BANGKOK, 31 August 2026: Australia’s Brockenchack Wines has officially entered Thailand, bringing its premium, single-vineyard Eden Valley portfolio to a market increasingly ready to look beyond familiar labels and discover the people, place and provenance behind the bottle.
The Australian family-owned winery marked its Thailand debut with an invitation-only tasting at Marriott Executive Apartments Bangkok, Sukhumvit Thonglor.
Hosted by Bangkok-based hospitality consultancy OK Business Solutions, the event brought together hoteliers, restaurateurs, wine buyers, distributors, hospitality professionals and media for an evening that placed family storytelling alongside what was in the glass.
Representing the winery in Bangkok were Darren Naylor and his son Mack Naylor, who introduced guests to Brockenchack’s wines and the family history behind them. Founded by Trevor and Marilyn Harch, the winery takes its name from their four grandchildren: Brontë, Mackenzie, Charli and Jack.
A market ready for more than a label
The timing is significant. Wine Australia reported in July 2026 that Thailand is now ASEAN’s largest wine market and was ranked by IWSR as the world’s 16th most attractive wine market in 2025. Premium wine has significantly outperformed the commercial segment since 2020, with that trend forecast to continue through 2030. A recent study also identified growing interest among Thai consumers in learning how to select wine and pair it confidently with food.
Australia enters that conversation from a position of strength. It is Thailand’s leading supplier of imported wine by volume and ranks second by value, behind France.
Thailand is also now the seventh-largest destination for Australian wine exports priced above AUD10 per litre, a useful signal for boutique producers whose appeal rests on quality, origin and character rather than volume alone.
Thailand’s wine market is overwhelmingly international, imported wines representing approximately 98% of the market.
The local connection
At the centre of Brockenchack’s Thailand story is Poonlap Chantavongviriya, Founder of Chante Wine and Beverage, the winery’s exclusive importer and distributor in Thailand. His connection to Australian wine began long before the first shipment arrived in Bangkok.
“My appreciation for fine wine began as a student in Adelaide, where I first encountered exceptional wines and formed a lasting emotional connection to the region and its producers,” Khun Poonlap said. “It is therefore an honour to introduce and help promote Brockenchack Wines from Eden Valley in Thailand. I was immediately impressed by the craftsmanship in every bottle, as well as the warmth of the genuinely lovely family behind the winery. You can truly feel the passion and quality-driven energy from the winemaker and everyone involved, which makes the wines not only exceptional but also deeply authentic.”
For a boutique producer entering a relationship-driven hospitality market, local knowledge matters. Chante connects the winery with the hotels, restaurants, wine professionals and curious consumers who can give the brand a meaningful place at the table. Just as importantly, Khun Poonlap helps translate Brockenchack’s family heritage and Eden Valley identity into experiences suited to Thailand.
“Beyond simply tasting the wine, we hoped guests would get to know the people behind the brand,” he said. “That in-person connection, putting faces to the names of the people actually producing the wine, is something not everyone gets to experience. It has become lost in parts of the wine industry dominated by faceless corporate brands. This brings back the essence of human-to-human connection: creating experiences and sharing stories.”
That combination of access, education and personal connection is particularly relevant in a market where consumers want to learn more about wine but can still find the category intimidating. Chante’s work gives Brockenchack a local voice, not simply a local address.
A family story from Eden Valley
Brockenchack’s single-vineyard estate is located in Eden Valley, within South Australia’s Barossa region. Some of its Riesling vines date to 1896, linking the contemporary family business to more than a century of regional winemaking history. Its portfolio includes Riesling, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Grenache, Pinot Noir, Rosé and Pinot Grigio.
The non-vintage Great Scott Sparkling Shiraz proved one of the evening’s conversation starters. This lively Australian expression did exactly what a good launch wine should do: loosen the room and get people talking. Across the tasting, however, the broader message was consistency. Brockenchack arrived not as a single-bottle novelty, but as a portfolio with the range to work across restaurant lists, hotel dining rooms and private wine occasions.
“From the first pour, what stood out was not simply the quality in the glass, but the family story and character behind the label. Great Scott Sparkling Shiraz certainly got the room talking, but Zip Line Shiraz was my personal favourite; bright and fruit-forward, with ripe plum and black-fruit character, soft chocolate and vanilla notes, and a smooth finish. This felt less like a product launch and more like being welcomed into the Brockenchack family.”
Dr Scott Michael Smith, who attended the Bangkok launch.
From Bangkok launch to long-term presence
The Bangkok tasting offered an early glimpse of how the brand may find its place in Thailand. Rather than relying on a conventional product presentation, the evening encouraged guests to ask questions, meet the family and understand why the wines taste as they do.
Poonlap believes this experience-led approach offers a clear opening within Thailand’s hospitality industry. “Guests are looking for a reason to show up in person, a moment they cannot get by scrolling on their phone, and the venues that deliver that are the ones people keep coming back to,” he said. “Wine dinners, tastings and events hosted alongside the venue are exactly what create that pull.
“That is where Brockenchack comes in. We do not just send a representative and a case of wine and hope for the best. The family flies over from Australia, gets into the room, hosts the experience and tells the story behind every bottle. They become part of what makes the venue worth visiting.
“There is a real gap in the market for this, and very few wineries are willing actually to show up the way Brockenchack does,” he added. “That is what sets the winery apart, and it is why partnering with us adds something to a venue that guests remember long after they leave.”
For Brockenchack, the launch opened a promising new chapter in Southeast Asia. For Chante Wine and Beverage, it demonstrated the value of thoughtful representation: selecting a producer with a credible story, introducing it to the right people and allowing relationships to develop around the table.
As the final glasses were poured, the clearest takeaway was that successful wine launches are rarely about the bottle alone. They are about trust, timing and the people capable of connecting one place with another. In Thailand, Brockenchack appears to have found that connection in Poonlap and Chante Wine and Beverage.
About Brockenchack Wines
Brockenchack Wines is a family-owned, single-vineyard winery in Eden Valley, South Australia. Founded by Trevor and Marilyn Harch, it produces a portfolio of premium wines shaped by the region’s cool-climate conditions and winemaking heritage.
More information: brockenchack.com.au
(Sources: Wine Australia — Thailand Market Bulletin, 1 July 2026)
