The sourcing managers at Morrisons have revamped the supermarket’s French wine section with the intention of making it more approachable.
“We try to move through the countries on a periodic basis, where we focus and redevelop what we’re doing. It’s a way of making sure that we’ve got the best value,” wine sourcing manager, Emma Jenkinson said at the supermarket’s Autumn/Winter tasting this week.
“France was one of those places that’s most complicated, so it’s difficult to get right” she added, “but, when [senior wine sourcing manager] Mark Jarman retired, we had a bit of a chance to move things around.”
The overhaul was largely led by fellow wine sourcing manager Charles Cutteridge.
Cutteridge expanded: “A lot of people get intimidated by French wine. They think it’s expensive. They think it’s complicated and it often is those things, but there is also lots of amazing value.”
The majority of Morrisons customers lean more towards New World wines, Cutteridge said. This is “partially just demographics,” but also “we weren’t doing the best job” with French wine.
To make it more accessible, Cutteridge said: “What we tried to do is great everyday value. Bottom shelf stuff is around £5.50, and we invested in things like entry level Côtes du Rhône and Bordeaux to make sure we’re hitting those key price points for people.
“Then we have a core of The Best between £7-12, which is the textbook French appellations. In that there is every key region you would expect us to be showcasing and a couple more – we’ve got a Chinon which nobody else really does.”
The Best
Jenkinson explained that the supermarket is focusing heavily on its premium own-label The Best range.
“It’s a line that gives customers the trust to try new things,” Jenkinson said.
“We’ve got the crowd-pleasers like Primitivo, Malbec, Pinot Grigio, Prosecco and New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc,” she explained.
“But we’re also trying to move into some lesser-known areas such as South African Sauvignon Blanc or South African Grenache Blanc.”
Whichever style, the key is good quality at a value price, she said. This is something customers respond to.
Low, no and Christmas
Morrisons is also concentrating on perfecting its low and no-alcohol wine offerings.
“Wine is more difficult to get right than beer or spirits because you remove alcohol and you’re taking one of the pillars out,” explained Jenkinson.
“It’s still a journey but we’re seeing that much more ‘wine’ style come through and we’ve done a lot of work on that range.
“Still though, we’re noticing that sparkling sells more because it’s much easier to get right.
“We’ve also done lots with our Christmas range where we’ve made the alcohol just slightly less. That way people can still have a sense of occasion and a party atmosphere but not too much.”
Bestsellers
Considering overarching bestsellers, “Prosecco continues to be the top of the board,” Jenkinson said.
“On the rosé table there’s a New Zealand blush and a South African pale rosé that launched earlier this year and they’ve done well.
“In terms of reds it’s the Primitivo and Malbec. And the Douro is also one of our best-selling reds.
“For whites, there is no sign of that crisp dry white going away.”