B&G launches ‘modern’ Bordeaux range

Barton & Guestier has launched a new range of wines intended to show off Bordeaux’s modern approach and appeal to younger consumers.

The new range, called ‘M de Magnol’, is comprised of a rosé, a white and a red wine and has been made specifically with the on-trade in mind.

As head winemaker Laurent Prada told the drinks business, currently consumption trends among younger consumers was weighted towards lighter, fresher, fruit-driven wines; in France wines like Loire Cabernet Franc and Beaujolais.

Trade communication and marketing manager, Petra Frebault, added that the aim was not to create a cheap, entry-level range but to, “provide a modern Bordeaux style for drinking young. We wanted to get away from the impression that Bordeaux is too oaky, needs laying down and is not for drinking as an aperitif,” she said.

As such, the ‘M’ range had been made with freshness and ‘drinkability’ in mind. The rosé is 100% Cabernet Franc, made with a quick pressing to “get as light a colour as possible,” while the white is a 100% Sauvignon Blanc with the fruit sourced from Entre-Deux-Mers.

For the red two styles are available, the first (and the one released in the French market), is 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon but without any oak ageing and the second is 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon with a little oak to make it slightly more robust.

Buyers will have the option to choose the version they think would be more appropriate to their home market.

Already launched in France, the range was being introduced to international buyers for the first time during the Vinexpo fair.

Frebault said the response had already been “fabulous”, with five buyers, each from different countries, already saying they would carry the full range.

A deeply traditional wine region, Bordeaux’s place in the ever-changing world of wine and its drive – or lack thereof – to innovate was looked at recently in the June issue of the drinks business.