I suspect I'm not allowed to say who, but a sparkling wine producer put "organic" on their labels in Sweden in response to customer surveys. They have recently removed the word (not changing the wine) because it reduced sales.
With the caveat that it's a while since I was selling wine through major retailers but, in the UK organic didn't add any value to consumers when buying wine unlike other sectors such as meat, tea.....
Something that is important though is a small but high value sector of the market that is thriving on sustainability and organic credentials. It can be broadly lumped together under the word natural. I see enthusiasm and passion from mainly younger consumers. With the greatest respect to Yapp and TWS, are you asking the wrong people?
The situation is similar in the travel business. I worked at a magazine where we featured an annual sustainable-travel issue. Nobody cared. No traveler has ever chosen a holiday hotel based on its LEED certification or because it serves fair-trade coffee in the restaurant. Perhaps it should matter more, but it doesn't.
Just as I avoid "Duchy Originals" in Waitrose which cost a lot more and taste a lot worse, I avoid wines that boast about being sustainable, organic, and, God help us, "biodynamic" whatever that is meant to mean. I drink a lot of Rhones and I'm sure that people like Chave and Guigal make their wines in a proper way without having to boast. I don't trust virtue-signallers. It's a different subject but bye-bye Sainsbury's who yesterday announced they would only sell white eggs because they have a lower carbon footprint than brown. Racists . . . .
Alarmed by the footnote on Welsh unique bar coding every single bottle.It is common practice in Wales to electronically tag and identify every single sheep.FYI there are 40,000 sheep on Snowden alone.
But for heaven’s sake, a wine bottle is not a sheep.Bureaucracy gone mad and I bet the barcode has to be in Welsh as well.Wooly thinking at its worst.
The minimum unit alcohol pricing in Wales,like the universal 20 mph speed limit, did not work either.
Chester Sainsbury’s is just over the border as trade will surely follow. What happened to growth,growth,growth?
« De Ville argued, however: “I think the question we really should be asking is, are customers happy to pay less knowing that it is only that price because someone or something has been exploited. ». I’m not sure guilt tripping is a good approach. It’s used by a large collection of shyster politicians and eco piss artists, while drinking wine is all about enjoyment.
I think when it's done right, consumers will know you are sustainable without requiring you to specifically point it out - sort of like country that has a "soft power" to influence without anything as obvious as billboard. In my vineyard I have solar panels on the roof, cow horns scattered around, rain water collection barrels, red clover in the rows and sheep wool, so it's obvious I'm sustainable. Even if the cow horns aren't an obvious sign to the average wine drinker, solar and rain water collection are.
My vineyard is terraced and 350 meters above sea level, so most of my visitors do some research about my wine style before booking a tour so they know what to expect - sustainability is baked into my brand. The sheep wool and cow horns are typically asked about, which I gladly explain. If you visit a low intervention vineyard and you see a diesel generator, I think that would generate more questions.🤓 I guess it's sorta like if you visit Austria, you assume it's going to be safe and clean -- you expect it, but the selling point are the history, museums and culture.
Hard not to develop an instant scepticism about B Corp status when you notice that Evian - a company that puts water in plastic bottles ffs - is certified.
Demeter, I've always assumed, is mainly of interest to the sort of earthy types who plait their underarm hair.
Whilst I'm concerned about the origin of the meat and veg I eat, I can't say sustainability and the associated words have registered with me regarding wine. As a long standing TWS member I think of their sustainability moves in a similar vein to their obsession with widening their demographic, when the membership data is clear about who they serve.
I suspect I'm not allowed to say who, but a sparkling wine producer put "organic" on their labels in Sweden in response to customer surveys. They have recently removed the word (not changing the wine) because it reduced sales.
With the caveat that it's a while since I was selling wine through major retailers but, in the UK organic didn't add any value to consumers when buying wine unlike other sectors such as meat, tea.....
Something that is important though is a small but high value sector of the market that is thriving on sustainability and organic credentials. It can be broadly lumped together under the word natural. I see enthusiasm and passion from mainly younger consumers. With the greatest respect to Yapp and TWS, are you asking the wrong people?
The situation is similar in the travel business. I worked at a magazine where we featured an annual sustainable-travel issue. Nobody cared. No traveler has ever chosen a holiday hotel based on its LEED certification or because it serves fair-trade coffee in the restaurant. Perhaps it should matter more, but it doesn't.
Just as I avoid "Duchy Originals" in Waitrose which cost a lot more and taste a lot worse, I avoid wines that boast about being sustainable, organic, and, God help us, "biodynamic" whatever that is meant to mean. I drink a lot of Rhones and I'm sure that people like Chave and Guigal make their wines in a proper way without having to boast. I don't trust virtue-signallers. It's a different subject but bye-bye Sainsbury's who yesterday announced they would only sell white eggs because they have a lower carbon footprint than brown. Racists . . . .
Alarmed by the footnote on Welsh unique bar coding every single bottle.It is common practice in Wales to electronically tag and identify every single sheep.FYI there are 40,000 sheep on Snowden alone.
But for heaven’s sake, a wine bottle is not a sheep.Bureaucracy gone mad and I bet the barcode has to be in Welsh as well.Wooly thinking at its worst.
The minimum unit alcohol pricing in Wales,like the universal 20 mph speed limit, did not work either.
Chester Sainsbury’s is just over the border as trade will surely follow. What happened to growth,growth,growth?
« De Ville argued, however: “I think the question we really should be asking is, are customers happy to pay less knowing that it is only that price because someone or something has been exploited. ». I’m not sure guilt tripping is a good approach. It’s used by a large collection of shyster politicians and eco piss artists, while drinking wine is all about enjoyment.
I agree, a terrible approach. Rory Sutherland is very good one how you can make this sort of stuff more appealing.
I think when it's done right, consumers will know you are sustainable without requiring you to specifically point it out - sort of like country that has a "soft power" to influence without anything as obvious as billboard. In my vineyard I have solar panels on the roof, cow horns scattered around, rain water collection barrels, red clover in the rows and sheep wool, so it's obvious I'm sustainable. Even if the cow horns aren't an obvious sign to the average wine drinker, solar and rain water collection are.
Are they interested? Is it a selling point?
My vineyard is terraced and 350 meters above sea level, so most of my visitors do some research about my wine style before booking a tour so they know what to expect - sustainability is baked into my brand. The sheep wool and cow horns are typically asked about, which I gladly explain. If you visit a low intervention vineyard and you see a diesel generator, I think that would generate more questions.🤓 I guess it's sorta like if you visit Austria, you assume it's going to be safe and clean -- you expect it, but the selling point are the history, museums and culture.
Hard not to develop an instant scepticism about B Corp status when you notice that Evian - a company that puts water in plastic bottles ffs - is certified.
Demeter, I've always assumed, is mainly of interest to the sort of earthy types who plait their underarm hair.
And Nespresso and Brewdog, for a bit.
Haha. At least Evian is drinkable.
This is a very good piece that happens to tackle the same subject as my forthcoming Substack. And we come to the same conclusions.
Thanks RJ, looking forward to reading your take.
Whilst I'm concerned about the origin of the meat and veg I eat, I can't say sustainability and the associated words have registered with me regarding wine. As a long standing TWS member I think of their sustainability moves in a similar vein to their obsession with widening their demographic, when the membership data is clear about who they serve.
My father was scandalized by the Wine Society own label Chinon not having a neck foil.
I may have said the same about a recent bottle. But that would make an old curmudgeon.
Old curmudgeons are the life blood of the wine business. They ignore us at their peril