The impact of the political process on the Wine Industry can vary according to an enterprise’s size and its ability to take part in the game of lobbying. Small winemakers, even in concert, don’t fare very well, they cannot afford it nor are they sufficiently well represented on industry bodies which pretend to be speaking for the whole industry. The needs, aspirations and ethics of these two sections of the industry are so different, and from my experience of the supercilious and imperious reactions when arguing small winemaker’s viewpoints, I am certain the large end hopes that the small end will go away. This is the thirteenth year of sales tax payment on wine, thirteen years of discrimination against quality production. Industry problems are highlighted by the difficulty to get small premium winemaker’s views intelligently considered.
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