Wine producers from the Loire Valley are launching a new umbrella brand in the UK to create a clearer identity for the French wine region.
Vallée Loire is a collection of six wines - three whites, two reds and a rosé - priced at £4.99 and £6.99, with a £7.99 Crémant de Loire also included.
Created by Alliance Loire - a collaboration of seven co-operatives from the Loire Valley, in partnership with distributor HwCg and CorpBrand Identity - Vallée Loire uses simple design cues, glass colour and straightforward labelling to give the brand a modern image and help customers understand the different varietals.
Alliance Loire said the Loire Valley offered huge sales
potential with consumer-friendly wine styles, but admitted the region was difficult for the export market to understand.
Many consumers, it said, did not realise the wines of Saumur, Muscadet and Vouvray were all from the region, which embraces an area about 300 miles long. Despite this, Alliance Loire said the region was bucking the general decline in French wine sales. While sales for total off-trade French wine fell nearly 1%, the Loire has increased by nearly 12% (ACNielsen, MAT w/e August 7 2004).
Claude Guichet, export director for Alliance Loire, said the huge variety of wines from the region made branding the Loire a challenge. “Working with HwCg has helped us to give a focus to the Loire and develop a brand with meaning for the consumer and we’ve worked with retail buyers and consumers to develop a range that will really work,” he said.
The Saumur Rouge and Saumur Blanc wines in the range, priced at £4.99, have won listings with Tesco.
Claire Hu
Vallée Loire is a collection of six wines - three whites, two reds and a rosé - priced at £4.99 and £6.99, with a £7.99 Crémant de Loire also included.
Created by Alliance Loire - a collaboration of seven co-operatives from the Loire Valley, in partnership with distributor HwCg and CorpBrand Identity - Vallée Loire uses simple design cues, glass colour and straightforward labelling to give the brand a modern image and help customers understand the different varietals.
Alliance Loire said the Loire Valley offered huge sales
potential with consumer-friendly wine styles, but admitted the region was difficult for the export market to understand.
Many consumers, it said, did not realise the wines of Saumur, Muscadet and Vouvray were all from the region, which embraces an area about 300 miles long. Despite this, Alliance Loire said the region was bucking the general decline in French wine sales. While sales for total off-trade French wine fell nearly 1%, the Loire has increased by nearly 12% (ACNielsen, MAT w/e August 7 2004).
Claude Guichet, export director for Alliance Loire, said the huge variety of wines from the region made branding the Loire a challenge. “Working with HwCg has helped us to give a focus to the Loire and develop a brand with meaning for the consumer and we’ve worked with retail buyers and consumers to develop a range that will really work,” he said.
The Saumur Rouge and Saumur Blanc wines in the range, priced at £4.99, have won listings with Tesco.
Claire Hu
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