Fermentation: The Daily Wine Blog

It's (frog's) LEAP DAY!!!

Today is really a bonus, isn't it? I mean, is today an extra day? Are we living on granted time today it being Leap Day and all? I really can't figure it out. From what I understand, today—FEB 29—is added to the calender because we, as a people, choose to use poor mathematics in mapping out our calender. Today is like that little "R2" that that 1st graders use when learning division: Today accounts for the "remainder minutes" that are left over during the past 4 years.

Nevertheless and despite all that, It seem appropriate on this day to honor one of the cooler wineries in Northern California: FROG's LEAP.

There are a TON of things to like about Napa Valley's Frog's Leap besides their having the best label in the American wine industry. Among them:

1. Their wines are so well priced it's as though they never noticed that it's not 1990 any more.

2. They make an astoundingly good Rose.

3. Owner John Williams has presided over the creation of what might be the "greenest" winery in Napa Valley.

4. They are such die hard Giants fans they actually put the opening day on their events page on the web.

5. All their grapes are grown organically. I don't know if this accounts for the quality of their wines, but I do know it means they must pay much greater attention to the vineyard. That's a good thing.

In some respects Frog's Leap Winery is "old school" in that it has been around for over 25 years. So many wineries today are the toast of the town in part because they are new which means wineries like Frog's Leap don't get the attention they deserve. But today is there day. Today is Leap Day. In the wine business it really should be known as (Frog's) LEAP DAY.

Go visit their website. Buy a killer bottle of wine and celebrate this extra 24 hours you have been given by the time-keeping powers that be.

Very Quaffable Innovations

John Gavin, best known as the author of Quaffability Blog and popular web designer to the wineries is on a roll with two new and innovative websites that wine lovers probably should be aware of.

WEB TASTING ROOM

It's a video blog. It's a source of excellent deals. It's a message direct from the winemaker. What John has done here is create not just a web site the provides access to good deals on wines, but gives you much deeper insight than normal into who is behind the wine. One deal is offered at a time (right now it's an SB and Red blend from famed winemaker Mia Klein) that most often includes a fantastic deal on shipping. The current offered delivers two very rare wines with SHIPPING INCLUDED. In addition you not only get detailed info about the wine but a video interview with the winemaker. Pretty cool!

FREEWINESHIPPING.COM

While I like the WebTastingRoom concept, this particular website is the one I think will lead a number of folks to sign up for their mailing list and RSS Feed. John is regularly posting links to wineries and retailers who have a deal going that offers free shipping. How cool is that??? "Free Shipping" is the number one promotion that consumers want from wine sellers. Not 10% off. Not 20% off on a case. It's "free shipping" or its equivalent that is desired.  Gavin is searching the web and posting his finds, be they from wineries or retailers. If my wife finds out about this I'll need to raise my rates to Wark Communications clients.

Cheers to more very cool wine innovations on the web!!

The Implosion Begins!

Let me see if I have this right...

On the one hand, wine retailers across the United States are telling alcohol regulators in every state that they'd like to enhance their operating budgets by paying an annual fee to ship wine to consumers in those states. They'd like to help fill their state's coffers with funds resulting from the remittance of taxes on the wine they sell and ship to consumers in their state. These retailers would like to voluntarily submit themselves to the legal jurisdiction of a remote state as well as allow their books to be audited at the notice of the regulators.

On the other hand, the Wine & Spirit Wholesalers of America want alcohol regulators to commit a significant amount of their valuable time looking for an alleged band of adult wine lovers who are claimed to be committing the sin of buying wines they can't find in their own state, from a retailer in another state. Further, the WSWA wants these alcohol regulators to spend their valuable budgets looking for these supposed scofflaws in their own states as well as tracking down the alleged sellers in other states. Of course, wholesalers aren't mentioning that this would take significant time and resources away from actually carrying out the core mission of these alcohol regulators: making sure licensees in their state are following the law and attempting to assure licensees don't over-serve their drinking patrons.

Get More Money for their states and their budgets...VS...waste time protecting wholesaler profits???

Hmmmm? Tough one, isn't it.

Yet this is the silly suggestion that the head of the American wholesaler cartel actually made in the form of a press release today as well as in letters to Attorneys General, governors and alcohol regulators in 50 states.

In case anyone reading this has missed the point of the American Wholesaler Cartel, allow me to remind you: PREVENT AS MANY AMERICANS FROM ACCESSING ANY WINE UNLESS WHOLESALERS FIRST MAKE A PROFIT ON IT.

Damn the regulators and the efforts they make to maintain an orderly and safe market for wine and spirits. Damn the states and their need to raise revenue. Damn the consumers who only want to obtain the wines the wholesalers feel these folks don't need to have. JUST PROTECT OUR PROFITS.

I wonder if WSWA and the wholesalers ever tire of being ridiculed?

I don't think so. The American wholesaler cartel appears to never tire of having their face rubbed in it. They lose lawsuit after lawsuit. They get slapped down by the Supreme Court of the United States. They get caught in their misogynistic ways. Their arguments against direct shipping are put to bed with efficiency and ease by person after person. But none of this is enough for them it appears. Now, they whine like a little girl who just soiled their Sunday dress and run off crying to daddy asking him to put down his tools and stop doing his job, so he can clean the mess the little girl made all by herself.

If anyone is wondering, it's only going to get worse for the wholesaler cartel as they continue to spin out of all control.

But what I'm really wondering is who in their right mind at WSWA gave the approval to issue a press release that actually criticizes the the most powerful newspaper in the land merely for an offhand quip a wine writer made in its pages? Is there no one at the helm at WSWA? All they have to do is call me and I can recommend a number of fine PR professionals who will tell them the utter depth of stupidity that move represented. But allow me to recreate this act of stupidity...just as an object lesson in how not to run a communications program.

To quote from yesterday's WSWA press release that whines about the alleged "Illegal alcohol trafficking and open disregard for state liquor  laws":

"Wolf even cites a prominent New York Times wine writer openly sympathetic to the unregulated-shipping cause, who recently opened one column: “I have a confession to make.  I am a lawbreaker.”

Wrote Wolf in response to the remark: “That a newspaper of record would publish such comments in the clear light of day, we believe, ought to trouble any regulator, lawmaker or law enforcement official.”

Tell you what, if I ever recommend to one of Wark Communications' clients that they criticize the New York Times in a press release, please have someone come to my home, drag me out of bed and beat me senseless.

Finally, I fear I'm forced, out of the knowledge that my good readers love a bit of humor, to quote from the letter that WSWA's CEO Craig Wolf wrote and sent to alcohol regulators, the top law enforcement officials and the Governors (yes, the following quote actually ended up in a letter to GOVERNORS) in all fifty states:

"As you are well aware, the sidestepping of state-controlled alcohol distribution channels causes a host of negative effects—the inability to collect taxes, the absence of a face-to-face transaction that addresses myriad regulatory aims, and the very real possibility of introducing tainted or counterfeit product into your marketplace, to name but a few.”

Tainted Products? Now the American wholesalers are protecting us from tainted wine? I've got news for them. This is not 1926. No one is making tainted wine in a bathtub with grain alcohol and red food coloring, slapping a stopper in it and running it across the river to avoid Elliot Ness. And just when was the last time a wholesaler broke open a case of Opus or Dom Perignon or Russian River Valley Chardonnay to make sure it wasn't "Tainted"?

I think we may be witnessing the end of a long sad saga as the implosion begins.

Nominations for the 2008 Wine Blog Awards are Closed

The nomination period for the 2008 American Wine Blog Awards is now officially closed. The next step will be for a panel of judges to embark on an intensive review of the various blogs that were nominated and qualify for consideration in an effort to come up with 4 finalists in each category.

Be patient with the judging panel. This is not an easy process.

I want to thank everyone who took the time to nominate their favorite blogs in all the categories. My initial perusal of the nominations tells me that the competition will be very heated. There are numerous outstanding blogs that were nominated in every single category.

Again, Thank you for you participation in this part of the process.

3 Days of Nominating Remain in Wine Blog Awards

ONLY THREE DAYS REMAIN IN THE NOMINATING PROCESS FOR THE AMERICAN WINE BLOG AWARDS.

If there is a blog that you believe deserves to be considered to be one of the finalists in any of the 8 categories, it is important to nominate them. No wine blogs that have not been nominated will be considered by the judges as a finalist in any of the categories.

THE NOMINATION PROCESS ENDS ON WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27.

Is Your Favorite Blog Nominated???

Look over to the right to find the category in which you'd like to nominate a blog.

The State of The Wine Industry...Dan-Style

I missed the Unified Symposium this year, and I'm worse off for it. It's an important event.

However, I did read the news coming out of the Symposium about the state of my beloved California wine industry. All good news. All GREAT News! For example:

"Industry experts assessed the industry at the 2008 Unified Wine & Grape Symposium in Sacramento Jan. 30 with a dizzying array of charts, tables and graphs. The data show a healthy and thriving market for U.S. wines and the potential to capture an even greater market share"...wrote the folks over at Captial Press where agriculture reporting is the focus. In fact, this was the news reported out of the symposium just about everywhere.

Assessing all the various trend data and indicators to get an idea of the health of any industry is not an easy thing to do. Most of us are content to read the news and rely on our own observations. It's always nice to have the perspective of someone who knows the industry intimately, but doesn't have an interest in any particular part of the business.

Enter Dan Berger.

I know people who dismiss Dan's because they are opposed to his belief that too many wines made today are down right unpleasant because of their enormity that comes with a desire to grab scores and the customers who buy scores. Dismissing Dan Berger's opinion, however, is akin to dismissing the reporting of Bob Woodward because you were a Nixon fan.

Dan recently wrote an article for Appellation America that literally scrapes the smile off the Unified Symposium's Happy Face. In this article Dan points to a number of trends that give one pause:

31 percent of all wine sold in the United States last year was imported wine. This, in case you aren’t aware of it, is an all-time record. In 1986-87, imports reached nearly 1 bottle in 4, and if the current trend continues, it’ll soon be 1 bottle in 3."

...

"With Gallo, Constellation, Diageo, and Fosters now controlling a larger share of all wine production and sales than ever before, the consumers’ options have shrunk. The majors now call the shots in ways they didn’t until just recently."

...

"Fredrickson, publisher of the respected Gomberg Fredrickson Report, showed graphs and tables proving how healthy the U.S. wine economy was in 2006, with shipments up 2 percent from 2006 to 2007. All well and good, but his own data showed that sales of imports rose 9 percent last year."

...

"Except for rising sales of Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc, increases in sales of Riesling and rosé over the last few years, and a bit of enthusiasm for Pinot Gris/Grigio, little else is very encouraging."

This is a really important story that Dan Berger has written and it is recommended to anyone in the wine industry or anyone interested in the wine industry that craves perspective.

It's Time We Joined Together—The Open Wine Consortium

It is most often the case that single individuals are the cause of change or the inspiration for change in (and the evolution of) the wine industry. This is not unique to the wine business.

However, it must also be noted that associations, organizations and, yes, CONSORTIUMS can and have pushed issues forward, and caused significant change in this industry. The California Wine Institute, Family Winemakers of California, Wine America, AWARE (for those of you who remember this group), Specialty Wine Retailers Association, Coalition for Free Trade and Free the Grapes all represent groups that bring together like-thinking people to pursue change and have been successful in their efforts.

There is a new organization that is in its infancy, but which I believe possesses the potential to also bring significant change to the wine industry.

THE OPEN WINE CONSORTIUM is bringing together folks who embrace the change that technology in particular has wrought within the wine business and that it will continue to bring. As with all significant changes, these tech-driven changes in the wine industry has caused something of a fragmentation among those who both embrace the change and those who have at best only dabbled with the possibilities that new technologies can bring to sales, communications, publishing, and marketing in the wine business.

The OPEN WINE CONSORTIUM aspires to be the group that funnels disparate interests and technologies and people into a more cohesive and activist agent that can consolidate the changes and technologies into tools we all can use and understand to make winemaking, wine consuming and the wine business more efficient and vital.

IF YOU ARE IN OR ALONGSIDE THE WINE BUSINESS, IF YOU USE NEW TECHNOLOGIES TO COMMUNICATE, SELL, MARKET OR PRODUCE WINE, IF YOU HAVE NOTICED THAT THE WINE INDUSTRY AND THE CONSUMERS IT SERVES ARE DABBLING IN SIGNIFICANT, TECHNOLOGY-DRIVEN TOOLS....

    ...THEN YOU SHOULD JOIN THE OPEN WINE CONSORTIUM.

Traditionally, organizations have embraced bureaucracy. The Open Wine Consortium will also, insofar as there will have to be directors, boards, committees and working groups to drive its initiatives. But understand too that just as the technology that drove this new Consortium into existence is in fact propelled by a 21st century notion of openness, so too will the Open Wine Consortium take on its chosen challenges with a philosophy of openness that is supported by the new technologies it hopes to harness for all to use and help further change the wine industry.

If this organization is successful, what we'll find are the traditional, more established elements of the wine industry—its associations, symposiums, businesses, conferences and people—adopting and approaching new technologies and new ways of thinking that will lead to more intimate ties between producer and consumers, quicker integration of open standards for data configuration, quicker embrace of the newly minted and tech driven wine companies and a wine industry more willing to embrace the changes that the broader culture has already dove into face first.

JOIN THE OPEN WINE CONSORTIUM

I'm Choosing to Torture the Kids...It's Only Fair.

It's a fair rule I think that on your birthday you get to do whatever you want...within reason and mostly within the law.

With that in mind, I'm choosing to torture my kids today.

No, I'm not going to force booze and wine down their throats. I'm going for the next best thing:

I'm dragging them to a Jazz Club in San Francisco. They could think of other things to do. But, they know the rules about birthdays.

There I'll pour booze and wine down my own throat and the kids will satisfy the two drink minimum via Shirley Temples, Roy Rodgers or whatever else the kids are drinking these days. But the best part is the great fun I'll have hanging with the wonderful wife and exposing the kids for the first time to the transporting and sublime nature of a real night club (sans smoke) where real jazz  is played.

While I can imagine there might be a few folks out there who take as kindly to this idea as some of them did to the idea of exposing my children to small sips of wine at a young age, I really can't imagine what would provoke me to care about this particular brand of NannyPrude.

That said, here's the plan. The wife has something planned for late in the afternoon that involves loading us all up in the car and heading south to San Francisco. That's followed by an outrageously good dinner at a fine SF steak house where I will closely study what is likely to be a 25 page wine list filled with esoterica and wines ranging in age from 3 to 30 and beyond. But first, it's important to start off with a Manhattan straight up. After all, a certain civilized approach is necessary before the gorging, isn't it?

I'll instruct the waiter not to trim any fat off my steak since that glint of fat attached to the scorched medium rare flesh is really what makes it all worth while. The creamed spinach will come in a fine, silver serving tray (is there a better way to expose kids to the joys of spinach?).

And I'll get to down my Manhattan, imbibe my fat-lined steak, indulge in the best (the only?) way spinach can be prepared, savor my old wine and watch my family carry out their purpose in life: make me smile.

Then it's off to Pearls to see the Collective West Jazz Band and spend an hour or so trying to explain to Trey and Hayley the difference between "Big Band", "Be Bop" and "West Coast Cool" and why jazz always sounds different and better in a club than on an iPod.

I'm not sure it's an altogether good thing to allow your kids to see you so fully pamper yourself. But their presence is necessary in this case. Ginny is used to and quite good and encouraging me, so I'm covered their.

Surprises. Manhattans. Great Wine. Fat-lined and marbled steak. A platter of creamed spinach. Jazz. More wine. Kids. Wife. Yep. Must be my birthday.

Nominating Blogs

Just so we are all clear, at this point in the progress of the American Wine Blog Awards, we are simply nominating blogs in a the eight categories. We are not voting on the winners.

Bottom line: At this point it doesn't matter how often a single blog is nominated for a particular award.

Just a reminder.

About the American Wine Blog Awards

Welcome to the 2008 American Wine Blog Awards

This is only the second year for the American Wine Blog Awards. They remain a vehicle for promoting the very best of what has become an extraordinarily important medium for communicating information and passions about wine. The idea is to highlight those exceptional efforts at communicating about wine through blogging.

The format is a simple one:
1. Nominations in 8 categories are taken from the public
2. A Judging Panel reviews the nominated blogs and choose 4 finalists in each category
3. The public votes for their favorite finalist in each category
4. The Judging Panel votes for their favorite finalist in each category
5. The public vote is given 70% weighting; the Judging Panel is given 30% weighting.

The American Wine Blog Awards were begun by me, Tom Wark, the proprietor of this wine blog (FERMENTATION) in 2007. A wine publicist of nearly 20 years, I've come to have  a great  deal of respect for those who write about wine for a living. Yet, that collection of people was always fairly small. With the advent of the blog, those who thought they had something of interest to communicate about wine grew tremendously. And though the new wine bloggers were not usually paid for their efforts, there were among them absolutely terrific minds and writers.

The hope is that through these awards and the awards process, many in the wine industry, publishing industry, many who consume wine information and those who publish traditional wine publications will come across the best of the wine blogging community.

Wine Blog Award Nomination: BEST WINE BLOG WRITING

BEST WINE BLOG WRITING

Criteria for Nomination
Any wine blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and the end of January 2008, that has produced at least 52 posts during that time and is written in English is eligible to be nominated for the "Best Wine Blog Writing" Award.

Nominated Blogs should have delivered outstanding prose and an entertaining writing style to convey original ideas. We are looking to honor those who deliver a unique voice, who write with style and who wrap that style around a core of originality.

USE THE COMMENT SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ALSO ACCESS THIS NOMINATION PAGE USING THE LINKS ON THE RIGHT.

Links to nomination pages for other categories:

Best Wine Blog
Best Single Subject Wine Blog
Best Wine Review Blog
Best Wine Business Blogging
Best Winery Blog
Best Wine Podcast or Video Blog
Best Wine Blog Graphics

Wine Blog Award Nominiation: BEST SINGLE SUBJECT WINE BLOG

BEST SINGLE SUBJECT WINE BLOG

Criteria For Nomination
Any wine blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008, that has produced at least 52 posts in that period and is written in English is eligible to be nominated for the Best Single-Subject Wine Blog Award.

Nominees should have as the focus of their blog a narrowly tailored subject matter. It might focus on an appellation or region, a particular varietal, wines from a particular store, wines of a particular price range or on a particular sector of the wine industry (excluding winery-run blogs). We are looking for those blogs that have done the best job of illuminating the particular and specific wine subject on which they’ve chosen to concentrate. They have illuminated their particular subject matter in an entertaining and informative way and with a unique voice.

USE THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ALSO ACCESS THIS NOMINATION PAGE FROM LINKS AT THE RIGHT

Links to other nomination pages:

Best Wine Blog Writing
Best Wine Blog
Best Wine Review Blog
Best Wine Business Blogging
Best Winery Blog
Best Wine Podcast or Video Blog
Best Wine Blog Graphics

Wine Blog Award Nomination: BEST WINE REVIEW BLOG

BEST WINE REVIEW BLOG

Criteria for Nomination
Any wine blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008, that has produced at least 52 posts in that period and is written in English is eligible to be nominated for the Best Wine Review Blog Award.

Nominees for this Award will have served their readers by providing independent, informed and well-presented wine reviews and recommendations as the primary part of their blog.  The entire presentation of the review, from written description, rating presentation and graphics should be taken into account.

USE THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ALSO ACCESS THIS NOMINATION POST USING THE LINK AT THE RIGHT

Links to other category nomination pages:

Best Single Subject Wine Blog
Best Wine Blog Writing
Best Wine Blog
Best Wine Business Blogging
Best Winery Blog
Best Wine Podcast or Video Blog
Best Wine Blog Graphics

Wine Blog Award Nomination: BEST WINE PODCAST OR VIDEO BLOG

BEST WINE PODCAST OR VIDEOBLOG

Nomination Criteria:
Any wine-related podcast or videoblog in existence between January 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008, that has produced at least 24 episodes in that period and is produced in English is eligible to be nominated for the Best Wine Related Podcast or VideoBlog Award.

Nominees for this award will have done the best job of utilizing the specific capabilities of audio and/or visual technology to entertain and educate its listenership or viewership. You should take into account innovative use of the audio/visual format and the quality of the programming.

USE THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ACCESS THIS NOMINATION PAGE AGAIN USING THE LINKS ON THE RIGHT

Links to other categories' nomination pages:

Best Single Subject Wine Blog
Best Wine Blog Writing
Best Wine Blog
Best Wine Business Blogging
Best Winery Blog
Best Wine Blog Graphics
Best Wine Review Blog

Wine Blog Award Nomination: BEST WINERY BLOG

BEST WINERY BLOG

Nomination Criteria:
Any blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and Janaury 31, 2008, that has produced at least 40 posts in that time and is written in English and is the product of a winery is eligible to be awarded Best Winery Blog.

Nominees for this award will have done the best work presenting wine-related subject matter from the perspective of a wine producer. Nominees should have utilized their unique position in the wine industry to produce a distinctive experience for the reader that both educates and entertains.

USE THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ACCESS THIS PAGE AGAIN BY USING THE LINKS ON THE Right

Links to other categories' nomination pages:

Best Wine Blog Writing
Best Wine Blog
Best Single Subject Wine Blog
Best Wine Review Blog
Best Wine Business Blogging
Best Wine Podcast or Video Blog
Best Wine Blog Graphics

Wine Blog Award Nomination: BEST WINE BUSINESS BLOG

BEST WINE BUSINESS BLOG

Criteria for Nomination
Any blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008, that has produced at least 52 posts in that time, this written in English and that has as a primary focus the business of wine (but is produced by a winery) is eligible.

Blogs nominated in this category should have as a substantial focus of their blog posts the business of wine. With this award we are looking to honor blogs that can look through the marketing speak and analyze the workings of the wine business, how the wine business is progressing, the players in the wine industry, the financial aspect of the wine industry, the marketing aspect of the industry, the grapegrowing and winemaking part of the business. Your nominees will have explored industry issues with a unique and compelling voice either as an observer or expert or participant.

USE THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ALSO ACCESS THIS NOMINATION PAGE USING THE LINKS AT THE RIGHT

Links to other categories' nomination pages:

Best Winery Blog
Best Wine Blog Writing
Best Wine Blog
Best Single Subject Wine Blog
Best Wine Review Blog
Best Wine Podcast or Video Blog
Best Wine Blog Graphics

Wine Blog Award Nomination: BEST WINE BLOG GRAPHICS

BEST GRAPHICS ON A WINE BLOG

Criteria for Nomination:
Any wine blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008, that has produced at least 52 posts in this period and is written in English is eligible to be nominated for the  Best Graphics on a Wine Blog Award.

Nominees should be wine blogs that go the extra mile to present a compelling visual experience for their readers and help demonstrate the potential of the blogging format to convey ideas or subject matter through images. Nominees for this award should have made an extra effort to present its subject matter in a highly visual and graphic manner that is both entertaining, educational and thought provoking.

USE THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ALSO ACCESS THIS NOMINATION PAGE USING THE LINKS ON THE RIGHT

Links to other category nomination pages:

Best Wine Blog Writing
Best Wine Blog
Best Single Subject Wine Blog
Best Wine Review Blog
Best Wine Business Blogging
Best Winery Blog
Best Wine Podcast or Video Blog

Wine Blog Award Nomination: BEST WINE BLOG

BEST WINE BLOG

Nomination Criteria:
Any wine blog in existence between January 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008, that has produced at least 52 posts during that period and is written in English is eligible to be nominated for the Best Wine Blog Award.

Nominees will have delivered an overall wine blog experience that continually entertains and educates its readers. Nominees should have brought an independence of thought and originality of thought to their wine blog. The quality of the writing, content and visual presentation of the Best Wine Blog will be very high. This Blog should have the potential to compete with other high quality wine information resources in any other medium.

USE THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THIS POST TO NOMINATE UP TO 3 BLOGS

YOU CAN ALSO ACCESS THIS NOMINATION PAGE USING THE LINKS AT THE RIGHT

Links to other categories' nomination pages:

Best Wine Blog Graphics
Best Wine Blog Writing
Best Single Subject Wine Blog
Best Wine Review Blog
Best Wine Business Blogging
Best Winery Blog
Best Wine Podcast or Video Blog

When the Cows Come Home

In today's SF Chronicle Janet Fletcher relates a wonderful tradition that occurs in the German Allgauer Alps. Apparently every fall there is a festival celebrating the cows' return from the mountains where they've spent their time since spring feeding on the mountain grasses. These cows are the source of the milk that is made into the region's Hirtenkase or "Herdsman Cheese".

According to Janet, on September 18 the people of the region line the streets and watch the cows come home. I presume the Cow Parade, otherwise known as Almabtrieb, is followed by a feasting on Cheese and something strong to drink.

I want to go there for that. Just the idea of lining the streets to watch the cows come home, cheese in one hand and perhaps a Riesling or beer in the other is enough to send me off to Expedia to look for tickets.

It sounds campy, and I suspect there is probably an element of camp, but the closest thing we have in this neck of the woods is Sonoma's Vintage Festival. It's nice. There's a parade of local luminaries and such. but there are no cows.

Is Janet's the only regular Cheese column running in an American newspaper? I don't know for sure but I bet it is. And we are all better for it. In fact I envy her. What a great beat!

All Is Good In The World

Roger Clemons is testifying in front of Congress on steroids use in baseball.

Barry Bonds is effectively out of baseball.

My beloved San Francisco Giants are predicted to come in last place.

But none of that matters...

PITCHERS REPORT TO SPRING TRAINING TODAY!!!

All is good in the world.

Just as the coming of spring is the moment when hope takes over for vineyard owners who see a new growing season rapidly approaching, so too is the opening of  baseball's spring training camps the time when I imagine that for the first time in my life my San Francisco Giants just might win the world series...for the first time in my lifetime.

I can't even begin to imagine the appropriate wine to open were such an event to take place. I suspect there really isn't a wine that could be opened that actually conveys the importance that moment would have.

Sweet Victory At Last...suggests a Yquem. But even the sweet golden brown glare off an older d'Yquem would be a pale offering to the baseball Gods.

Vindication After The 54 Year Wait...suggests a 1954 First Growth: Perhaps the luck it would take finding a 1954 First Growth that is drinkable would be appropriate given the luck it will take for the Giants to win the world Series this year.

Ah...it doesn't matter. I'll hope in spite of the fact no wine could do the trick in the event my dream comes true. My thirst for a Giants World Series victory can only be quenched by seeing my team receive that coveted trophy. And even if they fail (again) this year to make my dreams come true, I nonetheless can dream, just as the hopeful wine growers start to do this time of year.

All is good.

Coming Soon: 2008 AMERICAN WINE BLOG AWARDS

The 2008 American Wine Blog Awards are just around the corner.

It was truly a pleasure to institute these awards last year as it gave the world a chance to recognize the best of the wine blogging world. I've always believed that formal recognition of quality leads to better and better quality.

I wanted to explain just a few minor changes to this year's process.

First, it will be very similar to last years. As you've noticed, I've retained the name, "American Wine Blog Awards" despite a few calls to have it chanced. While I appreciate the reasons for the suggested removal of the term "American", it still makes sense to me. Call me stubborn.

Second, I've simply not figured out a way to judge the quality of wine blogs not written in English. So, we will continue to honor blogs produced anywhere in the world, but they must be in English.

We will be adding an 8th award category this year. You'll see it when the nominations are up. It is a category I believes is worth considering because the type of blogging it includes is somewhat specialized, yet I think very important. At least it is in this blogger's eyes.

Finally there is the issue of voting for the winners. As with last year, we will have four finalists that are determined by a panel of judges. Again, like last year, the public will vote for one blog in each category. However, this year we will also have a panel of judges that are also voting for one winner in each category. The public voting will be have a 70% weighting in determining the winner, while the panel of judges will have a 30% weight.

I simply wanted to inject a small element of objectivity to the final voting process and overcome any possible ballot stuffing. I didn't see it happen last year, but I just wanted to take precautions.

So, there it is. The nomination process should begin in just a few days.

Herbie Hancock and the $15.99 Cabernet

Ever been part of one of those jaw dropping wine moments when in the course of a single blind tasting of what are considered really top notch Pinots or Chards or Bordeaux, the night's top wines are revealed and it's the ringer, the $15.99 bottle of wine, that actually takes first place among the tasters?

I just love those moments. I don't know what they mean, but I do love them so for the sheer entertainment value. The best part, of course, is the post revelation explanations when all those involved look down at their score sheets and confirm that, "yep, I liked it better than the $120 El Magnifico...but I have to admit, I ate a lot of that blue cheese before tasting it and also It came after that blockbuster, and I've had a cold lately, and my electro-lights are out of balance and, and, and, and..."

Well, we had just such a moment last night at the Grammy Awards when Herbie Hancock walked away with Album of The Year. Let me say that again...HERBIE HANCOCK? walked away with Album of the Year—beating out Kanye West’s "Graduation" and Amy Winehouse’s "Back to Black".

This is the equivalent of The Fruit Bomb Association choosing a 12.5% alcohol, "elegant" Cabernet from British Columbia over the 15.1% molasses monster from Napa Valley in a blind tasting.

For what it's worth, I enjoy Hancock when he does his straightforward jazz, rather than his various attempts to cross over into Pop. This recording however, while straying into pop by virtue of its Joni Mitchell subject matter, is nonetheless brilliant interpretive jazz. Contemplative, appreciative, smoky, vocal and sincere.

Download or buy this recording and listen to it with a nice $15.99, low alcohol, elegant Cabernet.

Putting Your Heart Into Wine PR

While my intuition and survey of the industry tells me that a smaller percentage of wineries these days are committed to engaging in a robust program of sending wines out to critics and magazines for review, I'm of the belief that this form of marketing one's wine is quite sound and should be pursued in many a case.

However, I'm equally of the belief that a bottle of wine that shows up at a magazine's or critic's door that only has a bottle in the package long with a simple product sheet is really a wasted opportunity. Rather, wineries should consider sending along with that review sample a full range of materials...and STUFF.

It's common practice, as well as essential, that every bottle of wine sent out for review at least have with it information on the suggested price of the wine and the amount of the wine produced. This is, however, the least that can and should be sent out with the wine.

Some critics and reviewers out there may not like my suggestion that the box the wine comes in be filled with more than just wine and an easily retrievable piece of paper that gives the basics on the wine. This is probably especially true of those who received hundreds or thousands of samples each years. To those critics who are reading this, I offer my apologies.

Consider first the reason for sending a bottle of wine out for review: You are first hoping the wine will be positively received, but then you are hoping that positive reception will make into print or 1's and 0's. One thing to keep in mind about this is that it is the very same goal every other winemaker has when they send out their wine for review. This leads to an interesting question: Your wine is very likely to appeal to the reviewer equally as well as MANY other wines they review. That is to say, your wine is likely to be assessed with a very respectable 88 or 89 or 90 points—just like many (a hundred?) other wines they receive. Yet, the reviewer or publication only has so much room their publication or web site devoted to reviewing wine.

Why yours and not another's?

The point of the package you send to a reviewer is not merely to get your wine reviewed, but to get that review into print. Put another way, the point of sending a wine out for review is to create a compelling case that readers should know about his wine.

Does a simple bottle with a price and production numbers on it do this? I don't think so.

So here's the thing: When putting together the package into which your wine will be placed and sent off to the reviewer or magazines, consider what could accompany it that will make a compelling case for the wine; that will make it more interesting than the others they receive; that will suggest the wine tells a larger story.

What kinds of things might doe the trick?

Consider going with full disclosure. That means a product sheet with ALL the information. And I mean ALL INFORMATION. I'd put the following on your information sheet:

Vineyard, vineyard location, Google map link or image, vineyard size, age of vineyard, name of vineyard manager, soil composition, growing season history, trellising method, date pruned, date of verasion, date harvested, brix and pH at harvest, average tons per acre, average pounds of fruit per vine, clone, rootstock type, etc, etc.

And we haven't even gotten to winemaking methods and post bottling analysis of the wine.

Why so much information? Why full disclosure? Remember, the idea is to tell a story, not just deliver a wine to a critic. It's true the information may be discarded by some. But each each of these details tells part of the story of the wine. Each of these details has the potential to spur an intriguing thought or idea in the mind of the reviewer. Each of these details gives the reviewer more information to translate for their reader. In the end, all this is done in the service not just of celebrating your wine, but of getting it reviewed AND into print.

Save for the potential expense, I can think of few reasons not to include this kind of information along with your wine as well as a myriad of other information...and items.

What else could be included to help tell the story of your wine to a reviewer you hope will turn around and re-tell the story? What about...A portion of a pruned cane, a leaf, a canister of dirt from the vineyard. What about photos of the vineyard? What about a block by block map of the vineyard? What about photos of the vineyard crew? The list goes on and, again, we haven't even gotten to the winemaking part of the story, let alone the items and information that might address the character of the wine.

This advise is probably most appropriate to those wineries that don't always see the wines they submit for review actually show up in print. That, I suspect, is a very large percentage of those that send their wines for review to different reviewers and publications.

I can't tell you how many winemakers and marketing types have explained to me that they've simply given up on sending wines for review to the media. Yet it is undeniable that a positive review can be extremely helpful in selling the wine as well as getting those who sell your wine interested in it. But if you are going to use samples as part of your marketing activity, doesn't it make sense to put your heart into it?

The Monolith

The ongoing, steady march toward consolidation within the distribution/wholesale tier of the wine industry continues.

News comes today that Southern Wine & Spirits has purchased Distinctive Wine & Spirits of Illinois from its parent company, Charmer Sunbelt.

There are folks that raise concerns that about consolidation within the producer/winery side of the industry every time we hear about a larger wine company buying another winery. But the pace and impact of winery consolidation doesn't hold a candle to the impact of consolidation inside the wholesale/distribution tier. It's the impact of this middle tier consolidation that should have folks very concerned.

We are moving toward a situation where no more that 2 or 3 distribution companies control large markets and in some cases distribution in entire states. This means that only 2 or three companies control which wines are made available in these markets. It also means that if any one of the dwindling number of distributors choose to forget to take a retailers order, that retailer can quickly find themselves without product. It's a disturbing situation because it places the kind of enormous power and control in just a few wholesalers' hands that that once existed in producers hands before the onset of Prohibition and that led to truly unsavory marketing schemes.

A very powerful, state supporter monolith is being created across the country.

What I found very interesting about this acquisition was in Illinois was the characterizations of the distribution business. Consider this quote from Charmer CEO Charles Merinoff, the seller:

“Over the past few years we have invested       considerable time working to increase our market share in Illinois. Despite       these efforts, and although we are extremely proud of the services this       team has delivered to our Suppliers and Customers who do business in       Illinois, the volume of business does not justify our continued presence."

So Charmers couldn't make a go of it, eh? Take a look at the brands inside Charmer's Distinctive Wine & Spirits portfolio. According to their website, they distributed over 220 brands. Many of them very impressive, very high profile, very high quality wines. Their selection of American Pinots, Bordeaux, Burgundy and CA cabs is good. But they can't make a go of it?

I feel for those good producers who chose to go with Distinctive Wine & Spirits as their distributor in Illinois, but now find themselves with Southern Wine & Spirits. It's well know that attempting to get the attention of the sales force of a mega distributor like Southern is like a mouse trying to get the attention of 18-Wheeler rushing headlong in its direction. Someone is going to get flattened.

I find it highly unlikely that back in 1934 when the states devised their mandatory 3 tier system that they also imagined a very small collection of wholesalers controlling the destiny of the wine market in entire states. Nor did they imagine the existence of over 5000 wine producers arising in America. The bottle neck that is the 2nd tier of the three tier system is becoming narrower and narrower.

At what point does the issue of control over a market of this magnitude become an issue for legislators and regulators. That point is reached when it becomes clear that these developments non only impact producers' access to a market, but begin to severely impact the consumer.Are we not there?

As wholesalers are want to point out on every occasion possible, the state is granted the right to control the distribution and sale of alcohol inside their borders. It strikes me that if a state is going to create for wholesalers the kind of all powerful and favorable conditions for doing business and even allow them to consolidate that power in a way that makes them the arbiters of what products consumers are allowed to access, then there ought to be considerable thought given to to placing requirements on the wholesale tier.

More than anything else, it's probably time to allow wineries to self distribute their product to retailers and restaurants, bypassing the wholesalers altogether.

Winemakers Really Do have Something to Say

I have a confession. I'm not too often convinced that winemakers have very much of interest to say.

This comes from a guy who has worked with a LOT of winemakers, at least in the capacity as their publicist (I've never dragged a hose through a winery that I didn't first trip on in my life. And my singe experience hand punching down Noir in small bins convinced me this was the kind of word I am simply not cut out for.

But to get back to backhanded slap at winemakers, what I really mean to say is that, in my mind, unless you can get a winemaker away from his barrels and tanks that seem always to be calling him, and unless you have a rapport with the winemaker to the point that they trust you, the most you are likely to get out of these folks is something along the lines of things I've written on back labels—nothing of too much interest.

This is what makes Steve Heimoff's most recent book, "New Classic Winemakers of California: Conversations with Steve Heimoff", so impressive. His subjects have quite a bit of interest to say.

Steve is the West Coast Editor of Wine Enthusiast Magazine. So, his familiarity with his subjects and their subject matter is not in dispute. His previous book, "A Wine Journey Along the Russian River" and his independent voice that can be read in his regular wine column as well as in his wine review, both demonstrate his vital and intimate connection to the wine industry. This is quality that doesn't always come through in many wine writers, if only because it doesn't exist. But I'm convinced that this new book is as wonderful as it is precisely because Steve was able to convince his subjects that he cared about the things they were talking about just as much as they did. No small feat, this.

"New Classic Winemakers of California boils down to a series of in depth interviews with a couple dozen of California's most dynamic winemakers. This is candid stuff. It can also be quite intricate in its details with discussions of clones, fermentation, the philosophy driving "cult" wines and "High Octane" wines, to discussions of what terroir is intellectually and what it is practically. Steve demonstrates a real feel for the interview process.

Among those who are interviewed in the book are John Alban, Mark Aubert, Heidi Peterson Barrett, Andy Beckstoffer,  Merry Edwards, Genevieve Janssens, Greg La Follette, Dan Morgan Lee, Rick Longoria, Javier Tapia Meza, Tony Soter, Brian Talley, Michael Terrien, and Margo van Staaveren.    

These and the others, to a person, are the folks who in 40 and 50 years will be referred to by other winemakers and growers as "Mentors". The point is, Heimoff picked the right crew to get intimate with.

Again, I want to suggest that this is pretty dense read. It's not a beginners book. However, it is the kind of book that makes the well seasoned enthusiast much more seasoned for their time spent with the book.

Warning: This Entry May Make You Angry

The recent 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision in the important wine-related case of Costco v. Hoen is a disappointment to many in the industry who believe that that the state violates the law when it promotes anti-competitive regulations that hurt the consumer and benefit a small group.

Yet this issue is a very difficult one to wrap your arms around. It's very complex and deals with an area of the law (Anti-Trust Issues) that few people are familiar enough with to understand the implications of the decision at hand.

I've been looking for a layman's explanation of what happened in the 9th Circuit since the decision came down. I found one

Over at VINO FICTIONS, Thomas explains the case in plain and simple words in a post he entitles:

"NEWS RELEASE—SURE!"

It is well worth a read. But I have to second his warning early on in the post: "WARNING: THIS BLOG ENTRY MAY MAKE YOU ANGRY"

A Spectator's View of 2005 CA Pinot

OK...more than likely we are all buying up 2005 California Pinots because they have largely all hit the market. At least those of us who enjoy experimenting with CA Pinot are looking to this vintage.

Being a guy who appreciates statistics and being further a guy who understands that the Wine Spectator is an important trend setter for quality considerations, I decided to take a look at what the Wine Spectator has had to say about CA Pinots from the 05 vintage.

Here's what we have.

2005 CA Pinots Reviewed by the Wine Spectator
(Appellation, % w/ 90 Points or more, % w/80 pts or less, total wines reviewed)

California Pinots----26% w/90pts----(7% less than 80pts)-----417 wines reviewed
Russian River--------27% w/ 90pts----(6% less than 80pts)------179 wines reviewed
Carneros---------------14% w/ 90pts------(6% less than 80pts)......35 wines reviewed
Sonoma Coast-------30% w/90pts------(3% less than 80pts)------67 wines reviewed
Santa Lucia-----------41% w/90 pts-----(0% less than 80pts)-------34 wines reviewed
Santa Rita-------------30% w/90 pts-----(4% less than 80pts)-------55 wines reviewed
Anderson Vly--------42% w/90 pts-----(4% less than 80pts)-----24 wines reviewed

Interesting isn't it. Look at Santa Lucia and Anderson Valley.

Now, you can take this as an indication of what the folks over at the Wine Spectator like in their Pinot and what they think of the Pinots from these appellations OR you can take it as an indicator of quality from these different regions. This all depends on how well your palate matches up with the palate of the Wine Spectator critics.

That said, I'm pretty darn proud of my favorite little appellation that could: Anderson Valley. I did a similar comparison with the 2004 vintage that's a bit more extensive. You can find it HERE.

The Heart of Darkness

Let's go into the heart of darkness. Let's examine the center of cynicism in the world of wine:

"It is cynical to say you support people just because of the power shift," he said. "But clearly when the power in Congress changes, there is a tendency to support those who wield authority."
-CRAIG WOLF, CEO, Wine & Spirit Wholesalers Association

This is Mr. Wolf's commentary on the fact that his organization has "decided  to shift his group's donations so that two-thirds will go to Democrats rather  than, as before, to Republicans"

How much will wholesalers spend on federal candidates before the election in November is over? Well over $1,000,000. When you add to this the fact that alcohol wholesalers across the country will likely break their previous record for giving to state political campaigns in a single year ($19.2 Million in 2006), you have a very good indication why the vast majority of laws concerning access to alcohol by adults are anti-consumer, pro-monopoly and a shining beacon for cynics the world over.

How is it that America's wine-related laws can still be largely based on decades old assumptions, stifle the growth of the American wine market, needlessly criminalize consumers, take millions of dollars in tax revenue out of the states' coffers and demonstrate a complete lack of concern or respect for consumers kept in place?

Consider this nugget from the Chicago Tribune article:

"He (Craig Wolf) believes in giving to friends in Congress, both Democrat and Republican, who can help his organization. He believes in helping friends stay in office, especially when they have power in Congress. And he likes to make friends with the new arrivals in Congress, who can ultimately help his group."

This is hardly news, nor should it be shocking, to those who have watched politics in America for any amount of time or who have observed the way the politics of wine are played in America. However, it is a great reminder of what the consumer and the entire wine industry is up against: The Very Heart of Darkness.

Drink No Wine Before IT'S Time

There's a certain ritual that seems have played out somewhat consistently over the course of my adult life that began during my college years and continues to this day: The good friend arriving relatively late in the evening at your home for a stay and the subsequent (and immediate) kitchen table sit-down right then and there upon their arrival to catch up before any sleep is had.

It's not as though the immediate sit-down couldn't wait until the morning when the guest is refreshed. It could. But the combination of instinctual hospitality as well as the joy in seeing them prevents you from waiting. It must happen now. There is something very intimate about catching up with that old friend who knows so much about you and whom you've not laid eyes on for some time, sitting in front of you late at night when everything is quiet and dark.

For the last 20 years that ritual has almost always been accompanied by the cracking open of wine. And almost always the guest likes wine and knows I am in the wine industry. That means they have expectations that the wine they will drink in your presence will be something better than they are used to consuming. When it's 11pm and a good friend who you love is in the house, you don't want to let them down.

Last night a very dear friend of Ginny's (Terry) arrived and set this ritual in motion. While one of the greatest problems with wine is that there is just too damn much of it that it can be confusing for the average sipper, that diversity is also what gives us who have wine on the brain one of our greatest pleasures: trying to pick just the right wine for a specific occasion.

The point, which I'm slowly getting too, is that those of us with a wine-infused brain can turn almost any set of events into an occasion that calls for just the right wine.

-Finally finished setting up that brand new 52 inch flat screen TV? This calls for a BIG California Chard.

-Your child finally took their first steps? Where's the Prosecco?

-Finished that report for the new CFO? Then it's time to crack open that German Riesling you've been chilling

-The SF Giants finally win the World Series? Then it's time to....Oh, there is no wine that could be drunk to truly celebrate such a turn of events.

This of course begs the question, did Orson Wells mean that he shall "Drink no wine before ITS time" or that he shall "Drink no Wine before IT'S time".

The ultimate point here is that this choosing of just the right wine to drink for a specific occasion is one more way wine lovers turn their obsession into a cerebral endeavor, which I argue wine drinking is for anyone who believes there is such a thing as the right wine for the right time.

I choose Old Vine Russian River Valley Zinfandel from the 2002 vintage. Not only was it fat and juice and peppery, it had the added benefit of being a sleep aid with its 16% alcohol content.