{"id":16008,"date":"2016-10-19T05:48:59","date_gmt":"2016-10-19T05:48:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/?p=16008"},"modified":"2016-10-19T05:48:59","modified_gmt":"2016-10-19T05:48:59","slug":"five-reasons-why-provence-rose-is-like-champagne","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/provence\/five-reasons-why-provence-rose-is-like-champagne","title":{"rendered":"Five reasons why Provence ros\u00e9 is like Champagne"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"OLYMPUS<\/p>\n

After having spent a few days in Provence, I\u2019m beginning to think that there are some important parallels between Provence and Champagne. Let me try to explain.<\/p>\n

First, both are strong regional brands. Champagne is instantly recognizable. People know what to expect when they buy a bottle of Champagne. There are no nasty surprises, and generally speaking paying a price premium over other sparkling wines is usually rewarded when it comes to Champagne. Even cheap Champagne is tasty enough for the majority of consumers. Provence ros\u00e9 is pretty reliable, and it delivers. There are no nasty surprises: the wines are quite pale in colour, are dry, and have nice texture: they aren\u2019t just about the fruit. The strength of a regional brand is determined in part by reliability. If people are to use a regional name as a buying cue then they are prepared to pay more for guaranteed quality. Thus a regional brand is as strong as the worst examples of that brand, to a large degree.<\/p>\n

\"OLYMPUS<\/p>\n

Second, both regions focus on what they do best and don\u2019t confuse the consumer with too many side options. Provence is 80% ros\u00e9; Champagne is, I\u2019m guessing, 99% bubbles. Provence does make good whites, reds, and lately sparklers, but it\u2019s telling the world about its ros\u00e9. The message is strong.<\/p>\n

Third, both regions have realized that it\u2019s not just about the wine in the glass. Perception isn\u2019t just measuring the physical qualities of the liquid. The Champenois know that the packaging of the product, its image, and the associations consumers have with the particular house or marque alter how they enjoy, and how much they are prepared to pay for, the wine. Also, Champagne in a glass is highly visual. The same is true for Provence ros\u00e9. The way it is presented, its colour, and the situation in which it is enjoyed matter a great deal, and there\u2019s a lot of experimentation with packing here that you don\u2019t find with other styles of wine. The Champenois sell celebration; the Provence producers sell pleasure.<\/p>\n

\"OLYMPUS<\/p>\n

Fourthly, it takes time to understand Champagne and to acquire the ability to distinguish between different quality levels. For many people, Champagnes all taste rather alike. It\u2019s as if you have to learn to appreciate Champagne at a high level. The same is true for Provence ros\u00e9. To many, they all seem quite similar, and it takes a lot of tasting to be able to understand the nuances and notice the influence of terroir and grape variety on the finished product. In addition, recognizing top quality Provence ros\u00e9 isn\u2019t easy for the novice. It requires some practical knowledge of the variations in wine style.<\/p>\n

\"OLYMPUS<\/p>\n

Fifth, terroir matters for both Champagne and Provence ros\u00e9, but many professionals fail to acknowledge this. They are both terroir wines. It\u2019s because of this link to place that both can command a price premium: they can\u2019t be copied.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s for these reasons, that if Provencal wine producers want ideas for how to develop ros\u00e9 in the future, they might be well advised to look towards Champagne for inspiration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After having spent a few days in Provence, I\u2019m beginning to think that there are some important parallels between Provence and Champagne. Let me try to explain. First, both are…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[162,163],"tags":[360,408,409],"class_list":["post-16008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-provence","category-rose","tag-champagne","tag-provence","tag-rose"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16008"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16008\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16015,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16008\/revisions\/16015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}