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1997: Le Prix du Champagne Lanson Noble Cuvée Award for investigations into Champagne for the Millennium investment scams

2001: Le Prix Champagne Lanson Ivory Award for investdrinks.org

2011: Vindic d'Or MMXI – 'Meilleur blog anti-1855'

2011: Robert M. Parker, Jnr: ‘This blogger...’:

2012: Born Digital Wine Awards: No Pay No Jay – best investigative wine story

2012: International Wine Challenge – Personality of the Year Award




Monday 26 January 2009

Upward price pressure on Loire wines

2008 harvest in the Loire: good quality but small quantity

Interesting article by Michel Embareck (see extracts below) in today’s Nouvelle Republique on the upward price pressures on Touraine wines. Interloire predicts that the cost of production will rise by 25% between 2005 and 2011 with labour up by 12% and the cost of bottles and capsules up by 22%. However, the small price rises in the French supermarkets have not fully reflected these increased costs. After the short 2007 and 2008 vintages the same price pressures apply throughout the Loire, especially in Muscadet.

The problem is that retailers – certainly the UK supermarkets in these tough economic times – are desperate to keep prices as they are, even with some companies trying to get their suppliers to absorb rises in UK duty. I can imagine that there will be some interesting discussions between producers and their customers at next week’s Salon des Vins de Loire. Something will have to give – but who will blink first?

Providing the rises are reasonable and not excessive, then I hope it will be the UK retailers. It is long time that the UK wine drinker understood that it is more expensive to produce good wine than mediocre. Reducing yields and looking after vineyards properly is expensive – someone has to be paid to debud, deleaf, cut off the rotten grapes prior to harvest if necessary etc. Equally picking by hand or buying the latest machine harvester and equipment to handle the fruit as gently as possible is expensive. Producers have to make a living and have enough to continue to invest in their businesses. Screwing producers into the ground may give retailers a short-term gain but is a medium and long-term disaster and a potential recipe for fraud.


‘La hausse logique des vins de Touraine
Viticultrice à la Chapinière dans le Loir-et-Cher où elle produit un AOC Touraine, Florence Veilex explique: “qu'en 2008, le verre a augmenté de 17 %, les produits phytosanitaires de 10 % et que depuis environ 4 ans, les prix de vente des vins de Loire en général avaient stagné ou baissé. Il s'agit donc d'un rééquilibrage.”

‘A Interloire, Anne-Sophie Lerouge et Fanny Gilet fournissent des explications plus détaillées. “Selon nos observations et projections, l'augmentation des coûts de production sera de + 25 % entre 2005 et 2011. Le coût moyen d'une bouteille produite par un domaine vinicole local est de 3,41 €, mais il peut aller du simple au triple selon les méthodes de vinification et la taille de l'exploitation.”

‘Toujours selon les mêmes données, la main-d'œuvre prendra + 12 % entre 2005 et 2011, les bouteilles, capsules et bouchons + 22 % alors que les faibles rendements de 2007 et 2008 ont entraîné une perte de production de – 20 % en Indre-et-Loire.

D'après les relevés effectués par Interloire. “La hausse en hypermarché demeure assez faible. Entre 2007 et 2008, le bourgueil a augmenté de + 2,5 %, le saint-nicolas de + 4,8 %, le chinon de + 3 %, le vouvray bulles de + 2 % et le montlouis de + 3 %. Et encore, les coûts de production et de main-d'œuvre n'ont pas été intégralement répercutés sur les prix de vente.”

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