Wednesday 28 April, 2004

HAS THE FRENCH WINE INDUSTRY GONE CRAZY?

Some traditional French wines could disappear under new proposals for the restructuring of the industry's control systems. Following the recent INAO proposals to change the French AOC system, Bordeaux's CIVB is already tightening the rules regarding the tasting and classification of all Bordeaux wines and producers in Cahors are being told to produced 'dumbed down' wine for the mass market.

According to one insider, if the bureaucrats get their way, the famous Black Wine of Cahors could be turned into yet another fruity, 'ready-to-quaff' drink. Said Maurice Carroll of wine website, winedrive.com: "It seems the Syndicat Interprofessionnel du Vin de Cahors has decided the region needs a product to hit the already saturated medium price supermarket sector.

"This is crazy thinking. The region has a quality product which can trace its history back many centuries. Instead of getting a grip on promoting an already first class reputation, they expect producers to turn their attentions to cheaper wine in a market sector already flooded with competition."

Cahors is renowned for its 'black wine', one of the oldest in France. Made from the Malbec grape, it is extremely dark, high in alcohol and has good keeping properties often benefiting form many years in the bottle. But they also produce a popular and very cheap wine selling locally for just two or three Euros.

Added Mr Carroll: "Taking an eye off the ball to hit an already saturated market place is crazy thinking but is typical of the approach as the bureaucrats tighten their grip on an already overburdened industry. There are concerns that concentrating on dumbing down could lead to some existing wines becoming more difficult to find or even disappearing altogether."

Ends

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