In a highly competitive marketplace wine companies are forever reinventing strategies to extract wine dollars from the consumer. The latest cunning move, which might be termed the cult of the personality, involves the use of celebrity names on wine bottle labels. In a sense celebrity labelling started back in the late '70s when Yalumba released a range of vintage ports bearing the pictures of famous racehorses. Then, just a few years back, Mildara Blass released their highly successful Jimmy Watsons label, piggybacking on the fame of the Jimmy Watsons Memorial Trophy.

Continuing the theme in August this year, Mildara Blass released their Greg Norman Estates label onto the American market. The release, bearing the Great White Shark logo, achieved major media coverage and subsequently the wines, a 1998 Yarra Valley Chardonnay and a 1996 Coonawarra Cabernet Merlot, were highly rated by the Wine Spectator magazine.

In late September Lindemans was next to jump onto the celebrity bandwagon with their launch in Hong Kong of the Lindemans Jackie Chan Reserve Release label. Wine lover and world-renowned director/actor Jackie Chan became a major Southcorp fan while in Melbourne a few years ago, reputedly buying out Vintage Cellars entire stock of older vintages of Penfolds Grange and eventually taking a mixed container load of Southcorp wines back to Hong Kong.

Lindemans capitalised on Chan's enthusiasm by involving him in the production of this latest launch, a gift-boxed super-premium package targeted at well-off wine buyers in Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Taiwan and Singapore. A Lindemans spokesperson told me that the wines, a 1998 chardonnay and 1998 shiraz sourced from South Australia's Limestone Coast region were personally selected by Chan to suit the Asian palate and cuisine. Drinkers wishing to sample the Greg Norman or Jackie Chan wines will have to do so on an overseas trip as neither label will be sold in Australia.

Unleaded wine crystal

Lead crystal wine glasses and decanters are handsome to look at and delightful to drink from but the possibility of cumulative lead poisoning caused by leaching of lead into wine has caused some consumer concern. With this consumer disquiet in mind the Italian company, Luigi Bormioli, has developed a collection of blown crystal stemware equivalent in quality to lead crystal but without the dangers of lead absorption. The manufacturer claims that the metal oxides used in place of lead will not leach impurities into liquids consumed from their glasses.

I tested two sizes (310ml and 410ml) of the Bormioli DOC range of glasses at the recent Exhibition of Victorian Winemakers. Of robust structure they feature shortish stems, a solid feel and the ISO standard tulip shape. The feature that impressed me was that unlike lead crystal glasses these ones are dishwasher proof. Retailing at $9 and $10 respectively, the glasses are relatively inexpensive compared to similar lead crystal glasses.

Tastings

Boutari Santorini Assyrtiko 1997

Boutari is the producer, Santorini is a Greek island and assyrtiko is the grape. Limpid, pale yellow in appearance. A nose of honey, dried apples and discernible almond essence. Beautifully balanced with a rounded mouth feel, generous fruit and tangy acid to finish. Delicious well-priced white. Rating: 88/100. Cellar: to 2005. Price: around $13.

Chateau L'Ermitage Cuvee Sainte Cecile 1996

This Dan Murphy import is from south-eastern France just south of Nimes. Blended from syrah (shiraz), mourvedre and grenache it is warm and spicy on the nose showing faint marzipan aromatics. The palate is quite drying, mid-weighted and moderately tannic. Mouth-feel is soft while secondary wine flavours are harmonious and persistent. Rating: 86/100. Cellar: to 2004. Price: $17.95.

© Martin Field