In my line of work, I have a group of what we refer to as sales reps who call on me with wine in hand. Their goal of course is to sample me on something that I will like, which translates into sales for them. The most motivated of this group are the commissioned base. Every bottle or case they sale, adds to their paycheck’s bottom line. There are many different approaches that each rep takes to achieve their goal. Some are straight-forward and admit that the wine they are bringing to me is something the company is trying to push; what they call a “focus” item. Others, just go about their business of tasting me on the wines and acting as if it is no sweat off their backs if I don’t like it. By not being pushy or blunt, they feel that perhaps they can kill me with kindness and I will buy from them for this very reason. It’s all very intriguing and I find it fascinating to try to figure out each sales rep’s approach and purpose. The bottom line is that I know they want to make a living, therefore I give them my utmost attention while I’m sampling the wines. The question that often comes up in my mind, is why? Why are they now bringing me a bag full of white wine samples in the dead of December?
It’s true. For whatever reason unbeknown to me, they come with the greatest enthusiasm trying to pedal a Sauvignon Blanc when it is barely forty degrees outside. Am I missing something here? Please let me in on the secret as I don’t want to feel foolish. Of course I understand presenting bubbles during the holidays, but not a Muscadet for Christ’s sake. Occasionally one will stand out, and I know that I need to have a few whites around for holiday parties and the like. However, I most likely have a few whites in mind that are already well received by my customers. These are the wines that I go to for such purposes, not something new and obscure. Remember the “focus” wine program? Many distributors over-bought during the summer months and now transfer their overstock burden on the poor sales rep, who now has to try their best to get some poor sap to buy a bunch. Please stop wasting your time, and bring me a fantastic red that is a good value and I will send your paycheck into the next stratosphere.
This is a nice segue into my “pick of the month”. I feature one wine each month in the front of my department at Kings Market. It has become quite a popular attraction over the last couple of years as my good customers eagerly wait to see what I will feature next. My goal is simple; find a wine that I believe over-delivers for the money, and will be liked by at least 80% of the customers who try it. Now, here comes the segue. What are the chances I will choose a white wine for that pick during the fall and winter months? Slim to none at best. We will sell anywhere from ten to twenty cases or more of a wine that I select as the “pick of the month”. If you were a sales rep, wouldn’t you at least want a crack at that spot? I know I would. Yet, here I find myself each winter month faced with a plethora of white wine samples to try. You would not believe how many times I have reminded them that they just need to bring me a friggin’ hot little red. How hard can this be to figure out? Evidently I am asking for the moon, because nine times out of ten, the sales rep brings me nothing that would even remotely be considered for the “Pick”. Granted, I have a very good crew of sales reps who call on me. But, out of that bunch, there are only a couple who seem to understand the value of that spot and give their best effort to find me a wine to feature. One in particular is quite diligent in this regard, and as a result has had one of their wines featured many times over the past year. Now if I could get the rest to jump on board, I would be a happy man with a bunch of happy customers.
I have been scouring my notebook, searching for my top forty wines under twenty bucks. I have to say that I have been incredibly stingy with my grading this year. I only found one with a straight up A grade, and only six with an A- grade. That’s crazy! I usually have twice that amount to choose from. Fortunately there were a boatload with a grade of B+/A-. This is good of course, but I still had to dip into the B+ range to fill out my list. Granted, a B+ grade for a wine under twenty bucks is excellent. It still surprised me as I find myself getting a little more particular as I grow older. Lists are fun to do, but hardly definitive. We all know how subjective wine is and certainly experience helps. I judge wines based on balance, structure and typicity. Does the wine hold true to where it comes from. If it doesn’t, is it so well made that one can over-look that. You certainly don’t want a Barolo that is built like a Zinfandel. Just saying. I am feverishly working on the list and should have it out soon.
Cheers!
Stan
