Today’s organic wine options are superlative
Jose and I, with our friends Sue Straight (Wine Wench) and Mindy Joyce (Sugar Fly Marketing), recently tasted 17 imported, organic wines. It’s always insightful, when the wines are from another countries. And this time, most especially, since they were all organic. I’ve been an organic proponent since the 1960s. It just made great sense […]
Do you actually keep an unshopping list?
First of all, what is an unshopping list? Well, it can be one of two things, I think.
Winemakers worst handicap and those who detest it
Ah… Winemakers Being a champion of the underdog has always been a calling. It stems from being one myself, and it was Life Lesson # 2. Life Lesson # 1 comes at the age of two, when we don’t get our own way. We can either get over it and learn that that behavior isn’t […]
The marketing costs for a 50 dollar bottle of wine
The marketing costs for a $50 bottle of wine breaks down in the following way, within the three-tier system: 7% – cost of grapes and/or growing ~ $3.50 9% – cost of wine making ~ $4.50 4% – bottles, corks, boxes, labels ~ $2.00 2% – marketing ~ $1.00 13% – sales people, distribution from […]
Dear Jo ~ A question of when communications go bad
Dear Jo ~ A question of when communications go bad… The communication to me: Dear Jo, I hope you don’t mind me getting in touch like this but I wanted to ask a couple of questions regarding wine PR and marketing communications in the US. I’m trying to put together a panel talk for a […]
Red Wine And Wine Gadgets For Father’s Day, including a Spirits Aerator… for good measure
TODAY: Red Wine And Wine Gadgets For Father’s Day, including a Spirits Aerator… for good measure … Yesterday, I wrote about the 2012 Simi Sauvignon Blanc and the HOST CHILL Cooling Pour Spout. Breaking it up into two separate days just makes good sense, since we all know how little time we have for blog […]
Winemaker trepidation is pretty common when it comes to wine writers + some advice
Winemaker trepidation is pretty common when it comes to wine writers Working with tons of winemakers, through my 20 years of being in the wine business, I’ve seen many winemakers fear what’s going to happen to their wines, once they’ve been sent for review. Tons of questions arise: What if I get a bad score? […]
Restaurant Wine by Ronn Wiegand ~ Submitting Samples
One of the greatest joys I’ve experienced in the wine business is the relationships that I’ve been able to build within the wine writing community. Ronn Wiegand, MS and MW, of Restaurant Wines is right up there with the best. Although he’s moved from Napa to Europe, the bond continues for this bright and talented […]
Air Cork, a fun and practical gadget
Air cork is a fun wine preserver. I’m more of a “stick the wine in the refrigerator” kinda gal, not opting for using nitrogen gas to displace the air, when I put my wine away. This also included red wine. Putting left-over wine into a cool situation is going to extend the drinkability of any […]
Finding Myself in The Right Lane, About Two Years Later As I Look Back ~ Not Much Has Changed
It’s always fun to cast a glance over one’s shoulder, to see what’s happened and what’s not materialized. I’m sharing the following, because I was asked if wineries would care about a new way to keep track of all their point of sales materials, and having worked for so many wineries and wine companies, I […]
