Australian drinkers want variety, local-ness, says brewer

12-Aug-2012 - Last updated on 13-Aug-2012 at 16:37 GMT

Related tags Wine

Young Australians want quality, hand-crafted, local products, according to a new survey

Young Australian drinkers are becoming increasingly more discerning and wanting more variety, says research from a Victorian winery and brewer.

Rebello Wines research found young drinkers want variety, but are also overwhelmingly more likely to buy a product if it’s locally made and ‘hand-crafted’.

Its survey found 85% of respondents (of which 70% were between the ages of 20 and 35) were more likely to buy local products.

96% of respondents were more likely to purchase a product if it was made with real, local fruit rather than concentrates and flavours, which they perceived as being healthier and would pay more for.

“Our own business growth statistics also back this up,” Ruth Gallace, CEO at Rebello Wines, told FoodNavigator-Asia.

“We've grown 880% in our cider products alone in one year and our products are made using real fruit with quality local ingredients,” she said talking of the company’s 100% real fruit cider range - Cheeky Rascal Cider.

“While there will always be a large population of people wanting cheaper products, our survey has found overwhelmingly those who responded want quality, hand-crafted, local products.”

“We think in the future this market will only continue to grow so it's great for not only small producers, winemakers and brewers, but for consumers who will have more choice.”