Jun 19, 2013
WINE CONSUMERS HAVE LONG DESERVED AND NEEDED A VEHICLE TO VOICE THEIR INTERESTS—AND TODAY THAT VOICE EXISTS. For more than a decade now, I’ve concerned myself with how wine gets into the hands of consumers. This concern has led me to be involved in and to comment on numerous issues that impact not merely the wine trade, but how consumers access the wines they want. In some cases I’ve acted as an advocate for members of the wine trade who…
Jun 14, 2013
Decanter Magazine and Jim’s Loire Blog, among others, has reported on the recommendation of a powerful group French of health advocates that the “Loi Evin” be liberally applied to wine information on the Internet. To translate, this group is suggesting that wine blogs, social media postings and other online outlets be banned from promoting, advertising or otherwise celebrating wine. Why? Because the French must protect their children from the disastrous impact of being exposed to the idea that Domaine de…
May 29, 2013
Up on the big screen we watch a scene in a movie where two parents sit at their kitchen table and discuss the dilemma of whether or not to purchase and move into a home that is said by many to be haunted. It’s a beautiful 100 year-old home in the New Hampshire countryside, away from the bustle and distractions of their current big city home, a perfect location in which to raise their son and daughter. They can afford…
May 28, 2013
“Auction Week” in Napa Valley has begun. The way you can tell are all the little signs floating around the Valley that wish you a “Happy” auction week. For the uninitiated, Auction Napa Valley is the signature annual event of the Napa Valley Vintners, the organization of Napa Valley wineries that promote the idea of Napa Valley and its wines as well as take steps to defend the commercial interests of the “Napa Valley” brand as it pertains to wine….
May 24, 2013
• What if restaurants provided their customers with $0.10, one-ounce pours of wine immediately upon seating and changed up the wine every evening? • Imagine if there were an annual, televised, celebrated national wine competition. • If only the states put consumers first before satisfying the interests of the largest campaign competitors when it came to alcohol laws and regulations. • What if winery tasting rooms took photos of all their patrons in a “CHEERS!” pose and provided them with…