As part of the Five Pillars Wine Tourism project, Wine Victoria have committed to delivering an industry skills development program to advance the Wine Australia tourism capability development program in a uniquely Victorian and regional context. The objective of this workshop is to assist Victorian wine and tourism operators to work collaboratively with their industry partners to develop and sell compelling customer experiences for wine tourists.

By the end of the full day workshop, tourism businesses will have the knowledge and skills to develop a new package complete with inclusions, a name, costings and target audiences, and the channels to get that package to market. Beyond the workshops, participants will have the tools and structures to continue to innovate, including identifying new opportunities and developing new experiences to meet market demand.

If you are interested in broadening your tourist offering and are seeking new sources of visitors, then this workshop is for you. 

Workshops will be held in around Victoria in each of the Five Pillar Regions. For more information please visit links below:

Shiraz Central: including Ballarat, Bendigo, Goulburn Valley, Grampians, Heathcote, Macedon Ranges, Pyrenees, Strathbogie Ranges, Sunbury, Upper Goulburn and surrounds

April 19 - Ballarat

April 20 - Bendigo

Muscat of Rutherglen focusing on the Rutherglen region and surrounds

April 26 - Rutherglen

King Valley Prosecco Road  focusing on the King Valley region and surrounds

April 28 - King Valley

Pinot Coast including the Geelong, Gippsland and Mornington Peninsula regions and surrounds

May 4 - Mornington Peninsula

May 6 - Geelong

Yarra Valley focusing on the Yarra Valley region

May 5- Yarra Valley

Hayley Purbrick is a proud fifth generation family member of one of the oldest wine-making families and carbon neutral wineries in Australia. With a background in DTC Marketing and Agriculture she is turning the historic Tahbilk vineyard into one of the most environmentally friendly in the country.

Outside of the winery Hayley lives in Deniliquin and is an advocate for growing strong agricultural industries and thriving rural communities. In 2015 she founded social enterprise Big Sky Ideas to champion entrepreneurial spirit in rural Australia. 

In 2017 she was a Finalist of both the Regional Australia Institute Light Bulb Moments Competition and NSW/ACT Agrifutures Rural Woman of the Year. In 2019 she graduated from the Wine Australia Future Leaders Program. 

Hayley is a current member of the Australian Grape & Wine Sustainability Advisory Committee.

Dan began his career in wine working in vineyards on the Mornington Peninsula over 35 years ago, gradually migrating into winemaking (via hospitality) in 1995.

Dan is a graduate of Charles Sturt University and has over 30 vintages of experience in several Victorian wine regions. He also has an MBA from RMIT University with a focus on business strategy, innovation and marketing. Dan has been a wine show judge for over 18 years, holding chair positions at several regional shows across Victoria, as well as panel chair positions at the Melbourne Wine Awards.

Today, Dan is Winemaking Director at Chandon Australia, where he oversees all aspects of wine production, style and elaboration of traditional method sparkling wine.

February 2021

INTRODUCING BEHIND THE VINES, THE LOCAL WAY TO SELECT YOUR NEXT DROP

A definitive destination to discover, connect and buy the very best of Victorian wines, direct from the makers.

11 February 2021: Today, Wine Victoria is pleased to announce the launch of Victoria’s first online wine directory, Behind the Vines, dedicated to helping consumers find their perfect local wine based on their taste preferences and shop directly from their chosen producer. With over 400 listings, the online wine directory, accessible via vicwines.com.au helps consumers discover local wineries, encourages tourism to these destinations, whilst also providing an easy click-to-purchase digital ‘Cellar Door’ experience from wineries across Victoria’s 21 wine regions.

Consumers are invited to provide their wine preferences through a simple questionnaire which results in a curated list of wineries throughout the state that best suit their palate. Suggestions are generated by evaluating site users’ preferred wine style, alongside their desired flavour profile - be it delicate or bold, sweet or dry, traditional or alternative, fruit-forward or full-bodied.

For those that want to plan a trip, the site offers easy travel time suggestions, and can curate a list based on region, as well as offering simple itineraries and maps to follow.

“Our state has so much to offer but there has never been a simple, one-stop-shop for people to visit and connect with new or favourite producers. We know people want to support Victorian businesses and we needed to make it a whole lot easier for that to happen,” says Angie Bradbury, Chair of Wine Victoria, “Behind the Vines has been created to champion our talented local winemakers and connect wine lovers with producers who are creating wines that resonate with their individual tastes.” 

“It’s incredibly important to be drinking local wines now more than ever,” says Bradbury, “many of our fantastic wineries rely heavily on tourism and the hospitality sector, so 2020 was an incredibly difficult year. Behind the Vines will enable people to explore the outstanding premium wines Victoria has to offer.”

Whether you are accustomed to a fruit-forward Gippsland Pinot, a crisp Yarra Valley Chardonnay, or a rich, smooth Heathcote Shiraz, there is a home-grown wine for every occasion and drinker, featuring all that Victoria has to offer across our premium wine regions.

Funded by Global Victoria, the initiative was created to support local producers and drive consumers to purchase from cellar doors and continue to trial the world-class wines available throughout Victoria.

Minister for Agriculture Mary-Anne Thomas welcomed the launch. “Victorian wine is the best in the world – with so much variety and so many makers doing daring and exciting things with their products," Minister Thomas said. "With Behind the Vines, people can support their favourite wineries and discover new ones – making sure Victorians have every opportunity to buy local.”

 The Behind the Vines directory is launching on Thursday 11 February and is set to become a destination site and a simple means of exploring our state’s wineries and cellar doors and navigating directly to purchase from their online stores.

Go ‘ Behind the Vines’ at vicwines.com.au

- ENDS -

For all media enquiries, please contact Alt/Shift:

Harry Stechman | 0433 986 924 | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amy Westacott | 0439 353 410 | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Media assets available include:

● High-res imagery of Victorian wineries and winemakers

● Interview opportunities with Minister for Agriculture, Mary-Anne Thomas

● Interview opportunities with Wine Victoria’s spokesperson

● Interview opportunities with local Victorian winemakers involved in the campaign

The ongoing success of the Victorian wine sector is dependent on winegrape growers and winemakers continuing to operate sustainably and responsibly. As such, the wine industry strongly supports the recycling of wine bottles and efforts to improve environmental outcomes.

Wine Victoria acknowledges that the Victorian Governments proposed CDS fits within Recycling Victoria’s broader suite of reforms aimed at reducing waste and making more productive use of resources.

Wine Victoria supports the government’s intention to align with other states and continue to exclude wine bottles from its proposed CDS.

Access the full submission  here.

Why Wine Victoria? 

Project Reference Group: Bushfire Technical Response Package

• Damien Sheehan, Wine Victoria
• Joe McClelland, Regional Development Victoria
• Adam Keath (Industry Representative,Yarra Valley)                          
• Marcus Satchell (Industry Representative,Gippsland)
• Neil Larson (Industry Representative,Central Victoria)
• Mike Aylward (Industry Representative,Mornington Peninsula)
• Megan Hill (DJPR, Agriculture)
• Mark Walpole (Industry Representative,North-East Region)
• Con Simos,  (AWRI)
• Richard Howden (Project Manager, Wine Victoria)
• Megan de Jong (Secretariat, Wine Victoria)

Project Control Board: Trade

• Matt Fowles – Fowles Wine (Wine Victoria Board Representative and Committee Chair)
• Nikki Palun – Octtava Wine (Wine Victoria Board Representative)
• Kim Chalmers – (Wine Victoria Board Representative)
• Gordon Gebbie – Rathbone Wine Group (Industry Representative)
• Scott Austin – Austin’s Wine (Industry Representative)
• Rachael Sweeney – (Wine Victoria Executive Officer)
• Richard Howden (Project Manager, Wine Victoria)
• Megan de Jong (Secretariat, Wine Victoria)
• Brendan Larkin – (DJPR, Global Vic)
• Stephen Baud – DJPR, Global Vic)
• Mara Putnis – (DJPR, Agriculture)

Project Control Board: Five Pillars

• Eliza Brown – Wine Victoria (Wine Victoria Board Representative and Committee Chair)
• Damien Sheehan – Shiraz Central 
• Chris Gillard – Fortified Resurgence 
• Caroline Evans – Yarra Valley 
• Mike Symons – Pinot Coast
• Diana Morgan – Visit Victoria
• Dean Cleave-Smith – King Valley Prosecco Road
• Felicity England – Wine Australia
• Zenon Misko – Food and Wine Victoria
• Richard Howden – 5 Pillars
• Holly Formosa – 5 Pillars
• Megan Hill – (DJPR, Agriculture)
• Mara Putnis – (DJPR, Agriculture)