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French Country Travel Life Champagne Bonanza
French Country Travel Life Champagne – is not going to have a good collection of da bubbly this year. That’s the bad news. The Good news is that it will be a GREAT (as in exceptional) One! At least that’s the prediction of them thar scienceterrific government wine gurus. (One of the only agencies of any Government trusted by DA BG!)
“They” say that bubbly production , which was supposed to increase by a modest 11% in 2013, is actually going to fizz up to around 56%.
More on this “Bubbly Miracle” from our Champagne-no-file pals at qz.com:
“A bumper harvest doesn’t necessarily equate to a “good year”—if there’s more wine than willing wine buyers, prices can get pinched, and the quality of the harvest is often as important as the quantity—but this year’s surprisingly hefty harvest is great news for sellers and buyers alike. The champagne industry, which sells over $5 billion in sparkling wine every year, has seen global consumption grow steadily over the past decade, but it’s also suffered a slew of disappointing news as of late. A hailstorm two weeks back destroyed entire vineyards across an over 17,000 acre (6,900 hectare) area, last year’s harvest was cripplingly poor, and global champagne shipments declined 4.4% despite steady growth in demand.
France consumes roughly half of the champagne it produces, but it relies on the rest of the world to drive the industry’s growth; the UK, US and Germany consume over 60 million bottles annually, and have shown little fatigue. The US, for one, saw its consumption jump another 13% last year. Japan, Belgium, Italy, Australia and Switzerland all import over 5 million bottles apiece each year. And then there are the industry’s fast-growing markets, which, while still relatively small, are exploding.
Chinese imports of champagne rose 52% last year, but the market still remains largely untapped—only 0.05% of wine consumed in China is of the sparkling variety. Given China’s taste for wine, and the country’s longstanding tradition of cultivating its own grapes, champagne makers see it as a largely positive move. Just this past May, China offically recognized the Champagne Appelation , thus ensuring that only sparkling wine from the Champagne region can be given the name in China. In a country where status and perceived luxury go a long way in selling all goods, but especially alcohol, a seal of exclusivity goes a long way. China also has a reputation for copycat goods, to which champagne is particularly susceptible; even in the US, some 50% of sparkling wine that isn’t from the region is sold as champagne.”
French Wine Cola Marriage
While some would applaud this as “progress advancement away from traditionalism”, others (myself included) call it for what it is: A blatant grab for the “youth market.” The remarkably insightful assumption being that since young people drink cola, if we add cola to Wine, we’ll get a chunk of the youth market.
Not to rain on this haute gamme advertising concept, but it should be noted that the “youth market” also drinks beer, vodka, and most everything else that isn’t wine.
Bottom Line: not a slam-dunk. Will they entice some un-winers into the fold. Undoubtedly. But lets hope that French Wine Cola is not some foreigner’s first taste of World renowed “French Wine.” N’est ce pas?
Alors, enough of my probing analysis! On to the nuts n’ bolts of this “shotgun marriage”(or perhaps the cola bride is willing? ) – from our (we hope) REAL wine drinking pals at timeslive.co:
“While French producers still balk at the unorthodox mixes practiced by some of their foreign counterparts — who mix red and white wine and dare to call the result rosé — a few of their countrymen have concocted phenomenally successful products by employing similar methods, creating an entirely new product range.
According to the latest estimates, 30 million bottles of flavored wine will be sold in France over the course of 2013, double the figure seen in 2012.
Rosé, with a grapefruit twist
This citrusy beverage is the star of the new market in France for flavored wine-based beverages: rosé wine is combined with water, sugar and grapefruit flavoring. Today, grapefruit rosés account for 75% of sales in the sector. Even the jury of the Concours Agricole de Paris, a prestigious French competition for agricultural products, showed its approval, awarding a silver medal to the grapefruit rosé produced by Maison Bigallet.
A wine dealer working with growers in the Bordeaux region, Haussmann Famille set the wine world abuzz with its “rouge cola”: red wine accented by the taste of the famous soft drink. This new product completes the range launched by the company last April under the name of “Sucette” (French for “Lollipop”).
“The result is surprising,” affirms Pauline Lacombe, Haussmann Famille’s marketing director. She adds that the beverage “should be served ice-cold,” and that “the balance between the bitterness of the wine and the sweetness of the cola is perfect.”
The possibilities in the realm of flavored wines are limited only by the imagination of producers, who work hand in hand with flavor laboratories. Haussmann Famille’s first strides in the sector included Rosé Sucette Fruits de la Passion, a rosé wine with passion fruit flavoring. A white version of the passion fruit Sucette soon followed, as rosé wines are not the only ones that lend themselves to flavoring.
“Technically, all colors are likely to be associated with a flavor. One can come up with as many flavors as there are different yogurts,” remarks Olivier Poels, co-author of the reference guide “Les meilleurs vins de France.”
Winning over new wine consumers
Is grapefruit rosé the first chapter in a long-term success story? According to Olivier Poels, it is still too early to tell. The French have shown their discernment in recent years by drinking less wine but selecting better quality products. But they have also shown openness to wines produced by somewhat unorthodox methods. In fact, fans of flavored wines have little to nothing in common with the usual wine enthusiasts.
Producers of this new breed of wine-based beverages are clearly targeting women and young adults, and a focus on refined and colorful packaging makes all the difference.
“Flavored wine gives newcomers an introduction to wine. For younger consumers, these beverages help to make the transition between soft drinks and more mature beverage choices. Our Rosé Sucette Fruits de la Passion, for example, has an alcohol content of just 9% by volume,” explains Pauline Lacombe, of Haussmann Famille.
Read more HERE.
French Country Travel Life Camera Caper – Part Two
(Author’s note: checking out PART ONE could make the following ” mo beddah”)
Ok – here’s the pulse-quickening second installment of my French Country Travel Life Camera Caper.
As two weeks dissovled into the start of three, still no camera. And to add to the free floating anxiety, my pals needed their apartment back.
Not to worry. Happily DA BG had more than one Parisian pal. Jean Michel was that one. A fellow “realisator” who offered me a couch to surf on until the “big day” arrived.
Curiously, it went down the very next am. When the morning mail brought the long awaited news that my ‘unit” had arrived. Just one (not so)tiny grain o’ sand in this otherwise pristine oyster. The French Customs wanted what I considered to be, an excessive amount of import duty. 700 Euros. Excessive for you too?
This for a used camera that cost $80 to repair, $50 to ship, plus $35 for a new battery. They somehow decided (a coin flip was my guess) that both items (camera and battery) were each worth 350 Euros. (At this time, worth waaay more than dollars.)
Obviously something was rotten. And it wasn’t in Denmark. Closer inspection of the dastardly document confirmed that the stinky fish was the advice of the French company who had shipped the camera. As a result of their “help” I had ticked the wrong box. The result: French Customs was charging me for a NEW camera. (and battery.)
While I don’t know for sure if “le douane” (French Customs) has the same powers as the IRS – a la – they can take and sell your house, car and teddy bear, then say “oh gee ..sorry …we made a mistake” and there is no “remedial action.”
But my quest for a non 700 Euro solution did confirm that if you don’t pay, they store your precious maguffin indefinitely.(Like certain American police store confiscated drugs “indefinitely?”)
However, unlike the no way josé IRS, you can file a claim against “le Douane.” That’s the good news. The bad is just what you’d expect.(Especially in a country where four out of five froggies are bureaucrats.) There is no time line obliging them to respond. Equally, no criteria as to how they arrive at their decision. Which is, bien sur, Final. (Can you say:” no appeal?”)
Bottom line: to say very few claimants are successful would be the height of overstatement.
Quelle adventure wot? Clearly my mantra here was :”can’t pay – won’t pay.” And, equally I was NOT going to try duking it out with le Douane. But, obviously, I had to have the camera. Yes, dear reader, “Rock and a hard place” time!
Without a doubt I needed divine intervention. And divine intervention I got. In the form of a delivery guy who was either: a) new on the job b)a few bricks short of a full load c) had other things on his mind. Because, while I wasn’t there, he delivered the goods without demanding the 700 Euro first! (Yes, there IS a dog!)
His company, predictably,squealed and howled. But it was, as I good naturedly reminded them – THEIR mistake. And you know who pays when you make a mistake dear reader. Do you not?
EPILOGUE: I did make my rendezvous with the Famous chef. Who turned out to be a total jerk. Insisting on doing our interview in French, although he spoke perfect English and understood my cinematic masterpiece would be viewed by English speakers. Takes all kinds to make a World, dunnit?
THROW ME A BONE HERE,PEOPLE!
What are ya thinkin’?
