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COLUMNS GASTRONOME OCTOBER 2005

Winemakers try to woo women.
October 2005

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WORDS BY JANE BLACK

WOMEN WHO WINE

What’s the perfect pairing? Ask anyone in the wine biz these days and they’ll tell you it’s not wine and cheese, but wine and women. The fairer sex buys 77% of all wine in America and consumes 60%. And according to the Wine Market Council, 53% of all premium wine sold (with a price tag above $15) is purchased by women. The wine industry has seen the future, and it’s not your average Joe—it’s Josephine.

Wine makers are taking different approaches to woo women. In April, Beringer Blass released White Lie Early Season Chardonnay, a low-calorie, low-alcohol wine targeted exclusively at the female market. Made from Santa Barbara chardonnay grapes picked before sugar levels reach their peak, it has just 9.8% alcohol, as it’s further de-alcoholized before bottling. That’s far less than most popular wines that range from 13% to 14% alcohol. As a result, White Lie also has fewer carbohydrates and, at 97 calories per glass, 25% fewer calories than regular chardonnay.

White Lie has a savvy marketing campaign to match. Its labels sport a romantic script, and the corks are imprinted with various familiar and coy excuses, such as, “I got it on sale,” and “I’ll be home by 7.”

Smaller wineries are also jumping into the game. California Rainier Wines is hawking Mad Housewife brand chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon (www.rainierwine.com), while Washington-based Working Girl Wines has a line with names including Working Girl White, Go Girl Red and Rosé the Riveter. And in another sign of the times, this August saw the launch of the first glossy women’s wine-lifestyle magazine, Wine Adventure. The premiere issue included stories about traveling through Mendocino, California, the social benefits of wine tastings and a “wine snobbery” quiz. “Women don’t care about terroir and the nitty-gritty details about how great wines are made. But we do care about it in the context of our lives—how it pairs with things we love like food, travel and entertainment,” says editor-in-chief Michele Ostrove.

Perhaps. But I, for one, am skeptical about wines bottled exclusively for women. True, most novice wine drinkers—men included—choose a bottle based on the look of the label. So luring us with sexy marketing is smart. (I once stupidly selected a $10 California zinfandel with a pretty label from someone’s cellar over a $90 bottle with an ugly label from cult vineyard Rosenblum—a mistake you only make once.) But the idea that all women do is count calories is awfully patronizing. Our palates want great wines with structure and a balance of fruit, alcohol and acidity—just like men do.

Ostrove agrees, though she’s more diplomatic. “Personally, I’d rather taste the wonderful world of wine in all of its calories,” she says. “But my party line is that it is a positive sign that the industry is waking up to the fact that women are a market force to be reckoned with.” And even I have to say cheers to that.

White Lie

Jokes on the label like, “It’s my natural color,” are designed to appeal to women, but so is what’s inside. Beringer’s White Lie Chardonnay has less alcohol and fewer carbs and calories than traditional wine. $10. www.whiteliewines.com

Working Girl Wines.

Owned and run by three women, Washington-based Working Girl turns out several blends, including Working Girl White, Go Girl Red and Rosé the Riveter. Under $14. www.olympiccellars.com

PinUp Wine

California vineyard De La Montanya Winery offers four wines for women: a viognier, rosé, pinot noir and cabernet. The bottles feature photos of ’40s-style models. $18 to $38. www.pinupwine.com

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