The 2023 Outbound Knowledge Exchange bursary program gave 9 wine industry professionals the opportunity to travel to one or more Great Wine Capitals of the World to build their knowledge and skills.

Through the Department of Primary Industries and Regions, each recipient received a bursary of $6,000 for travel between September 2023 and February 2024.

During their travels, bursary recipients met with key industry, regional and education stakeholders to share their experience, expertise, and energy as well as learn about practices and operations in their chosen field.

Participants shared their experience and learnings at regional and industry events, helping to build capability within their area of interest and maximising the benefit to SA’s wine industry.

Interested wine professionals are invited to apply for the next round of bursaries when they open on 1 July.

In this segment, we hear from Charles Matheson, Grower Engagement Officer for Riverland Wine. For his bursary, Charles travelled to Cape Town/Cape Winelands, South Africa, and San Francisco/Napa Valley, USA, to study sustainability in viticulture and the impact on market access. Yanina Giordano, a PHD candidate at the University of Adelaide and is undertaking research to develop innovative solutions for controlling Brettanomyces (“brett”) spoilage in wine, which has the potential to have a significant commercial impact on wine production.