Carrying the bag around the world - for a second time

I can’t deny it wasn’t without a tinge of sadness I read the news of the impending sale of the Wolf Blass brand by current owners Treasury Wine Estates.

I worked with Wolf during an extraordinary time for his winery and Australian wine. Watching him fly around the world through the 1980’s and 1990’s was truly inspirational. Promoting his wines to buyers and the media, his famous catch phrase ‘Quality. Character. Consistency’ a clarion call to the world that Australia was announcing itself as a force in great wine. He became a household name, and the number of people who would proudly boast ‘I met Wolf Blass the man!’ grew to seemingly tens of thousands and maybe many more. He was in every way a human billboard of incalculable impact. Universally respected as one of the most influential winemakers of his time.

I spent plenty of my time at Wolf Blass wearing out the shoe leather. Hitting the road for weeks at a time became part and parcel of the role of Chief Winemaker. I’m not too sure how many people proudly proclaim ‘I met Chris Hatcher!’, but I did play a part alongside many others to advance the cause of Australian wine. Those pioneering years serve as the foundation for future generations of Australian winemakers, as they do for my personal wine project.

I made many great connections along the way and some have transitioned to my work with Hatch Wines. In recent months Buckingham Schenk have begun importing my wines in the UK, as have Bottles and Bottles in Singapore. We’re just about to make a first shipment of wine to Milawa in Malaysia. I have no plans to emulate the global coverage and influence of Wolf (I don’t have enough wine for a start), but I will enjoy continuing partnerships with some great wine people.