Understanding Consumer Preferences for Australian Sparkling Wine vs. French Champagne

Julie Culbert,Kerry Wilkinson,Karma Pearce,Renata Ristic,Melissa Lane,Sandra Olarte Mantilla,Naomi Verdonk,Daniel Cozzolino

doi:10.3390/beverages2030019

Julie Culbert, Kerry Wilkinson + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/beverages2030019

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Abstract

Sparkling wine represents a small but significant proportion of the Australian wine industry’s total production. Yet, Australia remains a significant importer of French Champagne. This study investigated consumer preferences for Australian sparkling wine vs. French Champagne and any compositional and/or sensorial bases for these preferences. A range of French and Australian sparkling wines were analyzed by MIR spectroscopy to determine if sparkling wines could be differentiated according to country of origin. A subset of wines, comprising two French Champagnes, a French sparkling wine and three Australian sparkling wines, were selected for (i) descriptive analysis to characterize their sensory profiles and (ii) acceptance tests to determine consumer liking (n = 95 Australian wine consumers). Significant differences were observed between liking scores; on average, the $70 French Champagne was liked least and the $12 Australian sparkling wine liked most, but segmentation (based on individual liking scores) identified clusters comprising consumers with distinct wine preferences. Interestingly, when consumers were shown wine bottle labels, they considered French wines to be more expensive than Australian wines, demonstrating a clear country of origin influence.

Highlights

Traditional sparkling winemaking, i.e., via the Méthode Champenoise or the Méthode Traditionelle, involves two successive fermentations [1]
This study aimed to investigate consumer preferences for Australian sparkling wine vs. French Champagne and to define any compositional and/or sensorial drivers for these preferences using a combination of MIR spectroscopy and principal component analysis (PCA), together with descriptive analysis (DA)
This study aimed to evaluate Australian wine consumer preferences for Australian sparkling wines vs. French Champagne and any compositional and/or sensory drivers for these preferences

Summary

Introduction

Traditional sparkling winemaking, i.e., via the Méthode Champenoise (in Champagne, France) or the Méthode Traditionelle (elsewhere), involves two successive fermentations [1]. Grape must is transformed into base wine; secondary fermentation occurs (in the bottle) following addition of liqueur de tirage (a suspension of yeast and sugar), to generate the carbon dioxide required to give the essence of sparkling wine, i.e., the ‘bubble’. Sparkling wine has accounted for almost 10% of Australian domestic wine production since the late 1980s [2] and represents a market niche for which there is growing consumer interest. Between 2000 and 2015, the number of Australian sparkling wine producers increased from 341 to 1015 [3], and annual production in 2014 reached 35 ML [2].

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