Emerging wines are wines with an up-and-coming profile on the fine wine market. These wines comprise both the old and the new – wines with relatively long-term reputations and new marques that have captured the heart and mind of the wine enthusiast in a relatively short timeframe. Generally emerging wines comprise unique properties, both tangible and intangible, which carry with them a high perception of quality.

Market attributes such as reputation, consumer demand, regional definition and limited production play a major role in successfully propelling emerging wines onto the fine wine market. Not all emerging wines, however, will move into the higher echelon of the market simply because of the law of numbers. Making the top 101 list of Australia’s collectible wines – Langton’s Classification of Australian Wine – is difficult and requires a track record and reputation over a long period of time.

Sustaining form and reputation is not easy albeit that the market tends to react slowly to decline. Twenty-two wines were de-classified by Langton’s in its 2005 Classification. Some of these wines had not been performing for years. Others were unlucky. It is surprising to see the secondary market stalwart Lindeman’s St George loose its lustre on the auction market over the last five years. Dalwhinnie Cabernet Sauvignon, Seppelt Dorrien Cabernet Sauvignon and Lake’s Folly Chardonnay are also prominent casualties of a changing and dynamic market. Langton’s Classification was never meant to be set in stone. While many of these de-classified wines retain a very high level of quality, Langton’s 2005 Classification (IV) shows that the secondary market has evolved considerably over the last five years. With more ultra-fine wines being produced than ever before it is becoming more difficult to make the cut.

‘Emerging’ also includes wines which have appeared on the market in recent years without much of a track record but which have made a strong impression with the buyer. Langmeil The Freedom Shiraz, Penfolds RWT Shiraz, Saltram No 1 Shiraz, Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Wolf Blass Platinum and Yering Station Shiraz Viognier are good examples. Micro blends and wines perceived as limited releases are attractive propositions, especially if the wines are derived from highly regarded wineries. Penfolds Experimental Bins, Rockford Single Vineyard Shirazes are examples. Interestingly the en primeur offering of the 2004 Block 42 and 2004 Penfold Bin 60A Cabernet Shiraz may well fit into this category. This example also shows that the strongest force in the emerging market is Australian Shiraz, particularly from recognized wine regions such as McLaren Vale and the Barossa.

With the ever-widening international market for fine Australian wine, it is inevitable that both domestic and international markets drive emerging wines. In the last five years wines unheard of by the local market have become market forces in the USA and Asia. Many of these wines have yet to convert into a meaningful market presence on the Australian market largely because so much of the wine is exported. Greenock Creek, Henry’s Drive, Kilikanoon, Mitolo, Two Hands, Torbreck and Trevor Jones straddle the cult and emerging wine scene. Their emerging wines are pulled along by the success of their cult wine or strong secondary market presence for their top wines.

There is an energy which accompanies the emerging wine scene. The larger-than-life former policeman and foreign exchange dealer Keppel Smith of Savaterre found Beechworth after trawling for every possible vineyard site in the Yarra Valley. His castle positioned vineyard which looks across towards Mount Buffalo is yielding superb Chardonnay fruit. The wines are quite remarkable with pure fruit aromas, lanolin complexity and an attractive al-dente backbone. The beautifully perfumed and exotic Yalumba Virgilius Viognier – made by Louisa Rose – is instantly recognizable and in my book gives the very best Condrieu a run for its money. Mitchell Riesling will never get anywhere in the secondary wine market because it’s too bloody cheap and too easy to find. With such superb fruit definition it remains one of the best value Australian wines of all. White wines unfortunately do not attract the same interest as red wines. Most Australian Chardonnays do not age particularly well and need to be consumed young. Older Semillons and Riesling – brilliant as they may be – are an acquired taste; only the most exceptional vintages attract a real premium.

Emerging wines are following the pattern of interest in single vineyard wines and regional provenance. Former panel beater Michael Vishaki’s Panorama Vineyard Pinot Noir is truly beginning to show consistent form on the bench and in the auction room. The Huon Valley has impressive potential – possibly on the same scale as Central Otago in New Zealand. Freycinet and Stefano Lubiano are both making very good Pinot Noir with a small but loyal following. The Victorian producers Shadowfax, Yering Station, Stonier’s, Main Ridge Estate are generating plenty of interest. The unraveling of Diamond Valley Estate’s highly regarded Close Planted Pinot Noir – through the sale of the business – shows the importance of ‘brand definition’. The wine will re-emerge as Punch Close Planted Pinot Noir and no doubt will continue to impress.

The emerging battlefield is taking place within the boundaries of Margaret River, The Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, Heathcote and Beechworth. There is no question that strong regional provenance linked with Shiraz or Cabernet/blends are the key elements of this market subset. Shiraz is king – this is considered by many as Australia’s real point of difference in the international ultra fine wine market. Barossa Shiraz in all its guises attracts considerable interest. The zone has an embarrassment of riches comprising both single vineyard and multi-vineyard wines. The pure fruited Eden Valley Shiraz, typified by Henschke, does not have the same cachet as the Barossa Valley. Some producers prefer to use the term Barossa Ranges or Barossa.

The move towards sub regional single vineyard wines is the next logical step. The emerging names include Dutschke, Glaetzer, Kaesler, Langmeil, Massena, Penfolds (for their RWT), Torbreck, Turkey Flat and Two Hands. Robert O’Callaghan’s winemaking ‘university’ has knocked out a remarkable number of top winemakers. Indeed Rockford’s gorgeously concentrated single vineyard Shirazes (Hoffman, Moorooroo & Pressings) are compelling sub regional wines, the next logical move for the Barossa. Mclaren Vale Shiraz is also enjoying a strong regional profile. The prolific d’Arenberg, Hardy’s, Oliver’s Taranga, Rosemount, Mitolo, Mr Riggs and Wirra Wirra are all showing form based on local interest as much as the flow on from the cult wine scene.

Heathcote’s Wild Duck Creek, Red Edge and Whistling Eagle are truly on the map. Beechworth’s Battley, Castagna and Giaconda (Shiraz) – with varying market profile – show tremendous potential. Emerging Shiraz-Viognier wines typified by the Barossa’s Torbreck Descendent and the Yarra Valley’s Yering Station are lilies in a mudpond of mediocrity.

While Coonawarra has some excellent emerging Shirazes including Katnook’s Prodigy and Wynns Michael, its strongest card is Cabernet. Balnave’s extraordinary The Tally has won plaudits from all corners of the universe. Hardy’s Thomas Hardy, Hollick Ravenswood, Penley Estate Reserve, Reschke Empyream and Zema Estate Family Reserve all attract solid following. Margaret River’s Voyager Estate and Devil’s Lair and the Lower Great Southern’s Alkoomi are making very fine Cabernet. Outside these two regions it becomes slim pickings. Noon Reserve Cabernet and the ‘one-off’ special release Penfolds Block 42 Cabernet illustrate that warmer regions can also make the grade. Curiously the Yarra Valley has few strong emerging Cabernets other than Yering Station Reserve and De Bortoli’s Melba Reserve.

While a Parker score of 95+ can propel a wine to cult status, the emerging wine scene is not so easy to define. Australia’s ultra-fine wine industry is increasingly categorized through geographical indications, the myriad of national and regional wine shows, various classifications and through the opinions of key influencers. It should not be forgotten that the established labels of today were the pioneers of yesterday.

Beyond the obtuse boardrooms of corporate Wine Australia are hundreds of imaginative individuals exploring the potential of their vineyard sites or experimenting with new wines, most doing it with their own emotional and financial capital. Recently I came across the cult wines of the Barossa Valley’s Colonial Estate at the owner John Malthaus’ Chateau Teyssier in St Emilion. There is a certain courage, tenacity and belief that accompanies such little known, ultimately niche, market wine producers. Their leap of faith, touch of madness and remarkable drive brings energy, diversity and flavour to the Australian wine industry.

The unbridled enthusiasm of the wine critic-led American and Asian markets is sometimes met with derision by Australian wine commentators. However it should be pointed out that these markets don’t have to buy Australian wine. They have plenty of other countries to choose from. Indeed their participation in the market has challenged established ideas and entrenched viewpoints. While the order of things may change in the future, their support for fine Australian wine has been extremely important. It has brought excitement and opportunity as well as plenty of soul searching.

Over the next 10 years emerging wines will increasingly derive from single vineyard sites. The concept of regional definition will in turn focus on issues of sub-regional definition and vineyard character. This will have a marked effect on vineyard valuations, which in turn could see the values of fine Australian wine increase. The Barossa is a very good example. Winemakers now frequently talk about the differences between northern, central and southern Barossa Shirazes. Margaret River also has a fledgling movement that attempts to define sub-regional characters. Even Coonawarra winemakers speak about the differences between north and south. As Australia churns out more and more commercial and brand-oriented wines, an understanding of sub-regional and vineyard differences will become a market imperative, especially for smaller producers.

The Australian fine wine market is in constant evolution. Some of the wines that seem to have so much potential today may well fall by the wayside in the future. It has happened before, especially when smaller wineries are taken over in mergers and the accountants start making the wine. Some emerging wines have joined Langton’s Classification IV in 2005. Many have become established and respected labels. Others – barely known today – may well enjoy a remarkable evolution. Emerging wines are a fascinating and important part of the secondary wine market. They challenge and alter the way people perceive ultra-fine Australian wine.