Hong Kong firm buys 650ha of Australian vineyards
Get our daily fine wine reviews, latest wine ratings, news and travel guides delivered straight to your inbox.
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Hong Kong's CK Life Sciences has added to its vineyard collection by acquiring three Australian vineyards owned by wine producer McWilliam's for nearly A$16m.
Vineyards at McWilliam’s’ Hanwood Estate
The Hong Kong firm, which already owns thousands of hectares of vines, said it has bought the Hanwood vineyard in Griffith, New South Wales, as well as the Station and Kirkgate vineyards in South Australia.
It paid A$15.7m for 700ha of land, of which 650 is under vine. CK Life Sciences is a subsidiary of billionaire Li Ka-shing’s Cheung Kong Holdings.
The deal is another example of Asia-based investors showing an interest in Australian vineyards and wine estates, and it follows the agreement of a free trade deal between Australia and China.
McWilliam’s has agreed to rent the vineyards from CK Life Sciences for 15 years, with the option to renew for a further five years.
The deal is similar to one that CK Life Sciences completed in New Zealand last year. It bought 596ha of vineyards from Mud House Wines for around NZ$46m and then leased the land to Accolade Wines, owner of Hardys in Australia.
Get our daily fine wine reviews, latest wine ratings, news and travel guides delivered straight to your inbox.
Related Content:
Written by Chris Mercer
Chris Mercer is a Bristol-based freelance editor and journalist who spent nearly four years as digital editor of Decanter.com, having previously been Decanter’s news editor across online and print.
He has written about, and reported on, the wine and food sectors for more than 10 years for both consumer and trade media.
Chris first became interested in the wine world while living in Languedoc-Roussillon after completing a journalism Masters in the UK. These days, his love of wine commonly tests his budgeting skills.
Beyond wine, Chris also has an MSc in food policy and has a particular interest in sustainability issues. He has also been a food judge at the UK’s Great Taste Awards.