Alsace swims against the tide

[Glen]

At a time when jujst about every wine region in France is trying to fight archaic legislation in order to be able to name their wines by grape variety and not rely solely on region/terrior as an indicator, Alsace is fighting for exactly the opposite:-

http://www.wineint.com/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storyCode=1834


Is this a move backward for Alsace in this highly competitive era of global sales of wine?

[Maximus]

Glen,

I find it refreshing and think it's a good move. The legislation doesn't force the removal of the grape name from the label, it's just an option, so it will be interesting to see which estates run with it and how successful it is.

An excerpt from the article:

"called the decision "abusive" because it puts terroir on a higher pedestal than grape varieties in Alsace"

I think this is one of the beauties and angles of the French wine culture - the emphasis of terroir and typicity in their wines. Other regions like Bordeaux don't state grape varieties or percentage composition on their labels and in a way it forces the consumer to learn more about the wine/region, not necessarily a bad thing. My two cents.

Cheers,

[Glen G]

Hi Maximus

Yes, I quite agree with you.

I guess my main point was that millions of litres of French wine is being distilled, thousands of French wine growers are up in arms, and sales of French wine have never been so slow in recorded history, and it is the French themselves that are saying they need to rid themselves of this legislative burden, so that they can sell their wine more successfully internationally.

I think most of your average wine buyers buy on grape variety (when not buying on brand familiarity).