Dateline: Asia

Wines & Vines, July, 2004 by Kevin Sinclair

With 2.3 million visitors yearly to the 110 wineries and cellar doors in the Hunter Valley, many from overseas, sales statistics are interesting. It's estimated that up to 50% of total output is consumed within 24 hours of purchase by visitors who buy direct from cellar doors or at restaurants. Canny winemakers in the area have long promoted tourism as an add-on revenue maker to wine sales. That industry has now soared upmarket with luxury retreats, golf courses and conference centers. Special focus attractions include swank spas where nongolfing wives can be pampered, while executives at conferences attack the balls on golfing greens.

The cheese factory is a good example of this astute search for profits that do not come directly from grapes. Back in 1988, winemaking guru Brian McGuigan decided that a specialty cheesemaker would complement his cellar in the Pokolbin district of the Hunter Valley. Peter Curtis and Rosalia Lambert began planning. In 1995, the first of their cheeses was matured, aided by wind-borne yeasts from the winery.

Steve Scott says part of the fascination for visitors is to watch cheeses made and to see them mature. "Australians are going back to the goodly natural produce that our grandparents made on the farm," he explained, cutting a bright orange slice of cheddar and spreading it with rich ruby quince jam. Together with McGuigan staff, he conducts wine and cheese matching sessions, putting the region's famous Semillons with a creamy brie, and a husky Shiraz with a sharp blue cheese. The factory makes 20 tons of premium varietal cheese a year.

Of the estimated 8,000 people who every month buy a cheese or farmhouse chutney at the cheese outlet, many also buy at least one bottle of wine from the McGuigan cellar door. That's money straight into the bank for the winemaking company, with no expenses for transport, distribution, marketing or retail.