¡¾2018CFWC Interview¡¿Nicolas Carr¨¦:Medium to small size wineries should start with a national dist
Date£º
2019-01-25 12:15 Source£º
www.winechina.com Author:
sarah shen Translator:
Nicolas Carr¨¦,Senior French sommelier.He has been our wine judge for 7 years.Let's hear what's his comments on Chinese wines!
WINECHINA:Hi, Nicolas! Have you find some interesting and impressed wines during tasting?
Nicolas: I have definitively found some interesting wines during the China Fine Wine Competition.
WINECHINA:What¡¯s your overall comments on Chinese wines? varietal/ style,etc
Nicolas:Definitely Chinese wines are to be considered on international market. I¡¯m happy that every year I discover new great or ¡°very acceptable¡± wines in China.
Now let¡¯s see in a very near future about the quality of experimental varieties in some regions¡. This may surely boost the quality and the originality of Chinese wines¡ I am exciting to try all these experimental varieties in different regions. I am impressed with the Marselan but I still guess some Pinot noir in Gansu will give great results soon¡
Compared to year ago, quality in wine making has improved a lot and we now can find very decent Chinese wines in the market for consumers¡ When it comes to professional judgement, I still think many Chinese wines still have to improve in the vinification and particularly concerning the cleanness of the grapes during the harvest and/or the cleanness of the vinification equipment.
Wines are not faulty till consumers can make abstraction of these details, but still many wines are not clean when tasted. When it is not the tannins covering all the fruit, it happens very often the fruits don¡¯t seem pure and fresh to the nose and comes out a musty or unappetizing touch revealing a problem of cleanness with equipment or harvest.
WINECHINA:For Chinese wine¡¯s making, do you have some suggestions to further improve quality?
Nicolas: It is hard for me to suggest how to improve quality since I¡¯m not an oenolog, and I believe China has a good number of influent people to help improving national wine quality. All improvements for Chinese wines are on their way concerning viticulture, vinification and maturation. My only suggestion has a passionate for wines is to give more purity and delicacy to the wines¡
WINECHINA:How do you like Chinese Marselan wines?
Nicolas:Since many years we are talking about Marselan grape potential in China. Results are there and wines are great, offering a good alternative to people looking for well structured, full bodied and aromatic wines¡ I tried my first impressive Marselan wines 10 years ago in Huailai region. It is nice to see that variety has found a nice development in other regions. I was definitely impressed with Marselan from Chateau Huahao, Amethyard¡ This veriety fits very well with Chinese palate
WINECHINA:How do you like Chinese white wines and rose wines? Do you think there¡¯s market?
Nicolas:For sure there is a market for Chinese white and rose wines¡ This market seems already wider because of women. Concerning the ros¨¦ wines, women seems to appreciate the beautiful color some ros¨¦ wines offer. I have personally noticed the higher demand for white and ros¨¦ when women order wines to me¡ their feminity, sensibility focus more on the subtility these wines can offer, less powerful but more delicate and ¡°feminine¡±.
For what I have tasted in China, I was impressed by very few white or ros¨¦ wines and nowadays, I regret the tendency to leave (when it¡¯s not to add) some sugar in those wines¡The freshness is the key of a wine and sweetness is rarely balanced with freshness in the Chinese white or ros¨¦ wines, which give an impression of heaviness to many of them¡
WINECHINA:Awhat about fruit wines you tasted?
Nicolas:I personally didn¡¯t really enjoyed the fruit wines we have tasted¡ Mostly all of them are not correctly balanced. Aromas and sweetness seems to be the only 2 ingredients in the Chinese fruit wines. Those wines are not bad and may please the Chinese consumers, but the structure of the ¡°wines¡± is not acceptable for wine competition¡
WINECHINA:You¡¯re much get involved in market. Compared with imported wines, how Chinese wines to communicated with consumers?
Nicolas:Till I am in China, concerning Chinese wines, I have always been very impressed with ¡°positive¡± communication made by a bunch of foreigners rather than Chinese wine lovers¡ Foreign consumers are permanently asking about Chinese wine quality and improvement. Many are willing to try those wines but can hardly find them in the main cities.
When it comes to communication, I first regret the unfair situation in supermarkets where you only can find commercial & only powerful wineries¡¯ wines. I also regret the fact that still very few Chinese wine sales people are aware of the potential of Chinese wines, and finally, I regret that Chinese consumers all have, at first, a so ¡°negative¡± image of Chinese wines¡
I am not Chinese and I am not involved in product marketing industry, but I wonder sometimes if the best communication for Chinese wines may finally not come through foreigners?...
When I talk to Chinese consumers about Chinese wines, their first reaction is asking ¡°how bad is the wine for you?¡±. Pride starts to come back when I simply reply that I enjoy most of Chinese wines I have tasted¡ Interest is growing¡ till comes the question ¡°Where can I find those wines?¡±.
So, for me, launching a communication with consumers for those ¡°medium¡± to ¡°small¡± size wineries producing great wines should start with a national distribution channel plan instead of organizing impressive free dinners with same guests every year finally waiting for free wines offered at the end of the dinner!