I just finished reading The Wine Trials 2010 by Robin Goldstein and Alexis Herschkowitsch. I must confess I’m very perplexed by this book. The authors blame the “lifestyle marketing” for overpriced wines. They also condemn the fact that a group like LVMH invest more money on marketing than to produce the goods, without mentioning that this marketing strategy covers all products manufactured by LVMH and not only their wine and spirits business. Because they reject marketing (they call it the “enemy” of the wine drinker) and the “taste of money”, they promote wines widely available in supermarkets and under $15. But, among the 150 selected wines, there are Two Buck Chuck, Norton, Almaden, Barefoot wines, to mention just a few. Do the authors sincerely think those wines are so widely available without heavy marketing and a lot of money? This selection by two main criteria – under $15 and widely available in supermarkets – is counterproductive for the wine industry. Wine drinkers and consumers need wines under $15 but original and well crafted. There are so many of them all over the world. It’s true it requires a little effort on the part of the consumers but it is well worth it. The Web 2.0 provides tools to look for, find and now locate affordable and not so easy-to-find wines.

All the selection of wines is based on blind tasting. I won’t make any comment on this choice: I’m not an enologist or a wine critic and have no opinion on the subject worth of mention. When they say blind tasting gets the truth out of a wine, I’m a little skeptical: why is it right to prefer a $15 cava over a $150 Dom Perignon and wrong to like a Dom Perignon? It’s just a matter of taste and education. I’m the last one to condemn somebody who likes a $3 Two Buck Chuck. As I already wrote, a wine is like a book: some people like reading detective stories or chick lit and others poetry or essays. There’s nothing wrong with it. But don’t tell me it is “un-American” to drink expensive wines because of their marketing strategy!

The Wine Trials 2010 is also very critic of wine critics and established magazines, such as The Wine Spectator. Critics of critics have been going on for many years. One of the answers provided by the Web 2.0 is the peer-to-peer recommendation system. Consumers have now a huge array of information through social media, forums, blogs, Facebook pages and Twitter. They can access this information instantly on their phone or through Internet.

Did I dislike this book? Not really. While reading it, I went from smiling to raising a perplexed eyebrow or being mildly offended. This said, I respect the effort behind the work: it is certainly very hard to carry such a tasting, even if I have a lot of reservations about the result. I also respect the thinking behind the work. Goldstein’s introductory chapters are worth reading thoroughly. As he says all along his book, the reader has to make up his/her own mind on the ideas and principles behind the book as well as on wine. Maybe the authors and I have to agree we disagree!

Did you try “googling” your name or your company? Do you write a blog? Do you want to do business on the Net without technological knowledge? Do you want to become a “trust agent”? You’ll learn about that and a lot more in Chris Brogan’s book, Trust Agents. Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust.

Marketers and Web savvy professionals know about Chris’ blog, and refer to it very often for its smart comments and tips so generously shared. Trust Agent is the sum of Chris’ and co-author Julien Smith’s experience on how to use the web to become what was before them called a “guru”, a “diva”, an “expert” or an “influencer”.

Chris and Julien explained what “social capital” is about in the new media and defined 6 characteristics for trust agents. They guide the reader through the various aspects of those characteristics and – typical of Chris’ and Julien’s generosity – give him/her practical tips to get into action.

I read the book with passion but don’t want to tell you too much about it. You have to read it, savour it and then… go to work. I don’t know if everybody will become a “trust agent” but every reader will be a little wiser and knowledgeable after reading the book.

I didn’t think that trying to buy a book in a bookstore could become such a frustrating experience. The book I was seeking is Chris Brogan and Julien Smith‘s Trust Agents. Yesterday I heard this long-awaited book was available in Borders and Barnes and Noble bookstores all over the country. I rushed to the nearest Barnes and Noble and checked on their computer the availability of the book. It was supposed to be on the shelves in the Business section. I spent quite a long time looking through all the books and couldn’t find it. A very helpful clerk checked on the computer, helped me look on the shelf and puzzled, decided to check in the backroom. He came back empty handed and told me the book must have been misplaced and I should order on line. I thanked him and moved to Borders across the street. The exact same experience was waiting for me with the same result and the same puzzling answer: “Order on line”. Being a stubborn person I went home and started calling the other bookstores a little further around: exact same answer. There is a copy of the book somewhere in the store but we can’t find it. Order on line!

Why do I even bother writing about this story? First of all, because I hate being a frustrated reader. Second and more importantly, because it made me think about the growing importance of the e-commerce on every economic activity – whether it is books or wines. Borders as well as Barnes and Noble pretend to have a book in their stores and then recommend the customer who took the time to walk or drive to the store, peruse the shelves and ask for help to order on line. Indeed by ordering on line the book price is discounted and shipping is free. Good for the consumer (maybe?) but is it good for the company? As a customer I thought very inconsiderate of them to waste my precious time. It reflects poorly on their image and professionalism and next time I badly need a book, I won’t go to the store. Will I order on line from them? Certainly not! Still sulking after my useless walks and phone calls, I got on line and ordered from Amazon.com!

Does it mean that those two companies want to downsize their stores or even close some of them after they got their customers to order on line? It could be. This is good news for the e-commerce and the consumer but bad news for the local economic life of many small towns or suburbs. Is it possible this business model applies to the wine industry? Boutique wines are usually not available in supermarkets. Mass market wines are not available in independently owned wine stores that usually carry more exclusive and should I say interesting? wines. The two business models are acting parallel to each other without interfering with each other. Both are now facing the competition of the e-commerce through wine clubs and mostly wine sites, such as wine.com, snooth.com, thewinespies.com and many others. Thanks to the diversity of the distribution ssystem (within its frustrating limits), wine consumers have now more choice of places and ways than book readers to buy their favorite ones.

What will become of the poetic image of a person reading a book with a glass of (good) wine in hand in a few years? History…

Allen Meadows, the famous Burghound, specialist of Burgundy wines, will soon publish a long-needed book on the
The Pearl of the Côte. The Great Wines of Vosne-Romanée.

As Allen explained in a recent interview on the newwineconsumer.com podcast, the idea of the book came to him when he was tasting 74 (yes, 74!) vintages of the greatest Burgundy wine, La Romanée-Conti. This very exceptional vertical tasting started him thinking about the best way to convey to his readers the secrets and beauty of those wines and terroirs. Of course, he’s going through the history of the wines and the terroirs. But more original, he put together exact maps of the terroirs, working from maps and archives of the French administration. This long and delicate work will bring a new knowledge of those difficult terroirs – so fragmented.

Allen’s book will be available soon. If you’re as eager as I am to get your hands on a copy, sign up to be notified on its release.
]]> http://www.winebrandsblog.com/2009/08/the-burghounds-book-on-vosne-romanee/feed/ 0 http://www.winebrandsblog.com/2008/06/gary-vaynerchuks-101-wines/ http://www.winebrandsblog.com/2008/06/gary-vaynerchuks-101-wines/#comments Mon, 09 Jun 2008 14:16:00 +0000 Evelyne Resnick http://zeeek.resmo.net/wordpress/2008/06/gary-vaynerchuks-101-wines/

That’s it! I got it and I read it! I just couldn’t believe my luck when the post office delivered Gary‘s book on Friday. (My skepticism is just the result of a lost book package, actually MY own book, by… DHL.)

Last week, Gary was concerned about his book not being available in some stores. He Twittered the question to the world. Randulo saw this Tweet and invited him to call in live to the podcast he was doing at the time, which Gary did. You can listen to the short phone chat with him about the book, and his interest in tea, which he finds very similar to wine in many ways.

Anyway, Gary’s book is on my desk and I carried it along with me all weekend to read it. Funnily enough, on the cover Gary’s name is subtitled “star of winelibrarytv.com“. Fortunately, Gary is much more than a star: he’s witty, bright, funny, sincere and honest. He writes as he talks: with energy and passion. Do you know a lot of “stars” with those qualities?

Gary worked very hard to give us his opinion on 101 wines he really enjoyed and brought thunder to his world, as he put it in the title. The book is not a guide, it’s not the wines Gary recommends you to drink: “buy wines that are true to themselves and true to you”, Gary recommends. Why is that? Because “that’s how we’re going to change the wine world”: forget the ratings, forget the critics, forget the marketing strategies, the commercials and the ads. Buy a bottle because you think you’ll like it: if you don’t, you’ll have learned something about yourself and wine.

How did he select his 101 wines? They are “the 101 wines that I am most excited about and want to recommend to anyone interested in wine”, “wines that break down barriers, create new styles, and ooze charisma”. The program sounds intriguing. Should we get in a little more details about the wines? From #101 to #1, every wine is reviewed with the same info: winery name, price, origin, grapes, ABV (alcohol by volume), production and web site.

First Gary’s titles: “Making Mom Proud” for 2 Brothers, Cabernet Sauvignon reserve 2005; “It’s in the mail” for Ambulineo Vineyards, Big Paw Chardonnay 2006 or “Wine for your two-year-old” for Taylor Fladgate, Quinta de Vargellas, 2005. There is the humor and the odd comparisons. When Gary wants his reader to imagine how a wine tastes, here is what he advises to do: “I need you to take some pigs-in-a-blanket – you know, those mini hot dogs. Now you’re going to take a strawberry Fruit Roll-Up and wrap it on one more layer. That’s right! We’re going one more layer! Now bite it. Eat. Sprinkle some black pepper on it! That is this wine”. What is he talking about? a Languedoc wine, Mas de la Barben, Les Calices 2003 selling for $44! And in case you have some doubt about what a fruit roll-up is, there is a foot note on the subject.

Is Gary not taking wine seriously by any chance? Not at all. Gary is certainly one of the more erudite people I read on the subject: he’ll tell you everything on the most obscure grape, like Kekfrankos or about a label, like Ceago Vinegarden. Ceago is a Pomo Indian word, meaning “grass seed valley”. He will give you insights on the winery and the winemaker, tell you what he felt and smelled and tasted in the wine.

You can agree or disagree with whatever Gary says but there is something you have to agree about: Gary’s book is easy to read, gives you an in-depth appreciation of the wines he tasted, plenty of information on almost everything related to wine, taste, aroma and flavors. The book is informative, easy to read and you’ll get a good laugh out of Gary’s comments and remarks. How many wine books make you laugh?

While I was speaking in New Orleans, Wine Brands was published. I left without a copy – to my dismay – since DHL lost my package. But this morning I had the pleasure of holding my book in my hands: it is always a great moment! I just hope you will enjoy reading the book as much as I enjoyed writing it.

I’m still trying to cope with emails, phone calls and work since I got back yesterday afternoon. Which means I’ll be back on this blog tomorrow with plenty of news on the conference in New Orleans, web marketing and international markets.