HUNTER VALLEY, Sydney: Like fellow winemakers across Australia, Mr Bruce Tyrrell has had a tough three years.
When China effectively pulled the plug on imports of Australia’s wine by imposing tariffs of up to 218 per cent in 2020, vineyards like his lost a total of US$1.2 billion worth of business.
It was a big blow to Mr Tyrrell, whose family has been in the business since founding the vineyard in 1858.
“The industry has been hit very hard. About a third of Australian wine was going to China. It was the most wonderful market. Everyone was riding the dragon,” said the managing director of Tyrrell’s Wine.
Now, Australia is facing a glut with the equivalent of 3 billion bottles’ worth of wine stored in tanks and barrels.
It will take time to shift that quantity of stock, even though most vineyards have managed to find new markets. Most of these markets are also much smaller than China.
“In the last 12 months, we’ve opened six new markets. However, the six of those markets put together are not as big as China,” Mr Tyrrell told CNA.
China in late March scrapped the tariffs, ending three years of punitive levies and offering long-awaited relief to Australian wine producers.
While the move has been good news for the country’s vineyards, questions remain on the future of trade ties between the two nations.
