“The budget of the InterLoire accounts for 8.5 million euro, but it is being squandered”, Chidaine says. “It is used, for instance, to promote the Touraine Primeur every year though everyone knows that the fashion of Nouveau is long past; the promotion of Touraine wines, however, has got no clear aim and no focus. In general, I miss the concentration on the single appellations, for which the InterLoire is doing way too few.”
François Chidaine criticizes the InterLoire as well because of their way to organize the Salon des Vins de Loire. “It is the InterLoire’s task and obligation to make the salon develop; that’s what I miss”, Mr. Chidaine says. “They do have enough money to promote necessary changes. And one of the first tasks of the InterLoire should be coherence. The organization, nevertheless, has become a bureaucratic machinery and has lost sight of the aim.”
Many wine producers from the Loire region are just as deceived and annoyed as Mr. Chidaine. Besides the lack of support, they are complaining about the unfortunate scheduling of the wine tastings and presentations. Moreover, one must know that there are only short time spans between the salons, among them Bio Salon, La Dive Bouteille and the Renaissance tasting. “The scheduling is more than unfortunate”, Chidaine says. “So far, merchants and clients had to decide whether to participate in smaller salons or in the Salon des Vins de Loire, which take place with only some days or one week between them; this is, in the end, neither conducive for vintners nor for the region.”
Jean-Martin Dutour, president of the InterLoire, comments François Chidaine’s leaving as follows: “I can only regret that François retires in the middle of his term and in a moment where important changes are to be made. The InterLoire needs a certain period of time to react to the question about the restructuring and the funding of the appellations. However, I am sure that, until to the summer recess, we will be able to present results.”
The InterLoire (Interprofession des Vins du Val de Loire), based in Tours, used to be an umbrella organization of vintners and wholesalers of wine producing regions along the Loire, and it is considering itself as a control and marketing organization which is, above all, to promote the AOC wines of France’s third most important wine growing area. In detail, the InterLoire is trying to uphold the image of the wines in France as well as abroad, to improve the quality of the wines and to provide regionally technical support. Furthermore, the InterLoire is caring about the promotion of the vintners, is supporting vocational trainings, is publishing economic analyses and is coordinating contacts with the authorities and the media.
François Chidaine enjoys a high reputation among the other vintners from the Loire region but as well from other wine growing areas in France. He produces mineral, concentrated wines with character. Besides his excellent dry wines, François Chidaine is vinifying as well very elegant, semi-dry and sweet variations of Montlouis, which are famous for its extraordinary durability. In 1999, he began to cultivate wine with biologically dynamic methods, and in 2003, he received the certification necessary. Mr. Chidaine, together with Nicolas Martin, his cousin, is cultivating about 33 hectares of vineyards in the appellations of Montlouis and Vouvray. (red.yoopress)
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