Discounted wine is not a new phenomenon in WA but a new supermarket chain's entry into the market may just shake the status quo in the west.
Booze in Perth has been cheap for while, ever since Coles - who own Liquorland, First Choice, Vintage Cellars and Liquor Market - and Woolworths - Dan Murphy's, BWS, Cellarmasters and Langton's - took over the smaller liquor chains and have been able to flog discounted booze across WA thanks to their larger buying power.
Between the two traditional grocery conglomerates, they distribute and sell almost 80 per cent of all alcohol retail in Australia, up from just 32 per cent in 2004.
But now Aldi is on the scene with a splash, attempting to break up the discounted liquor duopoly Coles and Woolies enjoy and squeeze more from the growing market.
Aldi's liquor strategy is markedly different from Coles and Woolies, who have the ability to discount thousands of wine labels, whereas all of Aldi's alcohol-related products are already heavily discounted.
While the Aldi range is limited to just 63 products (Woolies has in excess of 1000), they can only be bought at Aldi stores and are already discounted, unlike Coles and Woolies, who lower prices on only a portion of their wines.
Aldi liquor is being sold at five of their outlets (South Lake, Butler, Harrisdale, Joondalup and Wattle Grove) and that number is growing. But is their booze any good?
Taste test : Aldi wines
WAtoday.com.au and Radio 6PR staff, all regular drinkers of wine, road-tested six of the 63 Aldi alcohol products available.
The results were overwhelmingly positive in favour of the flavour and value Aldi brings to the table.
Every judge said they would buy each Aldi wine they tasted at its respective price, and when asked to choose their favourite among the six, each wine got at least one tick.
???Monsigny Brut Champagne ($20)
No wonder this is one of the top 10 best-selling French Champagnes in Australia. Has style and finesse, is fruity and crisp, and is probably the cheapest Champagne on the market in Australia. Got the nod from all seven tasters, with some comments including:
"Nice and dry, crisp - not sweet and nasty." Value: 10/10
2015 One Road South Australian Heathcote Shiraz ($7)
Won best value shiraz at the 2017 Melbourne International Wine Competition - no small feat. Lots of chocolate and tobacco nuances in this wine. Clean, fruity and medium bodied makes it perfect for BBQs and the like. Our tasting panel loved it:
"Quite smooth, thick and dense, nice finish." 9/10
2015 Blackstone Paddock Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon ($18)
One of the more expensive offerings from the Aldi stable but worth every penny with softer elements to traditional Margaret River cabernet. It won bronze at the 2017 Royal Queensland Wine Show and got our judges all fired up:
"Would definitely buy this for a special event if I wanted to look fancy."
"Full bodied, rich and chocolatey, smooth finish, sticks to your tongue.": 8/10
2016 A.C. Byrne & Co Margaret River Semillon Sauvignon Blanc ($8)
It's pretty hard to stuff up this blend if it's from Margaret River, and Aldi's version gave even the strictest "I don't drink that crap" tasters some cheap bliss with its easy-drinking, citrus-y character. Buy this and you can afford a few more shrimps on the barbie this summer.
"Beautiful nose, stonefruit flavours, great summer wine." 9/10
2016 A.C Byrne & Co Margaret River Chardonnay ($10)
A solid option for those wanting a delicate, lighter chardonnay, with traditional nuances of white peach and nectarine on show.
"???Nice nose, very light, fruity, quaffable... would love some blue cheese with this." 8/10
2015 A.C Byrne & Co Margaret River Cabernet Merlot ($10)
An excellent cheap option for pasta and meat dishes, and a good expression of this common Margaret River blend, with typical blackberry, mint and vanilla spice notes.
"Nice, easy drinking, with interesting oaky notes and flavours I like." 9/10
While serious wine connoisseurs probably couldn't care less, the entry of Aldi Liquor will cause some pain for competitors Coles and Woolies (as well as health authorities in WA).
The wines are well priced, Aldi's strategy seems rock solid, and the increased competition is only good news for West Aussies who like to drink at a discount price.
