GrapeSmart.net

“What is happening is American wine companies are buying bulk wine in France, Chile, Australia or wherever, shipping it back here and bottling it here under their own brand,” says Lewis Perdue, the author of wineindustryinsight.com.

“People have no idea the wine they are drinking is cheap bulk import,” Perdue says.

Read the full article here

I guess my question is… does it really matter? My philosophy has always been, “Cheap wine is fine, as long as it tastes good.” I’m not partial to where it comes from. If I’m looking for a bargain, and you can get me cheaper wine from France or Chile where macroeconomics have more to do with wine pricing than brand recognition, I’m all for it!

I do care if the wineries are labeling it as coming from somewhere other than where they bought it, but I highly doubt they are since it would probably put them out of business.

What do you think?

P.S. Thanks to Julie Brosterman of @womenwine for the heads-up on this piece!

Several weeks ago, I had the exquisite pleasure of attending the 2007  Union des Grand Cru des Bordeaux tasting in Los Angeles. For those who don’t speak French, “Union des Grand Cru des Bordeaux” translates, roughly, as “The Incredibly Fancy Wines From the French Region of Bordeaux. You Can’t Afford Them. Don’t Even Bother.” Look it up.

There were over one hundred wineries pouring at the event. Representatives stood behind low tables covered in white tablecloths, ice buckets, bottles and business cards. In the center of one portion of the cavernous conference room were lovely banquets of fresh fruit, colorful cheeses and a variety of crackers to absorb a bit of the booze. Separate tables supported shiny silver spittoons. Guests in subdued attire slowly wandered from table to table, shmoozing, sipping, smiling, spitting.

The room was divided according to the regions of Bordeaux:

Graves (Pessac-Leognan, Sauternes and Barsac); Medoc (Saint Emilion, Pomerol, Listrac-Medoc, Moulis-en-Medoc,

Bordeaux AOC

Margaux, Saint-Julien, Pauillac, Saint-Estephe). For the purposes of this piece, I will not go into the history and importance of Bordeaux, because I cannot do the proper justice which many an expert has already done on the region, and I could not begin to match the authority of these historians.

I’ll simply provide some broad stokes.

Red Bordeaux (called Claret, in the UK), is the most widely produced wine type in this region (outnumbering white wine by about 10 to 1), and is generally made from a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. To round out the “Fab Five” of Bordeaux, Petit Verdot and Malbec are also permitted, although these are blended in less

frequently. While Carmenere is also authorized, this varietal is now difficult – if not impossible – to find in the area, since replanting never quite took hold after the Phylloxera epidemic of 1867.

As a very broad generalization, Cabernet Sauvignon (Bordeaux’s second-most planted grape variety) dominates the blend in red wines produced in the Médoc and the rest of the left bank of the Gironde estuary. Typical top-quality Chateaux blends are 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc and 15% Merlot. This is typically referred to as the “Bordeaux Blend.” Merlot (Bordeaux’s most-planted grape variety) and to a lesser extent Cabernet Franc (third most planted variety) tend to predominate in Saint Emilion, Pomerol and the other right bank appellations. These Right Bank blends from top-quality Chateaux are typically 70% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc & 15% Cabernet Sauvignon (Oz Clarke Encyclopedia of Grapes p. 129 Harcourt Books 2001 ISBN 0151007144)

Second in production is white Bordeaux, which is grown only in Graves and is mostly (exclusively, in the case of the sweet Sauternes), made from Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc grapes, with neither varietal making up more than ninety percent of the blend. Typical blends are usually 80% Sémillon and 20% Sauvignon Blanc. Muscadelle is sometimes included, as well, to round out the flavor of the wine, although rarely – if ever – playing a predominant role. On occasion, one can find small amounts of Colombard and Ugni Blanc mixed in, as well.

For me, the greatest thing about the Union des Grand Cru des Bordeaux tasting was the discovery of amazing Bordeaux whites – specifically from the Pessac-Leognan region. Each region in Bordeaux has its own terrior and as a result, the flavor profile of each wine differs noticeably from one parish to another. While I found most of the Bordeaux Blanc to be pretty special, it was the Pessac-Leognan whites that really took my breath away: Pure peachy-grapefruit refreshment. Silky smooth. Perfectly balanced (I mean perfectly). I cannot overstate how enamored I am of these velvety wines.

But while far, far below the sky-high prices of their darker brethren, bottles of white Bordeaux do not come cheap. What’s a value-minded vino-holic to do?

Luckily, there are several options:

1. Don’t buy Grand Cru: Right after the Bordeaux tasting, I dove into research and trips to local wine shops, trying to recreate the magic of what I had sampled in that large conference room – minus the hefty price tag.
   

   Chateau Loudenne Blanc

   What I eventually found was a 2006 Chateau Loudenne. While not from one of the premier Chateaux, this wine is so incredibly delicious that the sommelier at a recent celebratory dinner stopped to comment on our choice to bring it to the restaurant. He did this several times. And then helped himself to a small pour. With a nose of sweet almonds and a soft, velvety mouthfeel rich with grapefruit and lanolin, who needs to spend Grand Cru prices to experience a similar level of deliciousness? Especially when this beautiful bottle cost me only $20. Maybe $21. Let me say that one more time: Even the sommelier at a restaurant with 2 Michelin Stars stopped to praise this “value” wine. It really was remarkable, especially when you consider that bottles from up the road in this region run $80+. I can’t recommend the Chateau Loudenne more highly, but there are plenty of incredible Bordeaux wines out there that are selling for a comparative song, simply because they lack that coveted First, Second or Third Growth status. But if “Cru” matters to you, remember that there is a significant price difference between First and Second Growth (Premiers or 1er and Seconds or Deuxiemes Cru Classe), Second and Third Growth (Troisiemes), Third and Fourth Growth (Quatriemes), and Fourth and Fifth Growth (Cinquiemes). The cost plummets even more precipitously when you go from Fifth Growth down to Cru Bourgeois – which is the class from which the Loudenne comes – although the Cru Bourgeois designation was officially done away with in 2007. Any value vinophile worth his or her salt should simply find the wines classified Cru Bourgeois before ‘07 and hunt these bad boys down*. You know you’ll be getting an absolutely incredible value for the money. But one shouldn’t place too much emphasis on growth classification; just because a wine is Second, Third, Fourth, Bourgeois, etc., does not mean it’s far inferior to Premier – especially as the quality of some of the First and Second Growths waxes and wanes over the years.

2. Don’t buy chateau-bottled Bordeaux: While there is very concentrated hoopla over several important Chateaux in the region, wine making in Bordeaux is not confined merely to grand properties where they grow and ferment their own. Like almost everywhere else in the world, Bordeaux also produces wines blended from several different properties – sometimes even the fancy ones – although you’d be hard-pressed to find this information on the label. This practice is actually borne of the age-old négociant (”merchant”) system – identical to the system that produces Cameron Hughes and Layer Cake Wines in the US. Winemakers source what they feel is some of the best fruit in the area and mix it to create their own special blend.
3. Don’t buy “Bordeaux”: Instead, opt for the lesser-known appellations in the region, which are producing solid stuff at a fraction of what the classic parishes pull in. Look for appellations like Premières Côtes de Blaye, Premières Côtes de Bordeaux, Côtes de Francs, Côtes de Castillon, Cadillac, Côtes de Bourg, Fronsac and Montagne-St-Emilion. These are some of the “new” appellations, but they are all within the Bordeaux AOC. For potentially even bigger bargains, look for “Bordeaux blends” in regions entirely outside of Bordeaux – Like Loire, for example. Wines produced in other AOCs will not taste the same as the identical blend from Bordeaux, but there will be a similar and recognizable flavor profile you might really enjoy.
4. Meet Meritage: The blends that produce Meritage are the classic Bordeaux mixtures, in varying proportions – made in America.
   

   The Meritage Association

From the website:

Meritage wines are provocative red or white wines crafted solely from specific “noble” Bordeaux grape varieties and are considered to be the very best wines of the vintage.

Meritage, pronounced like heritage, first appeared in the late 1980s after a group of American vintners joined forces to create a name for New World wines blended in the tradition of Bordeaux. The word was selected from more than 6,000 entries in an international contest. Meritage combines “merit,” reflecting the quality of the grapes, with “heritage,” which recognizes the centuries-old tradition of blending, long considered to be the highest form of the winemaker’s art.

While many bottles may contain the Bordeaux blend, only those that belong to the Meritage Alliance can use the name on the label. The Good: It’s generally really good wine at non-Bordeaux prices (although this doesn’t mean they’re necessarily value priced). The Bad: It isn’t true Bordeaux.

One final note: Good wine – whether it’s from Bordeaux or anywhere else in the world – is the wine that tastes good to you. I’ve spoken to several industry veterans who have had the good fortune of experiencing several of the most renowned and celebrated wines on the planet. In each case, these experts remembered some of the wines as being perfect and lovely and delicious and incredible…and some of them tasting like…well…crap. Undrinkable. They poured their – otherwise perfect – glasses down the sink.  I spoke to one man who said he went to a special winery dinner where, unbeknown to the head sommelier, they switched the bottle of the 3- or 4-figure wine of the evening with a bottle of Charles Shaw.  The sommelier’s reaction was tepid: He thought it was a pretty decent bottle of Two-Buck Chuck and that the “exceptional” wine was quite a disappointment.

My point is this: Bordeaux is known for producing some truly special wines – for people who like to drink Bordeaux. There are no points given for paying top dollar for something you don’t want to drink. A region or a designation only makes the wine better in the way that a designer label improves a pair of jeans: Perhaps it’s an indication of quality or a certain cut or style, but there are a lot of other factors that determine the right fit.

Have fun, try a bunch of stuff, and buy what suits you. Maybe that’s Chateau Lafite-Rothchild, or maybe it’s something with a pretty label and a small price tag you buy from Trader Joe’s. In the end, you are your own expert, and only you can determine what you like to drink and how much you’re willing to pay for it.

* Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels:

Exceptional AND value-priced, too

Château Chasse-Spleen (Moulis-en-Médoc, Moulis-en-Médoc)

Château Haut-Marbuzet (Saint-Estèphe, Saint-Estèphe)
Château Labegorce Zédé (Soussans, Margaux)
Château Ormes-de-Pez (Les) (Saint-Estèphe, Saint-Estèphe)
Château Pez (de) (Saint-Estèphe, Saint-Estèphe)
Château Phélan Ségur (Saint-Estèphe, Saint-Estèphe)
Château Potensac (Ordonnac, Médoc)
Château Poujeaux (Moulis-en-Médoc, Moulis-en-Médoc)
Château Siran (Labarde, Margaux)

On February 16th, The New York Times published an interesting article titled “Try the Red: Napa Learns to Sell” that caught my attention thanks to Twitter. The main focus of the article relies on this assumption,

“…in 2009, sales of wines priced at $25 and above dropped 30 percent nationwide, according to Nielsen. While global wine sales increased, California wine shipments fell for the first time in 16 years. Searching for a way out of the crisis, many Napa wineries are increasingly pinning their hopes on direct-to-consumer sales.”

As someone working in the front-lines of direct-to-consumer sales of wine and 5 years of ecommerce experience at some of the Internet’s largest properties, I groaned a little. I didn’t really start groaning and moaning until the article started talking about Facebook and Twitter as a great shining beacon of hope for direct-to-consumer sales.

In particular, Rick Bakas, a man who makes his living via promoting Social Media services to wineries (and does a good job at it), was quoted as saying,

“Where wineries need to focus most is on signing up new wine club members through social media,” he said, “rather than rely on cementing relationships with tourists who drive up to the tasting room.”

I happen to know more than a little about this particular challenge as this is how I make a living, too. At the end of this post there’s a quick rundown on how I’ve acquired the expertise I have, and it ought to inform the comments I’m going to make about why Social Media is not the solution.

Here’s the short answer about how it’s all a numbers game that doesn’t add up and then I’ll go into detail:

1. It’s really hard (and takes a long time) for a brand to grow a huge, meaningful, Twitter or Facebook following.
2. There are too many brands competing for consumers’ limited attention online to gain real online market share.
3. Consumers are still skeptical of buying things online that they can’t experience first. Especially so with wine.
4. There are MANY fewer people buying wine over $25 per bottle than under.

And the full(er) explanation for those of you who are interested, strap yourself in for a long ride:

1. Meaningful Twitter & Facebook Followings
   There’s a difference between building a following that includes people who are genuinely interested in most of what you have to say or are selling and creating an enormous flock of people who are willing to commit to sometimes seeing your messages amongst the thousands of other messages they get every day or week. This is the part where social media falls down most aggressively, all on its own. The reality of all those social media connections is that when you send messages out to your Twitter and Facebook flocks, only a portion of those people will ever see your message, and a really teeny tiny portion of those who do, will act. That really teeny tiny portion might generously be 1% of those of who see your message. That means that to get 100 new sales, you’d need 10,000 people to see your message. Let’s be generous and say that 25% of people who are in your flock actually saw your message… that means that you’d need 40,000 people in your flock to generate 100 new sales. I wonder how long it took Rick to build up 40,000+ followers on twitter, but I bet it wasn’t fast enough to turn a winery around in a single fiscal year.
2. Capturing Market Share
   The NYTimes article mentions this:

   “Distributors, they say, pay attention only to their biggest accounts, while small independent wineries, which predominate in Napa Valley, have to figure out ways to promote themselves.”

   If you think more than a handful of consumers are going to be more receptive to promotional information from small independent wineries than Distributors you’re mistaken. Distributors benefit from knowing about all of the wineries, even if they don’t carry/promote them. Their opportunities are in making fantastic deals with huge beverage companies and in finding “The Next Big Thing” which probably includes independent wineries poised for commercial success. So the Distributors have a vested interest in finding the best small independent wineries—consumers, on the other hand, do not.

   Small independent wineries are competing for consumers’ attention amongst all of the other brands in all of the other goods & services industries out there, on top of the consumers’ other personal interests which include oh, I don’t know, the rest of their lives, making ends meet, keeping up with friends and family, etc. Bottom line is: As a consumer, a no-name winery I’ve never heard of is not going to get my attention without a referral from someone I know and trust (a very small group of people and companies to be sure).

3. Purchasing Wine Online
   The percentage of current online wine sales is somewhere in the 5-10% of all wine sold in the US. [This is not fact, but anecdotal data based on conversations with many other people in different areas of the Trade.]

   There are reasons this number is so small and it has much more to do with how people buy wine today than it does with people’s online shopping behavior. I spend a lot of time talking to consumers about wine (every chance I get pretty much) because they’re not in the wine industry and they don’t think the world practically revolves around wine like I do. Most people I’ve talked to buy a bottle or two of wine at the grocery store, buy six bottles at a time at places like BevMo! and World Market, or are given wine as a gift when guests come over for dinner. Most of them talk about how their friend or family member told them about some great wine that they loved and they can’t wait to tell me about it, too. Most of them can’t conceive of buying a case of wine, much less buying a case of wine online. A case of wine is a financial commitment… and people don’t like to commit to things they don’t know.

   Most online wine-buying behavior is people who are reordering something they already know they love or gift-giving. A reasonable percentage of people who are buying wine online are wine enthusiasts who don’t have access to a good wine store or are too busy to physically hunt down the latest treasure they’ve read about somewhere. A small percentage of people buying wine online are buying winery-direct because that’s the only way to get those wines—and I mean small.

   The wine industry seems to be hoping that the Gen-Y whippersnappers who are so comfortable with the Internet and computers will just switch their buying habits to online because it’s not as awkward to them. As one of the Gen-Y elders with a healthy household income, a 12-year online shopping habit, and 5+ years working in ecommerce, I’m no more likely to start buying my wine online than you are… because I want to taste it first. I want to know what I’m buying before I shell out money for 3 or more bottles (which is how retailers want me to buy it online because it makes it cheaper and easier for them to ship it to me).

   If returning wine online were easy, say as easy as returning 3-6 pairs of shoes that don’t fit properly, I might consider it. Unfortunately though, once I open a bottle, I can’t return it. And let’s say I order three, open one and don’t like it… it’s still not easy to return the other two. THIS is why consumer behavior around buying wine online is unlikely to change anytime soon.

4. The Wine Price Pyramid
   

   Who's Buying Wine at What Price Points

   While a great deal of wine by volume and by revenue is sold at the over-$25 per bottle price point in the United States, I perceive that growth market to be limited. The people who are already spending $25 and up for a bottle of wine LOVE wine. They drink it every day, they order bottles in restaurants, they have subscriptions to Wine Spectator and The Wine Advocate, they have personal wine cellars, and wine is a passion for them. In a recession, there aren’t going to be a lot of people “moving up” to this level of wine-consumption. This recession in particular is teaching us all a lesson about not living beyond our means (I hope) and that luxuries are for people who live luxurious lifestyles… the rest of us need to focus on value and quality and getting our money’s worth because there’s less money to go around.

   Before the recession most Americans couldn’t conceive of buying a bottle of wine at the grocery store that costs more than $25. Today, the chatter is all about wines under $15 or even under $10. That’s where the growth market is. You can sell 10x more wine to “the average consumer” because there are so many more of them. Would you rather get 10 new customers who spend $500 per year ($5,000) or 100 new customers who spend $100 per year ($10,000)? The math should be easy, even with the lower profit margins in the cheaper wines.

5. Wine Clubs
   You know when I join wine clubs? When I’m standing in a tasting room, buzzed and happy and really wanting to take this fantastic wine-tasting trip home with me in a bottle to be relived whenever I feel like popping a cork. The trouble is, I have to love most of what I’ve tasted to join your wine club. Not just one bottle that was great… but several. Every wine Fiddlehead Cellars makes is outstanding, so we joined their wine club. We were blown away by the 10 wines we tasted at Stolpman Vineyards so we joined their wine club. My favorite Rose is a Grenache Rose made by Beckmen Vineyards and I’ll drive 2 hours to Santa Barbara wine country to buy 3 bottles, but I won’t join their wine club because I was unimpressed by the rest of what I tried.

   Sometimes, when I’m feeling generous, I might be someone a 3-month subscription to a wine club from Wine.com or the Wine of the Month Club. Maybe life’s getting too busy and I just want the wine delivered to my house at a good price, then I’ll look at the Wall Street Journal Wine Club or Zagat’s new Wine Club. This is consumer behavior,  folks. Only your fanatical fans will join your wine club for a meaningful length of time. The rest who join last, on average, 4-6 months or 2-3 shipments whichever comes first. And the rest of us won’t join at all.

   I’ll reiterate here because it’s important: I make a living selling wine club subscriptions… and I don’t think increasing wine club sales is the way to grow your winery’s business. And incidentally, I don’t think Social Media is a way to meaningfully increase wine club sales either.

Okay… so I’ve blown holes in ecommerce and social media as a growth opportunity for wineries. Do I have any solutions or am I just a critic blathering on? Yes, I have solutions!

• Wineries should take a hint from the fashion industry (the similarities are practically limitless) and go “High-Low.” Do you produce wines at $30 and up? Come up with a line of wines, made by the same winemaker so they carry the same reputation, and sell them at the under $15 price-point in mass-market settings. Introduce new consumers to your brand and create a following who, when they can afford it, will upgrade to your more expensive wines. Many wineries already do this: Ravenswood, Mondavi, Stag’s Leap, etc. come to mind.
• Still taking a hint from the fashion industry, go “Private Label.” This has been a BIG hit for many winemakers and vineyards with brands like Cameron Hughes, 90+ Cellars, Oriel, and even Bob Lindquist who’s making wine under the label VINTJS at Trader Joe’s. Reaching a broader audience where they’re already shopping is a great way to expand your revenue channels.
• Incentivize your wine clubs better. The wine geeks want access to special events because they’re saving their pennies for trips to Napa and Bordeaux, but the rest of us want a reason to join your wine clubs, too. We’re already getting discounts on your wines, but maybe I’d join your club if you offered me discounts to other wineries in a “collective.” So by joining the St Supery wine club (which I’d like to do some day) I could also get discounts and new-release information for Rombauer and PlumpJack, too. You’ll get increased brand-exposure (from Rombauer and PlumpJack’s fans) and you’ll get more subscriptions because there’s more in it for the consumer.
• Invest in focus groups and user testing. Build your brand’s reputation around consumers who have blind-tasted your wine, liked it, and are willing to say so on your website, in non-industry publications, and disclose that they’re not being paid as spokesmen so other consumers can trust them. Let’s face it, most people talking about wine are paid to do so and are immediately lest trustworthy because of it.
• Host wine-tasting events in major geographical locations and bring the wine-tasting experience to consumers where it’s convenient for them. Parties are cheap and drunk people buy a lot of wine. It’s a low-risk and fun way to find about your wines.

Then publicize all of that via Social Media… which is what it’s for. Getting the word out (as opposed to driving direct sales).

My Background & Qualifications for this Rant

While working in Product Management, User Experience, and Search at Shopzilla.com, the largest and most successful comparison shopping engine, I learned an inordinate amount about people’s online shopping behaviors, some about their offline shopping behaviors, and the web-marketing channel known as Cost-per-Click advertising (or CPC). I also learned how to test consumer behavior using actual shopping data as they were/are among the very best at it.

Later, I ran Product Management at Social Shopping hopeful ThisNext.com. Here I delved deeply into determining the power of user recommendations for generating demand that generates sales for, typically, high-end products. I learned a great deal more about online business models like Cost-per-Impression Advertising (or CPM) and Performance Marketing (Cost-per-Acquisition, or CPA). Unlike CPC and CPM models, when you’re working in the CPA business model, you get conversion data. For those of you whom I haven’t bored right off the site, CONVERSION DATA = ACTUAL SALES.

Currently I run a property called WineClubReviews.net. As you might imagine, we review wine clubs and rate them. Because wine taste preferences are so subjective, we don’t rate the taste of the wine and whether or not you’ll like the wine, we rate whether or not the wine club is delivering good value for your monthly subscription. Among all of the wine clubs we’ve reviewed to date, only one is from a single wine producer, and it’s not a winery, it’s Oriel wines who has engaged an innovative business model to capture wine consumers’ attention.

La Finca wines from Trader Joe's

With Two-Buck Chuck heralded as the “everyman’s” wine I have become more open to the idea of deeply-discounted wines. To me, Two-Buck Chuck has always been a nice $6 wine for $2. Since I don’t drink $6 wine unless there isn’t any beer available, Two-Buck Chuck is just something other people talk about, not something I experience myself anymore.

But a few months ago, Trader Joe’s Fearless Flyer fearlessly arrived in my mailbox and found its way onto my coffee table. While perusing it, I noticed some new wine they were promoting that goes by the name of La Finca and comes from Argentina. They sell these wines for $3.99 and it caught my attention. The following questions ran through my head, in roughly this order:

1. If it’s $3.99 could it be twice as good as Two-Buck Chuck?
2. If it’s $3.99 could it be like a nice wine that’s normally $12?
3. If it’s $3.99 could it be any good?

By the time I’d arrived at the third question I’d reached the point of mini-obsession and I just had to know what they’d be like. So I marched myself right over to TJ’s and picked up a bottle each of the La Finca 2009 Malbec, La Finca 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon, and the La Finca 2009 Chardonnay.

I’ve drinking a lot of Malbec in the last six months as I’m going to write a post about Malbec one of these days. Anyway, the general conclusion I’m drawing about Argentinian Malbec involves the difference between “regular” Malbec and “reserve” Malbec and the old addage “You get what you pay for.” Looking for one more notch in my Malbec bedpost, I dove right in as soon as I got home. And I was pleasantly surprised!

I found the La Finca 2009 Malbec to be very drinkable, very characteristic of Malbec from this region, and of pretty solid structure for a very young wine. Here is a little recap from twitter after I tweeted my usual “mini-review.”

grapesmart: Drinking 2009 La Finca Malbec from Trader Joe’s for $3.99. Was very skeptical–Chocolate nose, slightly acidic, low alcohol… kinda nice.
7:10 PM Oct 19th from TweetDeck

happywineguy: @grapesmart so…is it a middle of the week wine or something good enough to pour for friends?
7:18 PM Oct 19th from TweetDeck in reply to grapesmart

grapesmart: @HappyWineGuy Depends on your friends. It’s acceptable for friends after the first bottle is gone. I have friends I could serve it to
7:26 PM Oct 19th from TweetDeck

grapesmart: @HappyWineGuy That is, if you’re not embarrassed to serve a 2009 IN 2009
7:29 PM Oct 19th from TweetDeck

happywineguy: @grapesmart not at all. The Southern Hemisphere is a half year ahead of us on vintages. So a 2009 is not unacceptable. As a 2nd btl, ok.
7:32 PM Oct 19th from TweetDeck in reply to grapesmart

grapesmart: @HappyWineGuy Thanks for teaching me something new about vintages! I had never thought about Southern Hemisphere being 6-months ahead!
7:42 PM Oct 19th from TweetDeck

happywineguy: @grapesmart awww, that’s what I do.
7:43 PM Oct 19th from TweetDeck in reply to grapesmart

Some time later I opened the La Finca 2009 Chardonnay. I wasn’t really sure what to expect from an Argentinian Chardonnay, or a $3.99 Chardonnay for that matter. I have to tell you, I was absolutely blown away by this wine. It is better than 95% of the Chardonnays I’ve ever had, including all the ones that are over $30. My biggest concern was that since it doesn’t taste like a typical Chardonnay—or even an unoaked Chardonnay where you’ll (hopefully) find more of the Chardonnay grape showing off instead of the oak—that I was mistaken about how good it was. So, I called up Arianna (whom you may remember from such posts as: “I Don’t Read Playboy for the Articles“, “Wine and… Food? Please! Pairings“, and “An Oak Barrel-less Barrel of Fun“), had her come over, and gave her a blind taste. I told her absolutely nothing about what she was drinking and handed her a glass of chilled white wine. I found her analysis to be extremely curious considering what I’d poured.

Amazing balance, citrusy, apricot. Bright & crisp, no alcohol taste like you get in cheaper wines. I’d guess this is a Roussane or other white Rhone and that it’s at least $20. It tastes a little bit older, like a 2007.

This kind of wine is the reason this blog exists. We try everything and point you to great values. This kind of value is rare. If you like white wine go stock up on this Chardonnay, you’ll be glad you did. And if you’re not, I’ll buy the rest of yours off ya.

The story of La Finca comes to La Fin on a sadder note though… Last night I finally cracked the La Finca 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon and I have to say… meh. Not only was there nothing extraordinary, there was nothing ordinary. Well maybe not nothing, because the underlying flavors were nice (cherry and blackberry I think), but I had to fight through minerality, alcohol taste, and that dreaded cheap-red-wine-toothiness to get to them and my taste buds were fatigued before I even finished the first swallow. I wonder if it sat in the bottle a while longer (maybe a year or two) if it would get better. I also wonder if it will be better tonight than it was last night (I’ll keep you posted if it is).

At any rate, the moral of the story is to drink lots of wine so you can figure out what you like and what you don’t like… and then buy lots of what you like when it goes on sale.

Dark ruby-colored, fruity deliciousness!

As we’ve covered in previous posts, wines from Cost Plus World Market can be very hit or miss. In general, I have had great luck with their wines, and since I had a coupon for their Friends and Family 25% Off sale, I thought I’d do a little shopping and buy some new bottles and test my luck.

2007 Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha, from the Calatayud region of Spain, is one of the wines I picked up. It’s a 90-point Wine Advocate/Parker, and deliciously drinkable now and over the next three years.

I’m not very familiar with Grenache (in Spanish, Garnacha and Garnatxa in Catalan), but it was first cultivated in Spain and is arguably the most abundantly planted grape on the planet. Although it is used on its own to make 100% varietals, it is frequently used to “fill out” other reds, including the bulk of Rhone and over 80% of Châteauneuf du Pape.

This particular bottle is 100% Grenache/Garnacha. It’s an absolutely gorgeous deep garnet red in the glass, with a smokey bouquet mixed with red berries and just the tiniest tinge of alcoholic heat. On the tongue, my first taste was of grapefruit! Other imbibers agreed that this was present, although no one else found this to be the principle taste. We all agreed it tasted of smoke and lush berries. Although slightly lightweight (some might say watery), I found this wine to be absolutely scrumptious. It would make a delicious table wine.

From The Wine Advocate:

There are 18,000 cases of the delightful 2007 Las Rocas Garnacha, a wine sourced from Calatayud vineyards ranging in age from 70 to 100 years. Dark ruby in color, it delivers alluring aromas of spice box, mineral, cherry, and black raspberry. Layered on the palate, it has superb depth, succulent flavors, and a pure, lengthy finish. It will provide pleasure over the next three years. (02/08)

From Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar:

Deep ruby. Rich kirsch and blackberry aromas are complicated by mocha and licorice. Smoky dark berry aromas pack serious punch and are supported by suave tannins. Finishes clean, lively and persistent. As usual, this is a great bargain. (9-10/07)

At $10 – $12 per bottle, the 2007 Las Rocas de San Alejandro is also a great buy. It’s not always easy to find a highly rated wine for such a low price. This wine is ready to drink now and seems to be universally declared as delicious! If you don’t like it, I’ll finish it for you.

Cheers!

As is the case with every industry, clever business people with big ideas and great connections often find ways to accelerate industry growth and take a cut of the market for themselves.  These entrepreneurs figure out an angle on how to get their own piece of the pie by targeting the consumer market. The wine world is no exception.

While you may not know the names of these companies, you have likely heard of a few of their wines. This post covers the different approaches these innovators are taking: Bronco Wine Company, Cameron Hughes Wine, Latitude Beverage Company, and Oriel Wines.

Method 1: Reach the most consumers by making cheap wine widely available

"Two-Buck Chuck" (Charles Shaw Wine)

You may not know the name Bronco Wine Company but I’ll bet you a year’s salary you know their biggest brand–Charles Shaw (a.k.a. Two-Buck Chuck). Did you also know that Bronco Wine Company has over fifty other brands, too? According to Wikipedia (the only web-presence the company maintains), Bronco Wine Company is the fourth-largest wine producer in the US with total annual sales of approximately 20 million cases.

Bronco is a 30-year old wine company that has had some troubles along the way, but it’s never easy for the pioneers; CEO Fred Franzia (no relation to the wine in the box) has successfully executed his vision of bringing wine to the masses. (See earlier comment about you knowing the name of their #1 brand.) They did it by buying grape and wine overruns from existing wineries and repackaging them. They did it by buying 35,000+ acres of grape-growing land in California and making their own wines in less-expensive areas than the Napa Valley. They did it by specializing in distribution and getting their wine into grocery stores like Trader Joe’s and other national chains.

Bronco can safely claim they did a tremendous amount to contribute to the explosion of wine-consumption in the US because at $2 a bottle, it’s a risk-free experiment for nearly everyone and since most consumers don’t know good wine from bad they’re happy drinking the two-buck bottles. Some people refer to Two-buck Chuck as a gateway wine–it introduces people to wine and when they’re ready for something more adventurous, they’ll step up and start buying better wines. I don’t know what percentage of the Charles Shaw audience are upgraders, but I’ll bet brands like Yellow Tail and Coppola are thrilled they do.

Method 2: Diversify in different methods of selling oversupply and partner with others to help do it

Cameron Hughes Wines - Lot Series

Another innovative company aiming to bring more value to the consumer market is Cameron Hughes Wines. They’ve diversified their approach to include purchasing oversupply and backblending some of it into their Rock Ridge series while maintaining the integrity of the better wines in their Lot Series. When they find good winemaker partners, they create ongoing relationships for their Flying Winemaker Series, even going so far as to choose one uber-partner for their Evergreen Series.

Cameron Hughes also cultivated strong distribution channels with major retailers maintaining great brand loyalty like Costco, Cost Plus World Market, and Safeway. These are stores where consumers aren’t looking for fine wines, but good quality wines at a good value and Cameron Hughes thinks they can build lifelong consumer loyalty for their brands through these distribution channels. If the quality is there, and the prices are fair, I’ll bet they keep growing at a record pace.

Method 3: Specialize in high-end oversupply and only source the best varietals from their best regions

90+ Cellars Malbec

Latitude Beverage Company is an example of an innovative business which sees that the fine wine market is declining and that there’s more growth opportunity in bringing good quality wine to the mass consumer market. They’re doing it in two different ways under two unique labels–90+ Cellars and Ku De Ta Wines.

90+ Cellars is just like Cameron Hughes’ Lot Series except that the wines Latitude Beverage purchases come with a ratings pedigree. While we don’t necessarily advocate buying wines based on their ratings (because everyone’s personal taste is different), we think only selecting wines that are well-structured enough to earn a 90+ rating in the first place is a great place to start. When you purchase a 90+ Cellars wine, you’re getting premium quality at value pricing–a great way to win over sophisticated wine buyers on a budget.

Ku De Ta Wines, Rioja

Ku De Ta is more like Cameron Hughes’ Flying Winemaker Series in that they’ve hand-selected varietals from the regions where they perform best. When you want to produce consistently high-quality wines, why buy your grapes from a region that doesn’t have the best terroir to support superior winemaking? Why buy your Cabernet grapes from anywhere other than the Napa Valley? Why buy your Malbec from anywhere other than Mendoza? You get the point. I can’t tell if they make their own wines or if they contract with winemakers (probably the latter), but it’s almost irrelevant because winemaking that starts with the best grapes and that respects the varietal’s characteristics produces wonderful wines.

Method 4: Leverage winemaker contacts to produce the best line of wines from around the world

Oriel Wines

Among myriad platitudes there are two popular truisms in the business world that help companies focus: “know your strengths” and “stick to your core competencies, outsource the rest.” Oriel Wines understands focus and knows their own strengths don’t lie in vineyard equipment and property operations, but in evaluating wines and winemakers for greatness. Oriel has created partnerships with the world’s finest winemakers from the best regions and hand-selected varietals to be crafted into world-class wines. They then bottle these wines and distribute them under the single brand, Oriel.

The difference between Oriel and Cameron Hughes in this area is that Oriel is specialized. Specialists tend to excel at their niche and often can bring exceptional quality to their work. Oriel has managed to do this and still sell their wines at consumer-friendly prices, and they consistently get top ratings on their wines, too. With a range of pricing from $15 – $75 per bottle, Oriel knows that consumers who get to know their brand through one of its well-priced selections will become a loyal brand follower and continue to discover a world of wines as their wine experience and appetite for more extraordinary wines grows.

Bottom line: If you buy wines that are priced according to innovative business practices (as opposed to local real estate prices and ratings-driven demand), odds are good you’re getting better quality wine for your money–who doesn’t want that?

This past weekend my husband and I flitted off to San Diego to visit some friends and chill out. In addition to excellent company and excellent food, it was a fun wine weekend, too.

Wine #1: 2006 Beringer Napa Chardonnay

2005 Beringer Napa Valley Chardonnay

As a pre-dinner diversion, our friends Greg & Celine had us over for snacks and a glass of wine before heading out. They served us homemade dips (a delicious Greek yogurt dip with herbs in it and a yummy parmesan-artichoke dip) with pita chips and edamame. They served it to us with (and here’s an adjective I never thought I’d use to describe a Beringer wine) Napa Valley Chardonnay. It was crisp, a little oaky, and had hints of green fruit. A well-structured, enjoyable white wine for $10-13 per bottle.

Wine #2: 2007 Alexander Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

2007 Alexander Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

Greg & Celine brought us to their friends’ new restaurant in Del Mar, California called Zel’s. The patio was lovely, the food (mine at least) was excellent, and the service was an adventure. Greg insisted that since I have a wine blog I needed to choose the wine for the table. Unusually, there was a choice to be made because Zel’s has a great wine list and really great bottle prices on the wine. I asked around and everyone liked Cabernet, so I chose the Alexander Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon. You’ve heard me say before that you can’t go wrong with a Cab from Alexander Valley and this gem was no exception. A delicious Cab typical of Alexander Valley, it carried us gracefully through mussels & french fries, warm spinach salad, sea bass with mushroom risotto, steak, pork shoulder, and a serrano ham woodfired pizza. We happily ordered 2 bottles during dinner and not only would I go back to this restaurant (a rare compliment from me) I would buy this wine at twice it’s normal price of $14-17 per bottle.

Wine #3: 2005 Clos du Bois North Coast Cabernet Sauvignon

2005 Clos du Bois Cabernet Sauvignon North Coast

In the afternoon, I took my friend Gary shopping at Walmart. There are so many parts of that sentence which sound strange to me, but the strangest of all is that I voluntarily went into a Walmart (stranger still I spent money while I was there… on wine!). While we were wandering the aisles, I discovered they sell wine. In fact, I picked up a couple bottles of the Bonterra Organic & Biodynamic Chardonnay for $6 which is a STEAL. While perusing the shelf I saw the 2005 Clos du Bois North Coast Cabernet Sauvignon and opted to pass. Boy was that dumb. Later that afternoon, while sitting around playing games and drinking (that’s what Sunday afternoons are for, right?) we opened a bottle that Gary already had at his place… and it was better than I’ve come to expect from Clos du Bois which can be SO hit-or-miss. (Example: I love their Pinot Grigio but hate their Pinot Noir.) This Cabernet was not of the same exceptional quality as the one from the night before, but nonetheless, when you’re looking for value in your limited wine budget, this wine will make you think you spent more than you did for your $12-15 per bottle.

Wine #4: 2006 Domaine Chandon Pinot Noir Carneros

2006 Domain Chandon Pinot Noir Carneros

When we made it to our final dinner of the weekend, we were ready to keep the good times rolling, so we ordered another bottle of wine. Well, I guess we technically ordered two bottles of wine. The first one was a Zolo Malbec… a wine I love! Or thought I did. I in fact love the Zolo Gaucho Select Malbec which I bought at BevMo! (which is, near as I can tell, a Reserve wine). They also bottle a lesser-version of it without the Gaucho Select, and I can tell you it’s not as good as the Gaucho Select. So, I sent it back. Instead we ordered the 2006 Domaine Chandon Pinot Noir Carneros because Mitch loves Pinot and we were all eating dinners that would go nicely with a Pinot. Lately I’ve felt like every Pinot Noir I taste is overwhelmingly cherry or tastes like water even though it looks like wine. Finally that streak has been broken but I don’t have a new Pinot to add to my shopping list when I want a wine in the $20-25 range because I don’t think it was worth that much. More like $15-18 per bottle.

2007 Costco Napa Valley Chardonnay

I noticed recently that Costco has come out with more wines in their Kirkland Signature wines line and naturally, since I’m there once a month trolling the wine bins like the wine whore, er value seeker, that I am, I picked up a bunch more of ‘em.

This time I tried the 2007 Napa Valley Chardonnay from Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand line of house wines. In a different but happy way, I’m as impressed with this Chardonnay as I was with the Kirkland Signature Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

First, I’ve never had such a well-balanced Chardonnay under $20, much less under $10. California Chardonnays are often overly oaky, frequently too acidic, and sometimes taste like Sauvignon Blanc. Occasionally we come across Chards we love, but this one is a solid enjoyable player in a field of mediocre wines priced under $15.

What they say: 2007 Kirkland Signature Napa Valley Chardonnay is opulent and richly flavored. The succulent notes of apricot and fig are surrounded by intense bursts of apple and pear, finishing with bright, mouthwatering acidity; a distinctive, buttery edge; plus hints of cedar and oak. Chardonnay from Napa Valley is scarce, highly sought after, and the source for some of the finest California Chardonnay from the 2007 vintage. Drink now through 2010.

What Jess says: The bouquet is oaky, but don’t let it fool you, other wonderful flavors come out to play once you take a sip. At first I noticed a brightness at the front of my mouth, oakiness in the mid-palate, and a smoky finish. The wine lingered in my mouth to offer a mild green-fruit and buttery finish. This wine would be great with any of the traditional foods one pairs with a Chardonnay (cheese, salad, fish, chicken, etc.) but could also compliment a heartier meal.

It doesn’t seem to be on their website (I think because it’s only available in California), so if you live in California you’ll have to go to your local Costco to pick some up at the super bargain price of $7.99 a bottle. Here’s an article about Kirkland Signature wines at Costco.com.

A few weeks ago I went to a tasting event hosted by the Rhone Rangers which is an organization focused on wine produced from Rhone varietals grown in the United States. Being a Southern California event, most of the wineries (if not all) were from Paso Robles, Santa Barbara, and the Santa Ynez Valley appellations.

Prior to attending, I researched the wineries to see which 20 I should actually taste because I knew I’d never make all 40-something. During my research I found the 2005 Zaca Mesa Syrah, Santa Ynez Valley had been rated 92 by Wine Spectator (for my palette, that almost always means I’ll like it). I found that highly suspect because I’d had Zaca Mesa wines before and been, as I like to say, underwhelmed. The other thing I found surprising was a $22 bottle of Syrah from Santa Ynez was rated so highly. Now I LOVE Syrah, especially Santa Ynez Syrahs, so for me, it was a little jewel to behold.

2005 Zaca Mesa Syrah

I managed not to get to the Zaca Mesa table while I was at the tasting event, but that’s okay because it’s a fairly large-production wine and I knew I could find it elsewhere. On tonight’s trip to Costco I noticed the Zaca Mesa Syrah and grabbed a bottle. Being me, I naturally couldn’t wait more than 5 minutes to crack it and see if it passes my critical (ha!) muster, or at least lives up to its hype.

What Jess says: First impressions are great. A nice cherry/jammy bouquet with a little smoke at the back of the nose. Chewy, but enjoyable, mouthfeel. It does something funny toward the back of my tongue that I’m not loving (somehow reminds me of the other Zaca Mesa experiences I’ve had). Hardly noticeable jamminess in the mouth (some people love it, some hate it… I’m a lover) as opposed to the nose. Some kind of salty or some other mineral taste in the finish. Would almost certainly benefit from aeration, age, (I was too eager) and some red meat (or any food probably).

What Wine Spectator said: “Tight and beefy, with focused blueberry and wild berry flavors that are spicy and complex. Full-bodied, with a hint of stewed plum and wild berry peaking through on the finish. Drink now through 2015. 13,090 cases made.”

What Zaca Mesa said: “Our Syrah displays rich blackberry, cassis, espresso, mocha and our signature sage spice aromas and flavors. The silky finish lingers from the ripe tannins and smoky oak. This full-bodied wine should be enjoyed over the next ten years. A traditional pairing for this wine is a rack of lamb marinated in rosemary and garlic. However, a peppercorn steak or mushroom risotto would work incredibly well.”

[Editor's note: Even though I don't think all wines at Costco are priced as "deals," knowing what your favorites cost elsewhere helps you identify when Costco has listed something at a lower price than most other places. We paid $16.79 and which seems to be a middle-of-the-road price for this wine in today's market despite it's $22 release price.]

[Editor's note: This post has been updated... at the end of the post]

Many moons ago, in a land far far away (90-ish miles south) I used to only buy wine at Cost Plus World Market. In those days the prices seemed good and you could sum up my wine knowledge/experience with a phrases like these, “1994 Chardonnay is good” and ” I think I like Pinot Grigio.” I was more of a tequila girl in those days and I really went to Cost Plus for those heavenly Belgian Chocolates (note: only heavenly if you like hazelnut and chocolates with creamy centers) and to buy a papasan chair.

Over the years, we’ve wandered in to the one near us a few times. We’ve discovered it’s a great place to purchase lightweight Christmas gifts that travel cross-continent in our luggage very well. We’ve also discovered that they have great prices on Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label around the holidays. I’m not sure why, but I added myself to their email list and over the last several months the company has been significantly gearing up the importance of wine in their stores and improving their online presence.

At first the wines scared me. I hadn’t heard of 95% of them, the prices were either ordinary or the wines were so cheap I didn’t trust them, and the mediocre ratings didn’t increase my likelihood of purchasing. But lately… the only thing stopping me from making a CPWM run is the 20-something bottles of wine I already have in the house.

Regardless, here are the pros and cons I’ve been weighing on the decision to go try wines from Cost Plus World Market.

Pro: Unbelievable prices. I’ve used a couple of wines that they sell to make assessments about their general prices (specifically in search of the answer to “how good is the deal?”). The aforementioned Veuve at $34.99 a bottle (sale price any time of year, including the holidays) made me sit up and take notice. I’ve consistently seen that their prices are under $15 for just about everything. Also, they’re constantly sending (seemingly) great deals that are even lower than their already-low prices.

Pro: The list of wines is starting to include wine regions I know and like: Today’s email caught my attention with a Tempranillo from Ribera del Duero (see my post about the Vina Santurnia Tempranillo) for $6.99 a bottle (normally $9.99). $9.99 is a low price (though not bargain-basement) for a Tempranillo from this region in Spain. $6.99 is a steal and I really want to try it.

Pro: The list of wines is starting to include wines I know and like. After catching my attention in the email, I browsed the website for a bit and was surprised to find these wines which I know and like

• Franciscan Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon (shop it)
• Conundrum (shop it)
• Simi Cabernet Sauvignon (shop it)
• Bodega Norton Reserve Malbec
• and many many more well known wines

Con: The website doesn’t publish a LOT of their prices. This is a con for two reasons. It requires me to go to the store to check out their prices, which I’d prefer to do at my computer because I live in a congested area and I’m not a fan of traffic. It’s also a con because it makes me think/know they’re adjusting prices based on local markets. This drives me batty. Why should I have to pay  more than the wine lover in Encinitas just because I live in Los Angeles? How can I figure out which stores have the best prices? These shouldn’t be questions I have to ask.

Con: They’re still carrying some skeevy wine labels. There are a couple of classes of wine I’m wary of… Wines with great marketing approaches (”Wine that loves chicken” and “Promisquous” come to mind). In my experience to date, these wines are all ordinary. It’s an attempt to sell a large volume of ordinary wine to unsuspecting consumers who might not know (or care) what good wine tastes like. Fine for them, not for me. The other group of wines are anything that’s regularly priced under $8. Mostly this is because these wines are almost always produced by the Bronco Wine Company (the esteemed makers of Charles Shaw a.k.a. Two-buck Chuck).

Con (if you don’t live in California or near an CPWM): Most of these deals are only available in California. It seems that they’re only selling wines (or trying these deals) in some states. I live in California so I have fantastic access to wines and I wouldn’t be surprised if the deals are extra special because it’s California.

Bottom line: It’s gotta be worth a visit if you live near a Cost Plus World Market and you like to find wine values by buying good wines at great prices.

Do you buy wine at Cost Plus World Market? Share your thoughts and leave a comment, please!

Update!

We stopped by World Market the next day (because my curiosity was insatiable) and picked up a six-pack (as I lovingly call them) to take for a test run. We had two shopping goals in mind here… The first was to see if World Market’s prices are low and bring great value or just low because they’ve purchased cheap wine. We also decided to further explore Tempranillos from Spain as it’s a region/varietal we’ve found some great values from in the past. We bought:

1. Campo Viejo Riserva, $12.99 per bottle – Haven’t tried it yet
2. 2007 Vivir, Vivir Tempranillo from Ribera del Duero, $6.99 per bottle
   This PROBABLY belongs on the “do not drink these wines” list. I was able to finish the bottle despite its finishless grapiness. Definitely will not be purchasing again. Would rather spend a few more dollars and like what I’m drinking.
3. Bodega Norton Malbec (x2), $7.99 per bottle
   This was a wine I had previously purchased at Costco more than once for $12-15ish per bottle. It’s a nice quality Malbec. Not something that jumps out at me in the $12-15ish range, but definitely a good value at $7.99 per bottle.
4. 2006 Etim Seleccion, $10.99 per bottle
   Robert Parker rated this wine 91. I thought it was okay and the price made it okayer. By now I’ve started to realize that not all Tempranillos from Ribera del Duero are good. This was an important realization because now I won’t just buy blindly when I see one… I’ll only do it for 2004 or 2005. Another lesson in why if you’re going to use ratings to buy wine, be sure you agree with the ratings system at least some of the time. I personally prefer Wine Spectator’s ratings and find them the most accurate for my palette.
5. Cortijo III Tinto, $7.99 per bottle- Haven’t tried it yet