The Australian wine industry has hit out at New Zealand’s sauvignon blanc, with one Aussie wine-maker labelling popular Kiwi sav “the McDonald’s of wines”.

Wine Australia last month called for Aussie wine drinkers to “ditch that Sav Blanc from across the Tasman in favour of a top local drop” for Australia Day, while a Sydney Morning Herald articleover the weekend featured several winemakers rallying against New Zealand’s hugely popular product.

James Agnew, who has a family-run vineyard in NSW’s Hunter Valley and is the former chair of the NSW Wine Strategy, told the paper New Zealand’s savs are “the McDonald’s of wines”.