Aussie shiraz has an image problem. These winemakers are determined to fix it

When Inkwell Wines owners Dudley Brown and Dr Irina Santiago-Brown look out at their lovingly tended McLaren Vale shiraz vines, they see a challenge – and they’re not alone.

Lately, there has been much commentary in the wine industry regarding over-supply and dwindling consumer demand for classic expressions of the famous grape variety. Shiraz has long been associated with big, rich, full-bodied wines, but its image has become a little fusty.

“As a country, we can’t walk away from shiraz,” Brown says. “It tends to equal reliability, loyalty and love … but no purchases.”

The doggedly determined couple has long been on a mission to change the way we grow grapes and make wine in Australia. The launch of their “Hacking the Future of Shiraz @ Inkwell” project is a step in that direction.

The winemaking competition will provide five Australian-based winemakers with a tonne of 2024 shiraz fruit each with which to make a wine of their choice. The aim is to rethink the styles in which shiraz is made and attract a new wave of consumers to the variety.

‘Perhaps a new paradigm can be created in which McLaren Vale shiraz can shine.’

Wine writer Mike Bennie

“This is not about making the best traditional shiraz for a wine show. It’s about being different,” Brown says.

“We’re trying to get to young winemakers and start creating demand and encourage people to change. Let’s give them a crack. We’ve got fruit, we’ve got time … let’s share it.”

The launch of the competition coincides with the announcement that Inkwell Wines is the first Australian vineyard to achieve ROC (Regenerative Organic Certified) status, placing it at the forefront of global ethical and sustainable agricultural practices.

“This is the ultimate sustainability move,” says Brazilian-born Santiago-Brown.

“Of course, we could sell that wine over time, but it’s become harder and harder. Shiraz has been associated with a certain style. It’s a bit like people saying they hate chardonnay. Can we change that? That’s what this is about. Change and sustainability.”

Respected wine writer Mike Bennie is convener of judges for the competition, and will lead a global team of industry experts through the judging process.

“We’re trying to evolve Australian wine, particularly iconic Australian wine,” Bennie says.

“McLaren Vale and shiraz has obviously been a great success story for a very long time, but anecdotally, we’re hearing about a lack of appreciation of the variety from that region.

“Perhaps a new paradigm can be created in which McLaren Vale shiraz can shine. The hope is that the diverse array of winemakers selected through this application process will be able to assist in a kind of ‘cultural audit’ of McLaren Vale. The idea being that they have creative freedom and autonomy to bring new ideas to the table.”

Bennie hopes to see a diversity of winemakers. “People who are creative in their thinking. I hope we are inundated with entries. It’s a free tonne of really high-quality grapes, which is appealing.”

The ultimate goal is lighter, fresher, vibrant styles. Wines that sit alongside the region’s iconic wines but also challenge the status quo. “More within the cultural vernacular of Australians drinking chilled reds, drinking outdoors, drinking with seafood and the South-East Asian and Mediterranean cuisines which form the basis of diet and lifestyle here,” Bennie says.

Entries, via the Inkwell website, close on Friday, February 2 and will be judged on interest, creativity and “drinkability”. The rules also specify that “respecting the provenance of Australia’s first regenerative and organic shiraz is the premise”.

“Everybody also needs to disclose everything they did when making the wine, because the idea is for this to be a reference for shiraz and contribute to the Australian scene,” Santiago-Brown says.

“That’s the only way we’re going to get out of this rut,” adds Brown.

“As times get tougher, people don’t get more innovative, they get more conservative. When you’re at risk, do you go and spend the last of your money in the bank on some hair-brained project? No. People just keep doing what they’re doing and dig their heels in. That’s the cultural response to most change or hard times. Not us.”