Sector: Food & Beverage

Matua means ‘foremost’ in Maori, the indigenous language of New Zealand. The name is entirely fitting for one of the country’s leading wine labels, Matua Valley, which was the first in New Zealand to produce and market sauvignon blanc, the wine that changed the international landscape of white wines.

Matua’s founders, Ross and Bill Spence, have wine-making in their blood, growing up in a close-knit winemaking community. Their dream was to take advantage of New Zealand’s unique geographical location to create innovative and distinguished wines.

Appealing to a premium, niche market, the international success of New Zealand wines has continued on a meteoric growth path, with a number of international companies seeing advantage in investment or strategic partnerships with the prestigious labels.

Now, more than 30 years on, Matua Valley has become a globally respected brand and is now owned by Fosters Wine Estates, part of the giant Australian Fosters Group.

The inclusion of a New Zealand brand into a multinational company’s portfolio is significant. At the time of the Fosters’ investment (through Beringer Blass) into Matua, Terry Davis, the then Managing Director of Beringer Blass Wine Estates, said “With the benefit of our global distribution network and marketing support, we see a great future for boutique, New Zealand ultra-premium wine brands such as Matua.”

“We have great confidence in the international potential of top quality New Zealand wines, particularly in the USA. New Zealand’s distinctive sauvignon blanc and pinot noir wines are acclaimed around the world.”

With international connections providing distribution and marketing support to the winery, and contributing to its double digit export growth into the USA alone, Matua still has the involvement of its founders and a strong New Zealand wine-making team at the helm.

The company has strategic investments in vineyard development in three major wine-growing areas, Auckland, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay and Marlborough, which in turn has contributed to its export growth. Now, around one third of its grape intake is sourced from its own vineyards and despite the unchallenged popularity of sauvignon blanc, other varieties such as pinot noir are also becoming international medal winners.

Increasingly, international investment and expertise is contributing to the outstanding growth in the industry, and Investment New Zealand’s depth of experience in the wine industry can provide important conduits.

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