The Loire Valley’s La Noblesse is shaking up the French wine sector with a fresh, modern and slightly irreverent twist by drinks design specialist Denomination.
Brand owner Fourth Wave approached Denomination wanting to entice consumers to drink wines from the Loire Valley, a region under-represented in the category and awash with old fashioned, samey brand and packaging identities. Yet the Loire is renowned for its chateaux and its aristocratic heritage – a spectacular destination for visitors. The resulting work shows how it’s possible to present a serious wine in a modern, light-hearted and disruptive way without compromising its heritage or quality.
Rowena Curlewis, CEO, Denomination, says: “We needed to find a way to represent the aristocratic Loire in a way that didn’t resort to depicting the ubiquitous châteaux that are so common on French labels. It was important that this brand stood out from the crowd and was distinctive, personality-led and disruptive, whilst still being respectful to its origins.”
Perfect execution
Because the Loire is known as the playground of the French aristocracy, fine-penned illustrations of châteaux were replaced with playfully cropped images of members of the nobility. The brand name has a chalk-pen effect reminiscent of the way bottles are priced-up in French wine shops. Everything
combines to present the range in a charming light that’s perfect for modern consumers – and distinctly Gallic.
Curlewis says: “It’s unmistakeably French and high-quality, but with stacks of attitude to open it up to new demographics and make it more relevant to modern consumers. The engraving style and subject matter lend the project a degree of seriousness. But there’s an approachability, too, thanks to the chalk-pen branding. And humour is achieved with the ‘off with their heads’ cropping and yellow capsules.”
Nicholas Crampton, Director of Fourth Wave Wine, says: “We believe it’s time for the Loire Valley to stand up and be counted as a wine region. It has such strong consumer awareness as a place to visit, but just lacked that same awareness for its wines. We knew that, with Denomination’s expertise, they would be able to make a statement without compromising history, integrity and Old World legacy. La Noblesse is brave, it pushes boundaries, it makes a statement.
“We’re excited to take the La Noblesse to market and see what the traditional French consumer base, as well as new-comers, have to say about it. We believe this is the wine brand that the Loire Valley deserves.”
La Noblesse launches in Australia in November 2020 and in Europe from March 2021.
