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Wine Australia gets the book club bug

Published:  23 July, 2008

Wine Australia is launching a new marketing initiative next month which aims to capitalise on the growing popularity of book clubs.

UK director Paul Henry said: 'Book clubs are currently the fastest-growing leisure activity in the UK for our target market. As well as supporting the established wine events around the country, we wanted to cast our net a little further and try working with affinity groups that were not directly associated with wine, food or restaurants but which still had a legitimate and enthusiastic interest in wine. Less a case of "great with pasta"; more a case of "great with Pasternak!"'

Henry said he was becoming 'increasingly disillusioned' with events such as BBC Good Food and that it was important to find other ways to reach the consumer.

'I want to attract people that would normally not move outside the Old World for their wine choices. This programme allows us to get into their sitting room,' he said.

Henry has gone into partnership with www.bookgroup.info which is running an Australian month in October featuring five novelists such as Tim Winton and Inga Clendinnen.

Registered book clubs who sign up for the books will receive a three-bottle pack of wine with a letter explaining about the wines. Henry added: 'Each pack will include an example from the following three groups, including retail pricing and local stockists: Brand Champions (High Street favourites),

Generation Next (cutting-edge new discoveries), Classic Australia (regional/varietal classics).'

A second promotion will be run in the spring.

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