Jacob’s Creek is to put its entire UK range under screw-cap, including its flagship Johann Shiraz Cabernet.
The Heritage range, including the Centenery Hill Shiraz and St Hugo Coonawarra Cabernet, all priced at up to £25 a bottle, will also be switched to screwcap. The highly-regarded Johann sells for £40.
As of November, these will all be switched from cork to screwcap closures. The Johann is currently on the 2001 vintage so it will not be seen under screwcap for a few years.
Adrian Atkinson of Pernod Ricard UK, which owns Jacob’s Creek, said that the decision was in response to the ‘concurrent demands of retailers, consumers and the Jacob’s Creek winemaking team.’
‘Consumers increasingly associate screw cap wines with quality’, Atkinson said.
A recent poll conducted on behalf of Pernod Ricard suggested increasing consumer confidence in screw-cap wine. 68% of those asked said they were ‘quite likely’ or ‘very likely’ to buy wine under screw-cap within the next three months.
Jacob’s Creek is the top-selling Australian wine brand in the UK, with a 13.3% market volume share.
Written by Alex Christie-Miller
