“You must know the price. Ask! You are professionals!” Giorgia Casadio began to preach her gospel. Too many wine professionals had come to her table, tasted her wine, and failed to inquire about the price of each bottle. A group of Wine Bloggers Conference attendees shifted, alert on the chairs and bed corners of a fellow blogger’s hotel […]
Unscientific Reflections from a Millennial Wine Writer
As a wine writer, reader, and consumer, I hear a lot about the significance of the Millennial Generation on both the current and future wine trade. Millennials in the United States have taken to wine at a younger age than previous generations–my personal experience concurs. Projections suggest we, Millennials, will continue to play a substantial […]
Wine Economics Part III: Reputation
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” The Bard strikes to the heart again. In many ways, the first two posts on Wine Economics (Part I and Part II) danced around the importance of reputation. Today, we will hit the nail squarely on the […]
Wine Economics Part I: The Land
Why can I buy a solid, terroir-nuanced Cabernet Sauvignon from Washington for $18, while I can’t buy an equally alluring Pinot Noir from neighboring Oregon for under $30? Why the huge variety and volume of respectable Languedoc-Roussillon red blends (France) for under $15, while I can’t buy equally unadulterated* cabernet sauvignons for that price from […]
A Sense of Place
Those with a pulse on the wine industry have familiarized themselves with a new additive called Mega Purple, and its brethren Mega “Cherry Shade” and Mega Red. These concentrates are made from the teinturier grape, a lesser known, though massively produced, varietal from the steamy central valley of California. This grape is used to fill […]