Firstly, I think we need to end our collective obsession with volume of production and consumption and turn to value in all its dimensions. Let us all produce fewer bottles of better stuff. Use fewer resources to grow, make and move it. Drink less, but better. It's time to end our unquestioning fixation with growth. Why is more better? And what does ‘enough ' look like?

Secondly, we must make a distinction between fine wine and commercial piss (am I allowed to say that? Oops, just did). To make sweeping conclusions about the "food" industry that encompasses fine dining, thriving local bistro and artisanal street food, based on how Maccas operates and is faring simply wouldn't fly.

Large scale commercial growers who have been on a knife's edge for years, supplying the lower end of the market where grapes are valued on colour and sugar alone, have inevitably succumbed to the pincer move of rapidly rising costs and falling prices with a side order of plummeting demand. They have our genuine sympathy and should be supported to exit the industry. The corporate wine makers will reap what they have sown for failing to pay fair prices for grapes and driving the market down in a race to the bottom, dragging perception and price expectations of Aussie wine down for the rest of us. At Huntington, we make between 5 and 10,000 cases a year. The heart and soul of the Australian industry is the small, family owned producers like us who are serious about our commitment to the land and our passion for quality, and obsessive as we craft each of our precious wines. Shifting the centre of gravity of the industry towards the boutique producers can only be positive. 

Thirdly, what about the "young folk" not drinking wine (or indeed at all)? In 1998, the New York Times reported "young people, 21 to 29 year olds, are turning away from wine... the loss of so many potential consumers couldn’t come at a worse time". In 2016, the headline was "Millennials are ruining the wine industry". Now we're all hyperventilating because Gen Z aren't drinking the good stuff. Frankly, and I say this with love, this generation are hitting conventional adult milestones late across many aspects of their lives, largely thanks to the actions of mine and my parents' generation - why should wine be any different? The poor ducks are never going to own a house, so cellaring wine will change (but that’s what museum releases and wine ark is for). 

We see lots of young ones in the cellar door. All interested in wine (obviously - otherwise they wouldn’t be there). Some actually like it, some like the idea of it but not the reality quite yet - but as their palate matures, and they explore, I am confident they will embrace it. Since Plato, elders have lamented the ways of their youngers, but I think this lot have much to teach us.

I think this younger generation are highly engaged with what they consume and how it is produced. They are thoughtful and inquisitive, they value natural, ethical, sustainable and careful, small scale production. They are drawn to the artisanal and the authentic. They are prepared to pay for value they can perceive - to put their money where their mouth is. They might consume less, but they do it mindfully and consciously. Fine wine (I don’t mean snobby, snooty, condescending, over-priced and elitist, but lovingly produced quality) is a perfect category to engage them when the time comes. Commercial piss - well, not so much. Clever them. 

The cost of living crisis is hurting so many who are struggling to make ends meet. There is a cost of business crisis too - the immense pressure of continually rising costs at the same time people have less money in their pockets. Increased and ever-changing government taxes and regulations; and the need to adapt to extreme and damaging weather conditions in this changing climate are not making life easier. Then there's the Trade spat with China that shut down a huge export market (which is partially bouncing back now), but export has always been a risky undertaking.

We winemakers are dreamers and optimists (we have to be, to pick ourselves up after mother nature has given us yet another beating). We will find our way through all of these challenges with new varieties, new techniques, by connecting and telling our stories in ways that are real and genuine, with passion and work. 

Wine is unique and wonderful. It is embedded in the Western World's most sacred and significant occasions. It enhances the sensory and social pleasures of preparing and sharing food with loved ones. It is a product of its place, with infinite variety in how it expresses that mystical thing called terroir. It is a tantalizing combination of art and science, and occasionally alchemy.  

If the world is going to hell in a handcart (and let's be honest, there are days it is hard to escape that conclusion), I'm willing to bet enough of us will go down with a glass of something magnificent in hand, and several bottles in reserve, to keep the small producers of quality Australian Wine in business until the zombie robots come for us all.