The greenest businesses of 2017

We bring you a full report on all the recipients from The Drinks Business Green Awards 2017, which were launched in 2010 to celebrate the most ethical and environmentally-friendly companies in wines, beers and spirits.

The winners at The Drinks Business Green Awards ceremony at London’s Ivy restaurant in November

Despite launching seven years ago, we are proud to say that The Drinks Business Green Awards is still the only set of industry gongs dedicated exclusively to all that is alcoholic and ecologically-responsible.

Like previous years, we honoured the winners at a ceremony at The Club at The Ivy in London, where recipients were toasted with Lanson’s Green Label Brut organic Champagne by senior figures in the drinks industry.

Categories cover all aspects of environmental, ethical and sustainable practice within the drinks trade, ranging from The Amorim Sustainability Award, which recognises the efforts made by one company, generic or brand to employ the most efficient and effective sustainable practices in their business, to The Renewable Energy Implementation Award, handed to a company that can best demonstrate its commitment to the implementation of viable renewable energy technologies to replace ‘traditional’ boilers, chillers and power sources.

New to this year was The Amorim Biodiversity Award, which is designed to recognise a business that has done as much as possible to advance biodiversity both within the land it owns and, if possible, beyond its boundaries too.

Over the following pages we bring you a run-down of all the winners from this year’s awards, which comprised drinks from across the world, including a wide range of companies and categories.

Patrick Schmitt MW announces 2017’s winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award

Countries that performed particularly well included the US, with Napa Valley Vintners winning an ethical award for its fundraising efforts for the disadvantaged in this wine region, particularly victims of natural disasters as well as under-privileged children, who all receive health insurance thanks to the organisation.

But it wasn’t just Napa that did well for the US, with California’s Fetzer Vineyards picking up both the Water Management Award and The Amorim Sustainability Award for Wine.

Chile was another strong performer, with Palo Alto picking up an award for Best Green Launch with its ‘Enjoy Wine, Go Solar’ project, while Vinos de Chile picked up The Amorim Sustainability Award for a Generic Organisation.

Elsewhere, New Zealand again showed strongly, with Pernod Ricard Winemakers New Zealand earning The Amorim Biodiversity Award, and Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ) gaining the award for Best Green Initiative. Australia also featured, with John Angove named this year’s recipient of the Green Lifetime Achievement Award, while Champagne’s Michel Drappier was honoured with the title of Green Personality 2017. South Africa was also celebrated, with Villiera Wines winning the coveted Green Company of the Year award.

Speaking at the awards presentation in London, Patrick Schmitt MW, editor-in-chief of the drinks business, stressed that all areas of a business must be environmentally sensitive to win in the Green Awards, mentioning the importance of not just carbon emissions, but also water use and waste treatment, as well as a company’s impact on its surroundings, pointing out that it was important that any business benefitted the local community socially and environmentally.

db would like to thank Amorim for its continued support of The Green Awards. Not only does this Portuguese cork company sponsor the sustainability and biodiversity awards in The Drinks Business Green Awards, but it also provides cork frames for the certificates for all categories.

db would also like to thank the suppliers of drinks for the awards ceremony, who were:

• Ty Nant for the water (UK, Wales)
• Champagne Lanson for the ‘Green Label’ organic Champagne (France)
• Angove Family Winemakers for the organic Chardonnay and Shiraz (Australia)

To see a list of awards categories click here, and you can view the winners of last year’s awards here.

To enter the awards for 2018, please email Lewis O’Sullivan at lewis@unionpress.co.uk

To enhance your chances of winning big in the Green Awards, entrants are urged to clearly demonstrate their commitment to sustainable business practices using case studies and numeric evidence of change for the better. The judges are looking for results over the past 12 months to prove that any efforts have resulted in social and environmental benefits on a local, or if applicable, national and international scale. Such evidence should be selected according to the focus of each award, and clearly outlined in an initial summary, as well as through further documentary evidence. In an attempt to make the Green Awards as green as possible, all entries must be submitted eletronically.

This year’s winners can be seen over the following pages, and within the January ‘Green’ issue of The Drinks Business.

Logistics and Supply Chain Green Initiative of the Year

Sebastien Desreumaux from JF Hillebrand collects the award for Logistics and Supply Chain Green Initiative of the Year

Winner: JF Hillebrand
A company dedicated to the drinks industry, JF Hillebrand has a Sustainable Development Programme in place with, among other goals, a plan to reduce its 2008 emissions level by 45% by 2025.

To date its CO2 emissions have been lowered by 24% per container and the drive to push them ever lower was given a boost this June through a Carbon Pact partnership with Maersk Line to reduce emissions by an initial 20% per container from 2017-2015.

Key areas in which Hillebrand has been able to tackle its emissions include:
• Developing an aluminium insulation system that is 25% more carbon efficient than refrigerated containers.
• Transporting by sea and rail rather than road.
• Using wider pallets to maximise container capacity.

The company’s two Flexitank recycling hubs in Bristol and Liverpool have recycled 900 tonnes of plastic so far in 2017 and it is now able to offer full recycling of the Flexitank material, container lining, elbow, bulkhead and backing plate. T

he Carbon Calculator tool enables customers to calculate the footprint and impact of their shipments and in June of this year the International Organisation of Vine & Wine used data compiled by Hillebrand in its report on ‘Methodology for accounting for greenhouse gas balance in the viniculture sector.”

Commendation: Lightweight Containers
Finding that one-way kegs are more complex to recycle due to their composition, Lightweight Containers set about finding a new method of recycling them but also ensuring there was a collection system in place whereby the kegs could be collected without adding to CO2 emissions. The model currently being trialled in Amsterdam sees major beverage distributors collect empty casks on their rounds, compress them with a system provided by Lightweight and then deliver them back to Lightweight for full recycling, The success of the Amsterdam trial means it will be rolled out to other cities including London, Berlin, Rotterdam and Paris in early 2018.

Shortlist
• ARAEX Grands Spanish Fine Wines
• JF Hillebrand
• Lightweight Containers

Green Launch of the Year

Martin Cuthbert de Solminihac of Quinta de Maipo with Anita Jackson, Wines of Chile

Winner: Palo Alto for ‘Enjoy Wine, Go Solar’ by Quinta de Maipo
In March of this year Chilean brand Palo Alto launched its Enjoy Wine, Go Solar programme, involving the installation of 16 photovoltaic panels, a three-phase inverter, and three heat pumps at the Santa Laura de Lo Figueroa, a local school in the Maule Valley where Palo Alto is located.

The aim is to provide the school with hot water and considerably reduce its electricity consumption – providing more than 200 pupils, teachers and parents with clean, renewable energy.

The winery communicated the campaign, its achievements and invited consumers to participate in over 35 markets worldwide.

The initiative is the latest from Palo Alto which, since launching its first organic wine in 2011, also launched a campaign to plant 10,000 trees in Chilean Patagonia in 2014 and another in 2015 to provide access to clean drinking water throughout various locales in Chile.

Shortlist:
• Carel Industries for its Heez control of beverage coolers
• Garçon Wines for its full-size flat wine bottle, and…
• Palo Alto for ‘Enjoy Wine, Go Solar’ by Quinta de Maipo

Organic Initiative of the Year

Maria Elener and Anne Jones from Waitrose

Winner: Waitrose
This year, just one company stood out for its work promoting the increasingly-fashionable organic drinks category. With 60 organic wines, beers and spirits in its portfolio, Waitrose has one of if not the largest range of organic drinks offered by a UK multiple grocer.

Realising that in terms of the breadth of the range, its quality and integrity that it was a major asset, in September this year Waitrose made a concerted effort to promote its organic wine range (a total of 36 SKUs) making them more prominent on the shelf, adding neck collars during ‘Organic Month’ and advertising them in “eye-catching” ways both online and in its publications Waitrose Weekend and Waitrose Cellar.

In just two weeks sales of 30 of the 36 wines saw sales increase of over 350%, while sales of the Tsantali Organic Cabernet Sauvignon from Greece were up 1,571%.

“We are delighted with the performance of our organic wine range,” says wine buyer Maria Elener.

“With sales of over 150,000 cases in the last year and growth of +20% so far this year, organic wine is one of our fastest growing categories. We believe that we can help make a real difference, encouraging more producers to become organic, and supporting customers to understand why purchasing organic benefits everyone.”

Renewable Energy Implementation Award

Duncan Hayter from Serrallés USA

Winner: Serralles USA

One of Puerto Rico’s most-historic rum producers and the drinks maker behind Don Q rum, Destilería Serralles, caught our judges’ attention this year for its novel and eco-friendly approach to an age-old problem in the business — evaporation.

Serralles ages all its Don Q branded rum in American white oak barrels and stores them in large warehouses.

However, the firm faces great challenges to make sure no rum goes to waste. Due to the high median temperature of 80 degrees Fahrenheit (F) year-round and the low humidity experienced in the south coast of Puerto Rico, where the distillery and the warehouses are located, Serralles loses around 8-10% of its rum per year.

This compares to loses of 4-6% per year in Kentucky and 1-2% loses in Scotland.

Rather than installing an energy-draining cooling system, the rum-maker installed 1MW of Photovoltaic (PV) solar panels on top of three of their ageing warehouses to reduce the temperature inside and simultaneously reduce their aging loses and emissions of VOC in the atmosphere.

After just 18 months of operation, Serrales reduced its aging losses by about 1%, saving an enormous 65,000 gallons of rum from evaporating. the PV solar panels now produce about 1/3 of the total electricity requirements at the distillery, saving precious resources and producing clean renewable energy.

The innovative solar-powered project proves that environmental protection and business efficiencies are not mutually exclusive.

Commendation: Oxford Landing Estates

Sustainability is at the heart of Oxford Landings’ wine production in South Australia, but the judges wanted in particular to give a commendation to this business for installing Australia’s largest solar panel system at its Nuriootpa estate.

Upgrades to the irrigation system have resulted in a 25% reduction in power use in 2017. The improvement to irrigation systems over the last 10 years has seen a 30% reduction of water consumption per hectare of vines.

Alongside this, last year had a 197 kW solar PV system installed in December 2016, with an additional 500 kW set to be installed in 2018.

The bottling site also had a solar system installed in December 2016, with 200 kW, which is estimated to generate over 298, 000 kWh each year. The judges were impressed with Oxford Landing’s continued commitment to implementing solar power throughout the business, from vineyard to bottle.

Shortlist
• A. E Chapman & Son
• Destilería Serrallés
• Oxford Landing Estates
• Quinta de Maipo
• Vina Maquis

The Amorim Sustainability Award for Generic Organisation

Anita Jackson from Wines of Chile in the UK

Winner: Vinos de Chile
Vinos de Chile’s Sustainability Code has become part of a national wine industry initiative after only a short time. It has had an important impact on the performance of certified wineries, which have been increasing in number year-on-year since 2011.

There are currently 66 certified wineries, which represent 66% of the total bottled wine exports.

To achieve its success, Vinos de Chile produced support manuals, gave lectures and seminars and hosted in-field capacity-building activities to spread its message.

In 2017, it hosted a seminar at ProWein in Germany and at Vinexpo in France. It has recently revealed that at least three countries have expressed interest in the project, which it says could lead to “the internationalisation of the project, which started only on a national scale”.

The Amorim Sustainability Award for Wine

James Hicks from Fetzer owner Concha y Toro

Winner: Fetzer Vineyards
Over the past four years, California-based Fetzer has managed to prevent virtually all of its waste going to landfills or being incinerated.

In 2016, it diverted 99.2% of all waste, showing a continuous trajectory of improvement since 2013, when waste diversion stood at just over 97%.

Fetzer experienced several milestones in 2016, including the installation of a regenerative wastewater system, and being awarded carbon-neutral certification by regulatory organisation Natural Capital Partners.

In 2015, it was the largest winery in the world to achieve B Corp Certification from the an organisation that rewards companies for “using their business as a force for good”.

In the same year, Fetzer installed a BioFiltro system that used millions of red earthworms to process wastewater from the 2015 harvest.

“At Fetzer Vineyards, we know that transforming our future requires not just small, incremental steps toward sustainability, but rather an ambitious framework – like regenerative development – applied to every part of our business,” said Fetzer chief executive Giancarlo Bianchetti.

Commendation: Bodega Tapiz
With plenty of impressive entries for this category, the judges wanted to award Bodega Tapiz with a commendation for its work to reduce its environmental impact through composting, recycling and organic viticulture.

The family-owned Argentine winery also impressed the judges for its work to help the local community, sponsoring a programme to stop children at nearby schools from dropping out of education in their final year of study.

Shortlist:
• Bodegas Salentein
• Bodega Tapiz
• DGB Ltd
• Fetzer Vineyards
• Napa Valley Vintners
• St. Supéry Estate Vineyards and Winery
• Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ)
• Vinos de Chile

The Amorim Sustainability Award for Spirits

Paul Jones from Glengoyne

Winner: Glengoyne Distillery
Scottish whisky distillery Glengoyne impressed judges with its responsible use of water and its continued efforts to reduce its energy use and greenhouse gas emissions.

Glengoyne has 12 individual wetland cells containing around 14,000 plants. It was the first distillery in Scotland to trial the wetlands project and is now the official whisky sponsor of the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust.

Reed beds are used to filter and cleanse the effluent from the spirits stills, disposing of it environmentally, while draff from mashing is used to feed local cattle. Its specially built Pot Ale Tank reduces total waste output by 25%.

Glengoyne has used renewable electricity since September 2013. It is planning to install a Pot Ale Evaporation plant to reduce the number of traffic movements and thus reduce emissions.

In collaboration with beehive-management service Plan Bee, it produced 65kg of honey this year from hives based on the estate.

Commendation: Greensand Ridge Distillery
Sustainability has always been at the core of Kent micro-distillery Greensand Ridge.

Among its measures to mitigate the negative impacts of distilling, it uses 100%-renewable power, employs heat-recovery systems for cleaning and preheating before distillation, and uses 100%-recyclable packaging materials.

It is actively tackling food waste by working with a network of farmers to ferment and distil quality surplus produce.

Greensand is completing product development on a moonshine made from surplus bread, while its rum is produced from blackstrap molasses – the final waste from the sugar-refining process.

Shortlist:
• Glengoyne Distillery
• Greensand Ridge Distillery
• Ncn’ean Distillery Limited

The Amorim Biodiversity Award

Molly Hagen from Pernod Ricard

Winner: Pernod Ricard Winemakers New Zealand
Pernod Ricard Winemakers New Zealand has long been a proponent of biodiversity.

Among many measures that it adopts, it plants wildflowers to support bees, and adopts ‘inter-row planting’ to attract other beneficial insects.

The group works closely with organisations such as Conservation Volunteers, Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand, the Marlborough Falcon Trust, Trees that Count and the Department of Conservation.

Its staff are actively engaged in the support of breeding programmes and other solutions to help recover native fauna and flora in New Zealand.

In 2017, it continued to increase biodiversity with a number of projects, including putting beehives in vineyards, using sheep for leaf plucking and weed control, and by helping to plant an extra 1,500 native trees on the Kaituna Wetland.

Commendation: Cono Sur
Chile’s Cono Sur received a special mention from the judges for its continued efforts to support biodiversity in its vineyards. It has developed several studies including Crop Cover which has seen it increase the surface area of native vegetation on its estate by six hectares from 2008 to 2017. Its estates have all received the green certification code of Chilean wine and it has converted more than 300ha of vines to organic management.

Shortlist:
• Cono Sur
• Esporäo
• Pernod Ricard Winemakers New Zealand
• Viña Tarapacá

The Water Management Award

James Hicks from Fetzer owner Concha y Toro

Winner: Fetzer Vineyards
Since its launch in 1968 by Barney Fetzer in Mendocino County, Fetzer Vineyards has been a pioneer of California winemaking.

Over the course of half a century, Fetzer has devoted itself to experimentation and finding innovative ways to cut waste and leave the planet a little bit cleaner.

Part of global winery Viña Concha y Toro, Fetzer Vineyards exports its diverse wines to more than 30 countries.

Last year, on the eve of its 50th anniversary, Fetzer Vineyards released Road to Regeneration, the winery’s first sustainability report.

The 26-page report highlights the company’s key progress towards its 2020 sustainability goals, its sustainability strategies, and highlights from 2016.

In 2017, following decades of stewardship practices including tributary rehabilitation and erosion-control initiatives, Fetzer Vineyards was awarded Russian Riverkeeper’s first Leadership in Russian River Regeneration award for its comprehensive water management strategy.

Not only that, last year the wine group installed a BioFiltro system, which used millions of red earthworms to process wastewater from the 2016 harvest – around 17 million gallons of water a year. Fetzer’s BioFiltro system has been recognised by the United Nations, picking up an award for Project of the Year in the global body’s Climate Change Conference.

The judges were blown away by not only Fetzer’s groundbreaking BioFiltro system, but its continued commitment to driving sustainable practices and clean production throughout California’s wine region, becoming a key player in environmental production on the global stage.

Runner-up: VSPT Group
Last year’s Renewable Energy Award winner, VSPT Wine Group’s long-standing commitment to sustainability didn’t escape the notice of our judges this time round.

Last year, VSPT was listed on Chile’s Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the first time; an outstanding achievement and well deserved after decades of working towards environmentally-friendly production.

The list only extends invitations to the “best in class” in terms of economic, environmental and social development. Among the group’s greatest achievements are its 360 sustainable initiatives implemented in 2009, including projects on biodiversity conservation, water management and efforts to reduce the corporate carbon footprint and the impact on climate change.

Shortlist:
• Bodegas Salentein
• Destilería Serrallés
• Destilerias Unidas
• Fetzer Vineyards
• VSPT Wine Group

Green Company of the Year

Matthew Grier from Villiera Wines

Winner: Villiera Wines
Villiera Wines is a winery based in Stellenbosch, South Africa, that was founded in 1983 by cousins Jeff and Simon Grier.

The pair established the winery with a plan to plant classic and local varieties, including Pinotage, Chenin Blanc and Muscat Ottonel, producing still wines as well as a range of Méthode Cap sparklers.

At the core of their business remains a focus on sustainability and environmental conservation. A portion of the farm has been set aside for rehabilitation of old vineyards and fallow land to provide a wildlife sanctuary (220 hectares) for game.

Here, conservation efforts for both game and vegetation take place alongside a determined indigenous tree-planting project. More than 100,000 indigenous trees have been planted in an attempt to add greenery to fallow land and counter its carbon footprint.

The wildlife sanctuary is stocked with a variety of game species including elands, zebras, springboks, gemsboks, bonteboks, giraffes, kudus and black wildebeest. Villiera has also made strides toward controlling its water consumption, having installed a rainwater-harvesting system last year.

In a normal rainfall year this provides 6,000,000 litres of quality rainwater. Its electricity, meanwhile, is generated from renewable solar energy, with the area of solar panelling at the estate increasing in 2017 to cover 1,155m2.

Whether it is the wildlife sanctuary, the indigenous tree-planting programme, the newly expanded solar energy plant, or the just-installed rainwater harvesting system, the judges felt that this really is a worthy green winner for 2017.

Runner-up: Angove Family Winemakers
Established in 1886, Australia’s Angove Family Wines is one of the oldest family-owned winemakers in Australia, and is known for its commitment to organic and biodynamic wine production.

Angove produces 140,000 nine-litre cases of organic wine, and has already converted 172ha of organic certified vineyards in the Riverland and McLaren Vale regions to organic and biodynamic.

A further 40ha are two years into the three-year conversion process and a 40 further hectares began conversion last year. Meanwhile, conversion of all of its vineyards to drip irrigation has already resulted in 25% less water consumption per hectare.

The judges were particularly impressed that this winery has embraced organic viticulture on such an impressive scale.

Commendation: Tasca d’Almerita
Sicily’s Tasca d’Almerita impressed judges with its SOStain sustainability programme.

Founded in 2010 by Alberto Tasca, in collaboration with OPERA, the research centre for sustainable agriculture at Milan’s Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, SOStain acts as a quantitative measurement tool for sustainable growth.

Other Sicilian producers may join the programme, providing they abide by a list of regulations, including the minimal use of sulphur, the adoption of lighter bottles and the use of 100%-Sicilian grapes.

Shortlist:
• Angove Family Winemakers
• Bodega Matarromera S.L.
• SIP Certified
• Tasca d’Almerita
• Villiera Wines
• Viña Concha y Toro

Ethical Company of the Year

Emma Wellings collects this year’s Ethical Award on behalf of Napa Valley Vintners

Winner: Napa Valley Vintners
This year, the Napa Valley Vintners (NVV) wowed judges with its philanthropic, ethical and environmentally sensitive approach to a community that, despite its location in a wealthy area, requires protection and financial support.

In particular, the judges were impressed that this association has ensured that every child in this Californian wine region has access to health insurance, and all residents can benefit for disaster relief.

Established in 1944, NVV aims to “promote, protect and enhance the Napa Valley wine region”, and its more than 500 members have a long history of both community giving and environmental stewardship.

Since 1981, NVV’s annual community fundraiser, Auction Napa Valley, has been raising money for local non-profit organisations, and has invested more than $170 million (£127m) to fund initiatives for community health, children’s education and recovery from unexpected crises such as the 2014 South Napa earthquake, and the wildfires that swept through the region last year. In 2016 alone, more than 100,000 clients of local non-profits were helped by the auction’s funding.

In 2015, the NVV board of directors decided to deepen its commitment to sustainability by setting the ambitious goal to have, by 2020, all eligible members part of Napa Green, which is a comprehensive environmental certification  programme for vineyards and wineries in the Napa Valley.

As of April 2017, more than 50% of eligible members (up to 215 industry leaders) have achieved this goal, and today, 49% of Napa Valley vineyard acreage is Napa Green certified.

Green Retailer of the Year

Corinna Pyke and Nick Beck from Borough Wines

Winner: Borough Wines
Once again, Borough Wines shone this year as an example of a truly green operation.

Whether it’s the company’s wine-refill system, or its growing range of organic, biodynamic and low-intervention wines, as well as a delivery service using electric bikes, this London-based retailer has a thorough approached to environmentally friendly ways of working.

Notable developments in the past 12 months include the introduction of biodegradable plastic bags made from GM-free corn starch, and Ecofass kegs, which once empty can be returned, refilled and reused.

Green Initiative of the Year

Chris Stroud from New Zealand Winegrowers

Winner: Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand 
This year’s Best Green Initiative was awarded to Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand for the compilation of its first ever sustainability report in 2017, which provides data for wineries across New Zealand to benchmark their own performance against.

At the same time, the organisation has also, launched a novel app called Spray Mix Mate – ensuring growers don’t waste any materials when spraying their vineyards.

The judges were extremely impressed by Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand’s data-driven approach that used case studies to encourage wineries to adopt practices that reduce the impact of viticulture on the environment, while also saving producers time and money.

Commendation: SIP Certified
The judges wanted in particular to commend California’s SIP (Sustainability in Practice), a rigorous sustainable vineyard and wine-certification programme, for hitting two milestones in the past year.

One of these was the establishment of a complete soil-to-bottle certification for the wine industry, because sustainable winemaking does not stop in the vineyard.

The other was certifying its first vineyard outside of California – WaterFire Vineyards in Michigan.

Green Personality of the Year

Michel Drappier from Champagne Drappier

Michel Drappier
This year’s green personality has been selected for his single-minded drive to ensure his Champagne business lives and breathes sustainability.

As owner and managing director of a 60-hectare estate in Champagne’s southerly sub-region of the Aube, and the producer of 1.7 million bottles annually under the family name, Michel Drappier has become a significant player in the competitive world of Champagne.

However, such a presence has not been achieved without at the same time working to minimise his operation’s impact on the environment.

Currently, 15ha of his property are certified organic, with another 10 in conversion, although he plans to turn the entire estate to the viticulture practice in the future.

He has also become the first Champagne producer to be carbon neutral, having achieved the status in 2016, while at the start of 2017 he launched a new bottle for Drappier Champagnes, made with as much as 87% recycled glass.

The producer is well known for its minimal use of sulphur dioxide in its wines, and is one of the very few Champagne producers to make a cuvée with no added sulphur whatsoever.

Most importantly, Michel himself is famous in Champagne for his polite but firm stance on improving the environmental and ethical credentials of this famous fizz-producing region, using his own business as a beacon for excellence – whether that concerns wine quality, or Drappier’s socially responsible and environmentally-friendly approach to production.

Lifetime Achievement Award

Susannah Taylor from Angove’s UK importer Ehrmanns Wines collected the award

John Angove
Representing the fourth generation of Australia’s Angove Family Winemakers, John Angove joined the family business in the 1970s, after studying science and economics and a stint in the Australian wine Centre in London.

He took over as managing director of the family-owned company in 1983, and has been pivotal in helping to shape one of the largest organic wine estates in Australia, steering its operation towards the renowned McLaren Vale region and toward organic and biodynamic winemaking practices.

Over four decades, Angove has overseen several major redevelopments of Angove’s vineyards, including the acquisition of its Warboys vineyard in McLaren Vale, the conversion of nearly 300 hectares of its vineyards to organic and biodynamic, and the establishment of a small micro-winery within its larger operation.

In addition to his role with the family business, Angove is also an executive councilor of the Winemakers Federation of Australia, and has been since it was founded in 1989, and also sits on the board of the Australia Wine Research Institute.

His contribution to the country’s wine industry has already received considerable recognition, most notably in the form of Angove’s appointment as member of the Order of Australia in 2011.

But, for the sake of these awards, it is his devotion to proving that a successful wine business can be run sustainably, while also encouraging others to minimise their impact on the environment, that secured him this green honour.

John Angove delivered his accceptanace speech via video