There’s something innately sexy about the look and feel of a glass wine bottle. In fact, if I was to imagine Nigella Lawson describing a bottle in-hand she would emphasise its gentle curves, slender neck and cute little punt in which to nestle your thumb when pouring. Glass bottles have always conveyed a premium image for the wine they carry, their weight an enduring signal of quality. But what if I told you they aren’t great for the environment?
Why? Well, firstly, fossil fuels are used to produce, transport and recycle them. Secondly, when it comes to transport emissions, they’re heavy, fragile and waste a lot of space. Flat wine bottles have been proposed as a solution to this problem and they arrived in Australia this July. Packaging startup Packamama launched the country’s first, made from 100% recycled PET plastic. Not only is it 83% lighter, the slim, flat profile allows twice as many bottles to fit into a standard case.
“Australia is home to the two most significant successful wine packaging innovations of the last century,” Packamama cofounder Santiago Navarro says of the decision to launch in Australia first. “Bag-in-box and screw cap, both from the mid-1960s.”
Three months after the first bottles hit shelves, the data suggests flat-pack wines are headed towards a summer of outdoor play. Packamama’s first production order was for 65,000 units, now that figure has risen to 90,000. By year’s end production will top 150,000 units, though for context, Australians buy around 500m litres of domestically produced wine each year.
While South Australian winemakers Taylors and Accolade were the first adopters, trialling the bottles on a selection of their entry level wines (RRP $16), Navarro says, “We are presently in commercial discussions with nine of the top 12 largest Australian wine producers by revenue.”
“The initial uptake was so strong that we ran out of stock after our first production,” Accolade Wines CMO Sandy Mayo says. “We fast-tracked a second production run and increased our production volumes by more than 50%.”
Over in the Clare Valley, Mitchell Taylor of Taylors Wines had a similar experience. “We’ve been blown away by the uptake, so much so we’re increasing our existing range from two to four wines with another range already in the pipeline.”
Taylors Wines’ One Small Step range already existed in glass bottles so by rereleasing the range in new packaging, they have been able to do a side-by-side comparison. “Within three months sales of our flat plastic bottles have almost met that of our existing glass bottle range,” Taylor says. “We’re anticipating, with greater awareness, the new packaging will soon outsell the existing.”
While the benefits are clear, many questions remain around the bottle’s suitability for premium, cellar-worthy drops. Nicole Esdaile of Centare Vineyard in Victoria’s Yarra Valley applauds the move but says it’s not a viable option for their business, given their focus on classic, collectible wines typically destined for China. “Critically, they are not suitable for cellaring wine, with the recommended shelf life being no more than two years,” she says. “The bottles are perfect for quick turnover, ‘drink-now’ styles.”
Similar concerns are mirrored down at Devil’s Corner in Tasmania’s east, where packaging alternatives are nothing new for winemaker Tom Wallace. “We have looked at removing bottles completely for retail and going to kegs, which is a great packaging saver,” he says. “We’re also pursuing canned wines. So there are few different things going on in the market, not just these bottles.”
Tasmania only produces 1% of Australia’s wine. Because of its cooler climate, the cost and effort that goes into growing grapes and producing wine is high, so the wines that do make it into bottles tend to be at the more premium end. For this reason, Wallace wants to see how flat-packed wines perform over the years ahead. “The priority for us is the quality of the wine going in, so the packaging has to reflect that and allow those wines to mature in the best way possible,” he says. “We will wait and see how the trials and research go with this new packaging before we jump on board.”
But what do the customers think? To welcome in spring, I rounded up a few wine-loving mates for a rooftop bevvy then watched as they studied the bottles with interest.
“My mind immediately goes to music festivals and hiking,” Hannah says. “I’d even think about reusing the bottle for other things as it would take up next to no room in my backpack.”
My mates are a mixed bag of long lunchers and outdoor enthusiasts, so the conversation was split between those wanting to take them camping and those wanting to see them at public events such as Spring Carnival.
I’ve got to agree: they’re lightweight, slim and easy to handle, but whether they’re destined for the same fate as screw-tops or goon bags, I guess, will depend entirely on the quality of wines inside them.
