Blossom Hill Vie reviewer feedback thread - £100 voucher prize draw for feedback NOW CLOSED

[MichelleMumsnet]

This thread is for the 100 Mumsnetters who have been trying the reduced alcohol wine based drink from Blossom Hill – Vie 5.5%.

Here's what Blossom Hill Vie say, “The start of the new year is all about lighter choices – so it’s the perfect time to try Blossom Hill Vie 5.5%vol. Vie is a reduced alcohol wine based drink that has an elegant, light and fruity taste. It is the perfect choice for those occasions when you'd like a drink without the higher alcohol content – like lunch or early evening.

Vie has all the taste you'd expect from Blossom Hill – the nation's favourite wine*– but with only 5.5%vol and 30% less calories than Blossom Hill still wine. Vie is available in White - with hints of citrus, pear and apricot flavours and Rosé - with a floral aroma, ripe peach and strawberry flavours. Both are v. elegant, v. delicate and v. tasty choices – Vie 5.5%.

If you prefer sweeter style drinks, then Vie is perfect for you. We think it’s v. tasty, but would love to hear what you think! For more information about Vie and to explore more of the Blossom Hill range click here"

Thank you to all the testers who are taking part. Below are a few questions for you to answer but please feel free to add any other comments you have too.

1. Which Vie variant did you try – white or rosé? What did you think?
2. How would you describe the taste of Vie to your friends?
3. Did you know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories than Blossom Hill still wine?
4. Would you recommend it to them? If so, why? If not, why not?
5. The RRP for Blossom Hill Vie is £4.99 per bottle. Do you think you'd be likely to buy it again? If so, why? If not, why not?

Everyone who adds their feedback to this thread will be entered into a prize draw to be in with the chance of winning a £100 Debenhams Gift Card.

For those of you who didn't get to try Blossom Hill Vie 5.5% (or want to try again!) Click here to redeem your exclusive 50p off coupon.

Thanks and good luck,

MNHQ

*Nielsen GB Total Trade (On's to 05 10 13, Off's to 12.10.13)
The BLOSSOM HILL words and associated logos are trade marks. Copyright BLOSSOM HILL Winery 2013.
Your comments may be used by Blossom Hill in marketing materials, anonymously of course.

1. Which Vie variant did you try – white or rosé? What did you think?
I had the Rose wine and it was beautiful. It was light but sweet, just how I like it.

2. How would you describe the taste of Vie to your friends?
Light, sweet and fruity

3. Did you know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories than Blossom Hill still wine?
I did not...I am pleasantly surprised

4. Would you recommend it to them? If so, why? If not, why not?
I would recommend it if they just want a nice glass of wine at the end of the day or a glass with their meal. It's not a drink you would take for a night out on the town, but not every drink has to be that. I enjoyed it :)

5. The RRP for Blossom Hill Vie is £4.99 per bottle. Do you think you'd be likely to buy it again? If so, why? If not, why not?
I think I will buy this wine, and stock up when on offer, as it is easy to drink and as the alcohol content is lower than other wines it means that I can have a couple of glasses rather than just one :P

1. Which Vie variant did you try – white or rosé? What did you think?

I tried the white..I wasn't too keen to tell the truth!

1. How would you describe the taste of Vie to your friends?

Dry, slightly sharp with citrus notes.

1. Did you know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories than Blossom Hill still wine?

Yes, I read on the bottle, pretty good! :)

1. Would you recommend it to them? If so, why? If not, why not?

I would recommend it to them if it was to their taste, and would definitely mention the lower calories! 5.The RRP for Blossom Hill Vie is £4.99 per bottle. Do you think you'd be likely to buy it again? If so, why? If not, why not? £4.99 is a reasonable price, but I would not buy the white again as it's taste was not for me, I will try the Rose though! :)

has anyone who emailed Michelle received a replacement, in-date bottle yet?

No annie, I am still waiting for my replacement

Nope, not me either Annie

Ok, not just me then.

I've not had my replacement bottle either

Me neither !

nor me.

Nope.

I tried the rose. Just checked and my bottle is out of date also. I thought it was a pleasant drink but more like a soft drink, like Shloer, than a wine. It had no real depth or complexity to it. Maybe the reduced calories, which I know about from taking part in the testing, would appeal to some. The price is OK but I would expect a little less for low alcohol. Don't know whether it being out of date makes any difference to the taste. Would only mention it to friends if they specifically asked about low alcohol wines.

Still not had my bottle

No replacement here yet either

Tester - Ive had a dodgy tummy so haven't opened my bottle yet... but plan to tonight!"

1. Which Vie variant did you try – white or rosé? What did you think?

I tried the Rose, it was really nice, light and fruity, not like having a full strength glass of wine

1. How would you describe the taste of Vie to your friends?

As above

1. Did you know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories than Blossom Hill still wine?

I didn't but i do now

1. Would you recommend it to them? If so, why? If not, why not?

To my friends? yes i would recommend it to them because i liked the taste and i think others would be interested to try a low alcohol/fat version of wine.

1. The RRP for Blossom Hill Vie is £4.99 per bottle. Do you think you'd be likely to buy it again? If so, why? If not, why not?

yes i would, I don't drink very often so at a special occasion where i really wanted a drink then i would be inclined to purchase it.

Tester here. Our bottle was out of date but we tried it anyway - and I did email Michelle but am another one who hasn't had a replacement bottle yet.

1. Which Vie variant did you try – white or rosé? What did you think?
Rose. I'm a rose fan anyway and thought it was very quaffable - easy to drink with or without food. DH also enjoyed it. I do like the fact that it was low alcohol without being completely alcohol free. There are times that it would be nice to have a drink but because I know that DH has already had a glass of wine or a beer I tend to hold back, just in case one of us needs to drive. I also used to have ME and one of the side effects was a very low tolerance to alcohol - couple of mouthfuls had the same effect as taking a sleeping tablet. So I got out of the habit of drinking lots, and now, even though I'm recovered, I don't drink anywhere near as much as I used to. So being able to have the nice taste of wine without the effect of alcohol would be really nice and I'd probably make sure I had a bottle or two in, ready for whenever I fancied them. In the winter we tend to drink a lot more red wine though, so it would be nice to have this option too!

2. How would you describe the taste of Vie to your friends?
Quite a typical White Grenache or White Zinfadel rose but maybe a bit sweeter. It also had a slight hint of flat lemonade - not sure if that is because it was quite so out of date though; will be intrigued to see if the in date one is a little sharper.

3. Did you know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories than Blossom Hill still wine?
Only because it was mentioned on here before signing up but I would expect a low alcohol wine to have fewer calories than a normal one - not sure I would have realised it was 30% though.

4. Would you recommend it to them? If so, why? If not, why not?
Yes - if they were looking for something easy to drink that was summery. Would stick it in the category of alcopop maybe rather than serious wine - or for when you would otherwise drink something like sangria, Pimms, alcoholic lemonade, etc. It's also probably a bit sweet to eat with winter foods - would be great in the summer with salads, chicken, salmon etc. Would be OK but not a first choice/ideal match with things like beef casserole or shepherds pie! Oh and it was very nice with pudding too - worked very well with chocolate although I may have to try that combination again a few times just to make really really sure

5. The RRP for Blossom Hill Vie is £4.99 per bottle. Do you think you'd be likely to buy it again? If so, why? If not, why not?
I guess I have got used to buying my wine in a deal so for a fiver or less, I get a really nice bottle of wine that has an RRP of £10. So if I actually had to pay that price for it I might think it a bit expensive. However, if it was in a deal of 2 for £7.50 or 3 for a tenner, then that would seem to be much more appropriate (I usually assume that the pricing has been set so that it can be sold for most of the time at an offer price). I would expect it to be priced to be a pound or so more expensive than things like Schloer or Aqua Libra (is that still made?) or Elderflower Presse.

I tried the white variant of Blossom Hill Vie and I was very impressed, tasted just as lovely as my usual plonk - my Mum wholeheartedly agreed too.

I would describe Vie to my friends as a smooth, fruity and sweet wine with a light after taste. Easy to drink and perfect for girlie nights in or even summery barbecues.

I did know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories but I wouldn't have guessed by the taste. I am rather happy about it as I'm dieting to lose weight for my wedding in September and have avoided all wine and it is great to know I can have a glass of Vie in the evening and it won't throw my calorie count off.

I would certainly recommend my friends to try Vie because it has a great taste, the label is pretty and it is perfect for those of us trying to lose weight or be a little healthier while still enjoying a treat.

I think £4.99 is a reasonable price per bottle. I would buy it again as it means I could enjoy a glass 'neat' (instead of being mixed with lemonade) and not have to worry that it has thrown my diet off plan!

I sent the email but no replacement here either

Still waiting for replacement here too

My replacement bottle has just arrived! Looking forward to trying it out

I commented on the other thread that the bottle that I received was out of date a year ago and emailed Michelle but haven't had a replacement bottle yet.

I did open the bottle and had a little sip to see if the bottle was drinkable but mine didn't taste right so I discarded the rest of the bottle. No worries if Blossom Hill have decided that they don't need any more testers, but I didn't want MN to think that I'd quaffed the bottle and hadn't added to this thread!

1. Which Vie variant did you try – white or rosé? What did you think? White - we enjoyed the bottle!
2. How would you describe the taste of Vie to your friends?light fresh and fruity
3. Did you know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories than Blossom Hill still wine? Yes but only because of the letter
4. Would you recommend it to them? If so, why? If not, why not? Absolutely particularly to my slightly alcohol intolerant Chinese relatives- I didn't find myself going red at all - a big change for me.
5. The RRP for Blossom Hill Vie is £4.99 per bottle. Do you think you'd be likely to buy it again? If so, why? If not, why not? Not sure- it's nice to have alcohol but the price point makes me wonder whether a nice premium juice would be just as nice.

1. Which Vie variant did you try – white or rosé? What did you think?

We tried the white wine.

1. How would you describe the taste of Vie to your friends?

I would describe it as fruity and refreshing. It was very light and easy to drink.

1. Did you know that Blossom Hill Vie has 30% fewer calories than Blossom Hill still wine?

I do now! Less calories is always a bonus but it wouldn't influence my decision to buy a wine. It had no effect on the taste of the wine.

1. Would you recommend it to them? If so, why? If not, why not?

I would recommend it. I think it's a great lighter alternative for when you want a 'longer' drink.

1. The RRP for Blossom Hill Vie is £4.99 per bottle. Do you think you'd be likely to buy it again? If so, why? If not, why not?

It's a little on the pricey side to say you're getting less alcohol for your money! I would buy it again though, especially if it was on offer. It's ideal for me as I'm still bfing dd and like something with a little less alcohol in it of an evening. I think it would be ideal for a summer BBQ, something you could enjoy over a few hours.

1. White
2. It tasted fruity and light. Not much depth to it, dh and I both thought it didn't really feel like wine, more the sort of depth,of flavour you get from shloer.
3. Yes, I read it somewhere, maybe on the letter that came with it?
4. I wouldn't particularly recommend it. Its ok for a change but I could get a better wine for a fiver.
5. No, I wouldn't buy,it, I think normal wine is much nicer. This was more akin to a bottle of shloer or the like.

I added a positive review up thread and bought a couple of bottles today having noticed an offer price of £3.99 in tescos. Thought it might be worth mentioning for those of you that liked it...!