What are some of the subtleties in selling a low-calorie wine?
Mason: In focus groups, women told us they didn’t want a diet wine. Diets are associated with tasting bad. They also said, “Don’t make me feel bad or like I’m giving something up.” If you read the back label of White Lie, that’s where it says that the wine is lower in calories. We say it subtly, not overtly screaming it out. Q: Why the tongue-in-cheek name White Lie? Mason: It’s something that we as women all do. We’re having fun by winking at ourselves. We all tell little lies like “My hair is naturally this color,” and “I always get up early to exercise.” When we talked about this in our focus groups, everyone smiled and threw out the white lies that they tell. We’re printing some of these lies on the label and even one on every cork. Q: How does Beringer lower the calorie content of White Lie? Robichaud: These grapes are grown in Santa Barbara, which has a cooler climate than does Northern California. Unlike in the northern end of the state, you might not see the sun all day long. W
