by Hervé Lalau
Some 80 winegrowers of the Bergerac appellation in the Dordogne region of South West France could be deeply affected financially by the bankruptcy of the Compagnie des vins du grand Sud Ouest (CVGSO)
, a shipper who sells large volumes of Bergerac to French retailers.
This is bad news indeed for a region already in dire straits, as the wine growers made very clear during Monday’s meeting of the Conseil interprofessionnel des vins de la région de Bergerac.
In spite of a slight increase in sales over the 2006-2007 campaign (558,000 hectolitres compared to 540,000 in 2005-2006), stocks of unsold Bergerac have been growing in recent years, reaching a record of 1.23m hectolitres at present.
Prices are at an all time low, currently €603 for a 900 litre barrel of red, compared to €737 in 2003. And there are even lower prices to be found on the market, particularly for those who work with discounters, like CVGSO used to do. There are some styles that have escaped, notably the sweet whites and Monbazillac, whose prices are approaching €2,415 a barrel. But these are exceptions as Bergerac, which sits in the shadow of its neighbour Bordeaux, has not yet been able to create a real image for its wines.
