Business brings Australian wines to Western Mass.

Date: 11/29/2010

Nov. 29, 2010

By Chris Maza

Reminder Assistant Editor

WILBRAHAM -- The owners of Panther Distributing would like to introduce you to a world of fine Australian wines.

Three friends, Dan Paquette, Jim Ross and Tony Ravosa, all 1982 graduates of Cathedral High School, decided to embark on a project that would take their passion for fine wine to the next level.

Panther Distributing holds the distinction of being the only Massachusetts distributor to offer products from three quality Australian brands of wine -- Pertaringa, K-1 by Geoff Hardy and Mclaren Vale III Associates.

"These wines are available nowhere else in Massachusetts. Until now, they were only available in Connecticut." Paquette said.

Panther Distributing is located on Boston Road in Wilbraham and while there were hoops to jump through at the federal, state and local levels to get off the ground, Paquette said the town of Wilbraham has been "fantastic throughout the process."

Paquette, Ross and Ravosa found the opportunity to get into the wine business when Chris Didden, a distributor in Connecticut, was looking for a way to break into the Massachusetts market with wines from what Paquette termed "premium boutique wineries in the Mclaren Vale and Adelade Hills regions" of Australia.

"These are some of the best Australian wines you have never heard of in this country, until now," Paquette said. "We have all in varying degrees been involved in the food and beverage industry and when we heard of an opportunity to distribute new wines in Massachusetts, we were very excited. After trying a good sampling, we were blown away by the quality."

Paquette said that Australian wines have suffered from a poor perception -- both in the public's eye and within the industry -- over the years and hopes that the influx of new offerings from different wineries will create a greater interest in better products.

"Australian wines have suffered an image problem over the last four years. The perception is that Australian wines are simply inexpensive wines with cute marsupials on the labels. The success of certain companies has created a perception that has become pervasive in the market place," Paquette said. "We're attempting to re-educate consumers and introduce wines of superior character. The wineries [whose products we sell] represent a new wave of Australian wine making by offering wines of finesse and elegance which are very food-friendly."

Paquette added that big business has begun to dominate distribution, which has squeezed out some of the variety that can come from having products come from multiple sources.

"The wholesale wine industry in Massachusetts has experienced such a consolidation in recent years to the point where a few big players represent the vast majority of brands," Paquette said. "I think it's refreshing to see small local distribution companies popping up across the state. There are several small distributors out there who can more effectively represent small-scale producers of premium wines."

So far, the response has been favorable for the fledgling company.

"The wines have been very well received anywhere we have taken them in the state," Paquette said.

While the operation is small at this point, Panther Distribution is already looking to expand, possibly into wines from Willamette Valley, Ore.

"[Rovosa] and I were just in Oregon on a trip that went very, very well," Paquette said. "We met with a number of small producers looking to have their products sold on the East Coast."

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