WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE' WINE MIDDLE GROUND?'

On Saturday night we had a dinner and wine tasting here at Maison Du Vin.

Around the dinner table conversation a question was posed. In the world of buying wine

'What has happened to the middle ground?' It was a good question and provoked an interesting debate. It seems that the vast majority of the wine buying public do not know where the middle ground is either? This is born out by the stark truth that around 80% of all wine sold in the UK is around the £4 a bottle mark. Sales of fine wines say over £15 per bottle are a fraction of the remaining 20%. So this leaves a whopping price band that has suddenly and mysteriously disappeared from the countries consciousness

Well hijacked actually, hijacked by the Supermarkets! Who else? They dominate the market. You see they have managed through clever marketing to 'shoe horn most of the countries wine buyers into that very narrow price band that is most profitable and most efficient for them. The £4.00 - £5 bracket.

It is in this grubby little hole where all the truly nasty branded horrors lie. The type of wine that you finished off at a party and wished you hadn't! The cocktail of chemicals that has never been anywhere near a vineyard and has probably been made by boiling a pan of water and waving a bunch of grapes over the top! You may point out that most supermarkets have a so called 'Fine wine section' but is never promoted and sales are in general pretty poor.

Conversely of course all the cheap branded rubbish is promoted to hell.

Over the last ten years or so, many many people have adopted a mind set that pigeon holes wine into two categories. Cheap everyday at £4 then a quantum leap right up to fine wines at £20 a bottle plus. Which in most peoples minds is 'far to good for the likes of them!'

Now here is something that might shock and amaze you. The middle ground is only £2 a bottle more! YES just two quid.

When I first started in the wine trade over 20 years ago the middle ground was where most people spent there money and found great value and nothing has changed. In fact I would say that it has got a whole lot better. So where is this hallowed ground? £6 - £12 per bottle that's where £15 if you want to push it. This is where you are going to find all the great wines that time forgot. Macon Village. Cotes du Rhone Village. Chablis, Sancerre, Rioja, Chianti and many many more. Not to mention lots of great bottles from new world independent producers. One could easily drown ones sorrow's in this huge price vat for the rest of ones life and be constantly surprised and delighted and this bracket stretches across all wine producing countries and grape varieties. It opens up an entire new world of discovery and boundless enjoyment and it is only £2 a bottle more.

Now come on. If somebody offered you the chance to change your life for an extra two quid

would you not be tempted? GO ON. GIVE IT A GO!

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Wine in deep do-do

Once again Wine is in deep do-do.Article Posted: Saturday October 17thArticle last updated on: Saturday October 17th
Once again Wine is in deep do-do. By Antony le Ray-Cook Oct 09 Television in- France 2 has alleged that wine is full of pesticides, which according to the non-pros can lead to illness. The wine industry has slammed a French television report on pesticides in wine as 'misleading'.
The programme said pesticide traces in wine may lead to illness. It also described the use of non indigenous yeasts in fermentation and the addition of sugar (chaptalisation) as unnatural.
'Wine, is it still a natural product?' was viewed by millions in France Jean-Louis Salies, president of the Comité National des Interprofessions des Vins " Appellation d'Origine (CNIV) expressed 'profound anger' at the report. His thoughts are enjoined by Wine & Dine plus millions of pros.
In an 8 October letter to France 2, obtained by decanter.com, he wrote, 'Pesticide use has dramatically dropped in the last ten years. Any residual pesticide in glass is subject to maximum limits.'
In the programme Ghislain de Montgolfier of Champagne Bollinger admits there are traces of pesticides in wine, but they would be harmful only if consumed in massive amounts.
'So I would not advise you to drink more than 150 bottles of Champagne per day,' he joked. Try as I might 150 bottles a day is just a little much for a grown man! M. de Montgolfier later explained to decanter.com pesticide levels in wine must be 'within limits for wine and wine grapes established by the World Health Organisation' and so 'the programme was totally misleading.'
'This was a programme made by non-professionals to scare non-professionals,' Diane Flamand, oenologist with Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite), told decanter.com.
'What shocked me is that they did not address lutte raisonée [a system of using pesticides 'within reasonable limits': less often and less aggressively]; excessive pesticide use was a problem 15 years ago, but not today.'

Chiliean earthquake: wineries reaction

Written by Richard Siddle /Harpers
Monday, 01 March 2010

Harpers Wine & Spirit has received messages from Chilean producers, O Fournier and Claro Wineries, following this weekend's earthquake and impact on their wineries. We will keep you updated on events as we receive them.

José Manuel Ortega, chairman O. Fournier Group, said: "As most of you may know, we suffered a severe earthquake in Chile yesterday. The center of the earthquake was just 60 miles from our Maule operations. All our staff is well. The challenge now is enormous as we were about to start our harvest.

"Since we started the O. Fournier project 10 years ago, we have had significant and difficult times. This event tops anything we may have encountered in the past for personal and business reasons. I am blessed to have such a brave and committed group of O. Fournier staff in Chile who will be up to the task with the help of everyone else in the O. Fournier family.

"Finally, I want to thank all the people that have contacted us yesterday, from China, Japan, US, England, Holland, Brazil and so many other places. I was deeply touched by such a sense of care and solidarity. These circumstances show once more why the wine business and its people are so special and make me, once more, be extremely proud to be a part of it."

Juan Ramsay, Claro Wineries, said: "Our company is focusing all of its efforts to provide support to the families of those employees that have been affected, and fortunately we have no lives loss to mourn.

"We deeply appreciate all of your calls for support, and we will keep you updated with the latest news we have about this tragedy.

"In the meantime, we would like to ask you for some patience and understanding until we are able to re-establish communications and service."

Earthquake hits Chilean wine regions

Written by Harpers Editorial team
Monday, 01 March 2010

Saturday's Chilean earthquake has affected some of the country's wine regions, it has emerged, though the full scale of the damage and loss of life remains unclear.
Michael Cox, UK director of Wines of Chile, described the situation as "alarming, shocking, and concerning" and expressed "heartfelt sympathy to all Chileans" on behalf of the British wine trade.
He added: "At this early stage, it has been difficult to ascertain the extent of the damage to Chile's wine regions and winery infrastructure, but I have had contact with a number of friends in Chile who report that there is significant damage in the southern wine areas closest to the epicentre, notably Bío Bío, Cauquenes, and other parts of Maule, and Curicó.
"Even wineries as far north as Colchagua have been affected, with structural damage, road collapses, and power and communication problems."
Cox said his office would monitor the situation, offering updates whenever possible. He added: "In due course Wines of Chile will find a way to ensure that the UK wine trade can send funds to help families in need as Chile finds its proud feet again."