Accolade Wines new CEO, Robert Foye has made his first acquisition since taking up the position with the purchase of Katnook Estate Coonawarra.
The purchase is significant not only because it is Foye’s first, but also because it demonstrates that Accolade’s strategy for global expansion into the premium wine market is well in play.
For Robert Foye, the acquisition brings a much loved brand into the portfolio as well as growing Accolade’s stockpile of premium wine for the 2021 vintage along with existing brands including Grant Burge, St Hallett, Hardys and Petaluma. Katnook Estate is the second largest producer of wine in the region.
“As we modernise these brands’ marketing and packaging, innovate into new higher-value product tiers and expand the distribution of these brands globally, we need access to more premium wine,” Mr Foye said.
“In terms of the premium wine-growing areas of Australia where Accolade is investigating opportunities to expand its presence and sourcing, Coonawarra is definitely at the top of the list. Not only is the area a well-known premium wine region inside and outside of Australia, it also produces the kind of rich and balanced red and white varietals that the rest of the world, including China, are thirsting for.”
Accolade Wines will acquire the historic Katnook Estate brand, winery, cellar door and control of approximately 160 hectares of premium vineyards on the famed terra rossa (red clay) soils of the Coonawarra in southeast South Australia, Australia’s No 3 region for bottled red wine.
Katnook Estate wines are offered under three ranges: Katnook Founder’s Block, Katnook Estate and the limited release range of iconic Coonawarra wines from exceptional vintages, including the Odyssey Cabernet Sauvignon and the Prodigy Shiraz.
Foye said that on completion of the acquisition Accolade Wines will review the Katnook brand marketing and packaging, while retaining the brand’s rich heritage and history.
