W. Blake Gray is now a columnist, the first one by the way, for Palate Press, an online wine information site. He has written about wine for the San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times, Food & Wine, Wine & Spirits and a variety of other publications. I have read many of his articles and for the most part enjoy what he writes. However, I was disappointed in his inaugural article for Palate Press.
His article is entitled “Ten Things I Learned In the Wine Business.” Evidently Blake was part of the wine industry for a little over a year selling wine to retail shops. Based on this extensive experience, he writes with authority about ten things he learned about retail wine buyers and consumers. Excuse me for being a little sarcastic here but how much can you really know after only 18 months of experience. I was a grocery store manager for four years and I was told that you really do not get a grasp on things until the third year of managing. It was true. After three years things became a lot easier and there were less surprises. That’s three years my friends, at 18 months I was still wet behind the ears!
I have been in the wine business for over twenty years and I am still learning. I would like to share with you ten things I have learned in the wine business based on the list that Blake gives >http://palatepress.com/2011/10/wine/ten-things-i-learned-in-the-wine-business/
No. 1: Old wines are more unattractive to wine shops than old people.
I love old people, they are some of my best and friendliest wine customers. I am sorry that Blake felt a need to use this analogy. As a retail wine buyer, I love it when I am offered an older vintage, but it has to be good. There is no doubt in my mind that Mr. Gray was more then likely pedaling some questionable older vintages and was getting the “stink eye” from buyers. Give me a good wine that has a few years on it and I will sell it in a hurry, $$$.
No. 2: Wine publications love unusual varieties, consumers do not.
This may have some truth to it but it is a misleading statement. Consumers need to trust the person who recommends the unusual varietal and this is not the media I am talking about. They need to trust the guy or girl on the floor who is selling the wine to them. Deep down, most consumers desire variety… It is the spice of life you know. Given the opportunity they will try something new if it is endorsed by someone they know and trust. I have sold many bottles of bonarda, mouvedre, kerner, tannat, roussanne and other unusual varietals because people trust me. Consumers love unusual varietals as long as they can trust the person recommending it. It’s their money, they want to spend it wisely.
No. 3: Most people don’t care about food and wine pairing.
These days,most people do not buy wine to go with food. I read a recent article that pointed out the new trend in wine buying by Generation Y, better known as Millennials. They purchase wine to be consumed without food. Does this mean they don’t care about food and wine pairing. I don’t know. There may be some truth to Mr. Grays statement, but I cannot tell you how many times a week I am asked what kind of wine goes with a certain type of food. Again, it is a trust issue. You walk into an eating establishment and ask the Sommelier for his or her advice. They recommend some weird ass varietal that you have never heard of before, and it is going to cost you $50.00 a bottle. Yes, it goes well with spicy Indian fare, but you don’t know this person and it sounds like they showing off. I’ll take the cab please. Maybe people don’t care and Blake could be right on this one. Personally I think they care, they are just afraid to experiment with their money.
No. 4: Wine writers like to explore lesser-known regions, consumers do not.
Agreed! Most wine consumer’s do not have the time to worry about geography. Just give me a good wine and forget about where it came from. This subject is for wine nerds only. I love wines from Sardinia and Piedmont but who cares? The reality for all of us is, it has to be good juice no matter where it is from.
No. 5: Wine writers hate Robert Parker for a reason – he’s influential and they’re not.
I think that Stephen Tanzer, James Laube and Eric Asimov might have a valid argument against that statement. Trust is what it is all about. From a retail buyers standpoint, the Parker score can peak my interest, but I still need to try the wine before I can recommend it to my customer. Parker, Tanzer, Heimoff and Asimov all have a place in my heart and they provide a valuable service. They can make the wine buyers life a lot easier. As a wine writer, I appreciate the trail that Parker has blazed… I cannot and will not speak for other writers. Robert Parker Jr. is still quite influential and we have to be careful not to throw him under the bus. However, he is now joined by many other influential writers which gives the consumer new perspectives. In my area, Eric Asimov sways the consumer much more then Mr. Parker and at my store, Parker has no chance against my recommendation. As it should be!
No. 6: Nobody cares about gold medals.
I think they care, it just depends on where the medal came from. The joke in the wine world is that there are so many competitions out there that depending on how many entries you make with your wine, you are bound to get a gold medal. If the competition is local then yes, it matters. If it is eight states away then no, it doesn’t matter. If a local wine gets a gold from a local competition, it means a lot to the buyer and consumer.
No. 7: Gatekeepers are king
What Blake is saying is that the buyer at the retail level has a lot of leverage. Duh! We are the ones that have to sell the wine to the consumer. We know what they want, the wholesale guy does not. I cannot tell you how many times a sales rep has come to me pumped about a wine that they like, only to find out that it is so eclectic that maybe one out of a hundred of my customers might like it. No thanks, I would rather save the space on my floor for wines that will turn. What I hate as a buyer at the retail level is a salesman that continues to offer wines that I have rejected on a regular basis. My advice to them is, learn what I am looking for and offer me those. You will experience less rejection and have more success. I don’t want to be the King, I just want to find good wines that will sell.
No. 8: Very little of the wine’s retail cost goes to the winery.
Sad but true. Hopefully wineries understand this and make the proper adjustments so they can survive, like selling wine directly to the consumer or retail outlet. For those of you that do not know this, if a winery decides to use a distributor, they must lower their cost of goods by 30% to the distributor. The distributor then marks it up 20 to 30 percent to the retailer who in turn marks it up another 30%. This is not exact, but it is close. For small production wineries it does not make sense to go the distributor route.
No. 9: Winery economics are screwed up because many people don’t think of wine as a business.
Blake knows more about this then I do. I know there are a lot of “Flash” wine sites out there selling wine at a ridiculously low price. This is no doubt due to the glut of wines out there that are sitting in warehouses because the economy is in the tank. Wineries need cash, so they are practically giving their wine away to generate money. Yes, this has put many small wineries out of business and although sad, it is a reality.
No. 10: While wine is a business, it is almost as cool as you think it is.
Yes, it is a cool business to be a part of. Hard work? Yes. The one thing I hear a lot of is how nice it most be to taste so many wines. It is nice, but it takes a lot of effort to taste and take meaningful notes so that you can pass the information on to the consumer. It is never a burden, but it does take concerted effort.
I love hanging out with wine makers and vineyard managers. It is very cool to walk the vineyards and listen to wine makers talk about the grapes, eat grapes off the vines and tour the wine making facilities. Each one gives you a different perspective on wine making techniques and vineyard management. Wine is not an exact science, there is a lot of personality in each bottle. And yes, it is very cool to be a wine guy!
I will continue to read Mr. Blake and I am happy that he will be writing columns for Palate Press. However, I felt he missed the mark on some of his points in his first article, no doubt this is due to lack of experience on the retail level. Perhaps it was tongue and cheek, I am not sure. In either case I felt a need to give my two cents worth and hopefully it clarified a few things. Cheers! Stan The Wine Man
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