Loading...
How does a historic winery appeal to new drinkers? Do you decamp to TikTok and spruce up your social media presence? Do you make orange wine or produce a pét-nat? Do you re-do your labels to make them visually intriguing—more appealing to people who hang out at hip wine bars?
A better question: how do you do any of that without alienating your current customers?
Several historic brands have found a solution. They’ve launched entirely new labels, projects dedicated to exploring new styles with the ultimate goal of drawing in new drinkers.
Centuries-old winery Badia a Coltibuono is still making their Chianti Classico range, but recently they’ve started turning their Tuscan grapes into a highly chillable red.
<***>
Trust the Instincts (and Insights)
Other brands are more actively courting the new guard of drinkers. When Andrea Cabib stepped into his role as CEO of Badia a Coltibuono, a 1,000-year-old property in Gaiole in Chianti, he looked at the range of products and what audiences they were addressing. There were gaps.
“After discussions with Maurizio Castelli, Coltibuono’s long time winemaker, the idea was born to create a fresh red wine with soft tannins, low alcohol, and best enjoyed chilled.”
There were non-negotiables to the wine. It had to be light, fresh, and drinkable. “The bottle had to be transparent to emphasize freshness, showcase the beautiful color, and position the wine on the shelf next to rosés and whites rather than reds,” says Cabib. Chill Ya Jolo, a phonetic play on historic Chianti grape Ciliegiolo, was born.
