Not a huge big deal but...

I'd like to be able to tell the Importer from varying the size of the punt.
Even the blind could participate!
 
It's not like it's unprecedented

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Sadly, a lot of wine drinkers may not know Foillard, but they will know Kermit Lynch. I don't think it's ego. I agree with Slaton, that he's trying to create a brand. I also think it's a good short term boost because enough people will immediately know it's a wine of Kermit Lynch quality.
 
originally posted by Claude Kolm:
originally posted by Mike Klein:
I think it is a little tacky but a lot of other importers beat him to it long ago. Chadderdon, as Nicholas mentioned, also Wilson Daniels had or has some pretty prominent neck labels and who knows what else. Probably quite a few others as well.
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Um, yeah, like Wildman, C&E, the old Schoonamaker, etc. In fact, in the old days, it was pretty much ubiquitous.
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Or cute dogs for special cuvees.
 
originally posted by Tom Glasgow:
originally posted by Claude Kolm:
originally posted by Mike Klein:
I think it is a little tacky but a lot of other importers beat him to it long ago. Chadderdon, as Nicholas mentioned, also Wilson Daniels had or has some pretty prominent neck labels and who knows what else. Probably quite a few others as well.
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Um, yeah, like Wildman, C&E, the old Schoonamaker, etc. In fact, in the old days, it was pretty much ubiquitous.
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Or cute dogs for special cuvees.
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critter.
 
It's a slippery slope between Big Wine and Big Importer. I was a bit dissappointed when the new 09 foillard showed up with the Lynch stamp on front as well. Even more dissappointed to see that the 07 π label changed along with it. Whatever, the wines kick ass anyway.
 
Interesting to press to "brand" an individual to facilitate divesting that individual of the brand. It has certainly worked for some products but fine wine?(emphasis on fine).

Now I'm curious to see 09 Coche labels.
 
originally posted by Cory Cartwright:
Who cares.How's the wine?
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Exactly, I agree.

Sure, Foillard is a big deal to you and me, but from a branding standpoint, for Lynch and Foillard to clearly associated with each other can only strengthen their respective market position. Which, yes, "Rarharahrha, wine isn't a business! It's a living breathing thing," but I hope that winemakers like Foillard would prefer to see more Kermit Lynch-type importers and that Kermit Lynch would like to see more Foillard-esque winemakers.

It only makes sense that they would want to support each other by doing co-branding. One thing's for sure; it won't change the juice.
 
Man, I wish I could be like: this recent change to a HUGE importer strip on this bottle of Braulio is really bringing me down.

Because then I would be looking at a recently imported bottle of Braulio.
 
originally posted by Bill Lundstrom:
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
Back labels ... sometimes replace non-export back labels that contain useful information (such as, in Champagne, disgorgement date, dosage, etc.). That is a true handicap for American bottles.
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for wines that aren't champagne what else would go on the back label that you can't glean from the web?
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I don't have vast experience with American versions of things, but as far as the web goes, I tend to find that French vignerons are pretty poor at creating and maintaining websites, especially detailed ones on the technical aspects of their wines, which are sometimes expressed on the back label.

One recent bottle I had here in Paris was an ouill Ganevat chardonnay-savagnin blend. There was much detail on the back label about the blend composition, parcels/terroir, vintage, time in and type of barrel, the fact that it was ouill and not sous voile, etc. I'd imagine that would all be lost if an importer's back label had to take its place. And Ganevat has no website.

In more concrete experience in the US and also through discussions here, it is clear that much information on specific bottles of champagne is thrown out; you've seen people speculating on vintage or lot based on front label redesign, orI recall once having a bottle from a producer I like and wondering how much dosage it had; no back label, as there would have been in France, to tell me.
 
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
One recent bottle I had here in Paris was an ouill Ganevat chardonnay-savagnin blend. There was much detail on the back label about the blend composition, parcels/terroir, vintage, time in and type of barrel, the fact that it was ouill and not sous voile, etc. I'd imagine that would all be lost if an importer's back label had to take its place.
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It's also true that a lot of imported wine wouldn't contain any information about the wine/estate if it weren't for the fact that importer's often provide some with their back label.
 
My first reaction to the Lynch credit promotion was distaste. But considering it from the non-geek's point of view, for many who have come to trust a particular importer's portfolio selections (as I do with, say, Louis/Dressner wines), seeing the importer's name on the front of the bottle would be a real convenience.

As conventions stand now, I have to pick the bottle up and turn it around for this information. With the new labels, I can identify and focus in on the Lynch selections while scanning the retailers' shelves. If this innovation leads to greater sales of Foillard's wines, I imagine he's totally down with it.
 
originally posted by SteveTimko:
It's not like it's unprecedented

147308.jpg


Sadly, a lot of wine drinkers may not know Foillard, but they will know Kermit Lynch. I don't think it's ego. I agree with Slaton, that he's trying to create a brand. I also think it's a good short term boost because enough people will immediately know it's a wine of Kermit Lynch quality.
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That is way classier. And it's separate. I would accept that. This new thing is pure hubris and by being connected to the producer's label in large print it implies that it's the most important thing. Reminds me of NBI presuming to know how to make wine better than their producers.

KL has a very clear, long running, painstakingly created brand (books, newsletter, store, and the wines themselves) that exists with core wine lovers. I doubt this will do much to pull new folks in and will serve only to alienate the old guard.

Wine is about aesthetics and he is making a lot of his producers' very lovely labels ugly and a turnoff.

And it's a cheesy double standard. There's no way de Villaine will do this on his bottles.
 
Does Foillard have trouble selling his wines though? I mean i get it that Lynch really was the one to spearhead the idea of shopping for wine via the importer (on the back) but it seems to be, like you said Ian, in bad (unnecessary) taste in this case. Also, i have seen some of the labels of Lynch's new selections from italy (liguria, etc) that have his name stamped almost completely across the winemakers label in a red strip. I think it's just a litte too far in my opinion. Like someone else said; if the person has enough sense to "shop by importer" then that person can turn the bottle around.
 
Right; I guess Foillard now sells more successfully than most, but I named him as a proxy for wine-makers in general, of course. All things being equal, if a label change will sell more bottles, I'd imagine most producers would vote 'aye' for the change.

I'm surprised that Lynch isn't pursuing a more discreet front-labeling technique, though; perhaps a bottom strip, or at least writing his name under the producer's. I would suppose that the approach he's adopted is driven by business considerations: maybe he thinks that market competitiveness has increased to the point that brand recognition is strategically critical for his company now, or maybe his company now operates at a scale that, he believes, makes this kind of thing essential to its continued growth. Anyway, the result - as folks here say - is jarring.
 
there is plenty of room on the back of a wine bottle for all sorts of information and the wine importers logo. there are also lots of wines imported to the usa that have blend info, food pairing suggestions, etc on the back label. my point is, there is room for detailed info about blends, picking dates, time in barrel, etc and the importers logo on the back label.

look at the back of a rosenthal import. no wine info but a large label describing his business. ( i think thats whats there i don't have one handy right now). again, lots of room for info about the wine.

not an imported wine but look at a ridge label. field blend on front label, description of vintage, picking dates, maturity date, etc. on the back.

i don't see where moving the importers info to the front label allows for space to give more info about whats in the bottle.
 
not only that, they arent adding any more detailof those wine details to the back, it's in ADDITION to the existing importer logo (in this case). All im saying is unnecessary and ugly.
 
Some French producers are using what is technically the back label appear to be the front label in order to be able to add information that the authorities won't permit on the front label, and they call what appears to be the back label the front label.
 
originally posted by Claude Kolm:
Some French producers are using what is technically the back label appear to be the front label in order to be able to add information that the authorities won't on the front label, and they call what appears to be the back label the front label.
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Or because they fear losing the AOC in any particular vintage and don't want to change labels if that happens.
 
BTW, does anyone else remember back about 20 years or so ago when stemware producers such as Riedel and Baccarat started putting their names on the base of the stems, much to the dismay of traditionalists? Does anyone still object? I bet more people are happy about it now.
 
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