Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Happy 2010 from Family, Love, Wine!!
Wishing you all of the love, success, happiness and new wine discoveries in the New Year.� I hope to continue to evolve both my business and the content here to bring you more consistent and helpful info.� I’d love to connect and help you with questions via Twitter @MelissaDobson, on Facebook at facebook.com/MelissaDobsonPRMarketing , or [...]
WBW 55: North vs. South
This Wine Blogging Wednesday thing is becoming a problem for me. No, it’s not the themes but my lack of organization and focus to actually post on time or near to the actual event. I did my last event on the weekend after the Wednesday in question and there have been too many months where [...]
WBW 55: North vs. South originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.
Pink Piper Perabo Poppy Montgomery Portia de Rossi Rachael Leigh Cook
A Wine for Tonight: 2006 LAN Rioja Crianza
Would you like a quick suggestion for a good wine to drink tonight (or this weekend) that won?t break your budget and is widely available? Many of our readers have said this is something they would like, so here is this week?s selection, the 2006 LAN Rioja Crianza from the Rioja region in Spain. Our [...]
A Wine for Tonight: 2006 LAN Rioja Crianza was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.
Dania Ramirez Danica Patrick Daniella Alonso Danneel Harris Deanna Russo
A Spitacular Competition!
For three days, our judges swirled, sniffed and spit their way through more than 3,500 wines from around the globe. Today they wrapped up by choosing the best of the best in each category. Results will be available next month, so stay tuned. In the meantime, enjoy this compilation of expert spitters:
Sarah Mutch Sarah Polley Sarah Shahi Sarah Silverman Sarah Wynter
Wine Tasting Fundraiser
One aspect of our business which has kind of come out of the blue has been wine tasting fundraising. Aside from the clear benefits to any business (getting in front of people with large disposable incomes) the events that we’ve done thus far have been quite a bit of fun and have supported good causes. [...]
Mandy Moore Maria Bello Maria Menounos Maria Sharapova Mariah Carey
Tasting Group: Champagne
Since we live in Washington State and often drink wines from Washington State, we want to make sure that we continue to hone our knowledge of the entire world of wine and maintain well-rounded palates in order to make us even more objective when we evaluate wines from Washington State. Therefore, we are thoroughly enjoying [...]
Tasting Group: Champagne was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.
Sarah Michelle Gellar Sarah Mutch Sarah Polley Sarah Shahi Sarah Silverman
The Terroirist Has Arrived
It has been some time since I've highlighted a new wine blog that deserves our attention. I'm not sure what that means and I prefer not to contemplate the matter. That said, go read TERROIRIST: A Daily Wine Blog. It's...
Denise Richards Desiree Dymond Diane Kruger Dido Diora Baird
Holidays Wine Gifts ? A Very Cool Wine Book to Consider
Here is idea for someone who enjoys wine and is perhaps not easy to please. It is a wine book: ?The Art and Design of Contemporary Wine Labels.? I know it sounds a bit boring but once you open the book to any page describing a label, it is very fun and interesting Continue reading
Ashlee Simpson Ashley Greene Ashley Olsen Ashley Scott Ashley Tappin
Bloggers, Credibility and Wine Writer Surveys
Take a close look at this chart. It comes from the recently released 2010 American Wine Writer Survey and outlines some differences between those that have been writing about wine for 5 years or less and those writing about wine...
Leeann Tweeden Leelee Sobieski Leighton Meester Leila Arcieri Lena Headey
Monday, November 29, 2010
Send me a wine postcard, I?m thirsty!
On the subject of wine innovation, one thing I forgot to post was a very quick video shot of Patrick Schmitt, Editor of The Drinks Business, sampling a new form of single-pour packaging, called OneGlass at the Fine Wine Fair. The concept is a single pour of only 100ml, which is actually less than the [...]
Gina Carano Gina Gershon Gina Philips Gisele Bündchen Giuliana DePandi
A Feminine Touch: DuBrul Vineyard
Kori S. Voorhees, our Wine Peeps Editor-in-Chief, is also a regular contributor to Washington Tasting Room Magazine, a quarterly magazine that focuses on Washington State wine with articles about wineries, vineyards, travel, and lifestyle. The following article, written by Kori, appeared in the Spring 2010 issue. Overlooking the lush Yakima Valley, DuBrul Vineyard is cultivating [...]
A Feminine Touch: DuBrul Vineyard was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.
Kasey Chambers Kat Von D Kate Beckinsale Kate Bosworth Kate Groombridge
Wine Lessons Learned from the Tea Party and the TSA
“I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.” That’s the consumer rights lesson I’ve learned this year, and bar none, the wine-related hot button issue potentially affecting consumers this same year has been HR 5034, a part of the wine niche headlines since April. Yet, a consumer-led backlash AND HR 5034 haven’t exactly been two predicates sharing the same subject. I’ve learned the backlash lesson elsewhere … and it’s a lesson all wine lovers would do well to learn, as well.
HR 5034 is a well-chronicled would-be affront to consumer access to wine, as prepared by the National Beer Wholesalers Association, in a lobbying function, before being introduced into the House of Representatives as a bill for consideration as law.
HR 5034, for all intents and purposes, is an attempted circumnavigation of federal law (including Granholm vs. Heald, the landmark 2005 Supreme Court decision that prohibited out-of-state wine shipping discrimination against wineries while granting them the same consumer access liberties afforded to in-state wineries).
In essence, HR 5034 would significantly restrict (or eliminate) consumer access to wines in their state for anything that wasn’t provided directly through a distributor (a lawyer by day, see Palate Press Publisher David Honig’s, excellent breakdown of the legal context for HR 5034). Temporarily shelved with the recent November elections after initial hearings in late September, it’s expected that the bill (and proposed law) will be re-constituted (no pun intended) in January for additional review by the House Judiciary Committee.
With small ripples of consumer opposition, the net-net of HR 5034 is this:
• Is the will of the people stronger than the will of special interest lobbying group’s intent on protecting and expanding their financial interests?
It’s an interesting question because our rule of land – democracy—is by any theoretical measure, “Government of the people, by the people, for the people.” Does HR 5034 follow this most basic of US principle?
Not so much.
A funny thing learned while observing HR 5034 over the last seven months:
• Its introduction into the US House highlights how ill-prepared consumers are in understanding the nuances of our government and how we can affect change that reflects democracy’s fundamental premise.
• Our media absolutely has to assist in publicly fomenting consumer opposition above and beyond core constituents of an issue.
With HR 5034, aside from the obvious wine-related coverage the story has received, the proposed bill measured just a blip on the national radar. I never got a sense that a real consumer coalition was happening—that credible, legitimate, populace-based mindshare was fomenting. Ditto that lack of mindshare as facilitated by the media.
Not that it wasn’t attempted.
Amongst many people, Tom Wark, Executive Director for the Specialty Wine Retailers Association, did fantastic job leading HR 5034 opposition, including being a pivotal leader in thought-leadership, the first person out of the gate to create both a central hub for consumer information as well as a Facebook Fan Page for interested consumers. This activity led to pockets of media coverage.
Yet, those efforts notwithstanding, Wark also realized the need for a broad line consumer organization. He is developing the American Wine Consumer Coalition to represent the views of wine drinkers across the country. This is good, noble and something I wholeheartedly endorse and will support with my participation and my money. Yet, there is still something missing … something missing related to, “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.”
In a year filled with political cacophony, tea partiers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) search related headlines, the missing bullet for a successful kill shot on HR 5034 is a publicly-led backlash with enough sensationalism to capture the media’s interest.
Consider: Were it not for loosely organized rallies, costumes, and hand-lettered placards, the Tea Party would not (could not) have achieved the wide recognition they have received, fueled by the media. This is, after all, a movement that is still without central leadership, or ideology.
Consider: Were it not for national media making John Tyner of “If you touch my junk I’m going to have you arrested” fame there would not have been a media fueled “National Opt-Out Day” creating awareness for consumer rights against invasion of privacy at airport security checkpoints.
In addition, as an aside, without national media would we have “Black Friday,” the fledgling “Small Business Saturday” or “Cyber Monday?”
This all leads me to my central point, underscored by the Japanese proverb, “Knowledge without wisdom is a load of books on the back an ass.”
In practical terms, we have the knowledge that HR 5034 is bad for consumers, but do we have the wisdom to do what is necessary to counteract it?
Do we have the wisdom to organize an event that is sensational in nature that will be picked up by mainstream media to carry the message to greater awareness?
My suggestion is the online wine community dumps all of these friggin’ Zinfandel, Pinot, Cabernet, and Champagne Days on Twitter and does something meaningful.
How about, “National I Want my Wine Shipping Rights Day”
It’s really not that hard to organize and the genius is all wine lovers can participate in willful disobedience.
You see, the real secret here in the wine shipping wars is there is no enforcement—its fear by intimidation by states and the feds based on winery and retailer licensure (and potential seizure).
Yet, there are retailers (plenty of retailers) who ship across the country, door-to-door, and thumb their nose at the TTB and state governing bodies.
To wit, here’s the language on the shipping page from one prominent east coast retailer who places ALL of the shipping risk on the consumer:
”-Company Name Redacted- does not, as a business, ship wine outside of New York State. We are happy, however, to coordinate shipment of your wine, by you, to any location in the U.S. or abroad (for international shipping, see below). By authorizing shipment of your wine, you are allowing -Company Name Redacted- to engage a third party common carrier on your behalf. We provide all shipping coordination as a free service and do not profit from any shipping arrangements we make for you. Insurance (for breakage only) will be added to ALL shipments at an additional charge unless you assume all responsibility for breakage during shipment.”
What a beautiful dodge!
So, a mass coalition of consumers gets together and says, “I’m ordering wine on this day, having it shipped to me and I don’t give a damn what the laws say about it.”
Don’t tread on me; don’t touch my junk and stop messing with my ability to buy the wine that I want to buy from where I want to buy it!
Instead of making this a fight in the halls of government presided over by lobbyist money; let’s make this a fight in the streets based on the will of the people, amplified by media ready to exploit a cause.
Regardless of whether a “national” wine consumer backlash day ever happens for wine shipping, you understand my point – empowered people must assume power. Until wine consumers rise up with broad mindshare, carry a stick, and demand logical action that serves the interests of the majority, we’ll always be subject to the whims of big money lobbyists protecting the few.
But, it doesn’t have to be that way ... because ... I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.
Who is with me?
Photo credit / Associated Press / Licensed by WSJ
Jolene Blalock Jordana Brewster Josie Maran Joss Stone Jules Asner
Raising the Bar with Oz
Image by edgenumbers via Flickr The UK’s most popular wine personality, as measured not just in terms of his wine credentials, but also his reach through TV, must be Oz Clarke. I have just discovered that his ‘Buddy TV’ format has been adapted further in a programme to be called “Oz And Hugh Raise The [...]
Paris Hilton Patricia Velásquez Paula Garcés Paulina Rubio Paz Vega
Three from Southern Right-Hamilton Russell
We first encountered the wines of the South African producer Hamilton Russell back in 2007. At that time, we were very impressed with their mineral-driven Burgundian-like character, and brought home bottles for our cellar. We haven’t seen them around much since then, so when we got review samples of their latest efforts, including a bottle [...]
Brooke Burns Busy Philipps Cameron Diaz Cameron Richardson Camilla Belle
Forget web 2.0 ? some wineries need web 0.9 (plus some wine picks)
More Americans are drinking wine today than ever before. However, increasingly confident and interested wine consumers are thirsty not just for wine, but for reliable information about the wines they consume. Sadly, winery (and importer and trade association) websites don’t always provide the information we now crave. Forget social media and “web 2.0″–too many wineries [...]
Nicole Richie Nicole Scherzinger Nicollette Sheridan Nikki Cox Nikki Reed
Clean up time
Over the next few weeks I will be cleaning up my blog. Adding some new things and taking off other stuff. If you would like to have your site/blog added to the new links page please email me at thegrapesaroundtexas @ Gmail (dot) com <–trying to cut the spam. Cheers!
Danica Patrick Daniella Alonso Danneel Harris Deanna Russo Denise Richards
Sunday, November 28, 2010
By: Russ Kane My Messina Hof Winery Harvest Dinner.
Photo by Russ Kane Messina Hof Winery Harvest Dinner Russ Kane is one of my favorite Texas wine bloggers. His style of telling the story is amazing. Visit Vintagetexas.com and see all his write ups. Another great blog write up by Russ Kane. Its that time of year for Grape Harvest in Texas and Messina [...]
Hilary Duff Hilary Swank Isla Fisher Ivana Bozilovic Ivanka Trump
Roman�e-Conti, DRC 1990
Romanee Conti is regarded as one of the most expensive wines of France as well as the entire world. A set of eight bottles of Roman�e-Conti, DRC 1990 was sold for $224,900 (or $28,112 per bottle) at an auction in Sotheby?s London. These are pinot noir based wines that offer rich, silky and balanced taste. [...]
Halle Berry Hayden Panettiere Haylie Duff Heidi Klum Heidi Montag
Clean up time
Over the next few weeks I will be cleaning up my blog. Adding some new things and taking off other stuff. If you would like to have your site/blog added to the new links page please email me at thegrapesaroundtexas @ Gmail (dot) com <–trying to cut the spam. Cheers!
K. D. Aubert Karen Carreno Karolína Kurková Kasey Chambers Kat Von D
Rodney Strong, Rockaway Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
I’m not sure where to start with this wine since my review of the previous vintage became the subject for the first wine blogger meltdown ever last year. I even thought of not posting a review due to this experience but my curiosity got the better of me and I had to see what the [...]
Rodney Strong, Rockaway Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.
Mischa Barton Missi Pyle Missy Peregrym Molly Sims Monet Mazur
Review of the Kunde Estate 2009 Grenache Rose
Wine:�2009 Grenache Rose Appellation: �Sonoma Valley, Kunde Estate Alc: 13.6% Price: $13.00 Haydn gives it: 88pts You can purchase this wine at: �Kune Estates With the exception of San Francisco, it seems like summer is in full swing for most of America. And with summertime comes warm nights and cool drinks. At least for me, [...]
Melissa George Melissa Howard Melissa Joan Hart Melissa Rycroft Melissa Sagemiller
A Wine for Tonight: 2009 Chateau Ste. Michelle Cold Creek Vineyard Riesling
Would you like a quick suggestion for a good wine to drink tonight (or this weekend) that won?t break your budget and is widely available? Many of our readers have said this is something they would like, so here is this week?s selection, the 2009 Chateau Ste. Michelle Cold Creek Vineyard Riesling from the Columbia [...]
A Wine for Tonight: 2009 Chateau Ste. Michelle Cold Creek Vineyard Riesling was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.
Aki Ross Alecia Elliott Alessandra Ambrosio Alexis Bledel Ali Campoverdi
2008 Blue Fin Petite Sirah: A Sobering Offering from Trader Joe's
A while back I tried a bottle of Blue Fin Pinot Noir and thought it was surprisingly drinkable. That being the case, and since I've enjoyed a number of affordable Petite Sirah lately, I thought to try a bottle of their Blue Fin Petite Sirah. Unfortunately I don't think the Petite Sirah is good. At all.
Look, I understand the wine only costs $3.99. The problem I have with it is that it doesn't encourage us to try other Petite Sirah that are still quite affordable. Step up to the $10-$15 range and you can find some fantastic Petite Sirah. But why would you after trying this one? It's not delicious, rich or redeeming in any way. It's not similar at all to other California Petite Sirah that for me can be excellent more affordable alternatives to Napa Cabernet.
In my opinion, this wine was a real killjoy. It wipes the smile I had on my face while shopping at Trader Joe's right off and makes me afraid to troll in the sub $5 range again. Even the Charles Shaw Cab is way better in my opinion. Steer clear of this turkey (or try it to see what bad wine tastes like).
Here are my notes:
2008 Blue Fin Petite Sirah
12.5% Alcohol
$3.99 at Trader Joe's
Artificial grape dominates the aromatic profile of this surprisingly thin California Petite Sirah. A little wood echoes in the background. I was glad it delivered limited flavor, because the flavor profile it exhibited was undesirable. Stewy vegetables smashed together with ambiguous slightly-sweet fruit. An abrupt finish which I was grateful for. One of the worst non-flawed wines I've ever had.
55/100 WWP: Not Recommended
Better options in Petite Sirah for around $10:
Further reading about Blue Fin:
- I didn't think their Pinot Noir was nearly as bad
- I should have listened to Jason's Wine Blog when he told me to skip this one
Thalía Thandie Newton The Avatars of Second Life The Pussycat Dolls Thora Birch
New Zealand wine stomps carbon footprint on the label
Starting early next year, some consumers will be able to buy a wine with a carbon footprint analysis on the label. Mobius, a new sauvignon blanc from New Zealand’s Marlborough region, will sport a calculation of greenhouse gas emissions on a per glass basis. Bottles destined for Australia will be the first to receive the [...]
Chandra West Charisma Carpenter Charli Baltimore Charlies Angels Charlize Theron
WBW 55: North vs. South
This Wine Blogging Wednesday thing is becoming a problem for me. No, it’s not the themes but my lack of organization and focus to actually post on time or near to the actual event. I did my last event on the weekend after the Wednesday in question and there have been too many months where [...]
WBW 55: North vs. South originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.
Ana Paula Lemes Ananda Lewis Angela Marcello Angelina Jolie Anna Faris
An Eight Step Winepreneur Therapy Program
… I settled into my too small aisle airline seat outbound from SFO, a long anticipated weekend in wine country now just a memory; I closed my eyes and let my mind wander.
The movie director in my mind’s eye yelled, “Action” and I loosely guided the narrative in my half-awake half-asleep state of obliviousness …
I entered the small panel-lined room that felt like a cross between church basement and the labored Zen motif of a therapist’s office; a fake tree with dusty leaves adorned the corner. Gunmetal gray folding chairs haphazardly created a semi-circle. My eyes darted as I sized up the strangers who were to become my friends. The dank air filled with nervous perspiration. I chewed my lip as my stomach knitted knots of anticipation. I cleared the knot that had jumped up from my stomach into my throat and said to the other wine lovers assembled, “Hi. My name is Jeff and I’m a would-be wine entrepreneur.”
In an instant, the room settled and tension released like a clock striking 5:01 on a Friday. The group responded, as if channeling a Catholic responsorial psalm, “Hi, Jeff! I’m a would-be wine entrepreneur, too.”
What followed was a therapy session of big ideas waiting to be uncorked from the proverbial bottle ... each of my cohorts living a life of secret dreams and half-baked desires centered on the good grape, certain success assured if only “Temerity” would first get in the ring with “Security” and kick its ass, before dispatching security’s tag team partner, “Risk.”
Abruptly jarred back into consciousness by a fleshy, grinning, chirping faux-friendly flight attendant of a certain age, somewhere in that predominant airline nexus of tenure that is older than “Cougar,” but younger than Grandma, she was using her beverage cart as a blunt force object, bumping my shoulder, knee and foot in one questionably inadvertent thrust. I quickly left my mental respite and imaginary new friends in group wine therapy and wondered when 6’1 and 190 lbs. became outsized for the airlines …
While the above vignette is fictitious, it is emblematic of a shared thought pattern because most wine enthusiasts harbor a deep-seated interest in starting a wine-related business of some sort, aligning their passion with their profession, a thought that eats like yeast on juice sugars.
Perhaps, more than any other industry aside from technology, the US wine business WAS, and IS an industry built on entrepreneurs starting small business concerns with hopes and dreams for success.
Couple this manifest reality with a sea tide of self-help books encouraging, nay, excoriating the restless to follow their dreams and you have a tipping point of interest in getting into the wine industry.
Certainly, the economic tide of the last several years has dampened the pace of development of small wineries and small businesses serving the wine industry, but the growth continues unabated.
Yet, you have to ask yourself, “Why?”
The familiar anecdote is that 90% of the wineries in the US battle for 10% of wine consumption by volume. The vast majority of the wine that is guzzled comes from large corporations. If you couple the notion of a “sea of many” wineries fighting for a slim percentage of “mouth share” with Small Business Administration statistics about success rates for new business (over half will fail in the first five years), it paints a picture of extreme risk.
The dream and the pursuit marches on, however.
This post isn’t about daydreaming it’s more about the delta in between dreaming and doing, moving from point A to point B and thinking while you’re doing it.
Thomas J. Watson, IBM’s President for nearly half a century in the 20th century famously said:
“And we must study through reading, listening, discussing, observing and thinking. We must not neglect any one of those ways of study. The trouble with most of us is that we fall down on the latter—thinking—because it’s hard work for people to think.”
Here are eight steps and additional resources for “thinking” about your wine venture:
1) Start by using either a “Passion to Profit” template OR a mind-mapping template.
The difference between the two is the Passion to Profit template is for identifying and aligning your strengths around your interests. The mind-mapping template is for brainstorming business ideas if you’re already certain about which direction you’d like to go in a new business venture
2) Once you have a business in mind, use the Business Model Canvas for mapping out your business model and ALL of your revenue streams
The business model canvas comes from a fantastic book called, Business Model Generation. A must read not just for entrepreneurs, but also people that want to look at their job in a paradigm shifting light. The book is partially available as a free ebook here.
3) Once you have your business model identified, do a PEST analysis.
A PEST analysis outwardly examines the Political, Economical, Social and Technological aspects of a particular market, including competitors – important in wine, a highly regulated, highly competitive business.
4) Once you’ve done your PEST analysis, which is largely market facing, do a SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis.
There is some overlap with a PEST, but a SWOT is primarily an inward facing exercise designed to examine a strategy and business proposition.
5) Once you have a finite grip on your PEST and SWOT, go through the Porter’s Five Forces of Competitive Position analysis.
If you make it through Porter’s and you haven’t completely thrown yourself into discouraging turmoil, congratulations! You are now a candidate to create a business plan that addresses your desire to create and support a
wine business with projected financials and strategic marketing.
6) Abundant software resources exist for business plan generation, but I’ve always used the templates from the Service Corp of Retired Executives (SCORE) found here.
Once you’ve done all of this, take a break and mentally separate yourself from the creation process. You’ll revisit all of your planning with fresh eyes and a detached ability to edit in order to create the best plan possible.
Assumingly, you’re going to be able to find funding for your new wine venture and start as a business. The following are fantastic resources for early stage businesses to avoid common pitfalls in poor planning:
I’ve mentioned this eBook before. It is a fantastic and head-nodding affirmation on many of the challenges of small business and the ways to avoid or correct them. The ebook can be accompanied with coaching services. Follow the ebook to avoid pitfalls to your first million and then engage the coaching to super-charge growth.
8) GrowthPanel
Everybody thinks they’re a marketer extraordinaire, yet hardly anybody actually “plans their work, and works their plan” instead relying on a grab bag of tactics in a haphazard way. GrowthPanel is an organized program of marketing planning covering the entire landscape of marketing engagement. If it’s not here, chances are you don’t need to do it. A tremendous planning resource. Ebook to get started here.
In sum, good luck on your thinking, planning and development of a wine venture, if I’m not with you in person, know and trust that I am with you spiritually and in my mind’s eye.
Additional Links and downloads
* Credit to Businessballs.com for several of the templates including the Passion to Profit template which I formatted for download
* Business Model Canvas template
* Porter’s Five Forces of Competitive Position Overview template
Karen Carreno Karolína Kurková Kasey Chambers Kat Von D Kate Beckinsale
Saturday, November 27, 2010
The Pre EWBC Post
It is the final countdown for the start of the third European Wine Bloggers Conference, the annual gathering of wine communicators of all types, and this year representing 30 countries. There is so much about this event worth sharing but I have to be brief – I’ve a conference to put on and more than [...]
Kim Kardashian Kim Smith Kim Yoon jin Kirsten Dunst Krista Allen
Canonica A Cerreto Sandiavolo 2004
I just had this lovely Italian wine the other day. It's a so called SuperTuscan so its made of other grapes that the local Sangiovese. The Canonica A Cerreto Sandiavolo 2004 is made of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sangiovese. Canonica A Cerreto is located in the heart of the Chianti Classico area in the town of Castelnuovo near Sienna. They also make traditional Chianti Classico but this one is their top wine only produced in the best vintages.
Veronika Vaeková Victoria Beckham Victoria Pratt Victoria Silvstedt Vinessa Shaw
Wine blogging qualifications
I see that an interview I gave on the phone recently has been published in Harpers and I thought it would be better to add a few comments before I might upset any friends in the trade or blogging world. I was asked, by Gemma McKenna at Harpers in the UK, whether I thought that [...]
Missy Peregrym Molly Sims Monet Mazur Monica Bellucci Monica Keena
How To: Win a Pair of Tickets to Wine Riot
I tended to agree with the crowd at the last event - that the 90+ Cellars Shiraz/Viognier was a really nice wine. 90+ Cellars has a unique slot at the upcoming Wine Riot which is a Tasting Lounge. There you can taste not only their current releases, but you can taste wines they're considering for future bottling and help them decide on one of next year's 90+ Cellars wines. The wine will be bottled and sold as a 90+ Cellars/Second Glass Wine Riot wine to commemorate the event.
The event is split up into three segments: Opening night (Friday night), and then two riots on Saturday. I approached the good folks at Second Glass (the folks who put on the Wine Riot) and they agreed to give away a pair of tickets for the event here on this site. Two tickets for Saturday's Riot One which runs from 1p-5p: a $90 value.
To enter, leave a comment below saying you'd like to be entered in the drawing. If you'd rather keep it on the down low, drop me an E-mail asking you'd like to be entered: wellesleywinepress@gmail.com
Get your submission in by midnight eastern time tomorrow night (Tuesday, October 19th, 2010). I'll do a random number drawing and announce the winner Wednesday morning. Good luck!
Thanks to Second Glass for sponsoring this give away - it is appreciated.
To purchase tickets for the event click here.
Update (October 20th, 2010):
I did the drawing by generating a random number. I numbered the comments 1-7 in the order they were received. 4 E-mail submissions were numbered 8-11. I then asked for a random number between 1 and 11, and the winning number was 2:
If you didn't win tickets, you can still buy tickets online. I definitely recommend buying tickets ahead of time because this event does sell out.
Check back tomorrow for another giveaway for a Boston area wine event, this time for one of the top steakhouses in town. Thanks!
Emma Heming Emma Stone Emma Watson Emmanuelle Chriqui Emmanuelle Vaugier
RedTree, Pinot Noir 2008
It is rare that you see mainstream critics write about so-called “industrial wines” and most unusual when they actually say good things about them. So I was surprised to see Wine Spectator critic Jim Laube blog about an $8 California Pinot Noir a couple weeks ago. Naturally I was curious to taste the wine myself [...]
RedTree, Pinot Noir 2008 originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.
Melissa Howard Melissa Joan Hart Melissa Rycroft Melissa Sagemiller Mena Suvari
Wine Reforms, State Power and Blackmailers
The battled over H.R. 5034, the bill in Congress being pushed exclusively by beer and wine middlemen, has resulted in some misconceptions and misunderstandings regarding the state of alcohol regulation in America, the meaning of the Constitution and just who...
Simone Mütherthies Sofía Vergara Soft Cell Sophia Bush Stacy Keibler
2007 Sauternes & Barsac
Here you find the ratings of the 2007 Sauternes and Barsac wines from Robert Parker, Decanter and Wine Spectator:
Sauternes & Barsac
Decanter
Wine Advocate
WineSpectator
Price
Chateau d’Yquem
***** 19
96 - 98
97 - 100
Chateau Guiraud
**** 17,5
92 - 94
91 - 94
Chateau La Tour Blanche
**** 18
86 - 88
90 - 93
Chateau Lafaurie-Peyraguey
**** 18
91 - 93
91 - 94
Chateau de Rayne-Vigneau
***** 19
91 - 93
92 - 95
Chateau [...]
Sauternes & Barsac
Decanter
Wine Advocate
WineSpectator
Price
Chateau d’Yquem
***** 19
96 - 98
97 - 100
Chateau Guiraud
**** 17,5
92 - 94
91 - 94
Chateau La Tour Blanche
**** 18
86 - 88
90 - 93
Chateau Lafaurie-Peyraguey
**** 18
91 - 93
91 - 94
Chateau de Rayne-Vigneau
***** 19
91 - 93
92 - 95
Chateau [...]
Maria Menounos Maria Sharapova Mariah Carey Mariah OBrien Marika Dominczyk
The ?Champagne? ritual in baseball gets icy reception
Major League Baseball seeks to make the absurd ritual of victors spraying each other with drinks a non-alcoholic one. Korbel weeps. Catawba producers may break out the bubbly. The NYT reported on the new guidelines over the weekend: “Teams must limit Champagne; offer a non-alcoholic version; beer and other types of alcoholic drinks are banned; [...]
Vanessa Hudgens Vanessa Marcil Vanessa Minnillo Vanessa Simmons Veronica Kay
Friday, November 26, 2010
Wine blogging qualifications
I see that an interview I gave on the phone recently has been published in Harpers and I thought it would be better to add a few comments before I might upset any friends in the trade or blogging world. I was asked, by Gemma McKenna at Harpers in the UK, whether I thought that [...]
Chandra West Charisma Carpenter Charli Baltimore Charlies Angels Charlize Theron
2007 St. Emilion Premier Grand Cru Class�
In this post you'll find an overview of the ratings of the 2007 Medoc 2. Grand Cru Class�. We have gathered all ratings from Robert Parker, Decanter and Wine Spectator.
Nicollette Sheridan Nikki Cox Nikki Reed Norah Jones Noureen DeWulf
New Business=New Schedule
I think anyone who moves into a new industry can tell you a bit about schedules changing and getting into the rhythm in regards to a new industry. For me, with Uncorked Ventures only being a year old now……I’m still getting accustomed to the ups and downs in regards to scheduling within the wine industry. [...]
Monica Keena Monica Potter Monika Kramlik Moon Bloodgood Mýa
Make Your Stunning Engagement Party Complete With a Beautiful Blue Diamond Ring
It is often said that diamonds are girls? best friend. However, in a way they are the worst enemy of a man! But not always! To make up with your partner, nothing can be better than a diamond as a gift. I feel that this is the best way to patch up!! You must [...]
Michelle Behennah Michelle Branch Michelle Malkin Michelle Obama Michelle Rodriguez
Black Friday 2010 Wine Sales
Here are some notable Black Friday Wine Deals I've heard about. If you're a retailer and would like me to add your offer to this list drop me an E-mail at: wellesleywinepress@gmail.com
Wine.com
Friday Only: 15% off a mixed case with coupon code BLACKFRIDAY. For example you could get the 2008 Caymus Special Selection for $84.99 (regularly $99) as part of a mixed case. Wine.com can ship to Massachusetts.
West Concord Liquors
2006 Louis Jadot Vosne Romanee - regularly $56, on sale for $38 for an individual bottle.
20% off all Wine Spectator Top 100 wines in stock (17 different wines available to start the day) no minimum purchase. Notable inventory:
- #2 2008 Two Hands Shiraz Barossa Valley Bella's Garden $44 (was $55)
- #6 2008 Paul Hobbs Russian River Pinot Noir $47.99 (was $59.99)
- #9 2007 CARM Douro Reserva $21.60 (was $26.99)
- #75 2008 A to Z Wine Works Pinot Noir $15.99 (was $19.99)
- #79 2009 Elk Cove Pinot Gris $15.99 (was $19.99)
10% off anything in the store.
The last two times I've been there, they've had 2007 Ridge Monte Bello half-bottles in the bargain bins for $40. 10% off is $36 so the equivalent of $72 for a 750ml bottle of this wine. Based on a $145 release price, and a nationwide low price on Wine-Searcher.com of $99 I think this is a buy. Their inventory changes constantly so you never know what you're going to find!
Wine Nation
They'll pay the sales tax (save 6.25%) on Friday November 26th and every Tuesday in December.
Items with prices ending in "4" are excluded from the tax savings deal. Click here to see their current ad.
Julio's Liquors
25%+ off 400 select wines. Noted the 93WS 2008 Patz & Hall Sonoma Coast for $36 and 90+ Cellars wines at favorably low prices.
Table & Vine
Specials on wines from Cadence Winery, Burgundy, and 2009 Cru Beaujolais.
Wine Library
100+ items at huge discounts. Click here for more info starting at 9 AM EST on Friday. Wine Library cannot and does not ship to Massachusetts.
Blanchards
Holding off until Cyber Monday: Click here to see a preview of their sale.
Groupon Chicago
$25 gets you $75 worth of wine from Barclays Wine. The selection looks like they're wine of the month club type retailer but have a look to see what you think. They don't ship to MA. Use this link if you want to kick back a $10 referral to my Groupon account. Use this link to go directly to the Barclays Wine deal.
Any good public deals I'm missing? Which retailers have been offering deals you can't pass up lately?
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Value Alert: 2007 Picket Fence Pinot Noir
I'd forgotten how fun it is to shop for wine at Trader Joe's. As much as I've been trying to curb wine spending lately I couldn't resist tossing in a couple of lower-priced bottles. Over the years they've really bolstered their selection of wines just above their rock-bottom-priced/famous Charles Shaw wines. They've got other wines between $3 and $10 that are fun to try because they've got such cool personalities: Interesting labels, interesting grape varieties, and interesting regions. Their buyers really know what they're doing and it's evident in the smiles you see on customer's faces and in the average amount of wine in a shopping cart in the store.
I picked up a few really inexpensive wines and then this one caught my eye: the 2007 Picket Fence Pinot Noir. I've seen the wine around before and the attractive label caught my eye. Something about it feels well suited to sharing with friends - especially neighbors.
I was anxious to crack open a bottle of it because I don't think it's going to last long. Why? Because it's a $30 wine they're selling for $8.99. It wasn't mind-blowingly amazing but I thought it was an elegant representation of Pinot Noir from Sonoma's highly regarded Russian River Valley appelation. It's also from a highly regarded vintage (Wine Spectator called 2007 the best vintage ever for California Pinot Noir).
Here are my notes:
2007 Picket Fence Pinot Noir
14.5% Alcohol
500 Barrels produced (around 12,500 cases)
Retail Price: $30
Visually, this wine is quite thin. But then again maybe it's varietally correct and the rest of the overblown California Pinot Noir I've been drinking is overly dark. Typical Pinot Noir aromas of strawberries and tart cherries but I get some slightly-green/twangy/stemmy aromas as well that I could have done without. I get these notes quite frequently in Russian River Valley Pinot Noir so depending on whether these bother you, you may want to proceed with caution. Quite nice on the palate with satisfying weight and creamy light vanilla notes. Seemed like lowish acidity. Nice aftertaste. Medium length of finish. I would have gone 90 points on this wine if not for the ever-so-slightly-off aromas. Your mileage may vary - I'd encourage you to check it out if you can find it under $15.
88/100 WWP: Very Good
Where to Buy: $8.99 at Trader Joe's in Framingham, MA
Further Reading:
- Is Trader Joe's a Good Place to Buy Wine?
- Charles Shaw Blind Tasting
- Value Alert: 2008 Meiomi Belle Glos Pinot Noir
- Value Alert: 2006 Londer Anderson Valley Pinot Noir
Have you had this wine? If so, what did you think?
Mena Suvari Mia Kirshner Mía Maestro Michael Michele Michelle Behennah
Deals From the Vine Flashes On to the Scene
One of the most conspicuous outcomes of the economic downturn that has effected the American economy and, with it, the American wine industry, is the "Flash Sale". These quick-turnaround sales of single wines at significant discounts have popped up across...
Katharine Towne Katherine Heigl Katie Cassidy Katie Holmes Katy Perry
Happy 2010 from Family, Love, Wine!!
Wishing you all of the love, success, happiness and new wine discoveries in the New Year.� I hope to continue to evolve both my business and the content here to bring you more consistent and helpful info.� I’d love to connect and help you with questions via Twitter @MelissaDobson, on Facebook at facebook.com/MelissaDobsonPRMarketing , or [...]
Jennifer Morrison Jennifer ODell Jennifer Scholle Jennifer Sky Jenny McCarthy
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Small Production Means Big Design on Wine Labels
The art of wine label design is widely practiced. And better by some than others. In almost every case, the primary question that is asked by the owners of a wine labels is this: Will it help me sell more...
Jessica Paré Jessica Simpson Jessica White Jill Arrington Jill Wagner
Grape Stomp at Dry Comal Creek
One of the most fun things to do at a good winery is the grape stomp. At Dry Comal Creek that is what is about to happen. Grape Stomp is Just a Few Weeks Away. Here is the video from Youtube from 2009
Thora Birch Tila Tequila Tina Fey Tricia Helfer Tricia Vessey
The Future of Wine Writing
Image via Wikipedia “There’s something happening here / What it is ain’t exactly clear…”� — Stephen Stills, “For What It’s Worth” I’ve been away from the blog for much of this month but have been keeping up with my reading and, oh course, tweeting. A few weeks ago Tyler Colman, who blogs as Dr Vino, [...]
The Future of Wine Writing originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.
Giulianna Ramirez Grace Park Gretha Cavazzoni Gwen Stefani Halle Berry
More New Wines from Cono Sur
OK, so I don’t REALLY think that the good folks at Cono Sur have been reading our reviews and have altered their wine making methods just because we’ve been critical of the excessive oak treatment they’ve given to their reds in the past. What I DO know is that every one of the red samples [...]
Hilarie Burton Hilary Duff Hilary Swank Isla Fisher Ivana Bozilovic
Sean Thackrey Pleiades XIX
For the past several years, Kim has referred to Sean Thackrey’s Pleiades as ?my wine.? She has come to love it dearly over its many incarnations, as our experience with it goes back to at least number VIII. We always look forward to trying the new release, and Kim is always very good about sharing [...]
Moon Bloodgood Mýa Nadine Velazquez Naomi Watts Natalie Imbruglia
In India, the prime minister toasts Obama with juice [Indian wine]
The Obamas’ first state dinner was in honor of Indian Prime Minster Manmohan Singh and his wife. As you may recall, the White House wine steward tried to start an international conflagration by pairing a high-alcohol Grenache with green curry prawns. So with the return leg of the India-America state visits, marking what the leaders [...]
Xenia Seeberg Yamila Diaz Yvonne Strzechowski Zhang Ziyi Zoe Saldana
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Wine blogging qualifications
I see that an interview I gave on the phone recently has been published in Harpers and I thought it would be better to add a few comments before I might upset any friends in the trade or blogging world. I was asked, by Gemma McKenna at Harpers in the UK, whether I thought that [...]
Diane Kruger Dido Diora Baird Dita Von Teese Dominique Swain
Raising the Bar with Oz
Image by edgenumbers via Flickr The UK’s most popular wine personality, as measured not just in terms of his wine credentials, but also his reach through TV, must be Oz Clarke. I have just discovered that his ‘Buddy TV’ format has been adapted further in a programme to be called “Oz And Hugh Raise The [...]
Zhang Ziyi Zoe Saldana Zooey Deschanel Aaliyah Abbie Cornish
Back to Marketing
At Uncorked Ventures, we’re always looking for new and better ways to advertise our wine clubs and wine gift services. Part of that process has led us to create the following image. It’s a bit different than you usually see in the wine industry for a number of reasons, but we like it quite a [...]
Emmy Rossum Erica Leerhsen Erika Christensen Estella Warren Esther Cañadas
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