World wine guru drops by

Kangaroo Island has the potential to be Australia’s “New Zealand” according to international wine writer Andrew Jefford.

Jefford spent four days on the island recently at the end of a 13-month odyssey around Australia’s wine regions, assessing the island’s wine and wine experiences for his new book.

The trip was funded by a fellowship from the University of Adelaide, the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation and on his final leg, the SA Tourist Commission.

His first stop on the island could not have been more of a showcase. The weather was still and sunny on the deck at Sunset Winery, as Jefford tasted the wines, enjoyed a platter of local produce and witnessed the vintage in progress, with the magnificent views of Eastern Cove as backdrop.

Jefford is not the first to hint that the Kangaroo Island wine industry has a unique marketing advantage because of its location and geography or even that its sauvignon blancs could rival the Marlborough region of New Zealand.

The difference is that Jefford is world-renowned for his books on travel and wine and his work-in-progress will cover distinguished vineyards sites and regions throughout Australia, promoting them to an international audience.

It is a coup for Kangaroo Island’s young industry to be included and Jefford’s wife Paula can be thanked for insisting on visiting the island.

Sunset proprietor Colin Hopkins said while this sort of visit and exposure was going to put the island in the spotlight, the industry would also have to work hard to measure up to expectations.

Jefford was hosted on his grand finale trip by wine marketer Nick Dugmore, who escorted him to Dudley Estates, Bay of Shoals, Two Wheeler Creek, The Islander Estate Vineyards and Rookery Wines.