Restaurant magazine 31 October 2001 issue
“I’d like a nice Chardonnay please.”
“We have Red Ridge in a frosted blue bottle or Windswept Gorge with a slick minimalist label.”
“Which is the best?”
“Well, they taste the same, but the Windswept Gorge looks sharper.”
Hopefully this isn’t a conversation you’ll hear in a restaurant, but there’s no denying trendy packaging is one way to make your bottle stand out from the rest. This is particularly true, of course, of producers trying to grab the drinker’s bewildered eye, when confronted with shelves full of enticing names, bottles, grapes and regions. But does the look of a wine play an increasing role in selecting in a restaurant – for the proprietor or the punter – where usually we go on a name, a recognisable style, a vintage or the sommelier’s recommendation?
The invasion of clever branded wordplay and gimmicky bottles has already taken hold in the retail sector, with varying success and quality of the liquid inside. What ever happened to Bend in the River, a ‘new wave’ German in a tall, curvy bottle? The wine wasn’t bad, just dull and overpriced. There’s the Pendulum duo, Australian Chardonnay and Italian Zinfandel dressed to kill in sexy silver outfit, which admittedly both taste good. Or Miranda White Pointer, a passable dry white adorned with shark hologram appearing when sufficiently chilled; pretty and practical. Deep Purple Shiraz, all 70s glitz and confected flavours. Fat Bastard Chardonnay, Old Git red; actually decent French wines but how well would they sell otherwise?
This kind of visual or sense of humour seduction may become more important in the on-trade e.g. All Bar One where the wines are racked on shelves behind the bar. The heavyweight, flat-top bottle has been with us for a while and high profile brands packaged thus, such as California’s Robert Mondavi or Chile’s Cono Sur, suit the restaurant table well, where the name probably counts. The attraction of such brands is obvious: familiar, perhaps uncomplicated, consistent and they sell easily without explanation.
The buff or snob appeal of traditional names of fine wines, quality aside, will always be a big pull for some customers, whatever they look like. Listing top Burgundies or Barolos can be commendable and impressive but doesn’t necessarily match the establishment or offer value. For example, Manchester’s rated Pacific restaurant offers innovative Thai and Chinese dishes and a fantastic wine list brimming with famous Bordeaux reds; but do they go the food?
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