Visitors to winery cellar doors across Australia now have access to tasting tracker ‘scratchies’ and other education resources to help them keep tabs on their consumption and understand how many standard drinks they are consuming. The Stay tasteful while tasting initiative is a partnership between DrinkWise, the National Wine Foundation and Australian Grape & Wine.
The Stay tasteful while tasting initiative has been rolled out across News South Wales, Queensland, Australian Capital Territory, Tasmania, South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia with the assistance of state and regional wine industry associations and DrinkWise contributors Pernod Ricard, Treasury Wine Estates, Accolade Wines, Casella Family Brands and Australian Vintage.
Stay tasteful while tasting resource packs – including the innovative ‘scratchie cards’ – are being distributed to over 1,800 cellar doors and tourism associations across Australia as part of the initiative, with the assistance of regional winery associations. To help more people make responsible choices, we’ve also expanded the Stay tasteful while tasting initiative beyond cellar doors, with scratchies, signage and digital resources available for wine festivals and events.
DrinkWise CEO Simon Strahan said the education campaign is aimed at helping consumers make responsible choices when tasting wines.
“In order to promote a healthier drinking culture, we need to continually provide education campaigns about alcohol,” Mr Strahan said.
“DrinkWise works with the industry to deliver these important messages when people are purchasing or consuming alcohol and this partnership with Australian Grape & Wine is a vital component in educating Australians who choose to consume alcohol, to do so in a healthier and safer way.”
Australian Grape & Wine CEO, Lee McClean, added: “We’ve been absolutely delighted to see so many people visit cellar doors and wine festivals again after the challenges of the last couple of years.
“These resources and education packs are the perfect way to display to consumers what they need to know to help them make the responsible choice and track their tastings when visiting cellar doors and wine festivals around the country.
“These resources assist our local wineries to educate our visitors and help them to make responsible choices. Consumer education and duty of care are really important to all of us, so we are actively encouraging all wine businesses across the country to use these resources in their cellar doors” Mr McLean said.
New South Wales Launch – October 2022
As part of officially announcing Australian Vintage as a valued supporter of DrinkWise, the New South Wales launch of the Stay tasteful while tasting initiative was hosted at the Australian Vintage owned Tempus Two winery in the Hunter Valley. Federal Member for Hunter, Dan Repacholi said “It’s very simple – you just scratch it off after one pour, you get to six and there’s your standard drink. This is a great initiative from DrinkWise because people will know how much they’ve had to drink. It’s going to create safer roads and safer times for locals and tourists alike.”
Queensland Launch – September 2022
Queensland wine makers, cellar doors managers and tourism operators came together at Sirromet Wines to see Queensland Tourism Minister, the Hon Stirling Hinchliffe launch the DrinkWise Stay tasteful while tasting initiative in Queensland. Given that the majority of Queensland’s wineries are quite a drive away from each other, the Minister said “this Stay tasteful while tasting initiative is not only a welcome addition to the way we think and operate in the cellar door sector but it could quite literally be a life saver.”
Australian Capital Territory Launch – September 2022
Minister Kristy McBain launched the DrinkWise Stay tasteful while tasting initiative in the Australian Capital Territory at Four Winds Vineyard. “We want people to visit our wineries in a safe and effective manner, to drink in moderation, to enjoy the fruits of the labour of our industry and do so safely because we love when tourists come to our region. We love when they sample our produce, we love when they go away and tell more people. But they have to get here safely and go home safely. So, a huge congratulations to DrinkWise, to the industry, to all the participating cellar doors and, most importantly, to the patrons who take this seriously enough to know that they can enjoy themselves, but do so in moderation, and ‘Stay tasteful while tasting’.”
Tasmanian Launch – June 2022
Accolade Wines, Bay of Fires cellar door hosted the Tasmanian launch of the Stay tasteful while tasting initiative in the lead up to the June long weekend.
Tasmanian Minister for Primary Industries and Water, Jo Palmer MLC, was impressed with the Stay tasteful while tasting resources.
“This is a really practical, simple and common-sense tool. It’s so easy to be handed that card and have a visual of where you’re at, as you go from cellar door to cellar door. This will be keeping people safe on our roads,” said Minister Palmer.
South Australian Launch – May 2022
South Australian Premier, Peter Malinauskas described the innovative scratchie cards as “bloody brilliant” at the South Australian launch of Stay tasteful while tasting, held at the iconic Treasury Wine Estates, Penfold’s Magill Estate.
“The education packs are a great tool to ensure visitors to South Australia’s great wine regions have a safe and enjoyable experience. We know that our wineries attract hundreds of thousands of people to South Australia every year. With many regional vineyards located a drive away from cities, it’s crucial that wine lovers know how much they’re drinking in order to make the right choices”, said Premier Malinauskas.
Victorian Launch – February 2022
When launching the Stay tasteful while tasting initiative at Crittenden Estate Wines on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Federal Minister for Health and Aged Care, the Hon. Greg Hunt MP, said the education packs are a great tool to ensure that visitors to local wine regions have a safe and enjoyable experience.
“This is a vital initiative from DrinkWise and Australian Grape & Wine to help Australians better track their alcohol consumption when visiting cellar doors and wine festivals on the Mornington Peninsula and across the country.
“With wineries typically located a long drive away from cities, it’s imperative that wine tasters know how much they’re consuming in order to make responsible choices,” Minister Hunt said.
Western Australian Launch – February 2020
Hosted at Nikola Estate in Swan Valley, Minister for Police; Road Safety, the Hon Michelle Roberts MLA, launched Stay tasteful while tasting initiative just as the COVID-19 pandemic sent the world into lockdown. Like many initiatives at the time, it was ‘paused’ until it was safe for visitors to return to cellar doors.
