Launching 31 Days of German Riesling

By Jo Gilbert

Published: 21 June, 2016

At last night's launch of 31 Days of German Riesling, Harpers spoke to Lea and Sandeman, who are now in a position to immerse themselves fully in the campaign following a soft trial last year.

For Phil Weeks, head of trade sales at the merchant and suppliers, part of the draw is the ability to expand its reach on social media.

He said: "We're into social media and use it to promote what we're doing, so it's always good to have activity bringing in different audiences which can then lead to things like tastings in store."

Social media, of course, is one of the major ways to reach out to a younger audience which has connected with Riesling over the past few years in the way that the older generation hasn't.

The emphasis on "fun" in the 31 Days campaign echoes that of Generation Riesling - the group of German producers so committed to preserving Riesling's youthful and dynamic reputation that members are "retired" when they hit 35.

Drawing growth from this new demographic, Lea and Sandeman has seen their German Riesling offering grow from four to 12 labels in the past two years.

"We have labels which aren't necessarily households names, but in terms of sales they have been outstripping the household names. They tend to be lower in alcohol and appeal to younger drinkers who are more health conscious," Weeks said.

Although, Weeks admits this growth hasn't come easily.

"We in the wine trade probably still drink more Rielsing than all of our customers put together. It's been like pushing water up hill trying to change the reputation of Riesling. We all know the wines are brilliant with good pricing and finally there is a new generation of consumers that are realising that. They haven't been scarred by Blue Nun - it's not in their memory bank."

Lea and Sandeman have signed up their four stores and a handful of restaurant customers to the 31 Days of German Riesling campaign.

With their restaurant customers, they will be discounting Riesling wine by the glass.

The campaign runs throughout July, with independent wine retailers, wine bars and restaurants across the UK set to take part.

Last year more than 160 outlets signed up, including Vagabond, Grain Store and The Clove Club, together with multiple retail partner, Waitrose.

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