Yalumba has surged a huge 19 places on Drinks International’s ‘The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands’ to No.4 on the list!
More than 200 of the world’s top masters of wine, sommeliers, educators and journalists voted on brands this year, asking if the wine is of consistent or improving quality, if it reflects its region or country of origin, if it responds to the needs and tastes of its target audience, and if it is well-marketed and packaged and appeals to a wide demographic.
“We are so thrilled to announce we are #4 in the Drinks International World’s Most Admired Wine Brands 2018,” the company noted.
Chair Robert Hill-Smith added: “We are dedicated to quality, authenticity and excitement and many say integrity.”
Scoring the No.1 spot for the second year in a row was the Spanish Torres wine brand, which was founded in 1870.
In 2016, Treasury Wine Estates’ iconic Penfolds brand knocked Torres into the number two slot. This year, Penfolds features at No.3.
In total, seven Aussie brands made the list, down from eight last year. Aside from Penolds and Yalumba, Jacob’s Creek came in at 31, Yellow Tail was at No. 38, Peter Lehmann re-entered the list at No.44, McGuigan was at No.46 and Oxford Landing re-entered the list at No.47.
New Zealand high flyers
Villa Maria was the highest ranking New Zealand winery in this year’s list.
Sir George Fistonich (above), founder and president of Villa Maria Estate. “Being named as the most admired wine brand in New Zealand four years in a row is testament to the level of quality our wines consistently deliver and shows we exceed in all the award criteria. It’s such an amazing recognition for Villa Maria and I’m incredibly proud that we continue to rate the highest New Zealand winery on this most prestigious of lists.”
Villa Maria has all the foundations in place to continue on this trajectory of success and recognition, said newly appointed CEO Abe Salt.
“George has built an incredibly passionate and talented team of winemakers and viticulturists who have an unwavering commitment to making quality wine sustainably. News of our inclusion on this list reaffirms my belief that I have joined the Villa Maria family at an exciting time and look forward to contributing to the success and future growth of the company.”
Other NZ labels on the list were Cloudy Bay at No.14 and Oyster Bay at No.27.
Here’s the full list:
