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November 17 2008
Let me make no mistake about it—I like marketing. I consider myself a marketer at heart. However, I draw a clear and distinct line between marketing that is useful and authentic and marketing that is - potentially - disingenuous.
Sam’s Club entry with a Fair Trade Argentinian Malbec may be completely and utterly above board and helpful to the natives who grow the grapes, but the cynic in me, an observer of stories about Wal-Mart’s buying tactics over the years, is skeptical, very skeptical. And, I hate marketing that attempts to pander. And, however you slice it, using poverty to market—whether its banana’s, coffee or wine, is inherently pandering. I’d rather the $3 Wal-Mart brand, Oak Leaf, be called organic—at least I would know I was being marketed to without the pressure of thinking about somebody’s family in Latin America rubbing peso’s together trying to make ends meet.
Maybe the thing that got me was the inclusion of the word “dignity.” Yeah, the biggest retailer in the world judging what dignity is as they negotiate discount on a contract ... they might want to go into any one of their stores on the 1st of the month and tell me if it’s dignified that people that are barely scrapping by are checking out people that are spending their welfare checks.
I don’t know if this post is capitalist, socialist, marxist, libertarian or somewhere in between, but Wal-Mart Fair Trade wine rubs me the wrong way.
November 16 2008
Tyler Colman a.k.a. Dr. Vino, published his second non-fiction wine book of 2008 this past week – a notable achievement for anybody, let alone an academian with a wildly popular wine blog and a family.
With these two titles, straddling both spectrums of wine publishing – the novice and the experienced - Wine Politics: How Governments, Environmentalists, Mobsters, and Critics Influence the Wines We Drink published by the University of California Press, a traditionally academic publisher with niche consumer titles, and A Year of Wine: Perfect Pairings, Great Buys, and What to Sip for each Season published by book titan Simon & Schuster, aimed at the relative newcomer to the wine scene, are fantastic book-ends to your wine book collection.
I am long overdue on reviewing Wine Politics, published in July, particularly because I am mentioned a couple of times in the book meriting a notice in the index, a fun dynamic for me.
Tyler and I exchanged emails that made their way into the book over two years ago, when my blog was still a baby, a period of time that seems like a lifetime ago. So, thanks Tyler, for graciously including me in the book in a way that advances the premise. I am honored.
As a preamble, I want to note that I think this book should be required reading for all wine lovers. Everybody. I wish the book would have been, perhaps, titled and packaged a little more accessibly to the wine masses because it acts as a survey over virtually all of the wine hot buttons that are bandied about in the court of public opinion. Starting this book and reading it cover to cover would get a wine novice up to speed and conversant across subject matter that is frequently difficult to penetrate. In addition, Tyler’s writing is incredibly insightful, lucid and accessible.
To maintain some level of objectivity on Wine Politics and because I am from Indianapolis, David Letterman’s hometown, and I lived 10 years in the same neighborhood Letterman did as a youth, I’ll present my Top 10 List: Things that are Interesting about Wine Politics –
10) Tyler paraphrases the all time famous opening line to a book —Dickens’ from a Tale of Two Cities, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Doing so in HIS opening line is a wonderful, slightly funny, insider homage to Dickens and other writers.
9) On page 23, Tyler attributes the first successful commercial wine operation to John James Dufour in Vevay, Indiana. This is a fact I believe to be true, but other historians do not acknowledge it in the same context. Indiana is the home of the first successful viticulture in the U.S.
8) On page 34, Tyler notes that FDR and his administration sought to revive the domestic wine industry, post Prohibition, establishing an experimental winery in Beltsville, Maryland and Mississippi. An interesting factoid.
7) On page 76, Tyler notes that Napa Valley become the second AVA in 1981. Augusta, Missouri beat them to the punch for the first designated AVA. Another interesting factoid.
6) Chapter 4 should be required reading for every wine lover for the in-depth, but easy to understand explanation of the dynamics of big and small wineries and how that wine gets to our table
5) On page 110, aside from the extracted wines that are largely attributed to Parker (which gets good coverage here, as well), Tyler summarizes the balance of the wine industry that is polarizing for many enthusiasts in one fell swoop, in regards to large corporations like Constellation and E& J Gallo, he says, “All of these corporations regard wine as a brand.”
4) On page 114, Tyler notes that the first genetically modified yeast strain for wine, ML01, is available in the U.S. An interesting fact that I did not know that is even more interesting given our current fascination with food origins and natural winemaking
3) On page 118, Tyler paraphrases and quotes noted macro-economist John Maynard Keynes, a noted 20th century thinker and translates that to wine reviews with the following mention, “ … to try to predict the winner of a lineup of one hundred contestants in a beauty contest, the best tactic is to ‘favor an average definition of beauty rather than a personal one.’”
2) On page 136, Tyler distills Biodynamics down to one succinct, understandable sentence: “Biodynamics takes a holistic approach to establishing a self-regulating ecosystem, with few or no external inputs and nothing going to waste.”
1) The footnotes run 16 pages. The bibliography runs 6 pages. Rarely do you see this level of research and detail. Impressive.
Wine Politics is a fantastic book - a book that every wine lover should read and a book that, undoubtedly, will make its way onto college reading lists. If you are interested in learning the dynamics and back-story of how and why wine gets to our table in the manner that it does, in a way that is understandable and concisely explained, I cannot think of a better book to help guide you down the path to greater understanding.
*Ed Note* I paid for this book with my own money from Amazon.com—it was not comped from the publisher
November 14 2008
I learned a couple of things this week—amongst other things, Dave Buchanan, the wine columnist for the Grand Junction Sentinel in Colorado, reads Alice Feiring’s blog.
How do I know this? Because Alice referenced RockawayGate on November 8th, a reference I wish she wouldn’t have made because, sheesh, this thing has taken on a half-life, and also because now that reference must have sparked Dave, the newspaper columnist, who had the goodness of heart to mention my name (spelling it correctly, even) and mentioning my site, in the GJ-S on November 11th. thankyouverymuch.
Ah ... If my name is going to be all over Google, people, at least send me an email to let me get quoted, too. Is that too much to ask? I’m a pretty modest guy, but if my name is going to be associated with something dodgy like ethics, at least let me get a soundbite in ...
As a sidebar, I was talking to a student from Sonoma State University at the Wine Blogger Conference and he asked me if I had heard about the Rockaway controversy because one of his professors was thinking about making a case study out of it. I mentioned that I had read about it at Tom Wark’s blog ...
Grand Junction Sentinel article on sampling ethics
November 12 2008
Another installment of our periodic and irreverent interviews with folks in the wine business. I love these interviews because you can really take the measure of a man—not by how shrewd he is, or what a great grower or winemaker he is, or how well he stays on point regarding his marketing message, but what kind of guy (or gal) is this person behind closed doors—as a human being. Is this somebody I would want to have a glass of wine (or beer with)?
In my book, the measure of a man isn’t your car, your checking account or any other item of accumulation, it’s “Could I spend a seamless hour enjoying intelligent, down-to-earth conversation.” By this measure, with Mike Lamborn, I think the answer is a resounding, “Yes.” Lighthearted, but seriously passionate, a family man who is good-hearted and fair—that’s what I picked up from the interview. Though, I do want to expand his musical repertoire beyond soft jazz ...
Lamborn Family Vineyards produces just a small amount of Howell Mountain Zin and Cabernet—the Cab being exceedingly difficult to get your hands on ... The interview is followed by a video piece with Mike Lamborn and superstar winemaker Heidi Barrett - holding court on their ‘05 Cab. If you’re interested in the Cab, hit this link and send an email to inquire. As I understand it, depending on how nice you ask, you either get the mailing list or the opportunity to purchase if you’re in a legal shipping state (I made that up, but I think that’s pretty close to accurate).
Herewith, 20 Not So Penetrating Questions ...
Good Grape: Which of the Seven Deadly Sins are you most guilty of?
Mike: INVIDIA for sure! Every time a neighbor bores a hole into the side of the mountain I suffer severe “Cave Envy”. Not that I necessarily need a cave, but they are so very cool ( good pun ), and we have the perfect location for caves.
Good Grape: What is your biggest pet peeve?
Mike: Drivers who don’t believe stop signs mean “STOP”
Good Grape: What is on your nightstand?
Mike: Flash light, clock radio, reading material, perhaps a little dust.
Good Grape: What is in your refrigerator or pantry that you wouldn’t openly admit?
Mike: Except for the few items (milk, cereal ... ) that I use, I have absolutely no idea what is in either the refrigerator or pantry.
Good Grape: What do you drink when you’re not drinking wine?
Mike: Water & coffee, in that order.
Good Grape: What type of music or radio station is played most often on Howell Mountain?
Mike: Soft Jazz (not most often, but always )
Good Grape: In what era would you live if you transport yourself?
Mike: 1849 California Gold Rush.
Good Grape: What is the best wine-related book you’ve read?
Mike: Winemakers Dance; Napa Valley geology and its impact on today’s winegrowing.
Good Grape: What is your favorite movie genre?
Mike: Slap-stick humor.
Good Grape: Is your desk messy or organized?
Mike: A constant disaster, which is 180 degrees from my organized personality.
Good Grape: Are you always early or terminally late?
Mike: I would always be early, but not for my wife, who believes early is just as rude as late.
Good Grape: Do you read the comics in the newspaper? If so, what’s your favorite comic?
Mike: No. If fact I never (hardly ever) read the newspaper.
Good Grape: Who would you want to play you in the movie about your life?
Mike: Bill Murray or Steve Martin
Good Grape: What super-power would you most like to have, and why?
Mike: I would love to be able to ‘see’ the future. That way every decision I made would be totally correct … no more mistakes, wasted time or money.
Good Grape: You are moving and can only take three or four articles you want to take with you. What would you grab?
Mike: Family photos, family heirlooms, credit card.
Good Grape: What do you do if you have a spare hour?
Mike: Interesting question. Truthfully, there are no spare hours.
Good Grape: What was the last great restaurant you ate at?
Mike: Tommy Bahama’s
Good Grape: What is your favorite ice cream flavor?
Mike: Coffee
Good Grape: What is the best compliment you have ever received?
Mike: You have a great family.
Good Grape: “2 Truths And a Lie” – Share 3 unique things about yourself and your life, 2 of them true, 1 false. Readers will guess by leaving a comment
Mike:
I was born & raised in the city and had no agricultural education or experience before becoming a winegrower.
I have made a serious study of wine history, and subscribe to many of the old school approaches to grape growing & winemaking.
The common perception is that anyone in the business of producing wine is a knowledgeable wine connoisseur. I know very little about wine, but do know what I like.
If you want more Mike Lamborn, buy some of his wine. If you want a bit more Heidi Barrett, hit this link to Adopt a Grape and Fantesca, another Barrett client.
November 11 2008
If you have ever been proven wrong, and taken delight in having your skepticism overcome, then you will appreciate this post about a wine accessory – a device that allegedly aerates wine using natural frequencies.
Um, yeah, I was skeptical, as well.
However, I received a Philip Stein Wine Wand that purports to, according the marketing wordsmiths (excerpted):
When placed into a bottle or glass of red wine, the Wine Wand accelerates the aeration process, allowing the wine to fully develop to its peak flavor in a fraction of the time it would usually take. Prior to its release, the Philip Stein Wine Wand has already prompted intrigue across the international food, wine, and luxury goods industries ...
… Known for integrating frequency technology into luxury timepieces, Philip Stein has incorporated similar technology into the Wine Wand. Using permanently embedded natural frequencies, one of them being oxygen, this accessory accelerates the aeration of the wine to its full flavor potential in just minutes.
After receiving counsel from Steve Heimoff and Alice Feiring about influence from pr reps., after my own little imbroglio called RockawayGate, I am, to say the least, not overly inclined to stick my neck out. Despite this ‘once bitten, twice shy’ mentality, I am going to go ahead and put myself out there to be hit by some more stones.
The Wine Wand is not magic, but you may think it is …
Any device that looks vaguely akin to an oral thermometer that claims to open up the nose of a wine and soften the tannins inside of three minutes, using “natural frequencies” has to be complete rubbish, right?
So I thought, too.
Hit this link to download and open up a PDF of the email exchange I had with Nia, the PR rep for the Wine Wand.
The darn thing is $325 so it is not cheap. It is being sold at Saks, Neiman Marcus and Fred Segal, stores that I frequent as often as we have lunar eclipses on the fifth Sunday of a month. For cost reasons alone, I picked it up to use it immediately.
Just the same, I did not go easy in my testing.
On Sunday afternoon, palate fresh, I selected a 2004 Caparone Aglianico - $14 retail - (an undrinkable oak monster unless it is decanted for 24 hours) and a 2004 Trader Joe’s Amarone - $14 retail - that politely suggested on the label that it be decanted for an hour before drinking.
I tried the Wine Wand first with the Caparone. Immediately uncorking and pouring into two fresh glasses, as per the instructions, I set the glasses more than three feet apart so the frequencies would not hit both of them and I dropped the Wine Wand into one for three minutes.
The difference was startling. Both glasses were still over-oaked, but the glass that had the Wine Wand was noticeably, demonstrably softer and more appealing. The glass that acted as the control had mouth-puckering astringency. The Wine Wand glass was much gentler and could actually be drunk. The nose, still forbidding, was showing some fruit whereas the untouched glass was all densely wound oak aroma.
The second bottle of wine, the Trader Joe’s Amarone, a flawed wine, with what appeared to be an oak dusting from oak chips on the surface of my pour into both glasses, merited the same Wine Wand treatment.
The Amarone that had the Wine Wand had a greatly expanded nose and the taste was far more expressive. It is still a crap, flawed wine, but definitely made significantly more enjoyable by the Wine Wand.
At this point, I was kind of freaked out. It was like watching a magic trick; you do not believe what you are seeing, but darned if it is not believable.
Immediately, I start to think about blogging about this and I realize that my one flaw was I did not do it blind. Psychologically, I could have been tricked, kind of like a magic trick where I am lulled into the suspension of disbelief.
Not being hasty, last night, I tested it blind with the aid of my wife. This time I went with a 2004 Winesmith Cabernet Franc -$20 retail -. Clark Smith, resident technological wine bogeyman, makes Winesmith wine and I knew that this wine was likely micro-oxed, de-alc’ed and God knows what else. I love a bit of irony, too. A little bit of “natural frequency” magic with a Clark Smith wine makes me smile in the ultimate inside, wine snob joke.
I pulled the cork and left the room as my wife, a virtual teetoler, did the pouring and the Wine Wand administration.
When I returned a few minutes later, I tasted through both glasses of the Cabernet Franc, the control and the Wine Wand glass; the nose of one glass immediately struck me. Instead of having to stick your nose in there to get a good whiff, one glass had expansive aroma’s jumping out the glass. The same glass with the big nose had a much silkier mouth feel and more impressive fruit.
Blindly, I guessed which wine had the Wine Wand in it. My wife, again, a relative teetoler, with the best palate in the house and wolf-like senses, could tell a marked difference in the two glasses, as well, after telling me I chose correctly.
At this point, I realize this sounds like an infomercial, but I swear, with God as my witness, that this damn thing works and I have absolutely zero, zilch, nada, nothing at stake for saying so.
About the only thing I can tell you is that there is not a whole lot on the Internet about the Wine Wand – some wacky woman that talks like a drunk, British Zsa Zsa Gabor on YouTube doing a demo and a blurb in Oprah magazine. If I were you, I would send Nia the PR rep. an email (nia@capobianco.biz), tell her what a great wine blogger you are and implore her to send you a comped Wine Wand. I am not giving mine away.
For an untested blog post, see Hip Tastes by Courtney Cochran
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