Are lighter reds the next big wine wave? One French region is banking on it

Looking for the latest wine trend in Europe?

Check out lighter reds than can be enjoyed in their youth, are lower in alcohol and can be drunk chilled in summer.

There are many names to describe these styles: joven, rouge clair, rouge frisson, rouge grenadine among them.

"It is a real wave," says Damien Malejacq, marketing and communications director for French regional wine body Vignerons de Tutiac, which encompasses Bordeaux appellations including Bourg, Blaye, Fransac, Graves, Medoc and Sauternes on both sides of the Gironde River.

 
 Malejacq was talking to French wine newsletter Vitisphere after the recent Wine Paris and Prowein business expos.

The co-op launched two new wines at these shows: Rouge Frais and Mode Rouge. Both have an alcohol content of 11% and are made from 100% merlot.

"The light red wines were the stars of Wine Paris and Prowein," Malejacq said.

"Their ruby-red colour and very aromatic nose caught the attention of visitors. 

"Full-bodied wines are no longer very fashionable.

"We spend less time at the table. Cuisine is changing. Asian and exotic influences are increasingly fashionable.

"Consumers want to enjoy fresh, airy, easy-to-drink wines.

"Tutiac is responding to this demand with these two wines. The co-operative targets young people, but not only them.

"Older people have also changed their consumption habits."

Let’s see if it is an ongoing trend. 

Winemakers urged to experiment

It is rare for big wine companies to release micro brands, but Pernod Ricard Winemakers has just launched Aces & Arrows, a wine brand with a different story and winemaker behind each wine. 

The limited release includes a 2022 Riverland Vermentino (pictured), 2020 Adelaide Hills Grüner Veltliner, 2022 Central Otago Pinot Noir and 2019 Barossa Valley Grenache.

The range saw four winemakers given creative licence to experiment and craft a wine of their choosing using their favourite wine variety.

“We gave our winemaking team the opportunity to have extra creative input, play and have fun when it comes to their craft," said Dan Swincer, Pernod Ricard chief winemaker. 

"No idea was to be left unturned, and that’s how Aces & Arrows was born.

“Every bottle is a direct portal to the inner workings of the winemaker; liquid labours of love, full of heart and skill in spades. When you select a bottle of Aces & Arrows, you can be sure that every drop contains the creativity, passion, and spirit of the craftsman who made it.

“A peek behind the proverbial curtain, an all-access discovery pass to the winemaker’s playground - these are the wines that rarely see the light of day.” 

“Allira”, the creative mind behind the vermentino, sourced one of her favourite varieties from the Riverland, which she fermented in tanks then matured in oak, stirring regularly to build complexity and texture. 

“Tim”, meanwhile, has a mission is to bring lesser-known wines to the spotlight and one of his favourites is grüner veltliner. His fruit parcels from the Adelaide Hills were harvested and pressed at night to retain aromatics and fruit integrity, while 10% saw oak. 

You get the picture. 

I've asked to taste the wines and will report back shortly. 

"I am proud to be a part of this new brand born out of the passion projects of our Pernod Ricard winemakers," said Swincer. "We’ve allowed of our winemakers to push the boundaries and experiment with different varietals in capacities that hasn’t been done before.”

The Aces & Arrows range is now available to purchase from $30 RRP at Coles Liquor Group stores across Australia.

Dissecting the art of winemaking

 

Take a batch of grapes from one Barossa vineyard planted 45 years ago. Share those grapes between six different winemakers and the end result is six different wines.

Artisans of the Barossa shared grenache grapes from the Merv John Vineyard at Light Pass - all picked on the same day in 2020 - between six of their members.

Each produced 480 bottles from their fruit allocation.

Visitors to the new Artisans tasting facility in Tanunda can examine the similarities and differences between the wines. And also enjoy a similar shiraz project. Take your pick.

Corey Ryan and Simon Cowham from Sons of Eden used 50% whole bunch and their fruit spent 19 days on skins in an egg-shaped fermenter, twice being foot plunged. Their wine then spent five months in seasoned oak puncheons - on lees. 

Greg and Alison Hobbs from Hobbs of Barossa Ranges took a different approach: 100% destemmed whole berries, seven days on skins, open fermentation, hand plunging and pumped over twice daily. The oak treatment, however. was similar. 

John and Tim Duval opted for seven months in four-year-old oak puncheons. And so on. 

The Grenache Project 2020 also features wine made stylistically differently from Craig Schell, Craig Stansborough and Mark Slade from Purple Hands and Jason Schwarz. 

The suggested tasting order from lightest to heaviest is: Schwarz, Schell, Stansborough/ Slade, Duval, Ryan/Cowham, Hobbs.

The Grenache Project was launched in 2017 and is aimed at improving understanding of grenache as a table wine in the Barossa. 

After a single row of Barossa grenache is allocated to each of the Artisan winemakers they are left entirely to their own devices when it comes to what happens next. 

The story of the 2020 Barossa vintage was very much of quality over quantity, with yields across the region down by up to 70% on the long-term average. 

That means quality is high - and a tasting of this nature is certainly a conversation starter. 

For details and bookings for a tasting visit https://artisansofbarossa.com/