Marsanne is a white wine grape variety most prominently active in the Northern Rhone wine region of France. This grape is planted most widely in the Hermitage AOC, often blended with another grape variety – Roussanne.
This blanc hued grape was first planted in Australia during the 1860s, in Victoria. Below are statistics that detail the growth and harvest of the Marsanne grape in Australia, as well as the export of Aussie Marsanne wines, in the year 2016 –
Viticulture
In 2016, out of a total of 135,000 ha of Aussie land planted with lush grapevines, Marsanne grapes were planted on approximately 160 ha of vineyard land. None of these vines planted were new, and the bearing area for Marsanne estimated to 98.6% of the total growing area.
Grape Production
Australian wineries crushed close to 1,608,000 tonnes of grapes in the year 2016. The harvest and crushing of the Marsanne variety was calculated to be roughly 2,000 tonnes, with 1,100 tonnes of the fruit grown in warm inland regions, while the remaining portion (900 tonnes) was crushed in cool climate Aussie wine regions.
Out of the regions where Marsanne thrives, the Riverina district secured the top spot, producing about 53% of the total share of Marsanne grapes grown. Other regions where Marsanne showed prominence were – Goulburn Valley (29%), McLaren Vale (4%), Big Rivers (4%), and Barossa Valley (3%).
Export Data
When the 2016 export numbers for Aussie wine came in, the United Kingdom was declared the highest importer of Marsanne wines from Australia (41% of the total share). 22% of the wine produced was exported to China, 8% to the United States of America, 7% to Sweden, and 6% to Canada.
Of the total export value of Aussie Marsanne wines, the highest percentage of wine bottles sold (40%) fall under the price range of $10/L to $19.99/L. 32% of the total lies in the bracket of $7.50/L to $9.99/L, 21% in the category of $5/L to $7.49/L, 4% between the price points of $2.50/L to $4.99/L, and the remaining 3% in the bracket of $20/L and above.
