The winery – already providing grape processing, winemaking and storage services to groups such as Orlando and other wineries throughout SA, New South Wales and Victoria – today announced a name change to Project Wine Pty Ltd as part of a new strategy to further expand its industry services and operations.

In other key developments, prominent SA wine and horticulture industry executive Paul Zerella has been appointed managing director of Project Wine, and former BRL Hardy, Hardy Wine Company and Constellation Wines chief executive Stephen Millar, has joined the Project Wine Board of Directors.

Project Wine’s state-of-the-art grape processing, winemaking and storage facilities are strategically located at Langhorne Creek, close to the McLaren Vale and Adelaide Hills regions and well situated for servicing customers and clients from all SA wine areas.

Established in 2000 with an inaugural crush of 3500 tonnes of grapes, the business has achieved significant growth, including a record 18,000t vintage in 2008.

Mr Zerella said Project Wine’s 50 hectare site at Langhorne Creek provided the company with the opportunity for future expansion to an annual grape crush of 30,000t.

“A key factor emerging from the ongoing consolidation within the Australian wine industry is the need for more efficient winemaking operations and a greater focus on overall cost effectiveness,” he said.

“Our services and facilities open the door for smaller wineries to maintain the quality of their wines while at the same time achieving cost savings and efficiencies in some of the toughest conditions ever seen in the Australian wine industry.

“The Project Wine client base already includes some of Australia’s largest and well-respected wine brands and we are looking forward to the challenge of building on our established reputation as a high quality wine producer and services company."

Other members of the Project Wine Board are chairman Nick Dean; Chris Atkins; and Greg Marsh.