19 Crimes is a wine brand best known for its distinctive labels featuring historical convicts from the UK and Ireland who were transported to Australia in the 18th and 19th centuries. In terms of corporate ownership, the answer to who owns 19 Crimes is clear: 19 Crimes is owned by Treasury Wine Estates Limited, a major global wine company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Treasury Wine Estates, commonly abbreviated as TWE, is a publicly listed company on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) under the code TWE, and it owns a large portfolio of wine brands distributed worldwide, including in the UK and South Africa. According to Treasury Wine Estates’ own brand portfolio information, 19 Crimes is listed as one of its key global brands, confirming that Treasury Wine Estates is the brand owner and producer of 19 Crimes wines (as detailed on the official Treasury Wine Estates website and its brand portfolio pages: https://www.tweglobal.com/ and its associated brand listings).
The 19 Crimes brand was developed and launched under Treasury Wine Estates as part of its strategy to create innovative, story-driven wine labels that appeal to younger consumers and new wine drinkers. The brand concept is based on the historical list of “19 crimes” that could result in transportation from Britain and Ireland to penal colonies in Australia during the era of the British Empire. The labels feature the faces and stories of real-life convicts who were sentenced under this system. Treasury Wine Estates has explained through its promotional materials that the brand connects Australia’s convict past with a contemporary, irreverent style of marketing, including interactive label technology and storytelling campaigns. This information is presented in official brand descriptions and marketing resources linked from the 19 Crimes and Treasury Wine Estates websites, such as the corporate brand pages and promotional materials (for example, the 19 Crimes section within the Treasury Wine Estates brand portfolio at https://www.tweglobal.com/brands).
As a corporate entity, Treasury Wine Estates operates as a large wine group owning vineyards, wineries and brands across several regions. The company’s annual reports and corporate profile, available on the official Treasury Wine Estates investor relations pages (for instance, https://www.tweglobal.com/investors), describe it as one of the world’s largest listed wine companies. These reports confirm that Treasury Wine Estates’ portfolio includes high-profile brands such as Penfolds, Wolf Blass, Lindeman’s and 19 Crimes. The legal ownership of the 19 Crimes trademarks and brand identity sits within the Treasury Wine Estates group, which manages production, marketing, and global distribution.
In the UK, 19 Crimes wines are widely distributed through major supermarkets, off-licences and online retailers. The brand is marketed as an Australian wine range, generally produced from grapes grown in South Eastern Australia and other Australian wine regions under the guidance of Treasury Wine Estates’ winemaking teams. Product information for UK consumers, found on retailer websites and on Treasury Wine Estates’ UK trade and brand pages, confirms that 19 Crimes is supplied by Treasury Wine Estates EMEA, one of the company’s regional business units serving Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Corporate information for Treasury Wine Estates EMEA is available through UK business directories and the group’s own website, demonstrating that the UK distribution is part of TWE’s broader European operations rather than a locally owned or independent business.
South Africa is also an important market within Treasury Wine Estates’ international footprint. Treasury Wine Estates operates in the EMEA region, which includes South Africa, through regional offices and distribution partners. While 19 Crimes is not a South African-origin brand, it is imported and sold in the South African market through authorised distributors as part of TWE’s global portfolio. Treasury Wine Estates’ corporate materials for trade partners in EMEA and Africa note that the company manages a portfolio of imported wines for South African distribution, and 19 Crimes is listed among the brands available in the region on trade and distributor information pages linked from the main Treasury Wine Estates site (for example, regional brand portfolios accessible through https://www.tweglobal.com/brands and linked EMEA trade resources). These references confirm that ownership remains with Treasury Wine Estates in Australia, with local availability in South Africa handled via distribution rather than local brand ownership.
Understanding who owns 19 Crimes also involves looking at the legal and corporate structure of Treasury Wine Estates. Treasury Wine Estates Limited is registered in Australia as a public company. Its registration and corporate details can be verified through the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and through Treasury Wine Estates’ own statutory disclosures and annual reports posted on its investor relations site (https://www.tweglobal.com/investors/reports). These documents identify Treasury Wine Estates Limited as the parent company of various subsidiaries that manage different regions and functions, including brand ownership and trademark holding entities. Within this structure, 19 Crimes is one of many brands managed by the group, but the ultimate ownership rests with the listed parent company and, by extension, its shareholders on the Australian Securities Exchange.
Trademark information further supports that 19 Crimes is owned by Treasury Wine Estates. Public trademark databases, such as those maintained by authorities like IP Australia and international trademark offices, show that the “19 Crimes” word marks and associated logos have been filed and owned by entities within the Treasury Wine Estates group. These records, accessible through official intellectual property registries, list Treasury Wine Estates or its subsidiaries as the proprietors of the 19 Crimes trademarks in various jurisdictions. Such records are considered authoritative in establishing legal brand ownership and align with Treasury Wine Estates’ own brand portfolio disclosures.
The 19 Crimes brand has expanded significantly since its launch, with a range that includes red blends, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, and other varietals, as well as line extensions such as collaborations with public figures. Product details provided on official brand and retailer pages, which are linked or referenced directly from the main Treasury Wine Estates websites, describe 19 Crimes as an Australian wine brand owned and produced by Treasury Wine Estates. These details are repeated consistently across official product specifications, back labels and technical sheets, underscoring that there is a single corporate owner rather than multiple independent producers.
From a consumer perspective in the UK, when people search for “Who owns 19 Crimes”, the answer is that all 19 Crimes wines on British shelves are part of the Treasury Wine Estates portfolio. The company is responsible for sourcing the grapes, winemaking, brand development, and international logistics to bring the wines into the UK. Relevant UK-based company details for Treasury Wine Estates’ European operations can be found through official business registers and on the “Contact” or “Our Locations” sections of the Treasury Wine Estates website, which set out the EMEA office details and confirm that the brand is handled centrally within this corporate structure. Where specific consumer contact details for the 19 Crimes brand itself are not provided separately from the parent company’s general contact information, it is accurate to state that no brand-specific public contact details are found beyond those of Treasury Wine Estates’ regional offices. Accordingly, for the 19 Crimes brand alone: No public contact details found.
In South Africa, consumers encounter 19 Crimes as an imported brand marketed by Treasury Wine Estates’ regional partners. Official distribution information, when available via trade bulletins and authorised importer listings that are linked from the Treasury Wine Estates corporate site, confirms that the product is brought into South Africa under licence from the brand owner, Treasury Wine Estates. There is no indication from any credible corporate or regulatory source that 19 Crimes has any separate South African ownership or local brand proprietor; instead, the brand remains fully owned by Treasury Wine Estates and is simply distributed within the South African market.
The corporate communications of Treasury Wine Estates emphasise that the group’s strategy involves building strong global brands, with 19 Crimes singled out as a growth engine in a number of investor presentations and market updates. These presentations, published as PDFs and web pages on the official Treasury Wine Estates investor portal (for example, strategy updates and results presentations at https://www.tweglobal.com/investors/results-and-presentations), frequently highlight 19 Crimes as a successful innovation in the US, UK and other key markets. The fact that the brand is consistently described as part of Treasury Wine Estates’ owned portfolio and used as an example of its innovation strategy further reinforces that the company is the unquestioned owner of 19 Crimes.
In summary, 19 Crimes is not an independent winery or a standalone company; it is a wine brand wholly owned and managed by Treasury Wine Estates Limited, a publicly listed Australian wine group. Official brand listings, investor reports, and trademark records all indicate that Treasury Wine Estates is the legal and commercial owner of 19 Crimes, with global distribution in markets such as the UK and South Africa managed through its regional subsidiaries and partners. For anyone asking “Who owns 19 Crimes?” the factual, verifiable answer, based on official corporate information from Treasury Wine Estates’ own website (https://www.tweglobal.com/) and supporting regulatory and trademark records, is that Treasury Wine Estates Limited is the owner of the 19 Crimes wine brand.
Leave a Reply