Wines with animal instinct

An AC Nielsen report of 2008 talked about how 20 per cent of new table wines in the US featured animals on their labels, and that sales of 'critter' wines had crossed $600 million

What is it about "critter" wine labels that attracts producers? "Critter" is slang for an animal or living creature, and "critter labels" offer animal motifs - either real or stylised - as a way of connecting with consumers.

The best-known "critter label" is probably Yellowtail's, an Australian wine brand with a leaping Kangaroo that made waves when it sold a million cases in the US in its first year of launch in 2001. Today, it sells more than 10 million cases worldwide, a success story that all newcomers want to emulate.

Then there's The Wolftrap from the Boekenhoutskloof Winery in the Franschhoek Valley of South Africa, which features a wolf stretching itself.

The producers claim this was inspired by a trap once discovered on the estate, but say the area never had any wolves! The same producer also has a Porcupine Ridge wine with an interesting depiction of the "critter".

Another South African wine that has achieved wide acclaim is Goats do Roam (a tongue-in-cheek takeoff on French wine Côtes du Rhône) from the 215-year-old Fairview winery located in the Paarl, which also produces a range of cheeses - including from the goats that do roam the estate!

And how about Rex Goliath from California, named after a real 21-kilogram rooster that was displayed as "The World's Largest Rooster" in the early 1900s at a circus in Texas?

Search the internet a bit and you will come across The Little Penguin from Australia, Dancing Bull from California, Tall Horse from South Africa, Lazy Lizard from France - besides labels with birds, crocodiles, monkeys, whales, deer, lobsters, sea horses, even frogs, seemingly any "critter" that crawls, hops, flies, or swims.

So why do "critter labels" appeal? An AC Nielsen report of 2008 talked about how 20 per cent of new table wines in the US (that is about 110 brands) featured animals on their labels, and that sales of "critter" wines had crossed $600 million. Something certainly works for them.

To my mind "critter labels" work in the following ways:

Shelf visibility: An animal motif stands out amidst the plethora of labels featuring vineyards or wineries or names of owners - more easily recognisable and memorable.

Brand recall: Because of the animal motifs, visual recall is better. People remember having seen the label before on a shelf and this reinforces the "buy" impulse for a new wine.

Demystification: Wines with animal motifs on their labels tend to be unpretentious and are generally of decent quality at a reasonable price. This positioning gets reinforced with every "critter" wine sampled by a consumer, that creates a virtuous upward spiral.

So the next time you spot a "critter label" in a retail shop give it a try - you might be pleasantly surprised.

Wines I've been drinking: Naturally, a "critter" wine, The Wolftrap Boekenhoutskloof Red (WS 88 points, Rs 1,499 in Bengaluru), which is a blend of Syrah, Mourvedre and Viognier produced by the winery in South Africa's Franschhoek ("French Corner") Valley. A fresh, fruity and low-tannin wine that comes in a muscular bottle, this has delicious blackberry and pepper aromas with a soft and supple palate and a hint of oak - unpretentious and a nice wine for most occasions.

Alok Chandra is a Bengaluru-based wine consultant