The History of Winexpert
Now widely regarded as the leader in the personal winemaking industry, Winexpert began as Brew King in the early 1980s. Founders, Ross and Doug Tocher, felt they could produce wine kits that would be superior to products existing at that time. With rudimentary production tools at their disposal, they entered the manufacturing game and introduced Vintners Reserve, the very first wine kit product produced in the now popular bag-in-box wine kit - with no need to add sugar and with all of the necessary materials pre-packaged for ease of use. Its user-friendly four-week process and consistent quality results caught on quickly with consumers and virtually took over the existing kit winemaking market.
As the company grew, so did its production resources, and in 1989, the company introduced its flagship premium brand, Selection. Whereas Vintners Reserve offered 6 litres of pure varietal grape concentrate in a 28-day process format, Selection offered a whopping 15 litres in a six-week process and contained pure varietal grape juice.
The Selection brand quickly became a favourite among winemakers and they became loyal to the brand. It continues to be the fastest growing product line and the benchmark for quality in the industry.
Brew King maintained its leadership position within the industry by continuing to identify ways to improve quality through product innovation and challenging the boundaries of what can be achieved with personal winemaking products. For example, the mid-1990s saw the introduction of Winexpert's exclusive F-PackTM, which enabled the production of sweeter wine styles such as those offered up by German white wines, California blush wines, dessert wines such as Port and Icewine, and one of its latest innovative product lines, Island Mist.
The innovative spirit continued in 2000, with the launch of its 16 litre, 8-week process format Selection Estate Series, a product line representing the absolute pinnacle of kit winemaking quality. This ultra-premium wine kit contained single-vineyard varietal juice and was perfect for longer ageing.
In 2004, the company introduced Selection Estate Series Crushendo, an ultra-premium wine kit that contained the Crushendo grape skin pack. This wine kit yields deeply-coloured, full-bodied red wines with intense gripping tannins.
Brew King was also responsible for the development of premium bag-in-box beer kit products, launching the first such brand, Barons World of Beer, in 1990.
In November 1997, Brew King was purchased by Andres Wines Ltd. (Now known as Andrew Peller Ltd.) The owners of Andres saw the growth potential of the personal winemaking industry and wanted to be represented by Brew King, the quality leader.
In December 2003, recognizing that consumer interest in wine was growing and sales of wine products would one day surpass sales of beer products, Brew King officially changed its name to Winexpert. The Winexpert name and logo mark quickly became well known. Today, the brand is widely recognized as one that provides premium quality products and a highly enjoyable winemaking experience.
Winexpert's success is attributed to its:
- Commitment to sourcing high quality grape juice and concentrate
- State of the art processing facilities
- Stringent quality control procedures and guarantee of quality
- Knowledgeable and dedicated employees
- Knowledgeable retail partners dedicated to providing a great customer experience
