi-fi in a selection of bars on behalf of one of its brands.

“The beauty was once we got that critical mass of consumers in the database we were able to test different messages.”

It tested specific proximity messages versus

the drinks association | December 2017

broader global messages and proved effective in engaging with consumers at point of purchase.

The drinks company jumping on the VR technology bandwagon While apps and services might be disrupting the existence of physical stores, companies such as Diageo are using technology to improve consumer’s in-store experience.

Diageo has been using virtual reality (VR) for conducting consumer research and also selling products in a innovative way.

With interest in VR growing rapidly, seeing the number of active VR users forecasted to reach 171 million by 2018, and 73% of millennials expressed excitement about experiencing VR, Diageo is successfully applying this technology.

Jason Chebib, VP/Consumer Planning at Diageo North America, has told the Association of National Advertisers’ 2017 Digital & Social Media Conference that VR has become key to its marketing.

“At Diageo, we now routinely test many aspects of the consumer’s in-store experience with our brands using VR,” he said.

“In a recent test of an in-store Diageo promotion called ‘Whiskey 5’, virtual-reality testing [accurately] predicted a gain of 5.6% in Diageo products bought per customers.

“In the future, VR will help Diageo and other alcoholic beverage companies carry out research with consumers or bartenders in a closer to real way without incurring the risk of contravening the stringent rules and regulations surrounding alcohol research,” added Chebib.

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the drinks association | December 2017

Scott Hadley reveals the keys to Asahi’s Supplier of the Year success

drinks trade editor Hannah Sparks talks to joint 2017 Australian drinks Awards Supplier of the Year Asahi Premium Beverages’ Chief Commercial Officer Scott Hadley about the company’s success and strategy for growth.

What did receiving the 2017 Supplier of the Year award mean to the team at APB? Winning the Supplier of the Year award was the culmination of five years of hard work for the team. From where our business came from - from private equity to ownership by Asahi - we’ve worked hard to increase our professionalism, the capability of the team, the way we interact with Page 10

our customers, consumers and the industry as a whole, and we’re very proud as an organisation to win the award.

What do you think differentiates APB from other suppliers?

We like to think that we have the best team in the industry. Our team is passionate, dedicated and goes above and beyond, and we feel that gives us an edge in a competitive environment. We have some strong competitors, but we feel that our people are the difference for our business.

There have been a number of acquisitions at APB over

the drinks association | December 2017

the last few years. Were those strategic?

Our acquisition strategy is to look at the current consumer trends and what’s growing in the market, and to use that to make sure that we’re relevant to our customers. Initially, to get the Somersby licence was a real game changer for us and it gave us the confidence to acquire a brand like Cricketer’s Arms. Then we went on and acquired Mountain Goat and more licensing agreements with Estrella Damn, and the acquisition of Peroni and Grolsch just last month will be truly transformational for our business and continue our growth trajectory. Our recent decision to move into full-strength spirits with the acquisition of the Artisan Spirit Merchants (ASM) brands has also given another leg to our portfolio which we’re really excited about.

Are there any more acquisitions on the cards for APB? Well you never say never, but as we’ve just spoken about, we’ve acquired a lot of brands in the last few years, and I think now it’s important for us to consolidate and get the runs on the board with those. As is the case with a lot of companies, we’re always on the lookout for new brands and we’re still looking at what’s happening in the market, but at this stage, we don’t have a burning desire to go out and make any large acquisitions.

been focused on our corporate social responsibility; we want to make sure that we continue to enhance our reputation within the industry, that we support the industry, and that we’re also aware of changing consumer trends and attitudes towards health and wellbeing. And we think the alcohol industry has a role to play in educating the consumer. I think the other challenge is the changing consumer landscape and consumers’ repertoire of products, and it’s up to us to be leading and keeping up with those trends and delivering products that consumers want to buy and enjoy. I will say, however, that while these may be challenges, they are also massive opportunities for us all.

Click here to read what APB’s General Manager Sales Michael Ritoli and General Manager Marketing Michael Edmonds had to say about about winning Supplier of the Year award and how the business has grown.

Latest issue of drinks trade out now!

What do you think are the main challenges for the alcohol industry currently?

I think there are a few challenges. The first is the variety of different challenges across the regulatory landscape, which we all face, whether you’re a supplier or operator in the industry. We think the alcohol industry is an integral part of society, providing enjoyment for many, and we don’t want regulation to overtake us. So we have

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the drinks association | December 2017

Panel discussion: the secrets to leadership

A recent panel discussion between senior executives from the alcohol industry answered questions on effective leadership, resilience, career longevity and mentorship asked by mentees of the 2017 Women in drinks Mentoring Program. drinks trade editor Hannah Sparks reports on what they had to say.

As a leader, how do you go about getting the best out of people?

Jeff McWilliam: Leadership is getting the best out of people. You have to believe that people want to do well and then you have to remove the barriers to make that happen.

Michelle Phipps: Hire for culture, behaviours and proven results; if you do that, you know you

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have a great team whether you’re there or not.

Then there’s trust - trusting your team, and the people around you will deliver.

Cathi Scarce: I like to practice an available style of leadership; I want my team to feel like they can approach me at any time. We also need to stop trying to fix people. I don’t try to fix people, I listen to their challenges and then help them come up with their own answers while building their confidence.

In the last three years, what’s been the biggest professional risk you’ve taken and how did it play out?

Jeff: I stepped away from a career I knew

the drinks association | December 2017

to an entirely different industry and role. The reason I did it, is because you’ve got to take these chances in life; you get one career, and the opportunity was there. I had to have the confidence to see that I had the skills to do it and just have a go.

Michelle: I think the biggest risk you can take is to be yourself in the workplace and to put yourself out there. Through vulnerability, it encourages other people to start putting themselves out there as well.

Cathi: When I was asked to go into liquor two years ago, I didn’t know anything about it, but I decided I’d figure it out when I got there.

I think we undo more of our own potential by not taking leaps of faith, but when you get there, you have to be smart and surround yourself with cheerleaders to help you through while you find your feet.

To take real risks where you can fail, do you need an inherent feeling of resilience beforehand or do you find it when you get there?

Jeff: One of the things I’ve been very aware of during change is that you have to have a little bit of self-awareness and what’s important to you as a person. It’s about knowing when to find your happy place. I like being in nature and sport, but it can be friends or family, anything really, you just have to be aware of when to take time out to manage that stress.

Michelle: I think you can prepare for it. Don’t focus on the win and the fail, but the effort that’s required. A growth mindset is important. Kids have that - when they fail, they say, “oh well”, and move on.

Cathi: The first time you do something it’s the hardest, but your mind talk is usually your biggest enemy in those situations because you’ll be looking for all of the reasons why you can’t.

It’s terrified me each time I’ve said yes to a new opportunity, but it’s gotten easier each time I do it. You can always go back if it doesn’t work out, so what have you got to lose?

What do you think is the secret to career longevity?

Jeff: Sometimes you might see a path and then the industry or business changes, and you have to reassess, but if you always have an open mind, you will always find a pathway.

Michelle: Collecting experiences is important.

When you have worked in a number of functions, it gives you a better understanding when talking to other teams; you have a better appreciation for those roles and you feel like you can speak their language.

Cathi: Don’t be scared of reinvention. If you want a long career, you have to reinvent yourself to stay relevant.

How have mentors helped you and do you still utilise those contacts?

Jeff: I was very fortunate that I had a network outside of the business and key leaders inside the business that could give me support as I transitioned to CEO. The CEO position can also be quite a lonely role, so it’s important that I can call on that network to talk about the challenges I’m facing.

Michelle: Structured mentors that I’ve had

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the drinks association | December 2017

Jeff McWilliam, Michelle Phipps and Cathi Scarce with drinks association CEO Georgia Lennon in the past have been a bit of a mixed bag.

The mentor I have at the moment probably doesn’t realise he’s my mentor. There’s a lot of trust, and I can talk to him about my career and the next step I’d like to take. He shares his frailty, and it helps me to feel better about myself. There’s a friendship there, but hierarchically, he’s somewhere I’d like to be.

it. She would also push my buttons on what I wasn’t doing to keep me in check. She’s not my mentor anymore; she’s now a lifelong friend.

Cathi: I’ve had two business coaches and a mentor. The mentor was calling me on my bullsh*t. She was good at asking me what I wanted and what I was doing to get

For more information, please contact drinks association CEO Georgia Lennon on georgial@ drinks.asn.au or Program Director Bianca Havas on bianca@serendis.com.au

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the drinks association is currently looking at launching the Women in drinks Mentoring Program 2018 in May, in both Sydney and Melbourne.

the drinks association | December 2017

IRI partners with Clavis Insight to help brands thrive online IRI, leading provider of big data and predictive analytics has just partnered with Clavis Insight, the global leader in e-Commerce intelligence for product manufacturers.

The alliance is set to deliver an unprecedented level of insights and analysis about the relationship with online presence and performance of brands.

Moreover, the combined services will enable brand owners to optimise their online channel representation, drive profitable e-Commerce growth and protect brand equity.

Push to strengthen drinks industry brands online It is estimated that Australians spend $22.23 billion annually on online retail, with this figure expected to continue to grow.

This, combined with the imminence of Amazon’s launch in Australia, has the drinks industry fearing it could disrupt traditional alcohol retail, having already threatened Coles and Woolworths.

With Amazon’s fast-paced delivery and cheaper prices, there’s speculation the company will be able to trump physical alcohol outlets.

At a time of such online growth, and given the pending launch of Amazon, the IRI and Calvis Insight

stress the importance of brands optimising their online performance across expanding online channels.

“I am excited to announce our alliance with Clavis Insight, which will enable our clients to track and assess their brands’ online performance to complement their bricks and mortar sales data,” says Caroline Chantry, Client Service Director at IRI. “Together, we will allow brands to identify and capitalise on rapidly emerging e-Commerce growth opportunities, and maximise omni channel sales and market share growth opportunities.”

Declan Kearney, Managing Director at Clavis Insight APAC adds: “Clavis Insight has experienced strong growth in the Australian market over the past couple of years. The IRI alliance gives us great scope to continue to significantly expand our customer base and our local market presence and expertise.”

IRI and Clavis Insight are respected industry leaders in their fields and currently share many leading global brands as customers such as P&G, Johnson & Johnson, Nestlé and Bayer.

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the drinks association | December 2017

AFGC’s Australian Grocery Academy calling for next year’s applicants An exciting new initiative, the Australian Grocery Academy, launched earlier this year by Australian Food & Grocery Council (AFGC) and Real World Marketing (RWM) is officially in full swing and looking for next year’s applicants.

The Australian Grocery Academy is a major industry initiative that the AFGC has pioneered, and it is already having a significant impact. The initiative

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seeks to cover the key components that company sales and category teams need to understand and be accomplished in to work most effectively with major retailers.

Lead content comes from Real World Marketing – a specialist consumer goods consultancy that focusses on category, strategic planning, sales and pricing.

the drinks association | December 2017

The Academy is highly contemporary, industry specific and includes a rigorous training program journey spanning 15 months via four modules.

Tanya Barden, CEO of the AFGC states: “The Australian Grocery Academy, developed in partnership with the AFGC, aims to fully equip the next generation of sales, category, marketing and commercial leaders with the knowledge and capability specifically required within the local industry to deliver commercial success for their businesses.

“The program aims to accelerate the development and performance of our best talent, and encourage them to stay in our businesses and industry longer,” says Barden.

Nicola Richardson, Sales Director and Lion Dairy & Drinks has found the program highly effective so far.

“The Category Development and Commercial modules of the program proved a great way to fast track the development of some of our highest potential sales talent, helping them to connect the dots between different information sources, see the bigger picture and develop insights to deliver mutual growth for our customers,” she said.

The AFGC says the program is best suited for ‘high potential’ future leaders or individuals in key roles within sales and related functions of the AFGC manufacturers and suppliers.

The academy is now taking bookings now for the 2018 intake, and have a few spaces available for the remaining 2017 intake individual modules.

For application requests or further details click here.

ATO offers advice & cautions following WET updates The Australian Tax Office has updated information about Wine Equalisation Tax (WET) on its website to reflect the new legislative changes.

These include the WET producer rebate, including new eligibility criteria, WET credits and the information that must be included when buying wine under quote.

To prepare for the changes to WET, wine producers may register a trademark. The ATO has warned producers to be cautious of any suspicious or unsolicited emails, letters or invoices related to registration. For more information, visit IP Australia’s website.

If you need help or more information about how the changes to WET affect them, contact the ATO or your registered tax agent.

Visit ato.gov.au/WET to find out more.

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the drinks association | December 2017

OnTap Data launches revolutionary new platform OnTap Data has partnered with the world’s number one business intelligence platform, BOARD, to revolutionise data analysis for the Australian liquor industry.

Data has always been equated to spreadsheets and analytics, but OnTap’s new BOARD platform offers a comprehensive set of features not found in any other business intelligence and performance management software.

BOARD seamlessly integrates data discovery, planning, forecasting, analytics and visualization into one single view, easily accessible on any device, computer, tablet or mobile to make your business more portable, efficient and organised.

The new OnTap platform can be configured to automate the building of sophisticated data mining and predictive models, in turn driving better decision-making by empowering customers to analyse backwards and do forward predictions on any number of metrics.

Director of the project, John Bruzzaniti said: “Our customers are busy people and our goal has always been to simplify their data, so they can make smarter and faster business decisions.”

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“After extensive research, we found BOARD was the only software platform that seamlessly unifies business intelligence, performance management, analytics and data discovery in a single product. We customised it to present liquor industry data and analytics in a stunningly visual format that has, quite simply, changed how management view and use the insights OnTap Data provides.

“Our customers are no longer required to drill into complicated spreadsheets and tables to understand their business performance, it’s now available visually, on any device, allowing them to make real time, on-thego intelligent decisions for their business.”

Bacardi-Martini, an early adopter of the program, has found that it has better equipped them to understand their business and make key decisions faster.

“We have never been in a stronger position to measure and track our performance, both at a strategic business level and at a field sales team level. I highly recommend OnTap Data to any business looking to strengthen and take control of their data and business intelligence,” said Brendan Mitchell from Bacardi.

BOARD is now available for suppliers, retail groups and their associated venues. Click here for more details.

the drinks association | December 2017

news

WID announces International Women’s Day event at Luna Park

International Women’s Day’s theme for 2018 is #PressforProgress Women in drinks has announced details of its highly anticipated International Women’s Day event, which will feature one of Australia’s most admired women, Turia Pitt. Pitt will share her intensely personal story of thriving in the face of extreme adversity. A mining engineer and ultra-marathon runner, Turia suffered life-threatening burns during in an event in 2011.

She’s gone on to compete in ironman events, raise more than $1million for her NGO and is due to give birth to her first child.

“Surviving against overwhelming odds, I’ve rebuilt my life and defied every expectation placed on me,” she said. “I’m living proof that, with the right

mindset, we truly can achieve anything. Through my books, online programs and events, I provide the tools to help you step outside of your comfort zones, kick big goals and transform your life.”

Lunch will be followed by an honest and lively discussion asking ‘Is Trying Good Enough?’ led by Australian industry experts, who will debate the pitfalls and pointers in the quest for gender diversity.

Date: Thursday, March 8, 2018 Time: 11.30am – 4pm (includes canapés on arrival and a two-course lunch) Where: Grand Ballroom, Luna Park Sydney Tickets: $270 each or $3120 for a table of 12 CLICK HERE TO BOOK

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the drinks association | December 2017

Shelly Horton on confidence, goal setting & mentoring

The fabulous Shelly Horton was guest speaker at our latest Women in drinks NSW Chapter event, discussing “Vulnerability and the confidence to be your true self.”

TODAY, TODAY EXTRA and Weekend TODAY; and is an ambassador for the National Breast Cancer Foundation, World AIDS Day and The Community Brave Foundation.

More than 90 people attended the sold-out event, held in Diageo’s “HarBar” in North Sydney, to hear Shelly talk about everything from her amazing media career to tips for boosting your confidence, how to make small talk when networking, and the value of goal setting and mentoring.

Her thoughts on empowerment to be your true self in the pursuit of professional success were truly inspiring.

Horton’s high school guidance counsellor once told her she was too opinionated. She ignored him and turned what he regarded as a weakness into a successful career. She has become one of Australia’s leading lifestyle and pop culture commentators across all forms of media: print, online, television and radio.

Horton runs her own video production company called ShellShocked Media, appears on Channel Nine three times a week with regular segments on

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Horton discussed some of the challenges she has faced in her career, including “faking it til you make it” by pretending she had experience reading news bulletins when a producer asked to step in at the last minute and read a sports report on UK TV. She was also removed as an on-air presenter in Australia after a producer said she was “too fat for TV” at size 12, plus her short, dark hair meant she “wasn’t sexy enough” for male viewers. Horton admitted the incident damaged her confidence, with it taking many years before she felt brave enough to get back into TV presenting.

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Nailing public speaking Horton kicked off the event by discussing ways to prepare for speaking publicly in front of large groups.

She revealed the various tricks she uses to relax her mouth and jaw so she appears relaxed and confident.

They included massaging her jaw, poking her tongue out, doing a few raspberries and repeating the tongue twister “red leather, yellow leather” over and over.

“You need to get your tongue into relaxed mode to perform at your best,” she counselled.

achieve career milestones, which she said was key to overcoming the setback her confidence had received when she was taken off camera.

“I went to a goal setting course that changed my whole life and career,” she said.

The course involved writing a letter to herself on what the best career day of her life would look like. It made her examine what she really wanted and deal with the embarrassment that comes from having to “you yourself out there”.

The importance of goal setting

Horton decided her goal was to have her own TV show, called “The Shelly Show”.

Horton emphasised the importance of goal setting to

She then dissected the letter and turned it into yearly,

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the drinks association | December 2017

topic they may have in common to get them talking.

She also suggests drawing a person out by complimenting them on their shoes or a necklace they are wearing, as there may be a story behind the item that they will share with you.

To avoid being caught out for not remembering you’ve met someone before, she offered a tip from actress Julia Morris: “Say ‘great to see you’, which could mean for the first time or the fifth time.”

Horton suggested avoiding direct personal questions as they could often backfire if the person has been through a troubling experience, for example, asking how their job is going when they may have just been retrenched.

Instead, ask “what’s keeping you busy?” monthly, weekly and daily goals.

Horton emphasised the importance of extracting yourself from conversations with grace.

Her monthly goal was to get a show reel and send it out to producers. Her weekly goal was to tell at least one person that she wanted to be on TV. And her daily goal was to dress for the job she wanted so she was always camera ready.

“Give people a bit of warning that you’re wrapping them up,” she said.

Within six weeks a producer that she’d told about her goal to be on TV recommended her for a new show George Negus was launching and she scored the gig.

If the person has been, for example, discussing a holiday they’ve been on, thank them for their tips as you step away. This will leave the person feeling positive about the experience despite you moving on.

The lesson she shared from the experience was that “you never know who might be watching or who you might be impressing.”

Mentoring matters

How to make great small talk After attending more than 1500 functions as a gossip columnist for Fairfax Media, Horton says she “could small talk for Australia.”

She encouraged attendees to “be someone who introduces well” and give other people a conversation

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She suggested saying “I need” to do something or be somewhere, as it’s hard to argue with a need.

Horton is an advocate of the value of mentoring, which she does both informally and in a professional capacity. She has a group of women that she meets up with every three months for a walking/talking session.

“It always starts with ‘what is the worst thing that’s happened in the last three months?’ and then ‘what is the best thing that’s happened in the last three

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months’” The women then workshop how to improve the worst thing.

“Ten minds all help each other as a team to come up with solutions,” she explained.

One of the women in the mentoring group has since become her boss at Channel 9!

Her advice for making the most of mentoring was that “you have to be able to take constructive criticism.”

She also advised Gen Y employees to “be humble and earn your place.”

Embrace your vulnerability Horton told the women and men in the room that “you don’t have to be perfect all the time.”

She believes showing your vulnerability also shows your strength.

“It’s OK not to be OK straight away when something unexpected happens,” she added.

“Allow yourself time to deal with it and get it out of your system.”

Horton later shared on Instagram: “Never met a microphone I didin’t love. Fun afternoon sharing stories with #womenindrinks and only dropped the “F-Bomb” a few times. Now that’s authentic me! #womensupportingwomen.”

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Zoe Bettison MP: “Women in drinks leading the way on inclusion” Hearing Zoe Bettison MP, SA Minister for the Status of Women speak at Penfolds Magill Estate was an inspirational way to end the year for the Women in drinks South Australia Chapter.

Launched in August, Women in drinks SA has already been hugely successful in providing networking opportunities to women in the State.

Guest speaker Bettison discussed how targets work in business and ways the SA Government is working to achieve better diversity in the workplace.

One attendee noted: “The biggest takeouts for me were 1) How important it is that women (and people with diverse background) are in the mix when senior roles become available; and 2) how to remove unconscious bias during recruitment to ensure our workforce becomes a reflection of our society.”

Bettison was an engaging speaker, discussing her career path to being elected to the SA Parliament as the Member for Ramsay in February 2012. She has a BA from Flinders University and a MBA from the University of Adelaide. Prior to her election Zoe

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worked as Government Relations Manager for Great Southern Rail.

She became a Minister following the 2014 state election and since then has worked on progressing the South Australian Government’s reform agenda on gender equality, ageing, multicultural affairs, social housing and youth.

“It was excellent to attend the Women in drinks SA Chapter event at the beautiful Magill Estate,” Bettison noted. “This event brought together women forging a new path. They’re leading the way through a male dominated industry, making the drinks industries of South Australia inclusive to all. Thanks to Melanie Cooper for making this important event possible.”

Women in drinks Chair Jennifer Collins travelled to South Australia for the special event. She said: “It was fantastic to be able to join in the final event on the WID calendar for 2017. Zoe provided great insights into South Australian political life and the SA Government’s proud achievements in achieving their gender targets for the public service.”

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Why closing the gender pay gap matters

Lion CEO Stuart Irvine says the company has no regrets about spending $6million to close the gender pay gap at the company.

“To hold up standards of diversity and inclusion and then tell people we know we underpaid you for the role but just bear with us while we pay you a bit less for the next four or five years - that didn’t sit well with any of us with any integrity,” he’s told the Australian Financial Review.

The company conducted a pay gap analysis last year of more than 1600 employees and the leadership team were shocked when Mercer analysis discovered the company was paying men an average 3.2% more than women.

“To be honest because of our values of meritocracy and inclusion we didn’t expect to find anything,” he said. “We were doing it more as a health check than anything else.”

The company moved quickly to close the gap

by increasing pay for 950 women as well as 700 men, who had been paid slightly less than their female counterparts.

The company now has a 50:50 gender target by 2026 and conducts pay analyses every six months to ensure the pay gap remains at zero.

Brown-Forman focusses on inclusion

Brown-Forman Australia and AHRI hosted presentations by Amy Whalley Deputy CEO Australian Network on Disability and Kevin Figueiredo GM Group Safety Health and Wellbeing Woolworths at its offices last month.

The meeting was attended by businesses in NSW and covered important topics such as disability equality and best practice access and inclusion.

One attendee noted: “Engaging discussion about how to create an inclusive culture and remove barriers for talent with disabilities. Thanks Amy Whalley and Kevin Figueiredo, GAICD for sharing insight, tips and a road map for positive change.

Loved the perspective that ‘reasonable adjustments’ are often the catalyst (or demonstration of) innovation in the workplace!”

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Australian women in wine: we sit down with the winners of the 2017 AWIWAs

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Virginia Willcock: the advice I wish I’d been given

Virginia Willcock, winner of Winemaker of the Year at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about following her passion and the challenges of winemaking.

For more than a decade, Virginia Willcock has been spreading the word about the unique, thriving Margaret River region, which has helped shape Vasse Felix into the thriving, global wine estate it is today.

Vasse Felix is celebrating its 50th birthday this year and was recently rated the best new world winery in the world by US wine publication Wine Enthusiast.

As a respected authority on Margaret River winemaking, Wilcock has represented the unique region through media and trade conventions and as a wine show judge, while completing almost 25 vintages in Margaret River.

Her journey to becoming a winemaker From the age of 15, Willcock knew the world of

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winemaking was for her.

“My parents had a little vineyard, north of Perth and one day my dad came home one day and said ‘You can study winemaking’ and I went ‘Wow! That’s exactly what I want to do’,” Willcock recalls.

She went on to study winemaking at Roseworthy Agricultural College, which is now a part of the University of Adelaide.

“I loved the idea of growing fruit, and then turning it into something that could be more beautiful and would give people a lot of enjoyment,” Willcock noted in a Vasse Felix’s biography.

Throughout her career, Willcock has gained an extensive knowledge and experience from her travels on winemaking and the importance of wine regions in regards to the history of the land, soil and air.

She told Wine Australia: “My grape and wine philosophy is a beautiful natural expression of a

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place… When I smell the forest, smell the ocean, smell the beautiful dirt, I want to see some of that come through in the wine in a natural, earthy, rustic sense.”

During her travels through vineyards, she has developed a passion for Cabernet Sauvignon, which is Margaret River’s best performing wine varietal.

Her love of Margaret River, home to Vasse Felix Located south of Perth, the Margaret River provides a Mediterranean climate that makes it an ideal region for growing grapes and fine wine.

“I am blessed because Margaret River is such a great place to grow grapes, so that makes my job easier.”

Willcock admits with delight.

She believes that the Margaret River region is one of the greatest in the world as the wines continue to strive to reach their full potential.

“I wouldn’t want to be making wine anywhere else!”

Her passion and best advice Willcock shared that it is important to have passion in what you do in life.

“You gotta be driven by your passion,” she said. “I think that if you’re passionate about something, you will always do really well because you love it. I think it’s the love for [winemaking] that has given me that drive to work as hard as you have to as a winemaker.”

When asked what advice she would have given herself at the start of her career in wine, she said: ”Get some practical experience before you study.”

Although her family owned a vineyard, she admits

she never participated in any of the winemaking.

“Operating pumps, winery equipment, and just understanding what the processes are, from start to finish [is important].”

Life as a winemaker and the challenges of winemaking As for the most rewarding part of being a winemaker, Willcock simply said: “I think it’s creating something new every year, something that is new and beautiful that represents that year, the conditions, and the place that you’re from.”

She makes it clear that because you only get one chance every year, you cannot “stuff it up”.

“There’s an immense satisfaction in finding the best of what you can do on an annual basis,” she said.

The winemaking process is a very important one as several decisions go into perfecting a bottle. For Willcock, the decision-making is a special aspect of winemaking.

A number of decisions are made for every grape batch, when to harvest them, [and] how they will flow in the winery and eventually in the bottle.”

Willcock said. ‘Two hundred decisions are made for every little batch of wine. The decision not to do something is just as important as the decision to do something.’

Willcock shared that having an intimate understanding of the land and where the grapes are grown is a challenge.

“Understanding the things that make [the land] different and being able to respond to that [is key] because it’s all about nature.” Willcock said. “Nature delivers, and you just have to nurture it.”

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Dr Christine Böttcher: fighting climate change in Aussie wine Dr. Christine Böttcher, winner of Researcher of the Year at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about the importance of diversity in wine research.

One of the driving forces in battling the effects of climate change on the Australian wine industry, Dr. Christine Böttcher is passionate about both her area of expertise and diversity.

She found her true passion when she was introduced to the exciting world of grapes and wine as a postdoctoral fellow. Currently a research scientist at CSIRO Agriculture and Food in Adelaide, she has spent the last decade working to improve understanding of the grape ripening process and has created effective management techniques.

Discovering her passion and moving forward “The most exciting aspect about working as a scientist is discovery,” Dr Böttcher explains.

That passion saw her begin her career in the biological sciences, with her focus shifting from animal to plant science halfway through her degree.

“Things took a turn again when I realised that while fundamental research on a model species was important and interesting, I really wanted to see my work contributing to ‘the real world’,” Dr Böttcher explained.

Once the opportunity to join a team of grapevine researchers came around, she ‘took it with both hands’ and hasn’t looked back.

“There is just no better feeling than the moment when you realise that your experiments have

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uncovered something that no one has seen or known about before,” Dr Böttcher said. “It never gets boring, you are contributing valuable information to the scientific, and the wider community, which gives you a real sense of purpose.”

Global warming’s impact on wine quality For the last 10 years, Dr Böttcher’s research has led to the development of methods that improve quality and harvesting issues.

“Global warming-related changes to grape berry ripening pose huge challenges for the viticultural industries and have certainly become the biggest driving force for our research into grape berry ripening and ripening manipulation,” she said.

As climate change continues to pose a threat, the

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Australian wine industry is in a ‘vulnerable position since most winegrowing regions in Australia grapes are currently grown at, or above, their optimal temperature’ she explained.

An increase in high temperatures and rapid ripening results in the advancement of sugar accumulation ahead of flavour ripeness. “[This] can yield fruit/wine of lower value and is leading to significant increases in wine alcohol levels, raising health concerns,” Dr Böttcher said.

Dr Böttcher is also concerned about a relatively new but important issue: harvest season compression.

This is a serious problem in growing areas that have difficulty in the management of fruit harvest and the winery intake/process.

“This issue arises because of climate-induced changes in grape berry development, which are causing both white and red varieties to ripen at the same time, putting great stress on both harvesting operations and winery processing.” Dr Böttcher said.

This leads to a decrease in fruit quality and/or results in fruit wastage.

The role of research and sustainability “Over the last decade, the main aim of our research has been to develop plant growth regulator-based management tools that will allow grape growers to counteract problems associated with increasingly narrow harvest windows and undesirable shifts in the timing of the ripening phase,” Dr Böttcher said.

“We are hoping to be able to deliver a cheap, safe and reliable ripening-delay strategy to Australian grape growers [soon].”

As Böttcher’s research continues to aid in the crisis of

global warming-related issues, new methods meet sustainability at the forefront.

“The plant growth regulator-based ripening-delay strategies that we have developed are an example for new management techniques that have the potential to allow the sustained and profitable production of wine grapes from established varieties in established vineyards,” she proudly noted.

“There can be no doubt that if the status quo prevails, the consequences of climate change will force the relinquishment of established vineyards in the warmer growing regions of Australia.”

Diversity and inclusion in the industry Dr Böttcher is vocal on the value of diversity and inclusivity in any workplace.

“A high degree of diversity regarding background and experience combined with a culture of valuing everyone’s contribution will result in a broad-minded approach to tasks, challenges and interactions,” she said.

Dr Böttcher enjoys working with a diverse group of interesting and intelligent people.

“Diversity and inclusion has been shown to deliver the best outcomes for any type of workplace, including research organisations,” she noted.

As for the women who want to pursue a career in STEMM or the wine industry, Dr Böttcher’s advice is: “Very simply put, just do it.”

“There is an ever increasing push for the promotion of women in science and industry, as exemplified by the Australian Women in Wine Awards.” Dr Böttcher concluded.

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Caudo’s Jasmine Morgan on the power of networking

Jasmine Morgan, winner of Cellar Door Person of the Year at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about diversity and navigating the wine business.

As cellar door manager and an events coordinator, Jasmine Morgan has coordinated 18 weddings, two proposals, and her very own wedding day at Caudo Vineyards.

Along the way, she’s also forged a successful career, which she attributes to her creativity and a passion for the Australian wine industry.

Discovering her passion and moving forward Morgan planned on becoming an architect after high school, but she took a gap year to save money to move to the city, got a job as a cellar hand at a

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local winery, and fell in love with the dynamics of winemaking.

“I moved to the city and was halfway through my architectural bachelor degree [when] an opportunity presented itself to move back to the Riverland (my home region) and work in a new cellar door, Caudo Vineyard, that was growing and fast becoming popular,” said Morgan.

She decided to take the position and a new career was born. “Dropping out of my degree felt like the worst thing to do at the time but looking back now, I don’t regret a thing!” Morgan said.

Navigating the wine business Caudo Vineyard is located on the Murray River in Riverland.

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“I love the people, the river, [and] my wine,” said Morgan. “Selling wine is only one part of my job. I am also showcasing the region, the environment and the Riverland lifestyle.”

As cellar door manager, Morgan continues to learn about the wine industry and grow her skill set.

“Leadership skills are incredibly important to run a successful team.” Morgan said. “You must be organised, efficient, [and] social. Friendly, social interactive customer skills are essential in the drinks industry.”

As a wedding coordinator, Morgan admits she’s a bit of a romantic and has perfected the art of organising weddings through the gradual gain of insight and knowledge.

“Weddings are such a beautiful and unforgettable day and playing a part in creating the perfect day is so rewarding,” said Morgan. “Caudo Vineyard is a beautiful cellar door on the Murray River, and it really is an easy choice as a wedding destination.”

Although Morgan is relatively new to the wine business, she continues to grow, create, and welcome new opportunities.

by making diversity and inclusion a priority in any business, great things can be achieved.

“Caudo Vineyard has done an excellent job of maintaining a diverse and inclusive team of staff,” said Morgan. “There is a real family vibe that runs from the family business owners through to their staff, and it makes for a great [and] successful work environment.

As for women who are interested in a career in the wine industry, Morgan believes in the power of effective and constant networking.

“Meet like-minded industry people to build contacts [and] get to know your customers,” said Morgan. “You need to take these opportunities and make the most of them.”

Morgan encourages others to ‘throw yourself out there’ as she did when she applied for the Australian Women in Wine Awards.

“Receiving this award has given me so much pride and confidence that I know is going to keep me on my wine journey,” said Morgan. “Recognition is very important, so put yourself in the spotlight to be seen.”

“As a young person with little experience, opportunity is rare and you can’t sit back, you need to create them yourself,” Morgan said.

“I am always continually learning and growing my skill set. I have learnt so much from my employers and their business skills.”

Diversity and inclusion in the workplace Women continue to be underrepresented and underappreciated throughout the wine industry, but Page 33

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Professor Eileen Scott: championing diversity in the wine industry Professor Eileen Scott, winner of Workplace Champion of Change at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about mentorship, workplace diversity, and empowering women to suceed.

Professor Scott has been a force to be reckoned with when it comes to implementation of effective change in the workplace throughout her career.

She has more than 25 years of experience in teaching and research in grapevines diseases, all while playing a significant role as a mentor and sponsor of supporting the education and development of women in wine.

As the Deputy Head of School of Agriculture, Food and Wine and Deputy Dean for Gender, Equity and Diversity, Professor Scott seeks to break down gender barriers and create better work environments for everyone.

Mentoring and empowering women When asked about her greatest accomplishments, Scott said supporting women in the workplace was every bit as important as her wine research.

“Mentoring female staff in career progression, including promotion readiness and providing guidance and support in writing applications for promotion, is so important,” she said.

Professor Scott notes that “women are as smart and as capable as men”. As true as this statement may be, women still only make up 10% of the Australian wine industry.

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Mentorship, continuous support, and the representation of women in the workplace goes a long way in raising awareness for the lack of diversity and inclusion. Through encouragement and support, women gain confidence in their craft or work and accept the success they deserve.

“Female staff are sometimes less willing than their male counterparts to take full credit for their achievements and so may benefit from encouragement to be less modest,” Professor Scott explained.

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Professor Scott also said that the number of women in senior academic positions has increased in recent years, with the future looking promising for the representation and recognition of women.

Breaking down gender barriers and creating better workplace environments Wine Australia chairman Brian Walsh noted at the 2017 AWIWAs that many women studying viticulture and wine production have left the industry within a decade.

“We are losing talent,” he said.

As a mentor and supporter of inclusion and diversity in the workplace, Professor Scott believes in the power of effective networking and seeking out a wider range of mentors and sponsors.

At the beginning of her career in science, she wishes she would have sought out a wider range of mentors and sponsors.

“I have been fortunate to have benefited from some wonderful mentors and sponsors, but I could have been more strategic earlier,” Scott said.

How her research has helped improve wine quality Professor Scott and her group work on the effects of powdery mildew on wine quality has lead to a greater awareness of disease and its effective management.

The team has also identified and developed strategies for the deployment of alternative conventional chemical pesticides to manage various diseases which has given (organic) growers more options.

Most recently, the team developed PMapp, a new digital tool, to ‘assist with assessing powdery mildew severity on grape bunches’, which was released in Australia in 2015. Since then, this tool has been adopted in Australasia and on an international-scale.

The app has made disease assessment more efficient and reliable.

“Powdery mildew is a serious disease that affects grapevines worldwide and can cause off flavours and aromas in wine if it is not controlled.”

Professor Scott said.

Addressing gender inequality in the STEMM-related fields Like Dr. Christine Böttcher, winner of Researcher of the Year at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards, Professor Scott is passionate about diversity in STEMM-related fields. She’s the head of The University of Adelaide’s self-assessment team, which supports the Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) Athena SWAN charter.

“Over 30 of Australia’s universities are taking part in this process,” said Scott. “The charter embodies a set of principles to address gender inequality and signing up to these principles will help us to “level the playing field” for women in STEMM.” Before the University of Adelaide’s participation in the program, it implemented a gender equity framework called the Dormwell framework named after the first female science graduate.

“This promotes a family-friendly workplace and includes awards to support research excellence and to assist staff who have caring responsibilities to participate in conferences.” Professor Scott said.

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Sarah Ahmed: navigating the drinks industry as a wine writer

Sarah Ahmed, winner of the Honorary Australian Women in Wine award at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about the competitive field of wine writing.

The founder of The Wine Detective, a blog that focuses on the ‘inside track of Portuguese and Australian wine, Sarah Ahmed, has always loved telling ‘stories’.

From essays at school, to preparing cases when she was a lawyer from 1988-2000, and when she quit law for wine altogether, she’s always had an undying love for the written word. Since 2005, Ahmed has been writing full-time about wine.

“Having started my wine career in retail, I realised that communicating with customers via my newsletter and tastings allowed me to [focus on] what really excites me about wine – the people,

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places, techniques and tradition or innovation behind it,” she explained.

While she did not take her writing seriously until she went freelance, Ahmed spent two to three months a year visiting wine regions to present tastings and wine courses. “I gained first-hand insights which I really wanted to share with a wider audience, so pursuing a career in writing became a goal.” Ahmed added.

Challenges in the wine industry When asked about the obstacles faced in the wine business, Ahmed believes the biggest challenge is earning a living from wine writing.

“Unfortunately, it’s a highly competitive field and a significant portion of people writing about wine have other income streams,” said Ahmed. “[They] are

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independently wealthy or prepared to contribute for free in return for profile, [so] it’s a ‘buyers’ market.

“This has been very challenging for me. I could not get by without also presenting tastings, judging etc. However, of greater concern for anyone who values good critique, is the impact down the line on independent and diverse writing, especially fresh perspectives and new voices.”

Ahmed recalled a key message in the book ‘True Professionalism’ by David H Maister: “believe passionately in what you do” “Never compromising your standards and values is much more achievable when you work for yourself,” Ahmed said.

Why Portuguese and Australian wine?

Over the years, Ahmed has contributed to online, radio, magazines, and books, including Decanter and The World of Fine Wine.

“When I joined the wine trade, I worked for Oddbins [the high street wine merchant], who had a massive range of interesting Australian wine,” Ahmed said.

“This, together with an intensive Wine Australia trip in 2004 [and my contacts], built my passion for the country’s wines and ‘can do’ wine culture.”

As a WSET Diploma top graduate in 2003, Ahmed had the confidence and profile to successfully pitch for her first paid writing commission. This project resulted in a research opportunity to work on the sixth edition of The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson MW, which then lead her to update Hugh Johnson’s Annual Pocket Wine Guide for Portugal.

“Both the Portuguese and Australian wine scene have evolved considerably, especially Portugal,”

Ahmed said.

“Portugal has an incredibly important USP in its native grape varieties (over 250) [with] some unique traditional winemaking techniques which the current generation are applying intelligently in an excitingly original fusion of the best of the old and new,” Ahmed said.

As for Aussie wine: “I’d say it’s the innovative, collaborative wine culture which is special—very dynamic with a dogged pursuit of excellence.”

Diversity and the field of writing Credibility and integrity is everything to Ahmed.

She encourages others to be mindful and proactive about telling the whole story.

“The big, established companies can dominate the discourse with marketing budgets to support tastings, press trips, samples, and advertising.”

She shared a comment by feminist activist group The Guerrilla Girls, about their 2016 exhibition at Whitechapel Art Gallery - that saw 383 European museum directors answer questions about diversity - which reflects her take on the responsibility of being a wine critic.

“With this project, we wanted to pose the question ‘Are museums today presenting a diverse history of contemporary art or the history of money and power?’ We focus on the understory, the subtext, the overlooked and the downright unfair. Art can’t be reduced to the small number of artists who have won a popularity contest among bigtime dealers, curators and collectors. Unless museums and Kunsthallen show art as diverse as the cultures they claim to represent, they’re not showing the history of art, they’re just preserving the history of wealth and power.”

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Sarah Collingwood: the challenges of running a family winemaking business

Sarah Collingwood, winner of Owner and Operator of the Year at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about the challenges she has faced as a business manager of her family’s Four Winds Vineyard.

Suzanne and Graeme Lunney - in early 2010. Since then she has been continually developing and finetuning the business model. But she believes it’s the family’s shared passion for winemaking that is it’s greatest strength.

Women who aspire to achieve a career in Australia’s traditionally “macho industry” must often work much harder to prove themselves. Sarah Collingwood has built a successful career overseeing much of the logistics and paperwork of running her family’s vineyard and winery, located in the Canberra district.

“We love the simple things; making great wine and wood-fired pizzas,” she notes on the vineyard’s website, which reflects the parents’ dream to grow and sell grapes which has transformed into a generational, growing family business.

Joining the family business Collingwood and her husband John joined the family’s winemaking business - founded by her parents

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“The most rewarding part of Four Winds Vineyard is working with the family and being able to make speedy decisions about directions or projects.”

Collingwood said. “[In] running a small business, there is so much scope for agility and creativity!”

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The 33-acre vineyard, located north of Canberra just east of Murrumbateman, was first planted in 1998. A cellar door followed in 2013, and the family now grows Shiraz, Riesling, Cabernet, Merlot and Sangiovese.

When asked about the challenges of operating a small business, Collingwood said that cash flow and staffing is universal issue.

“The great thing about the wine industry is that there is an infinite number of business models that work (and some that don’t),” she explained. “John and I are still trying to work out what model works best for us; we might still be doing this in 10 years!”

Women in wine awards and moving forward Collingwood was honoured to connect from women from all over Australia at the AWIWA ceremony, which was held in London for the first time this year, and counts it as one of her most memorable experiences.

“This award has been an exciting entry into meeting some amazing women in the wine industry,” said Collingwood. “It seems we are all facing the same challenges and having similar wins regardless of where in the country we are based.”

Earlier this year, Collingwood was also selected to participate in the Wine Australia’s Future Leaders Program.

This program focuses on the development of leadership skills as well as creating a network of confident and committed individuals who will contribute to the future success of the Aussie wine community.

“The Future Leaders Program has been a life changing experience for two reasons; getting to know

the great people who were a part of the course, and the fascinating content that is delivered over the five months,” she explained.

At first, Collingwood was unsure of what to expect, but amazing personal and professional challenges soon followed. “[The program worked on] things like how to develop a strong culture in our workplaces, what impediments we place in the way of progress, and how to make good decisions.”

The wine industry, diversity, and inclusion As for what she loves most about working in the wine industry, Collingwood enjoys that it gives individuals the opportunity to create their own craft and build upon it.

“The wine industry is a great place to work,” she said.

“The industry is made up of thousands of small business that have grown the grapes, created their own brand and sell their wine at a premium at their own cellar door. It makes for an exciting industry where you can carve out your own place within it.”

She agrees that women continue to be under represented and underappreciated and she hopes initiatives such as the AWIWAs by the Fabulous Ladies’ Wine Society, help bring awareness to the issue.

“I love being a part of this collaborative industry, and I was alarmed at the statistic that women make up less than 10% of it,” she notes.

But she hopes telling her story can inspire others to persevere and succeed.

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Ebony Tinkler: redefining the wine industry for Millennials

Ebony Tinkler, winner of Marketer of the Year at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about appealing to the younger generation.

As appreciation for wine grows among Millenials, young consumers have begun finding value in aspects such as authenticity and quality, the process of winemaking, the history of the winemakers and having a more personal tasting room experience.

Ebony Tinkler, from Usher Tinkler Wines, is at the forefront of blurring the lines between traditional and contemporary winemaking to appeal to new markets.

As a biotechnology major at the University of Newcastle, Tinkler worked at Tempus Two cellar door until she completed her degree, worked for more than six years as the laboratory technician at Pooles Page 40

Rock Winery, and then joined the family business.

She completed a postgraduate diploma in marketing as she learned the dynamics of running a business from overseeing vineyard work and cellar door management.

“What I love is that there are so many roles and so many different aspects to the wine industry and to our area,” Tinkler said. “There are diverse, interesting and unique opportunities, and I’ve been fortunate enough to be a part of most of them.”

Tinkler’s years of experience has given her the opportunity to express her ideas and vision.

“I’ve worked in a large cellar door, a large winery, then on to the family business, which included managing the cellar door, working in vineyards and

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in the winery,” Tinkler added. “I was able to see all aspects that would be required to develop the business and brand I wanted for us in the Hunter.”

The message of Usher Tinkler Wines echoes a more sociable wine experience that appeals to everyone, particularly the younger generation.

A new wine experience

“The key is to listen to them [consumers].” Tinkler said.

Usher Tinkler Wines was born when Ebony Tinkler and her husband, Usher Tinkler, bought and renovated the original Pokolbin Church and took the ultimate wine experience to a whole new level.

“The creation of our brand really stemmed from the need to attract new/younger audiences to the area and it has been great to have the varying pillars of information from my work experience, to use as a foundation for the development of Usher Tinkler Wines,” Tinkler said.

Located in Hunter Valley, Usher Tinkler Wines continues to reflect its region and the authenticity of Usher’s wines as the lines between the old and the new are merged to create a new era.

She said that she places more focus into listening to the consumers’ interests and what they want to learn about wine which eventually leads to the creation of an environment and a product for everyone to enjoy.

“We use our cellar door as a relaxed, social, unpretentious space to learn about wine and enjoy yourself,” Tinkler explained. “It’s not all about the wine, it’s a great product, but the brand delivery and how it is showcased via the cellar door experience is just as important.”

Tinkler noted that Usher Tinkler Wines’ brand is unique and creates its own conversation.

Tinkler gained inspiration from her wine experience with the help of a trip to France and Italy, where she indulged in wine tasting and ‘good cheese and salumi sliced up in front of you.’

Diversity in the region and business

“It was all about the social experience which to me, is very important,” she added.

“Our wine styles, branding and cellar door experience make us quite different to other businesses in the Hunter [Valley]; however we still take our hat off to the Hunter as a region.” Tinkler said.

Tinkler noted that she has never purchased a bottle of wine without the intention of sharing it with friends or family, so the idea of creating a cellar door to emulate that experience was perfect.

“Our approach to wine tasting incorporates the food and wine lifestyle because let’s face it; wine is made better with food and friends.”

Usher Tinkler Wines – Born for Sociability

The representation of the region’s diversity is an important part of Usher Tinkler Wines.

She expressed that the region’s history and community is tailored their business model, and the cellar door and wine has been well-received by guests and the community.

“People are really enjoying the style of wine experience we offer.” Tinkler said.

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the drinks association | December 2017

Jennifer Doyle: ‘How boring would wine be without diversity?’

Jennifer Doyle, winner of the Viticulturist of the Year award at the 2017 Women in Wine awards (AWIWA), talks to Ray Ruano about the importance of sustainability and diversity in the industry.

In November, Jennifer Doyle celebrated five years at Jansz Tasmania, home to one of the most highly regarded sparkling wine houses in Australia.

But her viticultural journey began 25 years ago, in a career that has taken her across the cool climate regions of Orange, Pemberton, and Margaret River.

She has now settled in southern Tasmania and currently works between Jansz’s three vineyards: Pipers River, Coal River Valley, and Forcett.

had an interest and a deep respect for the natural world.

Fast forward to studying for a Bachelor’s of Rural Science degree at the University of New England, Doyle spent her holidays working at vineyards in the Hunter Valley.

“It was here that my interest in viticulture and wine was ignited,” said Doyle.

She saw the agricultural industry as an opportunity to become part of the complete lifecycle of its produce and go beyond just simply growing it.

A career in viticulture

“From planting to rootling grapevines on a chosen site to sharing a bottle of wine with family and friends at the table, years, and maybe decades, later.”

Growing up on a farm in country NSW, Doyle always

Doyle wholeheartedly embraced the industry, which

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the drinks association | December 2017

gave her the chance for explore her passion of science and nature.

“It was a career that was dynamic, that enabled the melding of both science and art.”

Dealing with climate change Doyle has taken a natural approach to the management of growing grapevines and caring for the environment.

“Viticulture is a dynamic pursuit, constantly changing with the ebb and flow of environmental influences.”

While the process of planting grapevines is a lengthy prospect, there are many tools for viticulturists to move reasonably nimbly within the whim of nature and consumers, Doyle explained.

She discusses the careful process of choosing a new site to plant a vineyard.

“We use these findings with the most appropriate variety, clone and rootstock, to match both the environment and what is intended for the bottle.” Doyle continued. “Finally, there are the considerations for ongoing management of the mature vines.”

This includes: balanced nutrition, compost/cover cropping, responsible use of irrigation, and organic and Biodynamic block trials to oversee resilience.

“Our overarching focus in Tasmania is on sparkling wine, the varieties for which are very well-suited to this crisp, cool climate, and the purity and elegance of fruit that this frigid clime evokes.” Doyle said.

Working in the wine industry When asked what she wished she’d known at the

start of her career, Doyle said: “Trust your own experiences as unique and worthwhile as they may allow a different perspective to a viticultural, or other, challenge that others don’t have.”

As a viticulturist, she shared her love for being ‘among the vines, observing, smelling, feeling, the buzz of the biome at its most minute.’

When asked what most people don’t know about a viticultural profession, she noted: “Much of what you can’t see with the naked eye (yeasts, bacteria, fungi) is contributing to the unique terroir and ultimate flavour, texture and aroma of the wine.”

Diversity in the workplace Doyle shared that diversity offers the most intriguing and inspiring aspects of growing and savouring wine.

“We have some wonderful viticulturists in our team, both budding and accomplished, who constantly ask questions and stimulate one to think beyond previous experience and understanding.” Doyle noted.

She mentioned that ‘there are infinite ways in which an environment, a viticultural and winemaking hand – and the inexplicable – can influence the exclusively distinct character of that which ends up in the bottle.’

With an ‘eclectic mix of backgrounds’ such as ‘an ex-chef NSW mid-north coaster, a knowledgecraving Bhutanese refugee, a petite Japanese dynamo and our local Tasmanian,’ Jansz Tasmania genuinely values the importance and representation of diversity in the wine industry.

“How boring would wine be without diversity!”

Doyle exclaimed.

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the drinks association | December 2017

Sue Hodder: the rejuvenation of Wynns Coonawarra Sue Hodder, Woman of Inspiration Award recipient at the 2017 Australian Women in Wine Awards, talks to Ray Ruano about being part of the Wynns Coonawarra Estate’s legacy and the importance of sustainability in wine.

This year, marks Sue Hodder’s 25th vintage with Wynns, where she has played a key role into some of the best and most popular wines in Australia.

Throughout her career, Hodder has judged 50+ wine competitions and is the current chief judge of the Royal Adelaide Wine Show and a member of the Coonawarra Vignerons Association.

She believes nurturing a winemaking team is every bit as important as tending the grapes on the wine.

Becoming a winemaker Born and raised in the red soil landscape of Central Australia, in the town of Alice Springs, Hodder says she feels privileged to have come ‘from one red centre to another.’

marketplace. Winemaking offers an opportunity to interact with all of it.”

As a child, Hodder developed an interested in everything agricultural, from growing things to raising animals.

Scottish pioneer John Riddoch noticed the fertility of the land in Coonawarra and planted vines in 1896.

When asked what inspired her to become a winemaker, she said: “I love all things agricultural and especially the end product, in this case. “On a practical note, I needed the money to go overseas.

The Wynns Legacy

Wynns Coonawarra Estate was born in 1951 when Samuel and David Wynn, recognised the potential of region and bought the vineyards and winery.

She shared that she always wanted to pursue a career in applied science, so she moved south to attend Roseworthy Agricultural (and Oenology) College which is now part of Adelaide University.

“Coonawarra has fantastic soil, the terra rossa and a southerly mostly, mild climate—the combination of the two factors is unique and great for the growing of wonderful red grapes,” said Hodder. “However, it is the local community that I value the most. We live and work in the small town and share so much.”

“I love wine, the seasons, the vineyards and the

Today, Wynns is known as the region’s most

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the drinks association | December 2017

distinguished wine producer while its wines are regarded as benchmarks for the district.

While Hodder values the importance of an unique region and community, she noted that having the committed team to represent Wynns is vital.

“I work with positive and very talented people, who as the current custodians of Wynns Coonawarra Estate, [and] are determined to respect and build on the hard work of previous generations, whilst innovating and planting for the future.” Hodder said.

She shared that one must always recognise the human element of terroir as it is very satisfying to watch people grow in concert with the vines. ”The legacy is profound when considering the isolation, challenging climate, and early social attitudes.” Hodder said.

Life as a winemaker Long before she became Senior Winemaker at Wynns Coonawarra Estate, Hodder began her wine career as a viticulturist. She believes that her early viticultural training gave her an invaluable insight into the significance of vineyard in quality winemaking.

“I am one representative of an iconic Australian wine label,’ said Hodder. “[Awards] that have been awarded to our team at Wynns have certainly been appreciated, especially those from our peers.

Hodder shared one important aspect of her job that might surprise others.

“The nicest things about Wynns is the affection for the label. I love to hear the anecdotes about people’s experiences in drinking the Wynns wines in different occasions. Younger people are now starting to collect the wines and that is so interesting and rewarding.”

A new era at Wynns When Hodder was promoted to chief winemaker in 1992, she inherited old, dying vineyards.

However, with the help of viticulturalist Allen Jenkins, she revolutionised Wynns. The pair went on to win 2010 Gourmet Traveller Wine ‘Winemaker of the Year’.

“When Allen arrived, I think he was shocked at [the state of] these beautiful old vineyards, and we had to work out how to rejuvenate the old vines.”

Hodder said.

They set to work reconstructing the vineyards, which gave birth to a new era at Wynns Coonawarra Estate.

Sustainability in wine Hodder believes in the importance of adapting Coonawarra regional wines to changing growing conditions.

In the last few years, droughts have prompted the team to adopt more sustainable viticultural methods. “[This includes] precise soil moisture management and greater attention to vine health.” Hodder explained. ”The hard work being done now, despite uncertain climatic times, will ensure the future survival of these vineyards.”

She noted that the modification of Wynns’ practices will ensure the survival of its vineyards for decades to come.

“Over that past decade, we’ve seen our coldest, warmest, wettest, and driest years in the past 60.”

Hodder said.

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the drinks association | December 2017

How the drinks association keeps you informed Here’s a handy guide to the ways the drinks association spreads the word about great achievements and initiatives in our industry.

The drinks association’s mission is to connect, inform, promote and strengthen the drinks industry.

We aim to keep you up to date with all the latest drinks news and developments, both in Australia and overseas.

We have a LinkedIn company page and three groups: the drinks association, drinks trade and Women in drinks.

Take a look at the many ways we keep you in touch.

Connect with us on social media Get your news even faster by following us on social media.

You can follow us on Instagram at the drinks association, where we have more than 1000 followers.

We have a monthly newsletter - drinks news We have more than 4000 followers on our three Facebook pages: drinks trade, the drinks association and Women in drinks.

We have almost 3000 followers on Twitter at drinks trade, the drinks association and Women in drinks.

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Click here to become a subscriber.

the drinks association | December 2017

Visit our websites We feature the latest news updates at drinkscentral.com.au, diversity&inclusion@drinks. com.au and drinksbulletin.com.au drinks bulletin also sends out weekly newsletters that round-up the top stories.

Click here to subscibe.

Our websites reach almost 40,000 unique users every month, with almost 1 million page impressions.

How you can feature in our digital and print publications Email our Social Media & Communications manager Alana House on alanah@drinks.asn.au and drinks trade’s associate editor Hannah Sparks on hannah@hip.com.au We have a bi-monthly magazine - drinks trade

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the drinks association | December 2017

3 easy ways to learn more about the drinks association’s services the drinks association has created a series of videos and infographics highlighting how we can help you. the drinks association Learn more about the drinks association and the services it offers.

Click here to view the infographic.

drinks bulletin Keep your finger on the pulse of the whole industry with our weekly drinks bulletin.

Click here to view the infographic.

drinks trade Want to know what drinks trade magazine can do for you and your business?

Click here to view the infographic.

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the drinks association | December 2017

What our associate members can do for you ...

A guide to the services provided by the drinks association’s associate members.

AMA AMA Commercial Collections is an Australian owned and operated enterprise that has served credit managers since 1977. It provides a full range of services and products including debt recovery, trade bureaus, credit consulting, credit insurance and information services. Click here to learn more.

BevChain BevChain provides national tailored supply chain solutions for the beverage industry across Australia with ‘best-in-class’ warehouse and distribution services.

Click here to learn more.

Brand Promotions Brand Promotions is the biggest, best and most cost-effective supplier of almost any promotional product you can think of. It also specialises in designing an entire campaign to help build your brand and dominate your market through gift with purchase, custom made products and high volume orders. Click here to learn more.

Core Element Core Element is a specialist boutique FMCG recruitment and careers business that recruits sales, marketing and general management roles across the grocery, liquor, foodservice and pharmaceutical sectors. The company combines contemporary functional and organisational credentials and the ability to engage a rich, diverse network. Click here to learn more.

Fix Corp Fix offers tailored solutions for system management, processes and efficiencies, category management, promotional program management, marketing programs & collateral management, retail support and merchandising, space planning, pricing, audit program management, data collection and analysis and reporting, product advice and product to market advice. Click here to learn more.

Hip Media Hip Media is a specialist, mid-sized publisher dedicated to meeting your marketing and corporative objectives. Hip creates publications that communicate with customers, members or stakeholders in an informative, entertaining and inspirational voice; specialising in print and digital content in the B2C and B2B sectors. Click here to learn more.

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the drinks association | December 2017

IRI IRI has the world’s largest set of consumer, purchase, media, social and mobile data, igniting growth for clients in the FMCG, retail and health sector. Whether it’s analyzing how to make your assortment, pricing and promotions more profitable, tailoring media strategies, or guiding you through new product or market planning, IRI helps grow your business. Click here to learn more.

Kegstar Kegstar is an asset pooling business specialising in stainless steel kegs used to transport beverages. It collects empty kegs from venues and then redeploys them to other customers in the pool. Each keg is uniquely identified and tracked as it moves through the supply chain. Click here to learn more.

Mondo Search Mondo Search provides executive search and recruitment services across a range of industries in Australia, including direct selling, digital/ direct marketing, drinks, FMCG, franchising/retail and hospitality. Mondo offers tailored recruitment services through its Sydney and Melbourne consultancies, and has national and international affiliates through The Worldwide Recruiting Network. Click here to learn more.

Powerforce Powerforce is part of the Blueprint Group, which works with retailers and manufacturers to help unlock value for them through its integrated range of data, sales and marketing solutions. Powerforce and Blueprint’s CCS offer a full range of sales and marketing solutions through brand names such as Extravert, Retail facts! and Ausrep; and Retail Insight. Click here to learn more.

The Advantage Group Advantage is the industry leader in B2B performance benchmarking. The success of its performance benchmarking program - Advantage Report - has expanded to over 39 countries. Clients look to Advantage for insights into strengthening their business relationships within channels including Ecommerce, grocery, pharmacy, food and healthcare. Click here to learn more. tic technologies tic technologies provides custom internet and CMS solutions. tic’s team is available at all times, providing ongoing complimentary support. Its powerful, yet easy to use CMS can be extended to multiple, independent web sites.

When you need quality web technology, strategic marketing and support; think tic technologies. Click here to learn more.

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the drinks association | December 2017

Veritas Events Established in 1992, Veritas Events is a Sydney-based group of event planners specialising in creative solutions for corporate functions, conferences, incentive programs, team building and special programs. Veritas Events’ constant innovation creates unique experiences that both your business and your clients will always remember. Click here to learn more.

BARSCAN BARSCAN delivers insights into the on-premise liquor trade. BARSCAN for Venues takes the hassle out of retrieving data from your POS, delivering a simple way to understand and analyse sales, margins and profit performance.

BARSCAN delivers insights into trends, trading dynamics, occasion dynamics and promotions in the on-premise liquor trade. Click here to learn more.

Ebiquity Ebiquity helps brands exploit the evolving marketing landscape to achieve business success. The company provides customised data analytics, online tools and consultancy services. It recommends optimisation strategies to improve clients’ performance throughout the consumer path to purchase, drawing on its unique expertise and objective data insights. Click here to learn more.

GS1 Australia GS1 is a leading global organisation dedicated to the design and implementation of global standards and solutions to improve the efficiency and visibility of supply and demand chains. The GS1 system of standards is the most widely used supply chain standards system in the world. The company’s specialties are barcodes, EPC, GDSN, eCom, MobileCom, AIDC, traceability and supply chain standards. Click here to learn more.

JEM Computer Systems JEM provides Information Communication Technology (ICT) management and support for small to medium organisations. It offers 24-hour, 7-day-a-week remote support, ICT Project Management, software auditing and licensing compliance, regular system health reporting and proactive monitoring, disaster recovery planning and data back-up services, domain and DNS management, system integration, service and virtualisation, and hardware.

Click here to learn more.

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the drinks association | December 2017

Mainfreight As a global supply chain business with over 240 branches around the world, Mainfreight offers sophisticated logistics solutions in and out of the most dynamic economies. The company also offers specialised warehousing and distribution solutions. Click here to learn more.

NCI Established in 1985 as a specialist trade credit insurance broker, NCI has grown to become the leading trade credit insurance broker throughout Australia, New Zealand and Asia. NCI focusses on protecting its client’s profitability - while credit insurance is the ultimate safeguard against bad debts, better business practices in trade credit management can also help to improve profitability on a day to day basis. Click here to learn more.

StayinFront StayinFront provides complete, mobile, cloud-based sales force automation (SFA) and customer relationship management (CRM) solutions that empower its customers to work more efficiently, know more about their business and performance and sell more effectively. Click here to learn more.

Nielsen Nielsen helps companies understand what consumers watch and buy. Nielsen’s Watch segment provides media and advertising clients with Total Audience measurement services across video, audio and text. The Buy segment offers consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers the industry’s only global view of retail performance measurement. Nielsen provides its clients with both world-class measurement as well as analytics that help improve performance.

Click here to learn more.

Blue Star Blue Star is Australia’s leading provider of integrated print, display, personalised communications, promotional products, warehousing and logistics services. The company partners with customers to deliver on their communication needs, ranging from a specific product or service through to a seamless integrated solution. Click here to learn more.

Touchstone Executive Search Touchstone has been helping clients secure the best senior executive talent since 2003. The company advises major Australian and multinational companies on senior appointments across the Asia Pacific region. Through research and global

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the drinks association | December 2017

network relationships Touchstone builds deep industry background and behavioural knowledge, which allows it to deliver high caliber shortlists quickly and efficiently. Click here to learn more.

SKUVantage Specialising in helping clients drive sales, reduce costs and save time with a collaborative one-stop-shop approach to digital content management, SKUVantage brings a wealth of possibilities to member companies. The business already has a strong relationship with the drinks association through its digital content repository service www.drinkslibrary.com.au.

Click here to learn more.

the drinks association welcomes Merch & Effect We’re thrilled to welcome Merch & Effect as our newest associate member. The company has a proven integrated approach to the management of merchandise-based projects and campaigns providing full-circle project management, including market research; product conceptualisation, creative development & production; warehousing & logistics: quality control; assembly & packaging; and international shipping & delivery.

“Merch & Effect being an alcohol-centric creative merchandise company see its collaboration with the drinks association as very invaluable in gaining insight and sharing the global learnings from creative merchandise concepts to eco merchandise and also more importantly being a valuable partner in helping and advising the association with merchandising and its impact,” said Zach Hegdé.

Visit the Merch & Effect website by clicking here.

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the drinks association | December 2017

Below is an excerpt from our October monthly report; to access more information like this, contact us on 02 9415 1199.

SPIRITS SALES FOR OCTOBER 2017 20 November 2017

MAT Sales in Spirit Rise

MAT sales in the domestic Spirit market were significantly higher in October 2017 than in October 2016 with 7,257,451 cases sold for the former compared to 6,901,628 for the latter.

2016/17

7,900,000

2015/16

7,700,000 7,500,000 7,300,000 7,100,000 6,900,000 6,700,000 6,500,000 6,300,000 (9L cases)

Nov

Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Figure 1: Moving Annual Total ('MAT') sales of Spirits in the domestic market

Scotch, Bourbon and Vodka continue to dominate domestic Spirits sales with 23.24%, 18.63% and 16.61% control of the market respectively

Scotch Bourbon Vodka Rum Liqueurs Gin

Market Share 23.24% 18.63% 16.61% 14.14% 10.04% 5.18%

MAT Change % 8.50 1.60 1.60 9.30 -2.70 14.10

Whiskey Apertifs Tequila Cognac Sambuca Schnapps

Figure 2: MAT sales of Spirits in the domestic market by market share and MAT change

02 9415 1199

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Market Share 4.14% 2.63% 2.04% 0.92% 0.41% 0.32%

MAT Change % 8.10 21.10 8.20 18.50 1.00 -7.20

the drinks association | December 2017

Below is an excerpt from our October monthly report; to access more information like this, contact us on 02 9415 1199.

WINE SALES FOR OCTOBER 2017

20 NOVEMBER 2017

MAT Sales in Australian Wine and Imported Wine Fall

MAT sales in the Australian wine market were notionally lower in October 2017 than in October 2016 with 358,736,382 litres sold for the former compared to 370,328,573 for the latter. Meanwhile Imported wines recorded 14,703,593 sales in October 2017 compared to 17,546,257 in October 2016.

2016/17

20,000

2015/16

2016/17

390,000

19,000

2015/16

380,000

18,000

370,000

17,000 16,000

360,000

15,000 14,000 in '000L Nov Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr May

Jun

Jul

Aug Sep

Oct

Figure 1: Moving Annual Total ('MAT') Sales of Imported Wine

350,000

in '000L Nov Dec

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun

Jul

Aug Sep Oct

Figure 2: MAT Sales of Australian Wine

MAT sales were down in White wine, Red wine, and Fortified , while Sparkling and Other NES was up in the Australian market. Meanwhile sales in the Imported market grew in Rose Table and Champagne.

Imported

Market Share

MAT Change

Australian

Market Share

Change

White Table

58.47%

-15.9

White

46.71%

-4.7

Champagne

26.14%

3.5

Red

39.04%

-2.6

Sparkling

8.62%

-21.4

Sparkling

9.63%

1.3

Red Table

3.02%

-71.6

Fortified

4.28%

-1.5

Rose Table

3.75%

28.7

Others NES

0.35%

4.2

Fortified

0.00%

-92.7 Figure 4: MAT Sales of Australian Wine

Figure 3: MAT Sales of Imported Wine

Australian White

Market Share

Australian Red

Market Share

Australian Fortified

Market Share

Dry White

23.43%

Shiraz

24.74%

Port

79.84%

Chardonnay

18.91%

Cabernet/Merlot

12.78%

Sherry

13.17%

Sauvignon Blanc

15.75%

Cabernet Sauvignon

13.90%

Dessert

3.56%

Semillon/Sauv Blanc

12.35%

Shiraz Carbernet

11.42%

Muscat

Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris

2.80%

Dry Red

9.25%

Australian Sparkling

3.44% Market Share

Riesling

1.92%

Lambrusco

5.73%

Methode Champ

51.42%

Classic Dry White

2.12%

All Others

12.35%

Fermented

32.71%

Verdelho

0.84%

Merlot

6.12%

Carbonated

15.88%

Semillon/Chardonnay

0.54%

Pinot Noir

2.67%

Semillon

0.05%

Cabernet/Shiraz

0.82%

Viognier

0.08%

Classic Dry Red

0.20%

Figure 6: MAT Sales of Australian Wine in Sparkling and Fortified

Figure 5: MAT Sales of Australian Wine in White and Red

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the drinks association | December 2017

Below is an excerpt from our October report; to access more information like this, contact us on 02 9415 1199.

CIDER SALES FOR OCTOBER 2017 20 November 2017

MAT Sales in Cider Fall

MAT sales in the domestic Cider market are moderately lower in October 2017 than in October 2016 with 10,666,319 cases sold for the former compared to 10,834,729 for the latter.

2016/17

11,500,000

2015/16

11,000,000 10,500,000 10,000,000 9,500,000 9,000,000 8,500,000 8,000,000 7,500,000 7,000,000 6,500,000 6,000,000 5,500,000 5,000,000 (9L Cases)

Nov

Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Figure 1: Moving Annual Total ('MAT') sales of Cider in the domestic market

Victoria is the leader in the domestic Cider market with 31.64% of the market share compared to 21.77% and 20.34% for close contenders QLD and NSW/ACT respectively.

NSW/ACT VIC QLD SA WA NT

VIC NSW/ACT QLD WA SA TAS NT

Market Share 31.64% 20.34% 21.77% 12.77% 9.78% 2.52% 1.18%

MAT Change % 3.50 -7.10 3.10 -7.00 -6.00 -2.70 -8.50

TAS Figure 3: Breakdown of Cider MAT market share and MAT change Figure 2: Breakdown of Cider MAT sales by State

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the drinks association | December 2017

Below is an excerpt from our October report; to access more information like this, contact us on 02 9415 1199.

RTD SALES FOR OCTOBER 2017 20 November 2017

MAT Sales in RTD Fall

MAT sales in the domestic RTD market were slightly lower in October 2017 than in October 2016 with 22,499,662 cases sold for the former compared to 22,705,162 for the latter.

2016/17

25,500,000

2015/16

25,000,000 24,500,000 24,000,000 23,500,000 23,000,000 22,500,000 22,000,000 21,500,000 21,000,000 (9L cases)

Nov

Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Figure 1: Moving Annual Total ('MAT') sales of RTD in the domestic market

Bourbon Standard and Bourbon Premium continue to dominate domestic RTD sales with 23.68% and 25.41% of the market respectively.

Bourbon Standard Bourbon Premium Rum Dark Vodka Other Distilled Scotch

Market Share 23.68% 25.41% 16.62% 15.86% 11.94% 3.96%

MAT Change % -5.80 -0.20 4.70 2.00 13.80 -27.20

Liqueur Gin Rum Light Ouzo Brandy Tequila

Market Share 1.40% 0.77% 0.35% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03%

MAT Change % -25.30 16.70 -11.80 0.00 0.00 -24.50

Figure 2: MAT sales of RTD in the domestic market by market share and MAT change

02 9415 1199

Page 57

the drinks association | December 2017

Need information on liquor licences and banners fast? the drinks association can help. Providing access to the only centralised national liquor licence database in Australia, you’ll never miss out on all the latest licensing and banner group news.

Active liquor licences as at November 2017

Top 10 banner groups percentage share of outlets Australian liquor retail market - October 2017

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