Two MBA's from Brasenose are doing a study on the future of the traditional small Bordeaux wine producer and wanted some input from someone who has been here since the Middle Ages.
I told them the future is tough for the small grower. Supermarkets sell 90% of all wine now – all around the world – and they just don't seem interested in taking a regular supply of Monsieur Jean's little chateau claret, however good, however cheap.
To survive as a small vigneron now you either have to live in a very posh (pricey) appellation area or be a fanatical, multi-talented nutcase happy to work all hours in your vines then hop on planes to distant lands to sell. Few are up for that.
The best hope for the keen producer is ... us, Laithwaites Wine ... with our large numbers of adventurous customers keen to try individualistic and stylish bottles they've never heard of. They are a lifeline.
Wish we could do more, though.
Inevitably a lot of small Bordeaux growers will be leaving the business soon, and the vineyards of Bordeaux will shrink. But ... it has happened before – over centuries. This is a region that takes the long view. And ... maybe because of all the current difficulties Bordeaux is now one of the most exciting wine regions to work in. Painters and composers do their best work starving in garrets, don't they? It’s maybe becoming the same for winemakers. It’s so tough here you must make something brilliant just to get noticed.
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