In my cellar, the glittering rows of shiraz are hard to ignore. The butter-yellow labels of Tyrrell's Old Patch and Johnno's Shiraz stand out against other Hunter Valley icons, including Mount Pleasant’s Maurice O’Shea and Brokenwood’s Graveyard Shiraz.
My collection is organised by region. Perusing a snapshot of each GI and the varieties produced within helps me to appreciate place. And it’s clear that from the Barossa Valley to Heathcote, Macedon to Great Southern, and McLaren Vale to Clare Valley, Grampians and Pyrenees, shiraz dominates.
Yet, our country's most widely planted grape variety, with its strong regional congruence, has been disrupted by the fear (and reality) of oversupply. It’s not breaking news – it’s a cyclical issue. But it’s never felt quite this challenging.
Despite an increase in crush volume in ’25 following the extreme lows of the ’23 and ’24 vintages, Wine Australia reports shiraz was 14 per cent below the 10-year average and 30 per cent down on the peak crush of ’21. This decline has been a considerable topic of discussion across both industry and consumer groups, which begs the question: Is our waxing and whining fuelling the tiresome, boring narrative about Aussie shiraz? Are we broadcasting ‘nobody wants this anymore’ rather than spotlighting emerging producers and championing classic expressions that reflect our most treasured vineyards and sites? It feels counterproductive to shout quite so loud.
Still, there are undeniably things at play. Exports didn’t recover post-Covid, at least not in the way some assumed they would. Tom Carson, general manager of Heathcote Estate, Serrat in the Yarra Valley, and Yabby Lake on the Mornington Peninsula (he’s a busy man) elaborates: “Since 2020, there has been a massive oversupply as the Chinese market closed overnight. Couple that with consumption dropping worldwide, economic restraints on normal consumers, and a general shift in the market toward lighter, finer, more approachable wines.”
