The Changing Nature Of The Wine Industry

The future of wine is evolving and the industry has to adapt in order to survive and flourish. This is according to Robert Joseph, an internationally respected wine expert and winemaker, and the author of the soon-to-be published book, The Future of Wine has Changed. Jeandré van der Walt reports.

- Jeandré van der Walt

Recent years have seen a number of major changes in technology. Telephones, cameras, maps and even encyclopaedias have all been replaced by the smartphone. Even taxi services have changed and can now be ordered via apps such as Uber. In a world where change is perpetual, it is naive to think that the wine industry will be exempt; in fact, it needs to get on board to avoid being left behind.

So says internationally regarded wine expert and winemaker Robert Joseph.

LOCATION LESS IMPORTANT

According to Joseph, the lack of diversity in wine packaging makes it increasingly difficult to judge the price and quality of wine by its label. He cites the case of two wine bottles that look very similar in design but have a price difference of 10 000%.

He also questions the relevance of the appellation system, which identifies a particular wine according to the geographical location of the vineyards from which it originates. He says producers are increasingly abandoning the system “because a lot of people are making wines that don’t conform to the rules”.

Many winemakers choose to source grapes from a variety of geographical locations in the quest to produce unique wines that offer interesting complexity.

Joseph uses the example of his own wine, which he used to sell as a Vin de Pays, a French term meaning ‘country wine.’