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South-west French wines need explaining
Wines from the south-west of France are mounting a campaign to push trade and consumer awareness of their region, but its fragmented nature will make it a difficult sell.
Speaking to the drinks business at the launch of this year’s campaign just before the England vs France Six Nations rugby fixture at Twickenham last week, Paul Fabre, director of the Interprofession des Vins du Sud Ouest (IVSO), admitted: “It’s not possible to go to the consumer when we are so fragmented. We must simplify our message.
“Before we used to say the region was like a puzzle, but that explains nothing.”
With 39 denominations that break down into 18 AOC and 21 vins de pays, it is not an area that can be easily classified, particularly when recognisable grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot sit side by side with the likes of Loin de L’Oeuil and Negrette.
However, Fabre spoke positively of the effects of last year’s campaign, which included a partnership with the Wine Gang, an association that is set to continue this year and that Fabre described as a “fantastic connection”.
In another positive step, shortly before the start of the campaign the region’s producers voted in favour of adding the Sud Ouest logo to their bottles; a move that will hopefully provide a recognisable theme and sense of identity.
It is a certainly a move that Fabre welcomed for those reasons, for too long the area’s AOC have been trying to break into markets by themselves and it hasn’t worked. By creating an overall identity and profile first, Fabre hopes that greater awareness will eventually lead to more interest in the category.
The question of grape varieties is difficult but as Fabre pointed out, the region is “the cradle of international grapes”, with Malbec, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon all originating in the region.
“We have indigenous grapes,” he continued, “and we must promote that but that’s not all we have. We are different but at the same time we have the international grapes.”
Rupert Millar, 10.03.2011