GLASS HALF FULL
New Zealand’s wine industry has been making positive noises lately. It has noted, for example, that global demand for Marlborough sauvignon blanc is exceeding supply. But behind the scenes, hundreds of producers, based in other regions and growing different grape varieties, have warehouses bulging with quality wines they are battling to sell.
Last year, a record number of wine producers handled the country’s biggest-ever grape crop, harvested from nearly 40,000 hectares of vines. But almost half of what was exported was bulk wine, and the average price per litre fell. Since 2016, exports of sauvignon blanc have soared, but more prestigious varieties – chardonnay, pinot noir, merlot and syrah – have all dropped significantly.
At the heart of the industry’s problems is an inexorable trend some winegrowers still seem unaware of – Kiwis are drinking a lot less wine these days. And Covid-19 has changed the way we eat and drink.
Around the world, more people are eating at home, which benefits large wine producers who mostly sell through supermarkets. Small wine producers are more likely to rely on restaurants, whose sales have been devastated. Although online sales have increased, cellar-door sales have been hard hit by lockdowns and the absence of overseas visitors.
Over the past few months, there have been two major developments in New Zealand. First, this year’s grape harvest was unexpectedly small. Second, the parent company of our largest family-owned winery, Villa Maria, was placed in receivership (see sidebar, page 20).
Winegrowers are nervous. When asked by their
