| Taking a cue from Spain which announced recently that it would launch its own national wine brand, France has decided to launch one of its own later this year to liquidate some of the inventories and take on some of their rivals overseas.
The brand will cover Vins de Pays (VDP) wines and will be called 'Vinobles de France. Supporters of this decision feel that the move will allow winemakers to be more flexible and help them reduce the unsold wine which has become a regular feature in the industry. They emphasize that ' France ' would be the selling feature of these wines. Last year, the government had included the proposal in its national wine strategy, drawn up as a blueprint for re-launching French wines on the international market.
The brand would enable winemakers to blend VDP wines from different regions for the first time. Thus, brand owners can offer all styles of VDP under one name without confusing the customer with different origins.
Australia and the New World may be gaining mostly from France in markets like the UK , there remains a big rivalry between French and Spanish winemakers. Many in southern France peer jealously across the border at what they believe to be less bureaucracy and more government support enjoyed by their Spanish counterparts.
Not everyone is happy about the French plans to follow Spain 's lead with a national brand, however. Part of the VDP d'Oc label, which makes more than half France 's VDP and currently exports more wine than Bordeaux , do not want any change. |
