A Sea of Wine

Sometimes it feels like we're a tiny little ship bobbing along in a growing sea of wines. The water is choppy and the weather does not appear to be letting up any time soon. Nor are the tides in our favor. Distributors are tightening up their inventories, restaurants aren't buying, and retailers are sticking with the tried and true labels that sell. (Thankfully we fit this category.) Differentiation is the name of the game, along with a million other details including 90+ scores, a stellar track record, and the right contacts on all sides of the business.

Just last night I came across yet another new brand that made me choke. Dry Stack. Maybe it's my weakening 40+ year old eyes, but to me, when I quickly scanned the wine list at one of my favorite local restaurants, it looked a lot like Dry Creek. I shuddered in disgust. Where do all these new brands keep coming from???

I have written before about the challenges of running a winery today. It is just not easy folks. Of course the recession is making it doubly hard. But even if you remove the current economy, there's a glut of wine out there with eye catching labels and slick brands oozing out of every corner of the globe. When you factor all of this in, I wonder why it is that anyone in their right mind would consider starting a new winery today. That is why I read with great interest about a book called The Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting and Running a Winery. I first heard about it in the blogosphere, and thought it was a joke. But sure enough, a quick perusal of Amazon revealed there really is such a book.

I've already placed my order. I can't wait to hear what pearls of wisdom author Thomas Pellechia has for those of you who want to join our ranks. I'm planning to read it over the holidaysÂ…just so I can have a good laugh here and there. I'll report back my findings. And who knows, I just might be inspired to write my own title: The Wilma Way: Clawing Your Way to the Top, One Barrel at a Time

| | Comments (6)

6 Comments


russell said:
December 19, 2008 12:46 PM

Funny . . . Of course I instantly went to the Dry Stack Winery web-site and see that they have had to change their name - now Grey Stack. You're not the only one who choked on that name - so did Dry Sack Sherry.

Hadn't heard of Complete Idiots Guide . . . we'll all look forward to your review.

Sauvignon blanc eh? Sure why not!


Kim (aka Wilma) Author Profile Page said:
December 19, 2008 8:55 PM

Talk about karma. I've been stewing about this Dry Stack thing for a while. I figured there's probably little we could do anyway without spending a ton of money to fight it. Now, Dry Sack Sherry solved it for me. Thanks Dry Sack! And, thanks Russell!


hustler Author Profile Page said:
December 20, 2008 8:26 AM

possibly the worst winery names I've heard in my short life.


JohnLopresti Author Profile Page said:
December 21, 2008 5:37 PM

There is a folkloric scene in the classic Cervantes novel about Quijote, in which a sleepy hero somehow enters the store room of the road house where he is lodging, in the dark of late night, and begins to sword fight with the suspended goatskins of new wine, each of which holds about 46 liters [see footnote].

A secret jewel in a neighborhood I learned on a foreign journey was a restaurant which had preserved that age old practice, of ordering its table wine in adult goatskins of 46 liters, called odres. Every few months the restaurant would be out of red table wine altogether, while it waited for the filled skins to arrive from remote mountain vineyards.

Maybe that is something like a dry stack. Tom's book looks intriguing, as well. Everything you ever wanted to know about managing a wine estate.

I am glad the upstart winery changed its name, too, the dispute seemed to create an image of Jesse and Ernesto arguing about chardonnay in an oak foliage adorned 750ml, it fooled me once when I left the eyeglasses in the car, but, who would they call as an expert shopper witness?
----
Here is a link to an ecclectic literature publication with a rendering of the three slain no longer dry stack skins each still with some part of their original 46 L of table wine: http://www.editorialalaire.com/articulo/175/el-vino-y-don-quijote


Kim (aka Wilma) Author Profile Page said:
December 22, 2008 9:04 AM

Hustler, I couldn't agree more!

John, thanks for sharing.


Cheap Wine Author Profile Page said:
December 22, 2008 6:45 PM

Even though the economy is bad wine is still "cool" and people think that anyone can enter the wine biz.

Hate to see short time buzz prop up a bunch of soon to fade vineyards all the while they are collectively taking a small piece of the pie from the steady consistent wine producers we all care about.

Leave a comment

About this Entry

This page contains a single entry by Kim published on December 19, 2008 12:35 PM.

Surviving the Annual Sales Meeting was the previous entry in this blog.

BBBRRRRR........ is the next entry in this blog.

Find recent content on the main index or look in the archives to find all content.

welcome!

This is a blog about what it's really like to be in the wine industry...so sit back, take a sip and enjoy!

about me

our wines

our winery

our events

contact me

privacy statement



favorite posts

A Lifetime in Wine

Top 10 Traits of the Successful Family Winery

The Dreaded Family Meeting

Board Meeting Jitters

Is the Future of the Winery in Danger?

The Case of the Overweight Bottle

Wine and Dementia

Wanted: Talented (Normal) Individual for Family Owned Winery

A Sea of Wine

The Heroes of Our Industry


monthly archives


subscribe


Hopes & Dreams

Owning a Coastal Cottage

Sailing for 6 Months

Getting a 100 Point Score

Favorite Haunts

Coast of Maine

Dry Creek General Store

Dry Creek Kitchen

Healdsburg Bar & Grill

Spoonbar

Sonoma Country Antiques

Baci Cafe & Wine Bar

The Farmhouse

Istanbul's Grand Bazaar

Bad Ass Coffee

Bistro Ralph

Bits of Press

Food & Wine Magazine

The Wine News

Wine Enthusiast

Wine Spectator

Press Democrat

Sunset Magazine

Connoisseurs' Guide

Dan Berger's Vintage Experiences

Cruising World Magazine

Oprah Magazine

The Washington Post

Coastal Living Magazine

Wine & Spirits Magazine

People Magazine

SAG Awards Magazine

Forbes Magazine

Favorite Magazines

Coastal Living

Down East

Sunset

Country Living

Quarterly Review of Wines

Wines & Vines

Wine Spectator

Wine Enthusiast

California Grapevine

Connoisseurs' Guide

Practical Winery & Vineyard

WineReviewOnline

Vineyard & Winery Mgmt

Blog Buddy List

Fermentation

Hip Tastes

Pinot Blogger

All The Best

Julia Flynn Siler

Vinography

Winery Web Site Report

The Pour - Eric Asimov

Dr Vino

Steve Heimoff

Start Up Ladies

Good Wine Under $20

Blind Muscat

The Wineroad Blog

Gabe's View

Wine Peeps

Vici Vino

Cellarmistress' Cellar Talk

Uncork Life

WineVine-Imports Blog

The Wine Witch

SOURMASHED


Honorable Mentions

Fermentation
Wilma Hits The World of Blogs
Most Intriguing New Wine Blogs of 2008
Midwest Wine Guy
Winery of the Month
Julia Flynn Siler
Meritage wines - and a fascinating glimpse into family business
Winery Web Site Report
New Winery Blog: Wilma's Wine World
Start Up Ladies
Insider's View of Family Owned Dry Creek Vineyard
The Glue that Keeps the Whole Thing Going
Atlanta Dish
Blog of the Week
Blind Muscat
The Merits of Meritage
Wineries.net
Boston Wine Expo exhibitors, and the reason why winemakers are so darn happy