EVEN AMAZON MAKES WINE NOW?

How has Amazon been contributing to the world of wine?

 The volume of rosé wine is currently in a period of growth, as well as all wine in general. By now, way more of the world is producing wine for various reasons.

So, Jeff Bezos, the richest guy in the world, probably bought himself a vineyard and started making wine?

Not exactly. People have been able to buy wine on Amazon for a while now, actually.

Want a bottle of Miraval? You can find it on Amazon.

Having trouble finding a bottle of Whispering Angel? It’s on Amazon.

A bottle of Mateus? Yeah, that’s also on Amazon.

Since when is it actually Amazon wine?

Since December. The brand itself is actually called Compass Road. 

Sure, but who’s actually making it?

Amazon is sourcing from a German distributor. They buy it from them, they bottle it, put a pretty screw cap on it, they place their beautiful label on it (in my opinion, incredibly beautiful) and the wine is then ready to be shipped.

Which wines from Compass Road can we find on Amazon?

There are actually 5 types of Compass Road wine:

Merlot, Chardonnay and Grenache Rosé which are from French origin, Riesling from Germany and Pinot Grigio from Lake Garda.

Even Amazon didn’t pass up the opportunity to sell rosé wine.

Online comments about this wine aren’t actually the most positive (well, at least in Italy).

“I knew it, a wine for $4.”

 The choice Amazon made here was pretty brave. The label is definitely different than the ones we’re used to seeing, it’s got a screw cap which is unjustly undervalued in Italy, and distractingly considered a feature of a low quality wine. Above all, it was their bold choice to sell a minimum of 6 bottles at once. The price is around 25 euro, so we’re looking at about 4 euro per bottle.

We bought and tried to put a value on the rosé from Grenache.  The wine is definitely light, dry, and drinkable. Strong on the nose. It’s a very friendly wine. One of these wines, if presented in a blind tasting, would definitely get a positive critique. Remembering, of course, that it’s a wine produced in France, therefore doesn’t follow the Italian production style.

Italy is a very traditional country. Unfortunately, some people are convinced that rosé doesn’t fully count as wine, and some who think that it’s probably not good wine when it’s sold by a multinational corporation.

The wine is priced in a certain way, but let us help to contextualize what to expect: at 4 euro per bottle, we’ve tried wines that were much more famous but much less satisfying.

Of course, you can still find better wine for 4 euro per bottle, but a wine has to be taste-tested and appreciated. The characteristics of Grenache are there, even if it seems quite different to close the bottle with a screw cap instead of a cork.

Try it! You might not like it, but try to understand what goes into making it.