Indigenous wine company has full bottle on global expansion

Australia’s first Indigenous-owned wine company, Mt Yengo Wines, has seen a tenfold surge in growth in the past three months amid rising demand.

Mt Yengo Wines co-owner Wayne Quilliam.

Australia’s first Indigenous-owned wine company Mt Yengo Wines has seen a tenfold surge in growth in the past three months amid rising demand for brands with cultural provenance.

Mt Yengo co-owner Wayne Quilliam said he attributed the rapid growth to people wanting a unique offering from an Indigenous brand that also promotes First Nations art and culture.

Mr Quilliam, who is one of Australia’s pre-eminent Aboriginal artists and cultural advisers, has some of his works incorporated into the labels on the bottles.

“As an artist, I had three things on my bucket list: to have my work displayed in Times Square, hold an exhibition in Berlin and have my art on a wine bottle,” he said.

Vintages from Hunter Valley-based Mt Yengo Wines are now stocked at Coles liquor outlets and on Carnival Cruises as well as being served at the Rockpool Sydney. The vintages also are exported to China and the US.

“We wanted a wine brand that highlighted our art and culture, which plays a vital role in who we are,” Mr Quilliam said.

While Mt Yengo sources its wine from vineyards around the country, there are long-term plans to establish its own production ­facility.

Mr Quilliam said the brand had been working with leading winemakers David O’Leary and Nick and Jack Walker from the O’Leary Walker Winery for nearly five years, crafting a range of wines that are now served in some of Australia’s best restaurants.

The wines are available on Carnival Cruises, including P & O and Princess Cruises, with more than 1200 cases sold in the past six weeks alone, Mr Quilliam said.

Co-founder Wayne Quilliam said Mt Yengo Wines are now served in some of Australia’s best restaurants and on Carnival Cruises.

“This is something we are very proud of, with very few Australian brands given this opportunity to supply cruise ships in Australia,” Mr Quilliam said.

Mt Yengo has recently launched three of its new wines into the Coles-owned Vintage Cellars and First Choice Liquor as well as supplying its product to major corporates including KPMG, E & Y, Macquarie Group, Deloitte and PwC.

“Our people are proud to see an Indigenous brand thriving in this space. We want our wine to be a celebration of diversity, unity, and the remarkable resilience of Indigenous culture,” Mr Quilliam said. Export opportunities for Mt Yengo Wines also are on the rise.

Having shipped to the US for more than four years, the company is finalising plans for distribution of its wines into China, with a further aim to expand the brand to Britain and parts of ­Europe.

Latest figures from Wine Australia shows wine exports are at their highest levels of both volume and value since August 2021.

Mr Quilliam said a portion of money from the sale of each bottle went to the National Indigenous Culinary Institute to support young Indigenous chefs as well as providing a royalty to the artist whose work was on the bottle.

“We’ve proudly given just over $40,000 in the last 12 months, half going to support the NICI, and as our rapid growth continues, we are looking at upwards of $100,000 next year,” Mr Quilliam said.