Bill Hardy, fifth generation winemaker of the Hardys family, unveiled William Hardy, a new range of wines that will be “the pinnacle of the Hardys core range”.
The William Hardy range celebrates William (Bill) Hardy’s 40 years as the figurehead for the brand.
The initial release is made up of two varietals: Chardonnay and Shiraz, which will launch into “selected markets”, including – travel retail and selected retailers in mainland Europe throughout 2012. The wine will become more widely available from the next vintage.
William Hardy is to sit at the top of the Hardys core range, ahead of Nottage Hill, Stamp, Crest and VR. The wines are aimed at providing a “more premium, elegant expression of Hardys winemaking”.
Bill Hardy said: “I am immensely proud to launch my new range of wines at Prowein today. Over 160 years ago my great-great-grandfather Thomas Hardy left Europe for Australia, so it is fitting that I am back here in Europe to launch William Hardy.
“Chardonnay and Shiraz display the very best of Australia with the versatility to straddle that critical point between consistency and complexity. These cool-region dominant wines enjoying both great complexity of character and a price positioning sitting just above our core mainstream sub-brands.”
For the first vintage release the William Hardy 2011 Chardonnay contains component parcels from cooler areas such as Padthaway, McLaren Vale and Wrattonbully.
The 2010 Shiraz contains a significant component from McLaren Vale, where Bill is based.
James Lousada, European general commercial manager at brand owner Accolade Wines, said: “We are honoured to launch William Hardy into the European market. Hardys wines are renowned across the world and we are delighted to welcome such a quality, beautifully crafted wine to the top of the core portfolio.”
William Hardy is the latest wine to commemorate one of the generations of the Hardys family – with Thomas Hardy followed by Eileen Hardy sitting at the very top of the whole range.
