_Investments of passion in Australia - Wine and Furniture
Fine Wine
While Australian craft malt whisky production has cranked up in response to the surge in demand – in 2014 there were nine distilleries on Tasmania, now there are 32 – and is winning awards around the world, the country’s most famous home-produced alcoholic beverage is still wine. And values for the best bottles are powering ahead.
“Penfolds Grange Bin 95 has entered the Knight Frank Fine Wine Icons leader board with growth of 25% over the last 12 months,” says Nick Martin of Wine Owners, which compiles the index for us.
“The Wine Owners Australian 70 index is a star performer up 21% over the last 12 months and by almost 13% since the start of 2019. Top performers include Rockwood Basket Press Shiraz, Mount Mary Quintet, Henschke Hill of Grace, Penfolds Bins 95 and 707 and Giaconda’s and Leuuwin’s Art Series Chardonnays,” he adds.
One man who certainly knows more than most about Australian wine is Chris Crawford, who oversees the beverage strategy for Crown Resorts – involving almost 425,000 bottles – and has been in the wine industry for 30 years.
“Australia is making some absolutely sensational wines at the moment. I drink a lot of Australian wines at home – I also drink a lot of European when my wallet can afford it – but now’s a really hot time for wine produced here and there are some things that I’d recommend that people may never even have heard of.
“For instance, Chatto Pinot Noir from Tasmania. Jim Chatto was chief winemaker at McWilliams and he consults there now, but Chatto is his own little one hectare block in the Huon Valley that just does pinot. They’re not extraordinarily expensive – on a wine list they’d be about AU$120 a bottle, which is kind of average for an Aussie Pinot – but we only get a handful of bottles each year. And they’re phenomenal. It’s hopefully an emerging iconic region, producer and style.”
Although Mr Crawford has noted more people are looking to invest in wine, drinking it should still be the primary concern, he believes.
"My philosophy is great things should be opened and enjoyed. You’ve got to have things that you can put away and keep, and things you can access all the time because what’s the point of having things that are nice to look at but you can’t touch? So, it’s a bit of a balance."
Bespoke
A growing trend in the world of luxury is the desire to own something unique, and one sector that really reflects and rewards this desire is bespoke furniture.
Image: Bespoke bench by Scott van Tuil
“There has been a resurgence of interest in the bespoke and handmade. In a world awash with globalised, mass produced product, the ability to know the provenance of an object or piece of furniture has become highly valuable,” says Tasmania-based craftsman Scott van Tuil.
“I have noticed an interest and excitement in clients having the opportunity to feel involved in the design and making process, and therefore feeling a greater personal connection to what has been made just for them.”
Image: Bespoke artwork by Scott van Tuil
Just as Australia’s flora and fauna inspired the first pieces of jewellery crafted in the country (see interview on page 10 of the full Index), its natural landscapes are still inspiring artisans like Mr van Tuil. “Our aim is to create objects that are beautiful in form and function, and have a thoughtful connection with where they have come from.”
He also firmly believes that an investment in a luxury collectable isn’t purely financial. “They are investments in joy and quality that will endure, and be enjoyed for many years to come by multiple generations.”