Nuance Australia secures exclusivity on rare and vintage Penfolds wine

AUSTRALIA. The Nuance Group has secured exclusive access to the limited edition 2008 Special Bin 620 Coonawarra Cabernet Shiraz. As the only Australian retailer of the wine - of which just 1,000 cases were released worldwide - the vintage is now available from Nuance’s SYD Airport and F1RST Tax & Duty Free stores at Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane.

The move, said Nuance, “reinforces the exclusive distribution partnership between Australia's leading winemaker (Penfolds) and biggest airport retailer”.

“We are honoured to be chosen by Penfolds as the exclusive retailer for this rare and special vintage in its home market. Nuance has a long established reputation in sourcing and providing a high quality range of wines, and as an Australian I take a very personal interest in ensuring we offer our customers the very best our county has to offer,” said The Nuance Group Australia CEO Derek Larsen.

“With operations at all four international gateways we are ideally placed to launch exceptional vintages, not always readily available in and outside of Australia, to discerning travellers and wine connoisseurs,” added Larsen.

Released only in exceptional vintages, the Bin 620 was last crafted almost half a century ago. The 2008 Special release pays homage to the 1966 Bin 620, a legendary Penfolds show wine from the Coonawarra vintage. It is the most expensive wine to date from the winemaker.

Nuance Category Manager Chris Hammond said the selection of the airport retailer to distribute the Australian quota reflects its capacity to promote Australia's best wines while protecting the exclusivity of the brands: "This is the result of a long-term and strengthening relationship with Penfolds parent company Treasury Estate Wines. We embrace and promote Penfolds with the respect and admiration the brand deserves."

Penfolds' Chief Winemaker Peter Gago released the wine to the world amid a wave of publicity at Shanghai's Waldorf Astoria hotel in mid-November – the first time in the winery's 167-year history that such a launch has taken place outside Australia.

"It is beautifully balanced as a young wine, but has remarkable cellaring potential. The overall quality of this wine is exceptional," said Gago. “Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon is prized for its superb aromatics, richness and seductive texture and lasting quality, while Shiraz is celebrated for its spicy aromatics, fine grained tannins and elegant structure.”

China's interest in wine – and increasing passenger numbers and spending at Australian airports – places the travel retail industry in a strong position to promote this and future special releases, Nuance added.

"The Chinese are very much driven by brands and status," said Hammond. "To have a bottle of Penfolds means they have been successful. For us to be distributing this wine is a momentous point in the relationship."

This is just one of a number of exclusive launches and initiatives Nuance is bringing to the Australian duty free market. During the month of December, Penfolds Ambassadors will also be in-store to coincide with the 2008 Special Bin 620 release, to offer tastings and advice to travellers about this wine and other Penfolds products. The Special Bin 620 Coonawarra Cabernet Shiraz 2008 has an RRP of A$1,000.