WINETECH Technical Yearbook 2020

WHY SHOULD WINERIES INVEST IN SENSORY BENCHMARKING? Benchmarking is all about gaining a competitive edge. With the ever-evolving global market and consumers’ desire for customised products, brands must continuously adapt to stay competitive in the current market, as well as in the changing market of tomorrow (Camp, 1998; Taschner, 2016). It’s important to know how your wine performs relative to your competitors, as well as relative to your potential for quality. Potential for quality refers to the maximum qua­ lity that you can obtain considering your resources. Benchmarking helps to improve competitiveness and value to the consumer. Furthermore, benchmarking helps to develop strategies to improve product quality. Improved quality leads to increased market share and growth (Camp, 1998). The strategy is to determine the definition of quality, closing the gap by addressing winemaking practices to ultimately maintain superiority in your target category (Camp, 1998). WHEN SHOULD WINE SENSORY BENCHMARKING BE PERFORMED? The ideal time for wine benchmarking is before launching a new brand or variety in an existing market or a current brand/variety in a new market. However, benchmarking is not a once-off exercise.

Why do some wines fly off the shelves, while others move slowly? Many factors influence whether a consumer will buy a wine; e.g. availability, price point, discounts, accolades and recommendations. In a study conducted in the USA, the researchers found that most consumers (79%) drink wine because they enjoy the taste (Thach & Camillo, 2018). The sensory experience connected with a wine is one of the biggest drivers of repurchase and subsequently, brand growth. In the same study, it was found that price (80%) and brand (69%) were also big drivers of purchasing for consumers. Consumers are reluctant to take risks when buying wines, so if your brand is not associated with great taste, it has a detrimental effect on trial and repurchase rates. The central purpose of every fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) company, including wineries, is to meet the wants of their consumers (Dembowski, 2013). Benchmarking is the practice of measuring the performance of a product relative to the competition to determine which is the best offering and why (Watson, 1993). Sensory benchmarking is an essential tool for wineries to determine how their product stacks up against its competitors in terms of sensory experience. WHAT IS SENSORY BENCHMARKING?

Wine sensory benchmarking (PART 1): Why, when and how

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020

LEANIE LOUW 1 , JEANNE BRAND 2 & HÉLÈNE NIEUWOUDT 2 : 1 SenseLab, Oude Molen Building, Distillery Road, Stellenbosch; 2 Department of Viticulture and Oenology, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch KEYWORDS: Wine, sensory, benchmarking, CATA

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