"Peter Wiley" wrote in message
. ..
In article . net,
Maxprop wrote:

OzOne wrote in message
...
On Thu, 20 Apr 2006 22:57:34 GMT, "Maxprop"
scribbled thusly:

AND, we could take over the vinyards and wineries and make lots of
money.

Max

Just don't try growing grapes.
Growers are in deep atm as exports have peaked and wineries are
slowing production.

Hmmm. Haven't heard any of that. I know imported wines are taking a big
bite out of the US market, but then the really good US wines are all
overpriced, if excellent. But I'd assumed the US was still one of the
larger producers. Do you have figures?

Australia:


0Article222005?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno =1301.0&issue=2005&num
=&view=

USA:

http://www.wineinstitute.org/communi.../exports03.htm

You guys are almost an order of magnitude larger, on these figures.
Interesting. Given our lower production costs & quality advantages at
those price points, there should be plenty of room for Aussie exports
to grow.

I'll have to take your word for it, as the Aussie site didn't come up.

Chest-thumping for national pride in winemaking is insipid, despite Oz's
(the ASA version) tendency to knock anything US. Both countries make some
of the world's best wines--a person would be positively stupid to avoid one
or the other country's wines simply due to prejudice. Ozzy needs to gain
some perspective.

That said, I agree that Australia will only increase its exports of wine.
The wineries there are where US wineries were 25 years ago in that some of
the best ones are still so small and limited in production as to be
overwhelmed by market demand. Wine makers tend to resist growth and
expansion, fearing a loss of quality or exclusivity, but many have been able
to increase their output manifold without degrading their products.
Australia will do so as well, and of course some wineries will remain tiny
with demand for their wines outstripping their ability to produce.
California and Washington are full of such small wineries, and will be
virtually forever.

Max