US boycott starts hurting French wines

expatica.com ^ | April 14, 2003

[11th_VA]

BORDEAUX, France, April 14 (AFP) - France has begun to feel the effect of a United States boycott of its wines in retaliation for opposition to the US-led war on Iraq, leading merchants said here Monday.

Nicolas Gailly, head of the company Barton et Guestier which claims to be the biggest French wine seller in the United States, admitted sales had gone down, saying American distributors were making less effort to market French products.

"It's not politically correct to promote French products generally and wine in particular," he said.

But Gailly said he was not giving way to pessimisim. His company has annual sales of EUR 40 million (USD 43 million), 95 percent for export.

"What we fear and what is already having direct effect is a boycott not of consumers but of distributors amidst very heavy competition," said Louis-Regis Affre of the French wine and spirt export federation.

The businessmen were speaking at a general assembly of wine merchants of Bordeaux region - home of claret.

Two other merchants, Baron Philippe de Rothschild and Ginestet, also admitted to what was described as a "delicate situation."

"Our information indicates a very clear drop in the number of French wine bottles appearing on store shelves," said Christian Delpeuch, head of Ginestet, which normally has sales of EUR 10 million in the US, or 10 percent of its total.

"They aren't promoting French wines any more," he said: "The catering trade is avoiding them too."

There have been protests against France and boycotts of French products in the United States in recent weeks, with some ceremoniousy pouring French wines down street gutters.

Top US wine critic Robert Parker said in the March issue of Decanter magazine that he was surprised at the volume of anti-French rhetoric in the United States, and expressed fears over its effects on the wine business.

Parker said importers of French wine were complaining that US customs agents were harassing their shipments.

[11th_VA]

Wait til the water resrictions kick in ...

[Support Free Republic]

Just 17 cents per day

Click The Logo To Donate

[Arkinsaw]

Cry me a freaking river.

[annyokie]

Ah, New France!

[Drango]

Sippin' some fine California Merlot as I read this...

[The Skeptic]

They got the booze let them drown their sorrows.

[guitfiddlist]

Parker said importers of French wine were complaining that US customs agents were harassing their shipments.

No. These would be completely reasonable precautions taken by our custom agents. Judging from what we've found in supposedly-embargoed Iraq, there could be anything in those wine cases, such as Roland Missiles, night-vision goggles, GPS jammers, anti-tank weapons,...all which would be a very nasty shock for your average US wine connoisseur.

[Cathryn Crawford]

Their wine is crappy, their water is expensive and crappy, and their makeup is expensive, crappy, and comes in ugly containers.

Who needs their crappy, expensive, ugly imports?

[Dog Gone]

Too bad nobody has ever heard of any Russian wines to boycott.

[Cathryn Crawford]

Le Mons Balls Gone

Cordon Bleu Balls

Thanks so much for that!

[MinuteGal]

"Perfidious Evian"
(Marquis d'Ximenze, 1793).

Leni

[Tax-chick]

Sippin' some fine California Merlot as I read this...

I've got an Australian Chardonnay. I love that map of France!

[11th_VA]

great map bump !!!

[azsportsterman]

All this talk about wine has made me thirsty. Let's see, I have a bottle of Velvet White from the St. James Winery in St. James Missouri calling my name right now.

[Paul Atreides]

Well, sacre beau heau!

[katze]

This is really funny; thanks.

[Drango]

I've got an Australian Chardonnay

Got a bottle of Lindemans Merlot right behind it...$7.00+/- from Safeway...

[A Citizen Reporter]

No more French wines for me, or French cheese. Come to think of it, they aren't so hard to boycott, because I don't see them in the stores I used to see them. French perfumes and beauty products will soon feel the pinch......

[nickcarraway]

It would be hilarious if Chirac was booted from office and Blair won reelection.

[KingKongCobra]

I'd hate to remind the frogs that THEY started this. Before the war, they got all puffed up and started boycotting American products like Coke and McDonalds. I laughed when they did it and I'm laughing harder at them now.