Wine industry innovation: international exchanges in the wine sector

In Decanter’s September issue, Margaret Rand takes a look at the kind of exchanges that take place between the new world and old world of the wine industry.

I had a discussion with someone today, the nature of which made me question whether this constant dichotomy between new and old is helpful, but as it still exists and the wine industry is likely to continue down this split line, I’ll probably continue looking at things in this way, too.

The Decanter article was good because I think it highlights the point that I made in my last post – that Australia has a reputation for innovation in the wine industry. This is excellent for the Australian wine industry which, as I have said before, too often limits itself to a definition of quality for money (rather than just quality full stop).

The innovation goes beyond the use of screw caps and eye catching marketable labels. An interesting example came from Spain’s port-marking region and David Guimaraens, who went from Fonseca Port to Roseworthy Agricultural College to gain the empirical knowledge required to modernise the port making practices in his family business.

Another example, so pertinent in times where climate change is on everyone’s lips, was that of Philippe Guigal from the Rhone region in France, who was streaks ahead of his other wine maker counterparts during an extremely hot vintage. Harvest and racking and fermentation techniques to reduce the impact of a hot vintage were learned during his time in Australia and California.

But what about Australians travelling ‘back’ to the old world for an insight into how things are done in Europe..? The examples given here is exactly what is needed in these parts to show Europeans that Australian wine can compete with the best of them. The examples are what I needed in recent debates with a colleague over the use of chemicals and the lack of a ‘cru’ system in Australia (I will examine this topic at a later date because it was a particularly fascinating discussion we had).

Yalumba has perhaps pioneered the use and diffusion of the Viognier grape among Australian wine, and it learned this through a trip that Louisa Rose undertook to the Rhone. While she says that things weren’t that different in the Rhone, at least she was reassured that Yalumba was moving in the right direction.

The example I loved most was that of Vanya Cullen from Cullen Wines in the Margaret River, who is now employing bio-dynamic production in her vineyards. I am really impressed with the direction bio-dynamic wine making is taking, and the coverage it’s getting. Apparently it is one of the best ways to express terroir and I think Australia needs to get back in touch with its roots – that is to say that anything that increases the terroir expression of Australian wines, is a positive thing. The one thing that Cullen points out, that should be noted by anyone from Europe who thinks the new world lacks heritage and terroir, is that Australian soil is older than that in Europe. Bio-dynamics for Cullen, is all about risk taking for future sustainability. Climate change is again a key factor here.

While Decanter did the leg work on the article and provided some nice profiles, it didn’t really have a conclusive argument to make about the benefits to be had from these kinds of exchanges. I would hazard that they could prove to change the wine industry, both old and new, unfathomably.

Wine industry innovation: how does Australia fare?

One of the best publications I’ve seen in a while is Fast Thinking, which appears to have emerged recently in the wake of the Rudd Government’s innovation review this year.

I read the Autumn 2008 issue which covers a wide variety of topics from environmental practices and water conservation, to what makes a good CEO.

The most interesting article in this issue for me was “Dumbest Country in the Southern Hemisphere?”, which examined Australia’s history and notoriety as a creative country and whether innovation is really a priority in the current era.

The article, by Lia Timson, points out that Australians are very good at naming some of our national inventions (the wine cask being one), but that our smallness of mentality and tendency to comparison hold us back.

I would like to think that Australia is “nimble, and can implement innovation faster”, as Tim Pethinck from WhatIf! says. But he also says we have a limited knowledge of the local consumer and tend to follow overseas trends. Not long after the article was written, he experienced the closure of the Australian office of WhatIf!, saying that innovation goes unappreciated, and under-invested, in Australia.

In a report from marketing consultancy The Leading Edge, it was revealed that Australian companies were good at following new trends, and launching new products, but that a change in consumer behaviour was not forthcoming. In addition the article reveals that Australians are confident innovators, but not in Australia (this from Richard Webb, founder of Blue Freeway).

I have personally seen, mostly in workplace situations, Australia’s lack of interest or confidence in creativity and risk taking. I have also seen a lack of confidence in local talent. I doubt whether this is a peculiar Australian trait, but when you can be exactly the opposite, why not?

While all this may not have much to do with the wine industry, I think Australia needs another reputation than great wine at cheap prices. And seeing as I’m definitely not an expert, it probably needs to be made clear what innovation is, how to encourage it, and then how to use it. There’s no point sitting around “innovating” (next biggest excuse for procrastination?) if there fruits of this can’t be utilised in some way.

I think Australia’s wine industry does have a reputation for innovation – or at least a freshness of approach. Which is more than I can say for where I work now – we run an entire wine investment fund off an excel document; the users are faulty, not the program itself, but with some software we could find (or develop!) the level of innovation, and therefore resources saved, would be highly beneficial.

Wine industry innovation: Italy after Brunello

De Vinis, the official publication of the Italian Sommeliers Association (Associazione italiana di sommelier – AIS), recently featured an interview with Luca Zaia, Italy’s new agricultural minister.

That Italy has a new government will come as no surprise to any of us; it is also a more right wing government and Zaia comes from the Northern League party – considered one of Italy’s most right wing political parties around.

But for the purposes of the post, I’ll leave politics aside as the intricacies of Italian politics are beyond my comprehension and serve no use here. A word of introduction though is required to put this interview into context.

Italy is virtually beyond crisis in Europe. It’s economy is at a stand still, or worse, in decline, it’s labour market is woeful and it’s losing ground to new EU entries and other stalwarts of the Union that have traditionally been countries that Italy could count on as being worse placed than itself (Spain, Greece and Portugal come to mind). The country is, in short, stagnating.

Why should agriculture then, be so important? The fluffy side of me says it’s about the long held and respected Italian lifestyle and Italian traditions. It should also be noted that this is not just for the south, but the north as well. It’s also a lot about money and the economy – who Italy will feed on its local turf, and who it will export to. And the wine industry goes to the heart of both.

The interview between De Vinis and Luca Zaia is relatively soft, but interesting all the same. The minister’s solution to the stagnation mentioned above can be summarised in one word: innovation.

Zaia says that what the Italian agricultural industry needs most is innovation. “Agriculture and whoever has anything to do with it, needs innovation from any point of view.”

At this point in my post it is prudent to keep in mind the Brunello di Montalcino scandal and all it stands for. I cannot here, take down everything that’s been written and said in recent months on this issue, but its impact in Italy is not to be underestimated. In future the episode will represent a culmination of Italian embarrassment, shame and anger that I hope will resolve itself in time. The concern over the image of the Italian wine industry both here and abroad can’t be overstated.

The minister says: “Italian wine needs investment and services, to be supported by a strong institutional presence in the international promotion of our wines.” He mentions that Italian wine has reached more than three billion euros a year worth of export for the country.

While Zaia doesn’t specify exactly what innovation will be undertaken and how, I think he’s hit the nail on the head as to the direction which Italy, and Europe generally, needs to follow. I’ll follow up this post in the next couple of days as it’s a theme I’ll likely return to. But in the meantime it gives us something to think about, while I search out some examples of Italian innovation in the agricultural industry that go behind “nice” agriturismi, culinary tours and Chianti wine tastings. Italy is, after all, a creative country.