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Michel Rolland: " it is necessary to take care of the Malbec as national product "

25.MAR.11, 12:05 Michel Rolland is one of the Flying Winemaker more influential in the world of wine production. After more than 20 years visiting Argentina, he admits the malbec as a national product which is necessary to take care. Recently, he finished his own winery inside the Clos de los Siete, in Tunuyán: Mariflor.

Often, because of the clear message from the movie of the French Jonnatan Nossiter, "Mondovino", Michel Rolland is associated by one of the persons in charge of the globalization of the wine. This is to understand the Australian syrah, the Californian cabernet and the Argentine malbec in the same place.

Rolland renounces this concept and centres his labor in finding wines depending on the advised region. He came at the end of ' 80, invited by Arnaldo Echart, modal in the industry of the wine in the north of the country. Many are the countries about the world in that his influence was essential to frame numerous wines, where the enologic suggestions turned into an important profession.

In sole right, Business and Economy met Michel Rolland in the Clos de los Siete, in Tunuyán, to do a revision of his relation with the wines of this part of the world. His mentioned one launch wine in the country (bigger than 500 hectares) assembles French investors of important chateaux of Bordeaux.

How do you see the evolution of the Argentine wine in the last 20 years?

It is so strong and big that we are never going to be able to say the enough about the changes seen during the latter 20 years. At the end of ' 80, the market was very interesting, but very closed; the wine was only for Argentinians and out nobody knew it. But in them' 90, during the "one to one", the Argentine businessmen began to export and nowadays we see a growth of a strong industry. I feel very well because I was, partly, a bit an actor of this change who is fantastic.
When I came to Argentina, I did not have any idea of the wines produced in the country. Echart, invite me to a tasting of the 35 Argentinian wines most acquaintances of the market and to be honest, I did not like anyone, but the potential was evident. With my little prudence and diplomacy I said to them that it was necessary to work differently to produce wines that enjoy the international success. And thankfully, the success came across the malbec.

You were a great developer of the malbec in his beginning, how do you see its future?

We are lucky to have a varietal that is emblematic, but there are other varietales that also can be done very well: merlot, cabernet and bonarda, between others. But the malbec is going to be the most important variety of the Argentina. Under no concept, it is necessary to elaborate none type of wine with the name malbec. This way we would kill it and Argentina would get into problems, due to if there is no consumption of malbec in the world, the Argentine wine will fall down in big complications. It must to be taken care of the Malbec as national product and not kill it with any idiot who produces 25 thousand liters per hectare and places the label of "Malbec", with an infernal marketing and sells any type of wine.
The bet for new varietals
In the last months, the principal organizations in charge of place the Argentine wine in the exterior emphasized his interest in which the national industry develops other vine-stocks to accompany the variety Argentine emblem, the malbec.
For it, they centred his looks on the Argentine cabernet sauvignon, because it is a variety that possesses great potential and spreads in the whole world.

What opinion do you have about the strategy of positioning the Argentine cabernet to accompany the success of the malbec?

Argentina is never going to have a cabernet that competes with the big ones of France and The United States. It has very good copies of cabernet on the market, but surely, in the next 20 years, nobody is going to say that Argentina is the country of the cabernet. The variety is the malbec and is a luck that is like that. How will Argentina compete with Medoc's big cabernet or Napa Valley? It is never going to be able …
If a champion of judo try to win 100 free meters, it won´t do it. Here the champion is the malbec, not the cabernet. It is as if Napa Valley want to be a champion of Malbec, a lot of wasted energy.

And about the international suggestions to do portions with other varieties?

It is marketing to think at every moment about the malbec to save yourself. It is true that it is necessary to capitalize on the success, but why to look for something that does not exist if you can make big wines of malbec.

How is it done to not depend on the malbec as Australia with its syrah?

It is another case because Australia produced too much volume of wine without character. There are five or six companies that have 80 % of the market and it kills you. Chile goes for the same way, with big companies that control everything: the price of the grape, the price of the wine, the international market, everything.
In Argentina it is different, the market is diverse and I do not believe that something like that happens. There are many projects and the strength is the quantity of samples that exists on the market.

The potential of Argentina

In the last decades, the country transformed in one of the big producers that competes internationally and it is attractive for the foreign investors who, of the hand of the exotic thing, see Argentina as a land of possibilities.

Which are the characteristics that the big Argentinian wines share with the big ones of the world?

Argentina has a very short history in the world of the wine, there is no a country that has developed such a strong image in a little time. To compare the Argentine wines with the big ones of the world, which have a great path, is premature.
Here there is a potential to develop big wines, but it is necessary to know well the land and needs a lot of time. Newly, we discover the Valle de Uco, we were more above and improved conditions for the production of quality wines, all that is new. In France, we have begun more than two centuries ago and we still continue learning.

Here there is a strong culture of wine, the local consumer takes the product is it more similar to The United States or Europe?

Argentina has an enormous advantage with the strong domestic market. With the global production of Argentina (fifth world producer) and the export he presents a bit of both styles. It has to take care of both markets because they are important for the growth. Today the wines are thought for the international market and the local consumer adapts, it is very good.

The globalization of the wine

In numerous occasions, the international advisers are in chargeof standardize the international palates with wines of different places that present many similarities.
These "flying winemakers " spend the most quantity of the time in planes thinking what wine to realize at every producing zone that they discover daily and achieve numerous changes in the wine world map. Especially, changes in enologic practices that the traditional vine-growers bring established of previous generations.

What vision has about the enologic practices realized in the local vineyards?

The producers' mentality changed and there is a generation of enologists who work very well, obsessed with the quality of the grape in the vineyards and in the practices. It is necessary to differ in the lands, promote the virtues.

Do you believe that the international palate has been standardized, it has been included?

It is never going to happen because the globalization of the wine does not exist. The wine is the life of everyday, there are different tastes and lands. It is the idea of some a bit crooked types, but it does not exist in the reality because it is not a part of the life of every day. The Argentina has a variety as emblematic malbec all over the world and has its personality and international taste, which is recognized both in the United States and in China. It is necessary to take advantage of it.

" In the producing regions, the people born with the wine think that they know for nature and do not seek to know actually the industry. To learn of wines is very easy in a producing zone, it is necessary to be useful to visit wineries, to practise the eno-tourism, to try, to converse with people of wineries and to know more of wine"

- Enologist flying winemaker with hundreds of clients all over the world.
- Was born in Libourne, France, on December 24, 1947.
- Together with Alberto Antonini and Paul Hobbs, he is one of the flying winemakers more respected of the world
- Prefers fruity wines with oak, predilection that he shares with the critic of wines American Robert Parker.

By Federico Lancia and G. Flores Bazan
Photographies: Juan Pablo Dominguez - www.bajolagua.com.ar

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