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RHONE VALLEY
– REGION –
Maison Chapoutier’s famous Le Pavillon designated vineyard in the Ermitage
appellation on the left bank of the Rhone. The vineyard covers 4 hectares on
Hermitage hill and boasts very specific soils
For smaller estates, sales remained dynamic in the first
quarter of 2020. “But orders shipped at the beginning
of the year generated lower sales in export markets, the
market stalled and restocking did not materialise in June.
In the United States, we cut our margins by 10% and
importers refocused on their long-standing suppliers.
Listings were put on hold”, says Marty Echerei, sales
manager for Domaine Lucien Tramier. Although it is
refocusing on the French and European market, Domaine
Lucien Tramier has not lost sight of the American market,
which it has been canvassing for the past two years. In the
future, it intends to reinvest in the East and then the West
coast of the United States.
Rhone Valley wines have declined by 17% in volume
and 23% in value in the American market, their leading
export market. The disruption has favoured the British
market, which ranked first just as Brexit came into force.
Although the United Kingdom exited the European Union
in January 2020, concerns about additional customs
or import duties have been allayed, offering guarantees
of a level playing field. Obviously, Brexit comes with
administrative and customs formalities, but the extra red
tape, whilst a hindrance to trade flows, does not seem to
be penalising exports. At the time of writing, the market for
Rhone wines in the UK has surged by 14%.
Some wineries that had not be working with the British
market have broken new ground online through formats
such as 37.5 cl bottles. Domaine des Gravennes, which
farms 30 hectares in the southern part of Drome and
exports 30% of its wines, is a case in point. “We didn’t
really have a presence in England but during lockdown, a
market opened up through development of online sales”,
recounts Luc Bayon de Noyer.
Lucien Tramier’s vineyard in Jonquières, Vaucluse
BOOMING OR COMPLEX MARKETS
When he became chairman of Inter Rhône in November
2020, Philippe Pellaton suggested the industry promote
Côtes du Rhône, Côtes du Rhône-Villages and the region’s
Crus. In Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Château Sixtine exports
95% of its wines. For its owner Jean-Marc Diffonty, who
saw a third of his exports in the category, i.e. 70,000 bottles,
wiped out, the Côtes du Rhône appellations will be the
hardest hit by the Trump taxes. Despite Côtes du Rhône
26 SPRING 2021 GILBERT & GAILLARD - THE FRENCH EXPERTS ON WINE