Word: sauvignon
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Dates: during 2010-2019
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...when the news emerged this month that a Loire Valley producer had been smacked down by an Australian tribunal for apparently trying to pass off its sauvignon blanc as a New Zealand brand by labeling it Kiwi Cuvée, critics were quick to revel in the irony. Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper called it a "humiliating blow to Gallic pride," while the Wall Street Journal said that France had gotten a "dose of its own medicine." But the French may have been less guilty of applying double standards than of using the same kind of savvy marketing strategies that...
...World influence can also be seen in the "critter labels" on other nouveau French wines, such as Thierry Boudinaud's Fat Bastard Chardonnay, with its trademark hippo, and Domaine Font Mars' Cabernet Sauvignon, whose labels feature dinosaurs, a nod to the vineyard's fossil-rich soils. And the owner of the Lacheteau vineyard, Les Grands Chais de France, whose wines represent a fifth of the country's total exports, launched a line in 2005 with labels showing cartoon farm animals to indicate the types of meats that best complement the wines...
...While purists fear a dumbing down of French wine may have adverse consequences, Mas says the long-term success of the new brands still depends on quality wine-making. "This Kiwi Cuvée is a perfect expression of the sauvignon blanc grape, which is made in the Loire [valley], but with a New World attitude," says Mas. That may have been reason enough for New Zealanders to fear Lacheteau moving in on their territory - the best-selling wine in Australia is currently New Zealand sauvignon blanc. (See pictures of New Zealand...