Adapt or Perish — The Wine Industry’s Reckoning With Technology

Published on February 19, 2019

I’ve seemed to have kicked up a little bit of a hornet’s nest with my post No, There’s Not an App For That — Winery Visit Rant. You can read for yourself the responses in the comment section of the article. Additionally, some interesting points came up on the SpitBucket Facebook page as well as from Paul Mabray’s retweeting of the article. There are a few other Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook threads circling around with more.…

Published on February 19, 2019
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60 Second Wine Review — Smith-Madrone Riesling

Published on February 18, 2019

A few quick thoughts on the 2015 Smith-Madrone Riesling from the Spring Mountain District of Napa Valley. Note: This wine was received as a sample. The Geekery When Stu and Charlie Smith bought 200 acres on the top of Spring Mountain in 1970, the area was so densely covered with Douglas Firs, poison oak and Madrones that they needed a logging permit to clear the land. However, Stu Smith’s belief that the best grapes come…

Published on February 18, 2019
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No, There’s Not an App For That — Winery Visit Rant

Published on February 17, 2019

For a follow up to this post, check out Adapt or Perish — The Wine Industry’s Reckoning With Technology As part of the visa application process for my upcoming move, I need to head down to San Francisco at the end of this month for an appointment at the French Consulate. Since we’re already paying for a flight, the wife and I figured that we might as well extend the trip to spend a couple…

Published on February 17, 2019
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The Practical Guide to Picking Out Wedding Wines

Published on February 16, 2019

If you lurk around on Reddit’s r/wine sub, you’ll often see posts like this one looking for wedding wine suggestions. Back in my retail days, February would be the start of “wedding season” where almost daily through September you’d get customers coming in asking about wedding wines. While I understand the sense of not knowing where to start, I actually don’t think going to an online board looking for specific wine recommendations is a great…

Published on February 16, 2019
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min read 60 Second Reviews

60 Second Wine Review — Ergo Sum Shiraz

Published on February 12, 2019
by  in 60 Second Reviews
A few quick thoughts on the 2012 Ergo Sum Shiraz from Victoria, Australia. The Geekery Ergo Sum was a collaboration project between Michel Chapoutier and Rick Kinzbrunner of Giaconda.  The first vintage of this single-vineyard Shiraz from the Victorian Alps was released in 2008. This was one of several projects that Chapoutier has been involved in. In addition to his own eponymous Rhône wines, Chapoutier collaborates with his longtime assistant Pierre-Henri Morel to make PH…
min read General, Millennials, Wine marketing

The Lost Storytelling of Wine

Published on February 10, 2019
by  in General, Millennials, Wine marketing
Now that we’ve talked about the Millennial math that is stacked against the wine industry, let’s work on reframing the discussion about value. To appeal to Millennials, the industry has to demonstrate its value. They have to show us why a bottle of wine is worth shelling out our hard earned cash to purchase. As I mentioned in my post Is the Wine Industry boring Millennials to (its) death? the old playbook of marketing is…
min read Beer, Millennials, Napa Valley, Shopping for Wine, Whiskey, Wine marketing

Millennial Math — Where’s the value in wine?

Published on February 7, 2019
by  in Beer, Millennials, Napa Valley, Shopping for Wine, Whiskey, Wine marketing
A few days ago I wrote about the “Boredom Factor” that is sapping Millennials’ enthusiasm for wine. But engaging Millennials with things that are new, interesting and authentic is only part of the battle. The industry also needs to reframe the discussion about value and pricing. Let’s face it, wine delivers horrible “bang for the buck”–especially compared to other alcoholic beverages. This is true at all price points, but particularly at the low-end (and ironically…