Good Grape Wine Company

October 29 2009

An Insider’s View of the Wine World

Despite journalistic reporting and consumer understanding of many of our business industries, attributable to the rise in business news over the course of the last 30 years, the wine business largely maintains an impenetrable veil of “lifestyle” information for consumers; content that is absent insight into the whys and wherefores.

Sure, the business of the wine business bleeds into the mainstream wine press occasionally, mostly around wine shipping laws, but consistent inside-out reporting is rarely seen.  Heck, even the wine column in BusinessWeek magazine betrays the inside-out reporting that is their hallmark and presents standard issue wine content.

Snooooooze.

Perhaps it’s this way for a reason – a wide swath of consumers wants the romanticized visage of a wine country lifestyle?  Despite this reality/possibility/eventuality, I maintain that the true democratizing nature of our shifting media habits has more to do with context, transparency and bi-directional communication then it has to do with the actual delivery vehicle.

When you think about it, “Don’t talk AT me, talk TO me” and “Don’t tell me what time it is, tell me about the watch” has always been good policy, yet it’s only now coming around as it relates to the fourth estate, particularly the fourth estate known as the, “wine press.”

It’s for this reason that I’ve been a frequent and vocal critic of how the mainstream wine press (read: wine magazines) covers the industry – we need more wine information from a 360 degree perspective, and not a mouthpiece that maintains the façade of lifestyle artifice.

And while Wine & Spirits magazine, an exemplary example of wine magazine publishing, forsakes most of the “lifestyle” while hewing towards winery stories, there’s room in the market for a wine magazine that is center-trade as a counterbalance to Wine & Spirits center-consumer approach.

Given this, I continue to be impressed with the Sommelier Journal, a newer magazine launched in April 2008.

Straddling the gulf in between trade magazines like Santé, and Restaurant Wine and their consumer counterparts Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast, the Sommelier Journal takes a smart, literate approach to wine content that treats their readers as a peer on the wine journey, not a steerage passenger looking forlornly at the revelers on their suite’ veranda.

When I caught up with Sommelier Journal Publisher David Vogels to talk shop, he noted, “When people refer to us as the most “serious” or “geeky” wine magazine out there, I like that because it means we’re getting our message across.”

Duly noted.

Based in Boulder, CO, Vogels started his wine publishing career as an outlet for his wine passions, first initiated in the mid-90s.  After taking the introductory course from the Court of Master Sommeliers and then moving on to the Culinary institute of America and their “wine immersion program,” Vogels realized the extent that education and certification serves as a career advancement tool for wine professionals.  Drawing on his professional experience in trade magazine publishing in another industry, Vogels started doing his due diligence, quickly realized the gap in the market, the delta between the various magazines where education and knowledge advancement is a seldom addressed concern, and launched the Sommelier Journal to fill this niche, noting:

Sommelier Journal is a magazine written by wine professionals for wine professionals. No pretentious ratings, no fluffy travelogues—Sommelier Journal presents the wonderfully complex world of wine in a lively format for both professionals and enophiles to enjoy.

Amen.  And, can I get a Hallelujah?

In response to my query about the presentation of straightforward, smart information with less “lifestyle” Vogels said, “That was part of our objective from the beginning.  We intentionally stay away from travel and lifestyle.  The consumers I’ve talked to who read Sommelier Journal feel that they’re getting an insider’s view of the wine world.”

It’s that insider’s view without the trappings, the real and authentic absent the vineyard dog, which makes for interesting reading with the Sommelier Journal – an emphasis on raising the bar in education without the draftiness of sunshine being pumped up the proverbial skirt.

Several other interesting aspects of how the Sommelier Journal is developing itself include two “in through the out door” differences from other wine media approaches– first, they have an editorial advisory board that provides counsel and direction on content to ensure that the magazine is relevant, an important factor when so many wine enthusiasts feel disenfranchised from the media that serves them.  Secondarily, they have a tasting methodology that doesn’t score wine so much as graph wine, using a 20-point scale on a box plot graph, to represent the disparity in opinion from their Tasting Panel members.  It’s an interesting and insightful approach that does much to act as a counterbalance to the empiricism of one palate.  In total, it makes for a refreshing change of pace for wine professionals and astute enthusiasts.

Vogels categorizes their readership in concentric circles similar to a bullseye—on-premise restaurant professionals (i.e. Sommeliers and Wine Directors) are the core audience with other on-premise staff making up a larger target outside of the core.  Next are trade professionals like importers, distributors, retailers, wineries and educators and, finally, the largest potential audience, making up the last circle, are consumers – enthusiasts, those that are deeply interested in wine.

Will Sommelier Journal ever become a leader in the wine publishing industry?  It’s doubtful, but that’s not a bad thing, all they have to do is become a leader in their carved out niche and continue to grow at a healthy clip. 

Understanding that many people don’t analyze wine, much less the wine information that serves them, there are still a significant number of people that think about the drink and want to know more.  Kudos to the Sommelier Journal for filling this niche because they have my attention and likely many other consumers who are looking for an insider’s view of the wine world heavy on knowledge, light on romance and that’s something we can all raise a glass to ...

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