Australian wine Giant Steps moves to Liberty Wines from OW Loeb

By Gemma McKenna

Published: 18 December, 2014

Yarra Valley's Giant Steps wine has shifted its UK distribution from OW Loeb to Liberty Wines.

Liberty Wines already distributed the firm's Innocent Bystander wines to the UK market and says it wanted to "consolidate" distribution here by bringing Giant Steps to the same place.

The Giant Steps wines will be available through Liberty from January 2015 - on show at the firm's annual tasting on January 21 and at the Australia Day tasting on January 27.

Australia's Yarra Valley Giant Steps wines will now be dsitributed by Liberty Wines

Giant Steps produces solely single vineyard wines, and is focused on minimal intervention, according to head winemaker Steve Flamsteed. The team has three main vineyards: Sexton in Coldstream (owned and run by Giant Steps founder and owner, Phil Sexton), Tarraford in Tarrawarra and Applejack in the Upper Yarra Valley (run by Ray Guerin and currently being acquired by Giant Steps).

"We would like to thank OW Loeb for the work they've done with Giant Steps over the past decade. It's been a great relationship. We wanted to consolidate distribution in the UK for Giant Steps and Innocent Bystander, and it made sense to put both our brands with Liberty Wines," said Sexton.

OW Loeb, established in 1874, was bought earlier this month by multi-millionaire restaurateur Marlon Abela , who owns London's Michelin-starred the Greenhouse and Umu. Abela's company took a majority ownership interest in the business. The firm, MARC, also runs a fine wine business. OW Loeb is better-known for specialising in Burgundy, Rhone and German wines.

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