Two Wine Brothers

Midwest Winery to Watch - Elmaro Vineyard

2012-01-03T19:51:00.000-05:00

Brad Post

This past weekend my wife, Jill, and I spent the New Years Eve weekend in Lacrosse, WI. While there we made time to visit some friends who recently opened a winery (Elmaro Vineyard) in Trempealeau, nestled beautifully within the Mississippi River valley.

Elmaro Vineyard (taken from website)

The winery, built on the family farmstead, is attractively styled for visitors and creatively designed for wine making. Planning includes use of gravity-fed systems, to gently move the grape juice and must, thoughtfully constructed cold-stabilization rooms to take advantage of naturally cool temperatures, and a top-tier mobile bottling line (useful for bottling at their winery and contracting to other local wineries - read more about it here).

Elmaro Wines - picture from website

The beautifully crafted and undulating tasting room bar encourages visitors to cozy up to the bar. Our hosts were gracious and allowed us ample time to taste and enjoy each of the wines. The Elmaro Rosa, a fruity and fun blush wine containing Concord and Catawba, was wonderfully balanced and it's easy to see why it is incredibly popular. Mine and Jills favorite was the off-dry Vidal Blanc - sumptuously aromatic and deliciously pleasing on the palate!

One of the most satisfying aspects of visiting a winery is getting to know the owners, their wine making philosophy, and to get a read on the passion they have for wine making. It's truly a family operation with an immense sense of pride and professionalism going into each bottle.

Great things are happening at the winery and if you have an opportunity, or live within a few hours, you really need to visit!

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

We Wear Many Hats

2011-11-27T19:34:00.001-05:00

Brad Post:

When most people think of working in a winery they probably conjure images of the winemaker, the tasting room attendant, or someone out in the vineyard tending the vines. And for large winery operations it's probably a valid conceptualization, however, for most of us in the wine business, those of us in a small-to-mid sized winery, we wear many hats.

In 2005 I began playing around with making wine and shortly thereafter enrolled in an enology (wine science) program. By 2008 my interests took me to a local winery where, until June, I volunteered to learn winery operations and gained a great deal of knowledge. With my shiny new wine making credentials in hand and my college teaching baggage behind me, I sought full time employment.

The wine gods must have been smiling on me because, in short order, I found myself up to my neck in a job, whose making was my own. You see in these parts of the country it isn't often a guy can find full time employment in a winery, frankly because most operations are small family-run enterprises, but I was lucky.

Understanding wine from the perspective of a winemaker, and as a vocal advocate for a regional wine industry, was a bonus as I began my new endeavor. As the External Relations Manager, a fancy new title that captures everything from public and social media relations, writing and editing, to my main focus - strengthening and building a wholesale program, I wear many hats.

Some days I visit potential wholesale/retail accounts, other days I deliver wines, many days are filled with scheduling my volunteer wine ambassadors monthly wine tastings. There are days when I work behind the tasting room bar serving guests, while other times I shoot a short video and post on YouTube, but all times I am thrilled to be part of a growing local wine industry.

I'd like to think that I am somehow special in this way but I know I am not. I meet many colleagues who wear the same hats, perhaps in different ways, but we are all trying hard to do it right.

The days become weeks and weeks blend together too quickly. The Summer events are now the snapshots I visit on my Facebook photo album, and our harvest, which began in late August finally reached its zenith last week with the delivered Cabernet, Merlot and Zinfandel. I rode shotgun during the fermentation while the winemaker took a week-long vacation. Another hat. Working in the cellar doing Punch Downs and Pump-Over operations was enjoyable and brought me back to my wine making roots. I've missed that.

Can't help but wonder what's in store as the next year approaches and what style of hat I'll be wearing.

Cheers, my wine friends!
~Brad

NV Freixenet, Cordon Negro, Brut, Spain

2011-11-12T10:30:00.000-05:00

Terry post:

Sparkling wine and Champagne are associated with special occasions. I once read that over 70% of the sparkling wine and Champagne consumed in America was reserved for parties, celebrations and other non-ordinary days. Only around 30% of those wines being consumed during non-special times such as ordinary dining.

Sparklers can be reliable friends for pairing with foods when nothing else seems to fit. Having characteristics which are both bold and subtle I am fearless in pairing sparklers with virtually any food. They go with anything!

It was Winston Churchill who famously consumed vast quantities of French Champagne with oysters during with colleagues during late night political ramblings at his country home, "Chartwell". While I have not had a Churchill Champagne/Oysters night myself: it remains one of my bucket list.

My impressions:

Light-gold in the glass.

Fragrant with flowers and green apple most prominent when first poured. As the wine warms in the glass I noted a more pronounced citrus fragrance.

Wonderful acidity but not to the point of overwhelming. Very food friendly. I have paired this sparkler with omelets, curry dishes and Alfredo topped pasta all to great success.

Long-lasting citrus finish.

I continue to be impressed with this wine. I have enjoyed it for several years now and found it to be a reliable friend. It is a very good wine at a very reasonable price making it a spectacular value in the sparkling wine category.

You don't need a special occasion to drink this sparkler. At the price and quality this is an every day wine which should not be passed by.

Highly recommended.

$9.00ish at the Fort Belvior PX.

~ Terry

2010 BV Coastal Estates, Pinot Grigio, California

2011-10-26T18:11:00.000-04:00

Terry post:

Poetry is a lot like wine. Some like it and most don't and everyone has an opinion about it. And like opinions about wine they are equally valid because if you like it - it is good. Anybody who tries to tell you otherwise has an ax to grind. My opinions about wine and poetry are just that: my opinions.

"Barking" by Jim Harrison.

The moon comes up.

The moon goes down.

This is to inform you

that I didn’t die young.

Age swept past me

but I caught up.

Spring has begun here and each day

brings new birds up from Mexico.

Yesterday I got a call from the outside

world but I said no in thunder.

I was a dog on a short chain

and now there’s no chain.

I like Jim Harrison's poems a lot. They all are rich and crisp and pair well with my favorite foods. They are inexpensive and easily found. They are deeply hued and smell of flowers, citrus, grapes, loss or love.

My Impression:

Pale straw in the glass.

Light bodied with floral nose. A little more acidic than I expect from a Pinot Grigio making it a better candidate for food paring. Short green pepper finish.

Recommended, but only because of it's price. Were this an $10 Pinot Grigio I'd take a pass on it. But being a value shopper I am willing to endure its timidity.

$4.99 at the Fort Belvior PX.

~Terry

2009 Port of Leonardtown Winery, "1634" Chardonnay, Maryland

2011-10-20T13:00:00.002-04:00

Terry post:

Those who know me and those who read my blogging know that I appreciate the challenges and efforts of small wineries who are working to determine which varietal grows where best and how coax the best wine from the grapes. I have particular interest in Maryland, Virginia as well as Iowa. For different reasons all are exciting grape growing areas where the jury is still out on which grapes are best suited to the soil and the climate.

My personal experience has been such that I have enjoyed Chamborcin, Vidal Blanc and Merlot in Virginia and Maryland and Brianna in Iowa. The coming decade will prove an interesting time as growers and consumers negotiate what they like and what they will try.

That brings me around to a Chardonnay grown in Maryland. There is always a challenge for any American winery when they enter into the realm of the varietals which are well-known and for which a certain expectation exists. This makes life challenging for the mid-Atlantic states when they create a produce which is well known and well understood by the wine drinking public but which is not optimized for the soil or the climate.

My impressions:

Pale yellow in the glass - lighter in color than most Chardonnays.

Bright citrus on the nose.

Overwhelming acidity across the the palate to the point where I couldn't taste anything beyond the acidity. Short tart finish.

I tried pairing the wine with creamy and butter-based sauces and found it's razor sharp finish too demanding of even the richest sauce Alfredo. Easily the most acidic tasting Chardonnay I have ever sampled.

I wished that I liked it more. I have drank three bottle and found that it did not vary in it's characteristics.

The Port of Leonardtown Winery is taking a big risk in growing Chardonnay in Maryland. I wish them every success. This offering is not up to their usual high standards of quality.

Not recommended.

$16ish at the winery.

~ Terry

2009 Port of Leonardtown Winery, Captain's Table, Dry Red Table Wine, Maryland

2011-10-11T17:14:00.000-04:00

Terry post:

Note: This is my second review of this wine. The first review can be found here.

If it isn't already obvious, I am a fan of this Maryland brand as they dig and claw to create something new and wonderful as the state bureaucracy seems bent on destroying indigenous wine.

My Impressions:

Medium red in the glass. A middleweight fighting up one weight class against bigger bolder reds.

Spicebox on the nose with cherries and dark fruit across the palate. Interesting blend but lacking the punch I'd hoped for.

Short herbal finish.

The label is mute as to its constituent wines. My guess is that it is primarily Merlot and Chambourcin, with a low tannic red (Cab Franc, maybe) and maybe an off-dry white to fill in the cracks and round off the edges. Just guessing. But, I'd be surprised if Merlot and Chambourcin were not the primary wines in the blend.

I paired it last evening with pasta with marinara sauce, steamed artichokes and garlic bread. Despite it middleweight status it held up very well against the garlic-infused marinara sauce.

Recommended.

~ Terry

2010 Barton & Guestier, Vouvray, France

2011-10-10T17:10:00.000-04:00

Terry post:

I have very little experience with Chenin Blanc wines having been turned off early by the crap which came out of California in the late 1970s. Having endured sweet Chenin Blancs from the likes of Ernest and Julio Gallo did, for a very long time, turn me off completely from the varietal.

Well. It is the 21st Century. Maybe it is time for me to give another Chenin Blanc a try.

My impression:

Very pale in the glass.

Off dry. Not razor sharp and crisp like a Chardonnay nor syrupy like so many of the U.S. Chenin Blancs.

A nimble combination of understated acidity balanced with a light floral and melon nose.

Slightly drying in the herbal finish.

I enjoyed this wine with seared sea scallops and an apple compote. They worked very well together.

Recommended.

$8.99 at the Fort Belvior PX.

~ Terry

What Eagle Outfitters can Teach the Wine Industry about Brand Ambassadors

2011-10-10T16:58:00.005-04:00

Terry post:

Much as been written about the persuading customers to become brand ambassadors for a given companies product line.

A few years ago the clothing brand Quicksilver featured an outrageous video of surfers tossing dynamite into a river and then surfing the waves downstream. While innovative and an instant viral video, it did little to cause individual consumers to more closely identify with the product. It was sensational but did not customers to align with the brand.

Gatoraide a manufacturer of sports drinks, "...tweets good luck messages to star athletes..." and "...Girls Intelligence Agency...gives them free products...(to) organize a slumber party with their friends to try them out..." (Source: The Economist).

My favorite example of brand ambassadorship has to do with Eagle Outfitters on New York's Time Square where they employ a huge multi-story LED display to flash pictures of anyone who buys their products. This instant, albeit brief, celebrity enables the buyers to get pictures of themselves on the huge screen and then to share the images with their friends.

The Wine Industry has not been all that innovative with creating unique examples of brand identity. If you are aware of unique techniques being used in the Wine Industry to more closely align vintners with the buying public: I'd love to hear about it.

~ Terry

Source: "Hidden Persuaders II", The Economist, , September 24, 2011, p. 80.

2009 Penfolds, Koonuga Hill, Shiraz Cabernet

2011-10-03T18:58:00.004-04:00

Terry post:

When ever I think of Australian wines I have two memories which come immediately to mind.

The first memory is that of being Officer of the Deck on the USS ENGLAND (CG-22) during a mid-watch in the South Pacific Ocean as we steamed South. It was a calm, cloudless and moonless evening as we sliced quietly through the dark waters en route to Australia. I recall standing alone on the starboard bridge wing and looking up into the universe above me. The ocean was pitch with only the slightest phosphorescence as the bow pierced the occasional wave. The sky was the clearest I have ever seen and the millions of stars which shone upon the sky seemed close enough to touch. My place as a human being on a ship in the ocean seemed so utterly small and meaningless that I laughed out loud. It was humbling and an experience that I hold close in my heart twenty-six years after the event.

My second memory was tasting red wines from South Australia. They were not very good.

Thankfully, in the nearly thirty years since my one, and only trip, to Australia things have improved in the Australian red wine scene.

My impressions:

Big nose on this one. Eucalyptus, dark fruit and cherries dominate.

A middle-weight on the palate with dark fruit quickly displaced by thin tannins and a brief finish. There isn't really anything wrong with the wine, but it isn't the sort of shiraz-blend powerhouse which I have recently come to expect from Australia.

That said: I like it. I paired it with a dinner of leftover Beef Bourguignon, pecans, dates and cheese. It stood up very well with the hearty beef offering.

All-in-all a great value providing a full, dry red wine experience at a bargain basement price. It is not full-bodied monster like some of the Yalumba shiraz blends, but at $8 to $10 at retail you'd be hard pressed to find a better value.

Recommended

$7.99 at the Fort Belvior PX.

~ Terry

What Steve Jobs has to tell the Wine Industry about Quality

2011-05-24T09:33:00.005-04:00

Terry post:

It would have been five, or so, years ago when a winery rep showed up at the door at Restaurant 213. She was rep'ing a mid-sized winery located in the beautiful rolling hills West of Baltimore and brought along twelve different wines.

We tasted them all and chose not to add any to our wine list as none were sufficiently interesting and they were pricey given the quality of the product.

I was thinking about this wine rep's visit this past weekend as I visited my brother in Iowa. He'll shortly be taking on rep duties for a Iowa winery and I was sharing my thoughts on the matter.

Forbes magazine recently carried a short article regarding a telephone conversation between Steve Jobs (Apple CEO) and Mark Parker (Nike CEO) in 2006 regarding quality. According to the article, Mr. Jobs recommendation to Mr. Parker was quite succinct: "...you also make a lot of crap. Just get rid of the crappy stuff and focus on the good stuff".

It sounds like common sense advice: do what you do well and get rid of the stuff you don't do well. But, how many of us would be willing to discard a large portion of our product line to focus on a few select items.

As a good comparison take a look at the web site for Apple and then Nokia and search for their phones. Both Apple and Nokia sell smart phones but it is evident that Apple follows Mr. Jobs advice to focus on the good stuff. The Nokia site is complicated and once you get to the telephone section you'll note that there are twenty-two phones to choose from. Apple has one phone, their best product, the iPhone 4.

Now how does this apply to the wine business? In my wine tastings it is far too common to see ten, twelve or even more wines being produced at a single winery: this is the equivalent of Nokia providing twenty-two cell phones.

It takes guts to reduce the size of any business portfolio be it consumer electronics or wine. When Mr. Jobs returned to Apple, the company had more than 300 different products. Today you could place the entire Apple product line on a small dining room table.

Apple's elimination of low margin products allowed the company to focus on their core competency of innovation and design.

It is inconceivable that small capitalized wineries have the time, expertise and experience to field a wide portfolio of offerings and that over-reach results in underperformance. The Apple model of concentrating on a small portfolio, executed well seems to provide the best example for the small winery.

Perhaps, just perhaps, small wineries could benefit from Mr. Jobs advice and, "Just get rid of the crappy stuff and focus on the good stuff".

~ Terry

Source: "Steve Jobs: Stop Making the Crappy Stuff", Forbes Magazine, May 16 2011

What the Dresden Codex has to Tell us About Wine Rating

2011-04-09T11:31:00.004-04:00

Terry post:

How about a little experiment?

I'd like you to begin counting. Speak the numbers to yourself or out loud: it doesn't matter. Count out five or six numbers which are consecutive. Now ask yourself, "why did I begin where I began"?

If you are like the overwhelming majority of people you'll have begun counting with the number one and proceeded through two, three, four, five and six. You'll have started at the beginning and worked outward from there. But did you really begin at the beginning? What about zero? Why did you begin at one and not at zero?

One of the great mathematical breakthroughs was developing the concept of zero as a value. In the earliest times the value of zero was represented by the absence of a value in a chain of values. It took time, a lot of time, for the concept of a zero value to have taken hold.

The Aztec's and Greeks appear to have both come upon the concept of zero as a numerical value sometime between 32 B.C. and 150 A.D. with the New World and Old World both laying claim to the honor.

Reading through Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast and other wine rating publications I am reminded of the value of zero.

When reading these magazines I see page after page of 80s and 90s with a scant few 70s. What happened to the 10s, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s? Are these wine-rating values the equivalent of zero in the pre-Columbian ages?

If Wine Spectator and others rate limit their ratings to a 30 point band between 70 and 100, then why don't they just do so? What is the point of having a 100 point scale where no one scores below 70?

When I was in high school in Greenville, Michigan I had a math teacher who one day explained how the grading system worked. Simply by showing up and taking the test you'd score 50 points. The remaining 50 points were earned by working the problem. So the test was really a 50 point test and not a 100 point test. Never really understood why that was.

So, maybe wine ratings are more akin to taking a high school math test were everyone is given 50 points just for showing up.

~ Terry

I Drink Local Wine

2011-03-28T21:21:00.000-04:00

Brad Post:

As some of you may have gathered The Two Wine Brothers (Terry & Brad Johnson) are seriously geeky about wine. I've been known to go to extremes in my (Brad) attempt to immerse myself in wine - literally during the harvest and crush.

So it isn't too much of a surprise to learn that I am a vocal advocate and promoter of local wines.

During the past year I have launched a wine industry e-zine, called Winedustry: wine news for the "other" grapes. Focused on new wine regions and grapes, the ones you may have never heard about, Winedustry is intended for the nontraditional, non-vinifera wine community. Winedustry readership continues to grow each month, because in large part of our volunteer contributors (writers) and state field editors.

During the past few years I've taken my wine education more seriously through formal education. During this time I've expanded my knowledge of my personal wine making, then as of the past few years working at a commercial winery, and throughout collaborating with innovative wine industry folks.

One of those collaborations is now blossoming into a new project: Midwest Wine Review. Modeled in part by the successful regional wine competitions and from mainstream wine magazines, Midwest Wine Review will bring together skilled, knowledgeable and professional wine evaluators. The goal is to replicate, in the best way possible, the wine scoring systems of major magazines, but for new wine regions.

In the planning stage, Midwest Wine Review will conduct quarterly (or as needed) sensory descriptive analysis sessions and rate wines using an updated 100 point scoring system. This scoring system is a familiar metric for many wine consumers. The rating scores and accompanying brief description will be available to participating wineries. (See Midwest Wine Review story describing process).

Not long ago, I was communicating with my Winedustry Maryland Field Editor ((find her on Twitter as @ourgirl) or at her blog (http://thevineyardwife.com/)) about badges for Winedustry. She possesses extraordinary graphic artist skills and I asked her to design an image, a badge, to support local wine consumption and purchases. She came up with this image (see above). She elaborates on the creative process of making "I Drink Local Wine" badge - please READ STORY!

Nearly immediately, after posting a copy of this image (above) on Facebook, it went viral! Support for local wines is huge and this image has been shared more than 100 times in the first day! (Feel free to copy and use on your blog, facebook status update, or website).

New wine regions, places like Iowa, Missouri (which has a very long wine making history), Virginia, Michigan, Maryland - just to name a few - are making amazingly good wines. In many instances, you won't find a traditional varietal, and that's fine. Good is good...and Great is Great! Give new wine regions a chance and allow your own palate to be the judge.

Let us know what you find!

Cheers,
Brad

2008 Tait Wines, Shiraz, "The Ball Buster", Barossa Valley, Australia

2011-03-26T19:20:00.005-04:00

Terry post:

The Barossa Valley continues to provide to provide superb examples of what the Shiraz grape can render when the vintner is not afraid to enhance the grape with the roundness of the Merlot and the intensity of the Cabernet Sauvignon.

Such is the case with the Tait Shiraz blend, the aptly named, "The Ball Buster". The Tait Shiraz was one of a number of wines which I recently enjoyed at the Blue Wind Gourmet during an very inexpensive $6.00 tasting of 12, or so, wines.

My impressions: Very dark garnet in the glass. Dark berries, cherries, spice-box and cocoa prominently on the nose. Moderately acidic: balanced nicely with the immense fruit serving. Mildly tannic leading to a huge, warm, lingering finish which goes on forever.

It is a superb wine. It is full bodied and was a delightful dining companion with grilled steak. If you can find a bottle of the 15,000 cases produced you'd do well to buy it.

Highly recommended.

77% Shiraz, 12% Merlot and 11% Cabernet Sauvignon.

$15.99 at the Blue Wind Gourmet.

~ Terry

Power of Words

2011-03-20T19:08:00.003-04:00

Terry post:

This past weekend my wife I and visited another Maryland winery and purchased several more bottles. It was an interesting visit for a number of reasons: beautiful hillside location, sunny day, mild temperature, good wine and the words carefully selected by the woman hosting the tasting.

The woman presented each bottle in a practiced manner first pointing out the label, providing the source of the grapes and then a description of the varietal characteristics. It was the description of the varietal characteristics which I found most telling.

I didn't take notes at the time, and as I drove away I wished that I had. Working from memory, her description of their Chardonnay was something like this: "...it is a beautiful straw color...you'll taste pronounced fruit in this year's vintage with substantial hints of apple and lemon...it is a medium bodied wine and you'll notice the aggressive acidity at the finish..."

It was like this with each wine: as though she'd prepared a detailed listing of the grapes varietal characteristics and recited them for each potential wine buyer.

Of course, as the tasters sipped the wines she'd nod knowingly and re-affirm the characteristics, "Taste the fruit?", as we worked our collective way thorough the pour. Her actions reflected her earlier description and made the tasters co-conspirators in her vineyard propaganda.

When I disagreed with her description of their Shiraz offering as, "...huge and powerful..." she dismissed my comment with the wave of her hand.

The power of recently heard words is significant and their carefully crafted use in the tasting room was impressive to behold. I have never been so smitten during a wine tasting.

Bottom line: I am not certain that I made the purchases because I liked the wine or because I liked the words that she used to describe the wine. Time will tell.

~ Terry

2008 Whale River, Pinot Noir, Wairarapa, New Zealand

2011-03-13T17:40:00.008-04:00

Terry post:

It has been several weeks since my wife and I got away for a short weekend vacation to Southern Maryland. The two highlights of the overnight trip were a visit to the Port of Leonardtown Winery and a $6 wine tasting at Blue Wind Gourmet.

Blue Wind Gourmet was a wonderful surprise as they were featuring a wine tasting of ten or eleven selections - I stopped counting after the third Chardonnay. Among the wines were some offerings which I'd never tasted before including the Whale River, Pinot Noir.

I tried "googling" up some information about Whale River and could not find a single hit: never a good sign. I am left to assume that Whale River is a brand without a vineyard. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. The French have a tradition of negociants bundling wine from anonymous vineyards and creating wonderful products. I'd just appreciate it, were this the case, with Whale River that the negociant be up front with that fact. Anyway, on to the wine...

My impressions: Dark cherry in color, not as deeply hued as most Pinot Noir's I have sampled. Medium body. Silky. Muted berries first on the nose with berries and a slight vegetal note mid-palate. Prominent acidity and a hint of tannic astringency at the brief cherry finish.

A good - but not great - Pinot Noir such as the Morgan "Double L", Pinot Noir - my current gold standard for the varietal.

Recommended.

$13.00 at Blue Wind Gourmet, Lexington Park, MD - a good value.

~ Terry

Hobby Gone Wild!!

2011-03-13T13:56:00.000-04:00

Brad Post:

When I lived in Moscow, Idaho about a decade ago I had a neighbor, Heidi, who brewed her own beer, root beer, and made fruit wine from wild plums. Me, immersed in the quagmire of a PhD program, thought to myself “wouldn’t that be wonderful to do”? I even purchased a how-to book from the local bookstore and promptly placed it on my bookshelf, where it remained as I sank deeper into an academic black hole.

Fall 2005 arrived with me and my family settling in to our new home in Iowa. And on a late autumn day, my wife, left for a weekend science educators conference somewhere in western Iowa. Not knowing anyone in my new, little town, I picked up and dusted off that same book which five years ago intrigued me (and to be honest, kind of intimated me). It wasn’t necessarily a page-turner, but I couldn’t stop reading – I was hooked!

Since then, I’ve immersed myself in wine: wine making, wine growing, wine history, wine regions, oh, and let’s not forget wine tasting and drinking!

Shortly after my epiphany, or whatever you want to call it, I began making wine and not long after that I found others with similar interests.

2005 – Read home wine making book
2006 – Began making wine at home. First batch explodes in bottle.
2007 – With four others, established the Eastern Iowa Wine Club, an amateur winemakers group. Our group has grown to more than 100 followers and about 25 regular participants.
2007 – Started “Two Wine Brothers” as a way to stay connected with my brother, Terry.
2008 – Began taking wine science classes at Des Moines Area Community College. Also began volunteering at Fireside Winery. Fantasized about owning a winery.
2009 – Conducted market research for Iowa wine trail under Johnson Research Studio.
2009 – Started working part-time at Fireside helping out as winemaker assistant.
2010 – Launched Winedustry: wine news for the “other” grapes -- An online wine industry news, information and collaboration website for makers and growers living in nontraditional areas.
2011 – Launched Midwest Wine Review: An online wine review website for Midwestern wines.
2011 – Hired by Fireside Winery to serve as their External Relations guy. Will be working to maintain, build and expand wholesale program, and manage and grow public relations and social media.

What began as a hobby, grew into a passion, and continues to evolve deeper into the wine industry. I am thrilled and excited to be a part of this booming Midwestern wine industry and look forward to seeing how the next few years unfolds.

Cheers!
Brad

2009 Mollydooker, "The Boxer", Shiraz, Australia

2011-03-06T11:25:00.010-05:00

Terry post:

It was in 2004 that one of our wine reps came through the door with an odd-sounding Shiraz offering from Australia: Mollydooker. I'd never heard of the brand and it was one of maybe nine wines I sampled that day.

Now almost seven years later I remember the tasting and my notes from that meeting: "...huge...powerful...amazing...dark purple - almost black in the glass...dark berries...tar(?)..."

We carried the wine for a year and then we took it off the list. The problem was that Mollydooker is a small brand and it was nearly impossible to keep it in stock. And in the restaurant business, it is better to remove it from the wine list completely than to disappoint customers who see it and want to buy it.

It is with that background that I opened a bottle of the 2009 Mollydooker Boxer this rainy afternoon on the porch, sat back and enjoyed.

My impressions: Very dark garnet in the glass. Dark berries and cocoa on the nose. Mildly acidic with noticeable tannins at the finish.

The wine is a powerhouse of flavors with dark berries and mild acidity being the most prominent attributes. It is a glass-staining giant deserving your time and attention.

Superb.

Highly recommended.

$24.99 at Blue Wind Gourmet in Lexington Park, MD.

2009 Port of Leonardtown Winery, Captain's Table, Maryland Dry Red Wine

2011-02-25T15:26:00.006-05:00

Terry Post:

Last weekend my wife and I got away for a short weekend away from the kids and settled in for quick two-day vacation in Lexington Park, Maryland.

Lexington Park has the advantage of being located near a Navy Air Base (where you can hear the sound of freedom) and Port of Leonardtown Winery.

While the F-18s were quiet over the weekend, we did get over to Leonardtown to sample some of their recent offerings.

My Impressions: Medium red in the glass with a spiciness on the nose which I have come to associate with East Coast Merlots. Thin tannins at the end with a brief finish.

The bottle does not disclose the varietal components but, I think there is a strong Merlot base with touches of Cab Franc (noticeable at the finish) and Chamborchin (green vegetable flavor).

We paired the Captain's Table with a hearty pot roast and it stood up admirably to the intense beef flavors. It is a food-friendly wine.

Recommended.

Available at the winery.

Wine Comparisons: Building Unrealistic Expectations or Making Unfamiliar, Familiar

2010-12-14T12:20:00.001-05:00

Brad Post:

Not long ago I received a phone call from a public radio news reporter who was in the process of writing a story about an up-and-coming new red wine grape cultivar (Marquette) gaining in popularity. Echoing an earlier comment, he referred to this relatively new wine grape as the “Cabernet Sauvignon of the Midwest” which struck me as a bit of an exaggeration, to say the least.

Great hype for a new wine grape but is it a realistic comparison?

As new wine regions continue to build it is important for us to pause to consider the consequences of short-term marketing gains over long-term brand success. For this example, is it in the best long-term interest of a wine region to compare Marquette to Cabernet Sauvignon? More to the point, is it a realistic comparison? And if so, in what ways are Marquette and Cabernet Sauvignon similar?

Hyperbole aside, is the comparison constructive to building a new wine region? Granted many wine consumers are probably familiar with Cabernet and it may be a way to bring them in to our wineries as a way of making our local wines seem more familiar. But what about knowledgeable wine fans – they will immediately notice that our Marquette is not very much like Cabernet Sauvignon and may get turned-off in the process.

Frankly, a more apt comparison, if a comparison is warranted may be with the bracing, young wines of Italy. Food friendly, acidic, and delicious!

Mental Short-Cuts

In our haste to build a new wine culture it is tempting to compare the unfamiliar to the familiar. I’m guilty of that myself. In a busy tasting room with many bellies to the bar, I’ve relied on mental short cuts to help my customers relate to our unfamiliar wines. “If you like Muscato, you’ll like this one…If you like Pinot Grigio, you’ll like that one…and if you like Cabernet you’ll like this one”.

The ‘This is Like That’ approach to wine tasting is efficient, in terms of expediency, but does it help us build brand identity for wine grapes like LaCrescent, Norton, or Seyval if we keep comparing them to other, traditional vinifera?

Perhaps we have yet to fully develop the language to describe our wines; common sensory descriptors that allow us to share with our customers our excitement for the wines we make! This is prime real estate for our wine science, wine service programs and state wine industry associations.

Growing Pains

The problem with building high expectations comes with fulfillment. In other words, if we fall short in our delivery, then the disappointment is felt more potently than if we managed expectations more modestly. That’s not to say that our wines are not great – they are! It is a matter of properly framing and shaping expectations so our customers understand our wines are distinct and to help them appreciate the uniqueness.

Not lost on me is the comparison of the potential prominence of regional wine grapes. California is awash in Cabernet Sauvignon and maybe, one day, the Midwest landscape will be dotted with Marquette.

The “This is Like That” approach, a heuristic, does provide a short-cut way of introducing our wines to tasting room visitors. It is particularly helpful during busy periods but probably undercuts the notion of building brand identity. In the long-term, I’d like to see us move away from the familiar comparisons to a more cultivar/varietal-centric approach of new wine introductions.

The process of building a lexicon of common sensory descriptors for our local wines, shared among wineries, and conveyed through a thoughtful marketing program and disseminated widely should, in the long-term, bring about the kind of brand recognition we seek when comparing our wines to traditional vinifera.

We look to industry leaders: wine science programs, state wine/grape associations, tasting room trainers, and affiliated wine marketing advocates to lead the way.

Add your voice to the discussion on the Winedustry Forum: http://www.winedustry.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=47&t=70

Food, Wine and Food Again...

2010-12-07T17:53:00.004-05:00

Terry post:

To me it is axiomatic that wine is best when paired with food. Over my lifetime the moments of dining pleasure which are closest to my heart are those which feature fine food combined with fine wine.

At Citronelle in Washington DC, I was brought to tears by a Morel bisque with seared Foie Gras served with a Sauterne.

At Restaurant 213 in Fruitland MD it was white asparagus topped with a soft poached egg and sauce béchamel served with a French Montrechet.

And, in Paris so many years ago in a sidewalk bistro it was fresh local sausage, hard cheese, warm bread and a very ordinary red from Burgundy.

In these cases, and many more like them, there was an almost mystical combination of food and wine which reinforced the other creating a product far greater than the sum of the individual parts.

How is this?

Great food and great wine are often enjoyed in the company of friends which provides an additional dimension to the experience beyond the taste buds, beyond the nose and deeply and directly to the heart. There is a primal need to share food among friends and family. Why else are our primary celebrations enjoyed around the dinner table? Neither Christmas nor Thanksgiving would be so deeply ingrained in us were not the sharing of food, and wine, an integral part of the ritual.

The family ritual regarding food may explain why there are so many cookbooks to be found in the bookstore and the blossoming of cooking show on television. But like so much of popular culture, both the books and television shows miss the mark entirely: they are focused on the visible - the production of food and that is precisely where the ritual IS NOT.

The ritual of sharing is about the "why". It is about, "why we cook", "why we share" and, "why we love".

Cook books and television shows may show us how to cook but the utterly fail to explain why we cook.

It seems simple: we cook because we love our friends and our family. And wine. Well, wine just makes it a little more special.

~ Terry

What Keith Richards and Mick Jagger Have to Tell the Wine Industry About Endurance

2010-12-04T17:27:00.008-05:00

Terry Post:

Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have worked together for almost half a century composing and playing music. Theirs has been a creative collaboration of enduring longevity in an industry where disagreements have dissolved many musical groups during their extended tenure.

Small wineries are not that dissimilar to Messrs Jagger and Richards in that essential element of the enterprise is creativity. Creating music and creating wine takes imagination and a lot of work.

Many small wineries are formed by a small groups of individuals who bring different qualities to the business such as winemaking and business: good teams bring complementary skills.

Mr. Jagger and Mr. Richards bring differing qualities to their creative relationship and are greater than the sum of the parts. Each has had an on-again, off-again solo career. What do you remember most - their solo efforts or their combined efforts in the Rolling Stones?

They also have a lot in common having known each other since they were boys - at aged 66 and 67 they have a 50+ year relationship. And, perhaps most importantly, they are good friends.

Ownership teams of wineries should ask themselves if they have the same sort of chemistry, background, and relationship as Jagger and Richards. Are they friends? Do they have a lot in common? Do they have a long relationship?

What then can a small winery do to engineer its management team to ensure success for the long run? Here are my suggestions:

#1: Founding members should all have "skin in the game". That is, they should all have a financial stake in the success of the business side of the enterprise. This usually means that multiple individuals put cash into the business.

#2: Founding members should bring complementary skills to the enterprise. You don't need four winemakers - you need one. There should be a sufficiently wide-array of technical and management skills on the team.

#3: Founding members should already have a long term relationship. I don't mean to imply anything intimate. They should already know one another and should have a long, and I mean LONG, relationship.

Bottom line: Long term success in the music industry or wine industry requires that the senior management team have common goals and complementary skills. If yours does not - it might be time to reform that team with the goal of sustained performance.

~ Terry

Photo credit: uncredited liner art from the 1992 Keith Richards solo album, "Main Offender"

What New Coke Has to Tell Wineries About the Wine Tasting Process

2010-11-27T19:42:00.006-05:00

Terry post:

It was 1985 when the Coca-Cola Company introduced a new formulation of Coke. The re-formulation was an instant failure with the public. In a matter of only a couple months the Coca-Cola Company back-tracked and re-introduced the old Coke formulation as Coke Classic while maintaining the New Coke formula. The two products existed side by side until 1992 when the New Coke was dropped from the American line-up leaving Coke Classic - the old formulation - as their primary product.

How did the Coca-Cola Company make such a huge miscalculation? How is it that they were willing to sacrifice so much brand equity switching from a reliable flavor to a new, and allegedly improved, flavor? The answer: the data told them to do so.

In 1945 the Coca-Cola brand owned 60% of the domestic soft drink market. By the beginning of the early 1980s that huge margin had shrunk to a much smaller 25%. Management saw that market shrinkage as a problem - a big problem.

Management began a review of internal processes, procedures and products. The result of that review was a decision to tweak the formulation of Coca-Cola to something less acidic and sweeter, favored by younger consumers, than the long standing formulation. One of the critical pieces of information used by decision makers was the results for thousands of "sip tests" - tests which broke strongly in favor of the new formula.

There was, it seemed, a systemic fault with the testing methodology. Consumers don't buy cola to drink it a sip at a time. What tastes good in a very small sample may grow tiresome or unappealing when consumed in larger quantities. In short, the test methodology did not meet a critical criterion of testing: representing the actual user's environment. People drink cola by the can - not the 1 ounce sip. Despite strong support for the "New Coke" in the sip tests it bombed when consumed by the can.

A few weeks ago I visited several wineries while visiting my brother in Iowa and in each location I was presented with a similar opportunity to taste the wines: a cheerful wine rep pouring small, 1 - 2 ounce, samples of wine one after another while standing at a counter.

So here is something to ponder: Do wineries provide a realistic taste testing opportunities for buyers, or are they creating their own "New Coke" problems?

The Coca-Cola Company failed by relying too heavily on the results of sip-tests which were not representative of how its customers used their products.

The overwhelming majority of wine sold in the U.S. is consumed with a meal.

Wine sampling should be more closely aligned with how wine is consumed so that the customer gets a more realistic representation of the product. This is more important for places like Iowa where the local wine varietals are not known or understood. How many times have you been asked what to serve with Foch?

I could easily imagine a winery providing small, 1 ounce, serving of a food (pasta, slivers of meat, cheese, vegetables, etc) which pairs well with the wine being sampled.

Yes, it would cost more. Yes, it would take more time. Yes, it would be more representative of how the wine will be consumed at home. Yes, it would lead to more satisfied customers.

Bottom line: Absent silly local laws against this common sense approach wineries should make their sampling process more representative of how it is consumed at home. Sample wine with food.

~ Terry

Seven Springs Vineyards, 2010 Sauvignon Blanc

2010-11-06T12:11:00.002-04:00

Brad Post:

I live in a small town in Iowa. Simply and practically designed, my home was built in the mid-1800’s in what might be considered the old farmstead style, where utility trumped sophistication. The kitchen area, built as an afterthought, an addition on the south side of the home sits just beyond my dining room where my wife, Jill and two friends and I sat a few evenings ago.

Nine months ago I couldn’t have imagined this night. Nine months ago, February 15^th to be exact, an innocuous note arrived in my LinkedIn in-box from Tim Pearson. Earlier I had asked to connect with Tim on LinkedIn, a professional networking website. His friendly tone and welcoming approach, an asset to any entrepreneur, didn’t feel forced or phony.

Tim and Vaughan Pearson

In some places in the wine world, where egos soar, here a man from England with a passion for wine and a newly developing winery and vineyard in South Africa took the time to make a connection with a wine geek in Iowa, USA.

While his winery was being built I got to know him better though Twitter chats, Facebook conversations, and during a Skype call. Some people just have a special ability to bring people in and to lift them up. Although promoting his new business, Tim’s genuine approach and zest for the South African wine industry always struck me as sincere. So much so we (The Two Wine Brothers) asked him to be our first online interview back in April.

Two Part Interview – Links:

Interview #1

Interview #2

A couple months ago, before Tim’s winemaker Riana left for Oregon to learn the Pinot Noir trade, he let me know he was planning to send Two Wine Brothers a couple bottles of his first release of Sauvignon Blanc. We were to be some of the first wine writers to have an early taste of his new wines.

Early this week I received the shipment of two bottles of Sauvignon Blanc from 7Springs Vineyards. And on Thursday we invited our two friends to share this bottle while I critically tasted for this article. In addition, I bought a different bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from California to taste, as contrast, after our initial session.

Wine Geek Disclaimer: We tasted the wines in the open, not blind, but I did apply my WineSmarts™ - Wine Descriptive Sensory Analysis worksheet to assess the wines using the four step process: Step 1: Visual analysis, Step 2: Aromatic analysis, Step 3: Palate analysis, and Step 4: Conclusions.

After months of anticipation the four of us gathered around our farmhouse dining room table, covered with a white cloth, and began our tasting. Here are my notes:

Seven Springs Vineyards, 2010 Sauvignon Blanc, South Africa.

The new Sauvignon Blanc was packaged in an attractive dark emerald Burgundy bottle with punted base and screw top. The cream colored label with gold 7Springs brand and easy to read text evokes a somewhat sophisticated impression.

After traveling half a world, resting for a few days, the wine was brilliantly clear, light straw colored and possessed an incredibly sumptuous viscosity. Glass raised, wine swirled, and I took my first whiff. BIG, HUGE bell pepper aromatics! YUM! Underneath and more subtle are notes of grass and citrus. INVITING.

A restrained fruity character of apple and pear and a suggestion of sweetness captured my attention. The olfactory combination of bell pepper and tree fruit was a winner. The flavor was very good but the overall sensory experience was amazing. Approaching 14% alcohol, this wine was nicely balanced, a pleasure to drink, and has a NEVER ENDING FINISH. The 2010 Seven Springs Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc is BIG, ROUND, and LINGERS in a long, sexy delicious finish.

Criticism: One major criticism leveled against the Seven Springs SB by one of the tasters, and subsequently agreed by the rest of us, was the “biggest disappointment [with this wine] is that we won’t be able to have it again” – because they are not yet shipping to the USA.

Post Tasting Comments: We tasted the Seven Springs Vineyards 2010 Sauvignon Blanc against a leading California SB. The taste comparison really illustrated the differences viniculture and viticulture plays in the expression of wine. The South African, Seven Springs Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc was the overwhelming favorite!

NV Harthill Farms Cabernet Sauvignon, California

2010-10-17T15:55:00.008-04:00

Terry post:

Bottom Feeder Series

This begins my review of wines which are priced at $5.00, or less. These are the bottom shelf dwellers or found in discount bins everywhere: they are the wines which we generally avoid. For the next few weeks I'll subject myself to sampling these low-cost wines. So here goes.

There is something called the "halo effect". Wikipedia describes the effect thus, "The halo effect is a cognitive bias whereby the perception of one trait (i.e. a characteristic of a person or object) is influenced by the perception of another trait (or several traits) of that person or object. An example would be judging a good-looking person as more intelligent."

I point out the "halo effect" as I sampled this Whole Foods wine one Saturday evening as I watched my Auburn Tigers dis-assemble the Arkansas Razorbacks.

My impression: Light red in the glass - quite pale for a Cabernet Sauvignon. Cherries on the nose when sloshed in the glass but nothing else. No acidity. No tannins. The wine is one-dimensional offering with cherries standing alone without any backbone. Unappealing. Not recommended.

Okay. "Halo Effect" wasn't an issue with this low-priced offering from Whole Foods, but I'll be mindful of the issue should I sample more wine during the remainder of the college football season.

$4.99 at Whole Foods, Reston Virginia

~ Terry post

Wine Bonding

2010-10-14T14:42:00.002-04:00

This past weekend my brother, Terry, visited Iowa to see mom, who for the past year has lived near us in Vinton, and to spend some quality time wine-bonding with me.

As we were preparing a taco feast for a house full of my sons friends on Friday night I opened a bottle of Traminette I made in 2009. Some may know Traminette as the signature white wine grape of Indiana. Traminette, like its Gewürztraminer cousin, is spicy and floral and delicious and grows well in parts of the Midwest. This particular Traminette is a lightly sweetened (about 1% residual sugar) and was cool fermented in order to bring out its floral and tropical fruit qualities. We bonded over two bottles.

Crystal blue skies, and near record warmth, welcomed us on Saturday and after removing my Wrangler soft top we headed off on a winery road trip. We planned to make four stops: Sutliff Cider, who makes some of the very best hard ciders I’ve ever had, ultimately was scratched from our list because of time constraints. So our first stop was Cedar Ridge Winery and Distillery, located between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

Not long ago Cedar Ridge Winery and Distillery was located in downtown Cedar Rapids but because of the devastating floods of 2008, they moved their operations to their nicely situated vineyard location. From the highway Cedar Ridge is a beautiful building surrounded by vines and situated atop a hill. Once inside we were greeted by the tasting room manager, who was multi-tasking tastings for a full tasting room.

The tasting room was nicely adorned and we were treated to a full tasting, including a few sips of three of their spirits: bourbon, brandy, and a lamponcello. The red wines were a combination of California sourced and locally grown grapes. The St. Croix was one of my favorites – a challenging grape to make into good wine. Their locally grown white wines were all pretty good. My favorite was probably the Brianna, although it was a little sweet for my taste, but a nice wine.

Our second stop was going to be Ackerman Winery in the Amana Colonies but the town was so busy on this beautiful day that we couldn’t find a parking spot. Generally, when people think of Iowa wine they think of Amana wines – meaning, sugary fruit wines. Much has changed throughout the state but in Amana there are still fruit wines. And if you want to taste spectacular fruit wines, wines whose essence captures the fruit it was conceived from, then you need to taste Ackerman wines. The Raspberry wine is a perfect example of how to make fruit wine and was a 2010 Gold Medal winner at the Iowa State Fair.

The final stop of the day was at Fireside Winery. (Disclaimer: I am the winemaker assistant at Fireside Winery). I wanted to take my brother to the winery where I work and give him a thorough tasting and a tour. We ended up sitting on the back porch area with a bottle of Vignoles and appetizer.

Cassie, the marketing manager, was our tasting room attendant during our visit. She provided us with a full tasting of their wines. Terry said he really liked the Seyval Blanc and Vignoles. After our tasting I took my brother on a tour of the winery and gave him a barrel sample of the, soon to be released, Zinfandel. It was very good!

After a day of Jeep driving and winery-hopping we finally got back home, dry-eyed, sunburned, and pooped-out! Dinner was simple, we were tired, and as we sat on our back porch we waited patiently for the clock to reach 9pm so we could, with some degree of dignity, say it was bed time. 20 seconds after the top of the hour we were all headed to bed!

What a great day of wine bonding!

It’s What You Don’t Know That’ll Hurt Your Wine Business.

2010-10-12T18:18:00.003-04:00

Brad Post:

Ask most winery owners how much they know about their customers and you’ll likely get the same response I frequently hear: “I know my customers pretty well”. Moreover, most winery owners also claim they know the preferences and kinds of experiences visitors have at their winery.

Or at least they think they do.

Blockbuster, the now defunct video store, once thought the same thing. All it took was one disgruntled customer, who later built another more responsive enterprise (i.e., NetFlix), to run the former video rental business into the ground and out of business.

Paying attention to our customers and understanding their experiences is crucial to keeping a business running effectively. We know our customers – or at least we think we do, but more accurately, we know our “regular” customers.

What do we know about those visitors who never return?

When I was living in Seattle and working at a marketing research company, as research analyst, a challenger to the prominent Seattle coffee giant asked us for help. This new coffee business surely understood the market, just like winery owners do, but they asked us to delve a little deeper and to help identify possible unmet needs.

They understood the business of coffee. They understood they didn’t know everything about their customers. They understood there was a possibility of an untapped market segment they might fill. They asked for research help because they weren’t market research experts.

Ultimately this new business challenger successfully invaded the market space formerly held by the coffee giant and has seized market share. Using qualitative and quantitative research methodologies we were able to uncover dissatisfied customers and key into a new, formerly untapped segment.

It’s what you don’t know that’ll hurt your business.

The danger of believing we know everything about our customers may be our biggest potential pitfall. In the winery business we do everything: we grow and harvest the grapes, run the fermentation operations, do our own bottling, and transport and sell our wines.

Focus on the Fundamentals of Wine.

Wineries should focus on winery related activities not on research. In the computer programming trade there is a maxim that goes like this: garbage in, garbage out. The same adage works for the research business: poorly designed research yields and questionable findings.

Professional researchers understand the complexities of conducting social research. Consumer behavior research requires a comprehensive set of tools that include qualitative methods: interviews, observation, and focus groups; and quantitative methods: survey research (mail or Internet), and even experimental designs (e.g., which communication program is most effective or which label design will sell more wine).

Building a long term research program to assess consumer satisfaction is fundamental to a winery business. Knowing what your customers love and sometimes more importantly, what your visitors do not love, can make the difference between success and failure.

Just ask Blockbuster.

Two Easy-to-Use Financial Analysis Tools for Mid-West Wineries

2010-10-09T08:53:00.014-04:00

Terry post:

Over several glasses of Traminette the other evening my brother and I discussed the decision-making process that is used by winemakers: What grape to plant? Should I buy more hardware? Do I host social events in the vineyard?

That conversation got me to thinking about the low-cost tools which are readily available to assist the winemaker in making business decision.

Two powerful tools are Net Present Value (NPV) analysis and Return on Investment (ROI). Both are quite simple to create and evaluate but don't let their relative simplicity stop you from using them.

Net Present Value is a good tool when you need make one choice from a series of options. Let's compare a situation where you have three options: Option 1 provides for a uniform series of increased profits. Option 2 provides for a large immediate profit followed by no additional profits and Option 3 provides for no profits in the near term with a large profit in the out-years.

Net Present Value does not simply add up the values in the cell - it discounts the value of future cash flows by a user-defined discount rate. (Note: I always use 4.25% in any NPV analysis as this rate is a historical average from 1929 to the present.)

Using the NPV workbook function in MS Excel (=NPV(Interest Rate, Value1, Value2, Valuen)) you are able to evaluate the PRESENT VALUE of all three cash flow streams. In this case, Option 1 turns out to be the most profitable choice among the three choices. Option 3 is the least advantageous as its payout is deferred the longest and the impact of the discount is the greatest.

Return on Investment is a way to calculate the profitability of an investment. In order to calculate the ROI you need two pieces of information: 1) Total Return, and 2) Cost of Investment. Let's use the numbers in the NPV calculation and add the following information: the cost of investment for all three choices was $450.

The ROI calculation is as follows: ROI = ((Total Return - Cost of Investment)/ Cost of Investment).

The total return for Option 1 is $552.75 and the cost of investment is $450. Working through the equation we have ROI = (($552.75 - $450)/$450) or 22%. For Option 2 it is ROI = (($525.68-$450)/$450) or 16%. For Option 3 ROI = (($448.60-$450)/$450) or -.03%.

In this example Options 1 and 2 provide a positive rate of return with the ROI with Option 1 having the best return over the 5 year period. Choose Option 1.

Bottom line: Both NPV and ROI provide powerful insights into business decisions with a few simple steps.

~ Terry

2009 Morgan Sauvignon Blanc, Monterey California

2010-10-06T19:55:00.005-04:00

Terry Post:

Summer Wine Series

Okay. Okay. Technically I shouldn't be including this Morgan Sauvignon Blanc in the summer wine series as it is no longer summer. But, I bought this wine a few weeks back with the intention of writing about it when it was summers. So, I'll include it under that technicality.

I have a slight bias here as one of my all time favorite wines is the 2005 Morgan "Double L Vineyards" Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands, California: it is nearly a perfect pinot noir. But, I digress...

My impressions: Light straw color in the glass. Typical Sauvignon Blanc impressions on the nose including citrus, pears, grass and more than a little minerality - most noticeable on the finish. Minerals, acidity and grass on the finish. Very nice.

I paired this with a filet of salmon, which I poached in the wine with sliced oranges. It was wonderful.

Second thoughts: Like a lot of people I have grown weary of pedestrian Chardonnay's and am sampling other white wines to find something else to take it's place. Sauvignon Blanc's, such as this offering from Morgan, provides a more interesting interpretation of the dinnertime wine. With a strong acidic backbone, a stony minerality and a pleasant nose this Morgan is pretty much dead-on as the sort of dining partner with which I could become accustomed. Highly recommended.

$14.99 at The Wine Seller, Herndon Virginia

~ Terry

What Blockbuster has to tell the Wine Business about the Frailty of Market Dominance

2010-10-02T11:54:00.010-04:00

Terry post:

Blockbuster, the movie rental company, recently filed for bankruptcy protection. This is something which seemed utterly impossible for a company once valued at over $8 billion dollars. For those of you who were napping here is a quick summary of Blockbuster's decline:

1985: First Blockbuster store opens in Dallas.

1994: Viacom acquires Blockbuster for $8.4 billion.

1997: Reed Hastings returns Apollo 13 to Blockbuster six weeks overdue, and is dismayed by the $40 late fee.

1998: Reed Hastings founds Netflix.

1999: Viacom holds Blockbuster IPO, valued at up to $4.8 billion.

2000: Blockbuster declines several offers to purchase Netflix for a mere $50 million. Instead, the company signs a 20-year deal to deliver on-demand movies with Enron Broadband Services, a subsidiary of Enron.

2001: Enron files for bankruptcy amid accounting scandal.

2003: Netflix posts first profit, earning $6.5 million on revenues of $272 million. Redbox launches a kiosk rental service.

2004: Blockbuster enters online DVD rental market. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings tells analysts in an earnings call, "In the last six months, Blockbuster has thrown everything but the kitchen sink at us." The following day, Hastings receives a package from Blockbuster. Inside: a kitchen sink.

2005: Blockbuster launches a marketing campaign touting its new "No Late Fees" policy. Subsequently, 48 states launch investigations into the program, charging Blockbuster with misrepresenting its late fee policy to customers. Blockbuster settles for $650,000.

2006: Blockbuster, now valued at $500 million, surpasses its goal of two million subscribers for its online platform. Netflix reaches 6.3 million subscribers by December.

2007: Blockbuster hires new CEO Jim Keyes, formerly of 7-Eleven. Keyes decides to roll back the company's Total Access plans. "Clearly our spending on that one channel was exceeding our returns," he said during a company earnings call. After losing a half-million subscribers in the third quarter, Blockbuster announces it will no longer report its subscriber count.

2008: Blockbuster CEO complains about Netflix in an interview: "I've been frankly confused by this fascination that everybody has with Netflix...Netflix doesn't really have or do anything that we can't or don't already do ourselves."

2009: Blockbuster rolls out Blockbuster Express, its kiosk system designed to compete with Redbox.

Looking at the summary one thing jumps out at me: distribution channels - let me explain. Blockbuster, Netflix and Redbox are all about distributing the same content via different channels. Each company sells essentially the same product (movies) via different means to the same end user. Blockbuster's wildly high valuation in the 1990's was a reflection of how dominant they were at brick and mortar distribution at that precise moment in time.

Blockbuster was the brick and mortar channel leader, followed by Netflix which dominates the on-line channel (or electronic distribution) and Redbox which is smaller (less costly) footprint version of Blockbuster.

So with a 1000:1 advantage over Netflix or Redbox why did Blockbuster fail to innovate?

Most wine reaches the consumer via a three-tiered distribution system: distributor, wholesaler and retailer. Each layer of the distribution system adds a pass-through cost of some sort to the product without adding perceptible value. Moving a case of wine can easily be done from the winery to the consumer without benefit of costly distributors or wholesalers.

You need only consider how Amazon web services are changing distribution for many small to mid-sized companies.

Amazon Small Business Services has become, effectively, the market maker for many smaller companies acting as retailer and distributor. "Amazon allows businesses to use Amazon’s own order fulfillment and post-order customer service infrastructure, and allows Amazon.com customers to receive the benefit of Amazon.com shipping offers when buying from third-party sellers who use Fulfillment by Amazon." So who needs a distributor and wholesaler when Amazon can do it all?

Well maybe. The Federal and State governments see the sale of alcohol products as a revenue generator and while, currently, wine products don't fit the Amazon model there is no saying that in 30 days or in 2 years that the political landscape will be more supportive of small business - even ones which sell wine.

Blockbuster failed to innovate when they had every opportunity to do so. They had size and market dominance but failed to innovate as business conditions changed leaving the door open for Netflix and Redbox to eat them alive.

Bottom line: Companies with overwhelming market share can become complacent and fail to innovate. Small businesses must innovate and take market share when market conditions change. The challenge for small wineries is to determine what market conditions benefit small, nimble business and to maneuver themselves to exploit those conditions.

~ Terry

2008 Chateau Grand Traverse, Dry Riesling, Michigan

2010-09-21T18:31:00.006-04:00

Terry post:

Summer Wine Series.

Tomorrow marks the last day of summer, so it is time for me to squeeze in two more reviews before I start digging into my reds and ports as the nights grow longer and darker.

Over Labor Day weekend I had the privilege of driving from DC to Detroit to pick up some furniture which had belonged to my wife's grandmother. This isn't the sort of thing one passes on, particularly if domestic tranquility is important.

While there we visited a Meijers. Note to non-Michiganders: Meijers is a big box retailer along the lines of Target and Wal-Mart. We tolerate Meijers as Fred Meijers - the founder - opened his first store in Greenville, Michigan. Enough history.

I found the Michigan wines and almost everything there was a "late harvest" this or that. I did find one label which looked promising: a Dry Riesling by Chateau Grand Traverse.

My impressions: Pale yellow in the glass. Thin citrus on the nose is found after vigorous sloshing about in the glass. Citrus is prominent first across the palate with pear following closely. It finishes with an assertive acidic backbone. Very nice.

The Chateau Grand Traverse Dry Riesling is a wonderful offering from Michigan and worth a try if you can find it. With only 1,600 cases produced it is unlikely you'll find it outside of Michigan. But, if you do find it - you'll find it a pleasurable partner at dinner time.

$10.99 at Meijer "Shifty" Acres

~ Terry

NV Muscat de Beaulieu, Beaulieu Vineyard, California

2010-08-30T19:12:00.005-04:00

Terry post:

What is a dessert wine? The obvious answer is that it is a wine one enjoys as dessert and I would speculate that very few people have enjoyed dessert wine for that purpose.

My personal preference for after dinner sipping is a vintage Porto (along with a good cigar if at all possible). That said, there is just something classy about ordering a small glass of dessert wine in place of that slice of double chocolate cake.

My impressions: Medium bodied with a strong alcohol presence - almost overpoweringly so. The alcohol is the predominant characteristic of this wine. Not well balanced. It is a simple sweet wine giving apricots and raisins to those with patience. Needs to warm up a bit to get the most out of this wine - it is far superior at room temperature than when slightly chilled. A hint of oak on a surprisingly brief finish.

Perhaps I expected too much from this wine: Always been a fan of the BV brand. Rather like the Porto's that my brother and I sampled earlier this year with far too many clunkers found en-route the fantastic 2007 vintage.

Is it a bad wine? No. Is it a great wine? No.

Like so many other wines I have sampled, it is a competent offering from a dependable winery which will reward the drinker with a few moments of pleasure - but is not the wine dreams are made of and its pleasure is short lived.

18% alcohol

$11.99 for 375 mL bottle from The Wine Seller, Herndon Virginia

~ Terry

Busy Summer - Updates

2010-08-15T15:29:00.001-04:00

Brad Post:

It’s been a very busy summer and the frequency of my postings has stagnated, much like the hot and humid weather we’ve experienced in Iowa, for the past few months. The passing of a cold front today is giving us the opportunity to open windows to air out the house and feel a hint, a promise, of the upcoming season change.

Harvest

Yesterday, almost a month earlier than previous years, the harvest season began in earnest with a full day of crushing and pressing Brianna, a cold-climate white grape. The Fireside Winery owners decided to upgrade their crush pad equipment with new separate destemming machine, a vibrating sorting table, and a crusher (really doesn’t crush but actually just splits the berry to release the juice) and a wonderful new positive displacement pump (gently moves the must).

Fireside Winery Family Sorting Brianna Grapes

High quality equipment combined with sourcing the best possible grapes and keen attention to detail, via sorting out the stems and bad berries will yield an even better wine product. We ended up processing about 1,000 gallons of Brianna! If you haven’t had Brianna yet – seek it out!

Road Trip

Maiden Rock, Owner & Winemaker

We took a long weekend to see a Jack Johnson concert near Minneapolis a month ago and visited wineries along the way in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Crossing back and forth across the Mississippi a group of four of us enjoyed good and sometimes excellent wines.

With map in hand we began in Marquette, Iowa visiting the Eagles Landing Winery downtown and were treated to excellent service and amazingly well-crafted wines. This winery is establishing a strong reputation of creating award winning wines! One of our very favorite stops and one that we were sort of reluctant to visit were Maiden Rock Winery and Cidery near Stockholm, Wisconsin.

Amazing apple wine and hard ciders and warm and thoughtful owners made the experience exemplary! If you have a chance to make the trip – don’t hesitate and buy more of the hard cider than you think you’ll want – we ran out too soon.

Business

My wife and I launched an online, daily news magazine for the wine industry this summer, called Winedustry – wine news for the “other” grapes. During the past couple of years I have grown increasingly frustrated by the lack of attention given to the non-traditional (non-California) wine industry. Most wine industry journals focus almost entirely upon this market.

After months of preparation, on August 2nd we launched Winedustry! Building awareness among the professional wine industry community is taking a lot of my time but is incredibly rewarding. We’ve been fortunate to find State Field Editors for several states and as of today we have Editors for these states: Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, Illinois, Ohio, Maryland, and Virginia. Our State Field Editors are responsible for reporting the news about their states wine industry.

Upcoming

In the upcoming months I am sure I’ll get back to posting stories about the harvest, new wines, and my experiences judging wine competitions, and visits to wineries across the country.

Thanks for reading and supporting Two Wine Brothers. And I hope you take a moment to check out Winedustry - www.winedustry.com

Cheers,

Brad Johnson

2006 Willowcroft Farm Vineyards, Cabernet Franc, Virginia

2010-07-24T21:51:00.006-04:00

Terry post:

There are nine grades of cork exported from Portugal for the purpose of stopping wine in bottles. Those grades are:

Flor

Extra

Superior

Agglomerated

Colmated

I bring the grades of cork up for discussion because corks are so very important when it comes to the health of a bottle of wine. A good cork retains the labor of the winemaker while a bad cork provides a route for oxygen to invade and destroy.

The truth of the matter that bad corks are rare. Really rare. I have not pulled a bad cork in ages, until this evening. When I pushed my corkscrew into the 2006 Willowcroft Cabernet Franc, the cork moved down the neck of the bottle - I was able to retrieve the cork, but I had my concerns about the poor seal.

My impressions: Light ruby in the glass. Almost nothing on the nose, with repeated sloshings being necessary to release a hint of cherries. Moderately tannic. Short dry, herbal finish.

Second thoughts. It is my belief that a 2006 Cabernet Franc is is an old wine - likely past its prime. So, I should not be too disappointed with the results - cork problem or not.

My first bottle from Willowcroft was a surprisingly approachable Riesling with food friendly characteristics.

I has hoping that this Cab Franc would be equally pleasant. It brings me no pleasure to observe that is was not.

~ Terry

2008 Willowcroft Farm Vineyard, Riesling, Virginia

2010-07-13T19:34:00.007-04:00

Terry post:

Summer Wine Series

According to the maps app on my Droid phone, Willowcroft Farm Winery lay at the end of a three-mile dirt road. As my wife and I bounced down the narrow dirt road I seriously questioned whether my navigation unit had lost its digital marbles.

Fortunately for me Willowcroft is three miles down a dirt road and after the trip I can report that the wines are very much worth the bumpy ride.

We arrived around 2:00 p.m. this past Sunday afternoon and were struck by the beauty of the site. A lot of wineries are beautiful to view but a scant few have a gorgeous view across an adjoining valley and the Blue Ridge Mountains from its hillside location. Willowcroft does.

Working behind the counter, Chuck (very helpful) provided us samples of eight wines: five whites and three reds. We tasted an un-oaked Chardonnay, Seyval, Albarino, Riesling, Vidal Blanc, Red blend, Merlot and Cab Franc for only $5 per person. The Riesling and the Cab Franc were far and away the most interesting. I would note for my friends in Iowa that Willowcroft is offering a Traminette this year for the first time - while I wasn't able to taste it, Chuck thinks that it is a good wine. Maybe next time...

My impressions: Pale in the glass. Green apples and citrus profoundly on the nose. Medium bodied with sufficient acidity acidity to stand up to more than the typical Riesling pairings. Best when cold. Flattens out a little when it warms up. Ever so slight hint of tannic astringency at the end - grape seeds maybe? Moderately long citrus finish. Recommended.

Second thoughts: The typical pairing for Riesling is with spicy curry dishes, Chinese take out and other entrees which don't seem to fit any other wine. At 1% RS this is not a typical Riesling and combined with an almost Sauvignon Blanc like-backbone it is deserving of more upscale dining considerations than "take out". I think this wine would stand up very well with pasta dishes with butter or cream based sauces - particularly were seafood in the mix. Don't get me wrong: this is not a razor sharp Chardonnay. But it is balanced so nicely it would be a shame were not its full potential realized.

$15.99 at the winery.

~ Terry

The Value of Wine Competitions

2010-07-12T13:13:00.003-04:00

Brad Post

Before this weekend I must confess to being a bit skeptical about the judging process at wine competitions and the value of their results. Science is on my side too (Journal of Wine Economics, Volume 3, Issue 2, Fall 2008, Pages 105–113). This study found only about 10% of judges were able to replicate their scores, that is, if they judged a wine as a bronze award, later they might judge it as a silver or no award.

One of the hallmarks in the scientific method is reliability of findings, in other words can we be confident of our results, and in wine judging that would amount to being able to reproduce similar judging scores on different days or on different flights of wines on the same day. My reference study suggests fairly convincingly that competitions might be unreliable.

So, if the results are unreliable and the judges are unable to replicate their own findings why would a winery submit a wine to a competition?

My firsthand account of a large, multi-state wine competition suggests there is great value in submitting a wine to a well-organized and run wine competition. Of course the “value” comes with an important caveat – what do you, the vintner/winery, expect or desire from the experience?

Create a Buzz. Some wineries may submit wine(s) in an effort to increase their medal count as a means to convey to the public the value of their wines. Award winning wineries proudly and deservingly display their awards and trophies to an adoring public. The public, in turn, frequently defers to the judgment of experts when determining a wine pick.

PR Value. Great wines get attention! Wine competitions provide an opportunity to get a second or third opinion on the quality of our wines. High award winning wines (silver and gold awards, in particular) are very good wines. Having the gravitas of skilled wine panelists whose expertise aligns with a winery’s desire for recognition is a public relations opportunity waiting to happen. When properly managed wine competition awards can get a winery a tremendous amount of free-media exposure.

Disconnect? It’s rumored that wine judges prefer big, bold, dry traditionally made red wines so their opinions and expertise are disconnected to the reality of our tasting rooms and regular folks. While personal tasting preferences may lean in this direction it is also true that good wine is good wine and well-trained judges easily distinguish the difference between good and not so good wine.

Opportunity Knocks! The best wines were well-balanced wines. Midwestern grapes are typically high in acidity, much like German Rieslings, and as a consequence many these competition wines were better suited with some residual sugar. And the best ones, over and again, possessed varying degrees of sweetness. Best varietals were consistently identified, stylistic patterns developed, and if I were making wine I would take a hard look at what the judges loved and what our consumers love and notice this one thing – they are very similar.

Final Thoughts

After tasting hundreds of wines, as an observer during this competition, my perspective about wine competitions were significantly altered. Having a highly skilled panel of experts tasting my wine, even if the result wasn’t what I had hoped for can be informative. Winery’s whose entries did not earn a medal could simply dismiss the findings as evidence of poor judging. To me that would be missing a BIG opportunity. If my wines didn’t earn a medal in a competition where I thought it was medal-worthy, then I’d reevaluate my wines and ask for advice and critique from other winemakers.

A region/state can learn a lot from a competition, such as what grape varietals/cultivars are winning. Like I mentioned, good wine is good wine, and many of the new hybrids are making excellent wine; although, many of us may need to adjust to the reality and limitations of these grapes. Just like winemakers in Germany aren’t making Cabernet Sauvignon but instead concentrate on grapes that grow well and make the best possible wines, in a style that enhances their varietal character, so too should we (the Midwest) focus on making wines from our best vines in a suitable style.

My experience at the competition completely shifted my perspective and now my appreciation for the judging process is radically improved. We frequently turn to science to lend strength to our point of view and in our empirical world-view wine judging does not live up to this high standard; however, despite this fact, I am encouraged by the professionalism of the expert panel and how closely their results likely mirror consumer preferences.

Cheers!

Brad

2009 Port of Leonardtown Winery, Vidal Blanc, St. Mary's County, Maryland

2010-07-05T21:18:00.003-04:00

Terry post:

Summertime Wine Series

The wine laws in Maryland are a morass of legislation designed for one purpose and one purpose alone: to protect financial interests of the beer and the booze wholesalers, distributors and retailers. For all the talk in Annapolis regarding supporting small business they have utterly failed to act in a meaningful way to support the state’s small wineries and that is a damned shame.

Fighting against the entrenched interests in Annapolis are a handful of grape growers in St. Mary’s county who have founded a co-op through which to sell their grapes and produce their wine. Due to the cruelly-burdensome alcohol laws in Maryland, the wine is available at the winery and at a very small handful of local restaurants and retail outlets. The wine cannot be shipped.

The Port of Leonardtown Winery is located in solid concrete building along side a small creek. Outside it is very basic. Inside is where the magic takes place.

On a very hot Sunday afternoon I spent about 90 minutes with two of the co-op members: Gerald and Connie Byrne. I sampled everything which they had to offer and found two which I chose to buy and take home for further study.

My impressions: Pale straw color in the glass. Austere when poured chilled, unfolding to melon and pears at it warmed in the glass. Moderately acidic edging towards tartness - food friendly. Short herbal finish. Drink now. Recommended.

I paired the Vidal Blanc with my wife’s hearty fish stew served over toasted French bread with pressed garlic and olive oil. They were superb together.

Bottom line: The Port of Leonardtown Winery makes a graceful Vidal Blanc which is well suited to pair with Maryland staples such as fish, chicken and crabs. The winery is a small gem which restaurateurs and wine lovers alike should embrace and appreciate NOW.

$15 at the winery.

~ Terry

2010-07-03T21:06:00.002-04:00

Terry post:

Summer Winery Reading List for 2010

Every year the newspapers, hosted television shows and magazine create some sort of recommended reading list for those whose near-term plans including lounging on a beach somewhere.

These lists generally are packed with fiction offerings - the sort of get-away reading which is best enjoyed away from home.

I am going to take a slightly different view of summer reading: reading to increase productivity and focus the mind of the business side of the vintner. So, here is my recommended reading list for the summer of 2010.

“Good to Great” by Jim Collins. I have recently re-read this book and found it less impactful this time around, yet still a must-read for anyone who works to make their business successful for the long run. Mr. Collins provides simple guidance which business owners can take to heart and exploit. It is interesting to note that several of the “Good to Great” businesses listed in the tome have gone belly-up since the first publishing of the book.

“Heart of Change” by Jon Kotter. Another b-school favorite which places a great deal of stock in the need to commit emotionally to economic ventures. For those who are passionate about their business yet see the need to change - this is a must read.

“Blue Ocean Strategy” by W. Chan Kim. Seriously outside-the-box thinking in this easy to read book which has spawned a subculture of followers. Awhile back, I suggested to Iowa wine growers that their inability to grow the typical California grapes was not a weakness. Using Blue Ocean Strategy, I suggested that Iowa has an advantage over California in grapes that are unique to Iowa advantage should be exploited.

“Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair” by Pablo Neruda. I have always felt that there was something poetic about making wine. While this book has nothing to do with wine making, it has everything to do with love and passion - virtues necessary to be successful in life. Written by the 20th centuries finest poet in any language.

~ Terry

How Geeky is Too Geeky?

2010-06-30T21:02:00.000-04:00

Brad Post:

Over the past weekend me and 14 other wine geeks met in isolation on a small Midwestern college campus to put our taste buds to the test.

Our mission was VIN 275, Sensory Analysis, and after 3 days (30 hours) in confinement we worked our way through more than 100 wine standards (i.e., wine spiked with an assortment of flavor compounds, such as lychee), evaluated detection and recognition thresholds for acidity, tannin, and sweetness in several panels, and blind tasted 10 white and 10 red wines from around the world.

Our final exam for the weekend was a surprise to all of us. Toward the end of this residential school our instructor casually walked around to our small working groups and pulled a student away. For this "live-fire" exam each student had to evaluate two wines, one white and one red, in front of a panel of advanced sensory student-judges.

Here is how it works:

Step 1 - Visual analysis: I pick up the first wine, a white and verbally describe the color, color intensity, rim variation, and viscosity. All the while three judging eyes pierce me! Are there bubbles? No.

Step 2 - Aromatic analysis: Sniff, sniff, I detect..."tropical fruit aromas, something floral, maybe apricot, maybe some apple or pear. The aromatic intensity is pretty strong, I'd give it a 7" out of 10. (You see for this process, we are in academia I am reminded, we use a 9 point scale so we can better quantify and confirm our results). At this point I am mentally guessing the age of the unknown wine. I'm asked: "do you notice any bell pepper aroma?" I sniff again, "no" is my response.

Step 3 - Palate analysis: slurp, slurp, I take notice of several of the wine attributes. I taste, spit, and describe: "I pick up some sweetness, not much about a 1 or 2, the body is a little above average 5+". Acidity? "yes, I feel it here (point to my salvation glands) and notice a sourness and the accompanying salivation typical of a higher acid wine". Tannin? None. Alcohol? "normal". Finish and complexity? "the wine isn't terribly complex but has a nice acid-sugar balance that lingers pleasantly."

Step 4 - Conclusions: My guess? Well...I focused in on the floral aromatics and the apricot which led me, erroneously, to a Riesling. Wrong! The hint, given to be by one of the judges, was bell pepper. That should have made me wake up and realize there were tropical aromas and bell pepper, which are hallmarks of New Zeeland Sauvignon Blancs. DOH!

Overall, my assessment, up until the final conclusion was fairly sound. I realize when talking with friends about my experience just how geeky this all must sound and I have to chuckle. Yeah, pretty geek-like.

In another week, I go back for round two where we will taste hundreds of wines, sit across the tables from serious wine professionals: MS/MW. Lots to learn...and so what if I get a little extra wine geeky in the process.

What the Progress in Automotive Headlights has to tell us about Choosing which Grapes to Grow in the Midwest

2010-06-18T11:57:00.004-04:00

The headlights on nascent automobiles were first seen in the 1880s . Similar to those which had preceded them on the railroad, these acetylene oil lanterns provided 50 feet, or so, of visibility.

With a vehicle chugging along at 25 miles per hour that 50 feet ahead of him provided the driver approximately 1.36 seconds of visibility ahead.

Fast forward into the modern era and low-beam headlights now provide about 160 feet of visibility. With the vehicle travelling at 65 miles per hour the driver has approximately 1.46 seconds of visibility ahead.

Not much has changed.

In over one hundred years of automotive engineering we have improved the ability to the driver to see the road ahead, and react to changes ahead, by one-tenth of a second.

So, has your ability to peer into the foggy road of wine improved?

Growing grapes and its first derivative, wine making, requires the ability to see into the future.

In the recent past, those in agriculture would receive insight from those with technical expertise: the sort of expertise which would say to grow this and to not grow that.

The answer today is increasingly to be found by the interactions with your customers and continuously collecting information. On a daily basis your customers will tell you what they like and what they don’t like with their purchases. Consider:

Social Networking. This is THE way to engage with the millennials. If you are not on Facebook and Twitter on a daily basis you are missing an important avenue to connect with these new wine consumers.

Direct to Consumer Sales. Most wineries think about sales only and staff the tasting room with less than knowlegable staff. Granted: Sales from the tasting room are the way to open the door for interactions with the consumer. Think of this critical face-to-face meeting as your single greatest opportunity to create a life-long customer. But you don't always sell, and if you don't sell you should not pass up this opportunity to gain some insight. Consider collecting one piece of information from each visitor.

Wine Clubs. Once signed up, wine club members retain membership on average for two years. Think: two bottles per month for twenty four months.

Bottom line: Merely keeping up with the competition is not sufficient if you are to grow your business. An aggressive set of strategies is required to connect with, gather information from, and make sales to your customers.

2009 Beau Chene, White Granache, Vin De Pays D'Oc, France

2010-06-08T18:23:00.005-04:00

Terry post:

Summer Wine Series

It was a few weeks ago that I purchased a number of bottles of wine from The Wine Seller in Herndon, Virginia. Unlike my brother's experience in Iowa, Lucinda could have not been more helpful providing me several surprising hits.

I have scant experience with White Granache wine. When I think Grenache, I think of the stony vineyards of Châteauneuf-du-Pape which produce the rich, thick and chewy reds which I so enjoy.

The idea of sacrificing a great French red for a so-so "pink" wine is, to say the least, a damn waste of grapes.

Okay. Enough griping.

My impressions: Pale salmon color in the glass. Strawberries on the nose, but not so overwhelming as to be unpleasant. Fresh and dry. Smooth. Easy to drink - not overtly sweet. There is more than a hit of acidity in the wine, so it might work with food. My thought is that it is best as an accompaniment to light lunchtime fare or by itself well chilled. Citrus and melon on a long refreshing finish. Recommended.

Second thoughts: The wine improved and tasted better on day #2 than it did on day #1. Were I to buy another bottle, I'd give the wine some time to breath before I drank it. I may not have had the wine on its best footing when I first sampled it.

$12 at The Wine Seller

~ Terry

2008 Esperto, Pinot Grigio, Delle Venezie, Italy

2010-06-06T13:30:00.005-04:00

Terry post:

Summer Wine Series

We carried the Esperto Pinot Grigio at Restaurant 213 from the grand opening onward and it is still on the wine list today. It has been a steady seller popular with those who prefer a dry white wine with floral characteristics.

My impressions: Pale, diluted straw-color in the glass. Faint floral note when first poured opening slightly to citrus as the wine warmed. Moderate bodied and dry. Not nearly as fruity as I have experienced with other Italian Pinot Grigios - more American in style. Recommended.

Good acidity. Food friendly. I paired the wine with a Watermelon-Feta Cheese salad - and it was perfection.

Imported by Moet Hennessy USA. 13% alcohol.

$13 at retail.

~ Terry

Combat Wine Tasting

2010-06-06T13:15:00.003-04:00

Brad Post:

I should have trusted my weather intuition yesterday or the fact that a portent of the impending storm was purchased the day before, a new pair of sneakers! And so my day began as a wine host at a wine and pork festival, called SWINE Festival, located on a lawn of a community college campus north of Des Moines.

Leaving home late in the morning to meet my wine tent colleagues, temperatures around 80 degrees and the potential for severe weather in the forecast, I left unprepared for what was soon to become my Woodstock or should I say “Winestock”, but I am getting ahead of myself.

By 3pm the tent was erected, winery signs strategically placed to attract the crowds of wine lovers, and cases and cases of wine ready to be served. Ominous dark storm clouds passed overhead as the humidity increased. The crowds arrived at 4pm. Our wineries tent, a portable contraption with a canvas top, held up by an aluminum frame – the kind of structure one person can set up alone, was to be our base for the next four hours.

Within moments of opening our serving tables were inundated with thirsty wine imbibers. No trickle of visitors, it was a full-on, onslaught of $35/person wine drinkers and pork eaters who wanted to taste! We obliged with a counter offensive of “Hello, welcome to…” and “Hi, may I offer you a tasting of…” and with bottles in both hands we were pouring as quickly as the controlled, one-ounce dispersers would allow. This was serious – this was combat wine serving at its best! Fun!

The first indication of a problem began around 6:05pm with a parcel of condensed water vapor landing on my friends’ bald head. Drip. “Oh, that’ll pass” someone laughingly said. Then drop! Then Deluge! The sky opened up and rain drops whose life began 50,000 feet above us gave up to gravity and started their free fall. The 435,305,020 rain drops descended on our tent and brought along with them the ten miles of rain-generated wind – aimed directly at us and our thirsty customers.

At the same time drenched wine lovers waited in line to purchase a bottle, a dozen or two stood firm to sample, a freaked out few dove for cover under our flailing tent, while others holding stead-fast in their positions reached above their heads and securely grabbed hold of our aluminum frame to keep our tent grounded! Assessing the situation, our team continued selling wine and pouring samples while the torrent of rain was unleashed upon us. With sample bottles in hand, I exited the tent and surveyed the damage, pouring samples to our dedicated customers whose outstretched arms were holding our structure in place and whose free hand held an empty glass that received my appreciative pour.

In the wake of the storm we, all of us, stood drenched in sopping wet clothes and laughed out loud at our condition. We were a mess, soaked from head to toe, one of our aluminum frame pieces was broken in half (we secured it with some rope and our tent remained standing), and the ground was now the consistency of light brown goo. This was our Woodstock of a sort…our “Winestock”- great music, fun people, delicious wine and food, and a wonderful mess.

Next time I’m wearing my old sandals!

Solitude in the Vineyard

2010-05-20T21:20:00.001-04:00

Brad Post:

This time of the year there is a momentary lull in cellar activity providing enough time to return to the vineyard work. Yesterday, a gorgeous, blue-sky, day with a light breeze and perfect springtime temperatures, was my day to work in the vineyard.

The Brickyard Hill Vineyard, whose name was as you might imagine, was derived from an nearby old brickyard that sat adjacent to the vineyard. On this beautiful day, three of us were roving through the vines, row after row, removing suckers (i.e., the unwanted shoots sprouting up from the trunk and other undesirable locations) and securing the cordons (i.e., the horizontal "branches" of the vine from where shoots grow the fruit) to the wire.

Gloved and dressed in early summer gear, in one hand I hold a pair of pruning shears, while in the other hand a tool designed to dispense plastic tape to coax the cordon to grow along the wire. This awkwardly engineered tool resembles a freakishly large stapler on steroids.

Walking up and down the rows, removing suckers by flicking them off or when too large, cutting them with my pruning shears is meditative. The late winter pruning, cutting back last years growth to prepare for this years is looked at again to make sure the plants are poised for optimal fruiting. Adjust, tape, snip, and move on. Next plant. Adjust, tape, staple, snip, and move on.

Each of us work at our own pace, beginning at the end of a row and working our way down. Some are more experienced and breeze through the vineyard while others are thorough and move more slowly (at least that's what I'm telling myself). We speak infrequently. Mostly quiet in the vineyard.

I can hear the red wing blackbirds in the distance and the sound of excavators moving the dark Iowa earth where the winemaker is building his home. Another five or so acres will be added when his house is built adding to the nearly 13 acres in production.

Springtime in Iowa is rejuvenating and hard work in the vineyard is soothing.

Cash in Circulation, The Coming Inflation and How it Matters When Setting Price and Establishing Market Share in Iowa Wine

2010-05-16T17:43:00.006-04:00

Terry post:

Excuse me if I wonk-it up just a bit.

A few days ago, my brother posted an inquiry on his Facebook page regarding the merits of charging an entry fee for people to listen to music at a vineyard. His question was whether it was "right" or not to charge $5 per vehicle to listen to live music and , perhaps, sample or buy a bottle of wine. The responses were all over the board with some individuals strongly in favor of free admission and others, including this author, who saw it as an imperative to charge an entry fee.

It got me thinking about value. The value people place on things and the calculus each of us apply to a decision to buy or not to buy.

Cash in circulation (CiC) is a measure of the physical amount of, well, cash in circulation. The Chairman of the Federal Reserve (e.g. The Fed) Dr. Ben Bernanke is a smart guy, a really smart guy and a student of the Great Depression. Years ago long before he was the Chairman he cited a paper by Milton Friedman which defined the principle cause of the enduring depression was the tightening of credit and that the impact would have been reduced had fiscal policies been loosened and liquidity added to the market. Subsequently the press has come to call Dr. Bernanke, "helicopter Ben" given his support of Friedman's theories and his own comments about his willingness to throw dollar bills out of helicopter to increase market liquidity.

During this recession he has been true to his words and has hasn't just thrown dollar bills: he has shoveled dollar bills. Between the end of 2008 and now CinC has tripled. That's right. There are three time the amount of cash being exchanged between individuals like you and like me and those folks involved in commercial enterprise. This is where inflation comes in.

The classic definition of inflation is, "...too many dollars chasing too few goods". And, what have we all observed over the past few months? First the amount of dollars in circulation has tripled. Secondly, overall production has decreased as demand has fallen through the floor. We have primed the pump with dollars and decreased the goods available to buy.

Making maters more interesting is the increasing reliance of this Administration of the opinions of Mr. Paul Volkert. For those of you whose memory doesn't include the late 1970s, Mr. Volkert was the Chairman of the Fed during President Carter's administration and was not adverse to inflation. It was under Mr. Volkert's Chairmanship that I held a 13.5% home mortgage: something to think about.

That we have not seen inflation take off is a sign of how soft the economy remains.

So, you may ask: What does this have to do with the wine business in Iowa?

Were I the owner of a winery I would follow the maxim of any business in a recession: I would work like hell to maintain, or grow, market share. I would do the things which would make my company stronger than my competition when the recovery takes place and pent-up demand is applied across the market.

For instance, IBM has spent more than $8 billion dollars in Research and Development since the recession began. When the market firms up they will have new products and service ready for a waiting market.

As a vintner I would be: 1) Looking a expanding capacity by acquiring land or putting that land which I already hold into full production. When inflation comes the price of assets (including land) will increase as the value of the dollar decreases. 2) Experimenting with new varietals, blends and developing new products. 3) Aggressively examining every single dollar which I spend to ensure that I am not bleeding unnecessary expenses. 4) Trade profit for market share by reducing the retail price of my product. The goal in any recession is to survive.

Bottom line: The physics of money demands that inflation will return. The savvy business person will survive the downturn and prepare themselves for the inevitable (inflationary) recovery.

~ Terry

2007 Trimbach Riesling, Alsace France

2010-05-12T19:48:00.005-04:00

Terry post:

Summer Wine Series.

Customers are always right and when I was Wine Director at Restaurant 219 we selected several Riesling wines for the list to suit the wants, needs and desires of our diners. We had some that were overly sweet and some which were just right.

Visiting the Restaurant again a few weeks ago I had the pleasure of sampling the 2007 Trimbach Riesling. In a word: fantastic.

Where Riesling too often has the reputation of being overly sweet and abundantly fragrant, Trimbach provides a graceful and understated contribution to the genre.

My impression: Light golden in the glass. Apple, peach and citrus on the nose. Crisp. Clean. Not sweet at all, holding with a moderately acidic backbone to make for a food-friendly wine. Enduring long finish with apples and peaches. Highly recommended.

Second thoughts: Rieslings are often done poorly with vintners bowing to the temptation to create an overly sweet and overly floral offering. It is the restraint and the grace of this wine which rewards the drinker and for which I find so appealing. There is a lot of great stuff going on here, and it is not at all loud or clumsy in the process.

This is the wine equivalent of Audrey Hepburn descending the stairs in the movie, "Breakfast at Tiffany's". And, like all things Hepburn, it is not to be missed.

$18-$20 at retail.

~ Terry

What Goldman Sachs Can Tell us About Aggregating the Sale of Iowa Wines

2010-05-10T15:18:00.007-04:00

Terry post:

It is nearly impossible to pick up a newspaper or watch the evening news without the alleged misbehavior of Goldman Sachs being pushed into our faces. They, it seems, were able to play the market and make money on the sale of real estate tranches without regard if the market value increased or the market value decreased. Sweet.

Absent from all reporting which I have read has been any mention of how challenging that proposition truly is. Most investment bankers take positions on one side and hedge the other: it appears that Goldman was "all in" on both the puts and the calls.

The wine industry operates in a challenging patchwork of state and federal rules, regulations and laws. The three-tiered marketing channels (distributor, wholesaler & retailer) act as a filter to limit broad market access by smaller vintners as economies of scale are required at the distributor level. Without sufficient inventory to spread over the distributors territory they won't give you a second look. Small wineries suffer most under this marketing schema.

Investment bankers such as Goldman Sachs don't always own the product which they are selling: that is one way to hedge risk. Wineries, on the other hand, almost always own the product that they sell: all risk is carried on the shoulders of the vintner and his/her family. A good year can be wildly profitable while a bad year can be disastrous.

How than can small wineries in Iowa replicate the financial success of Goldman Sachs - and avoid jail time for that matter?

Think of scale. Small wineries have to find a way to look and act big. Think of the aggregation which Goldman Sachs performed with the real estate which they bundled and sold. The took lots and lots of small mortgages and packaged them into something large which appeared to have low risk and high profitability.

What then is the wine analogy? Aggregate and self-representation.

If I were an Iowa vintner I would create the wine equivalent of the real estate tranche:

I would create a corporation to bundle and represent Iowa wines to distributors. This would be the corporate entity which could, by aggregation, create the volume of wines which are interesting to the distributors.
I would select a handful of wineries careful to choose a focused array of varietals and regions within the state. Iowa still hasn't identified it's trademark wine. The selections in the wine tranche needs to be wide enough to cover the state, yet narrow enough to maintain quality.
I would also direct-market the product in a similar fashion to the California Wine Club. Establish a two-bottle monthly distribution to those who have visited tasting rooms of the wineries in the aggregation.

Bottom line: As long as small wineries think small they will remain small. Growth will require innovative marketing practices acting in parallel with the development of high quality products.

~ Terry

Lips as Sweet as Strawberry Wine

2010-05-02T18:16:00.002-04:00

Brad Post:

The Two Wine Brothers recently began writing about summer wines with my older brother leading the way. His reviews have included pieces on Vermouth, White Zinfandel, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. My contributions to the Summer Wine Series will focus on Midwestern wines.

Few things remind me more of the beginning of summer than a trip to a strawberry farm and my first review captures the pure essence of that. When I was much younger and living in Belding, Michigan I used to find occasional work as a field-hand in nearby strawberry farms, bending over I'd pick one for the owner and then I'd pick one for the worker – yum! This wine takes me back to those wonderfully rose-colored memories, strikingly similar to the rose-colored hues of the wine I am about to describe.

Few wines elicit such romantically inspired verse as does strawberry wine – “lips as sweet as strawberry wine”.

This Strawberry wine is the winner of a Silver Medal in the 2009 Mid-American Wine Competition and was crafted by Breitenbach Winery. Located near Dover, Ohio, Breitenbach makes a wide assortment of wines and is well known for creating lovely fruit wines in addition to their traditional line of grape wine.

You want a fruit wine to deliver fruit aromas and flavors and this NV Breitenbach Strawberry American Wine provides heaps of it! Moreover, you want your strawberry wine to look, well, to look like strawberries and it does! Potent fresh strawberries on the nose and in the glass, rich and thick legs suggest a sweet wine. My palate was pleasantly surprised with a blast of STRAWBERRIES in a gorgeously balanced, just the right amount of sweetness (6% residual sugar) and acidity. RECOMMENDED!

This summertime strawberry sweetie is the kind of wine that arouses the poetic side of me and so I’ll end this posting with a short poem by “The Flowing Pen”:

Strawberry Wine

A seductive potion to bring me bliss

As I drink it off of your sultry lips

And your fingers intertwine with mine

Lust brought forth from strawberry wine

A taste that pales the sweetest nectar

As I lie in your arms lost forever

Two bodies joining like moon and sun

Passion drives us until we are one

An aphrodisiac some could very well say...

Who ever knew that love would feel this way

I'd like to sit and drink with you one more time

Toasting love and laughter with Strawberry Wine

~THE FLOWING PEN~

1-26-04

Cheers my friends, enjoy all that summertime has to offer and I hope you’ll take time to seek out the Midwestern wines I suggest.

~Brad

2008 Teldeschi White Zinfandel, California

2010-04-28T19:20:00.001-04:00

Terry post:

Summertime truly is the time to relax with one's friends and what goes better with friends and summertime than a nice quaffable wine?

For many wine drinkers, White Zinfandel is the perfect summer drink. Easy to find. Easy to buy and easy to drink.

White Zinfandel is also the Rodney Dangerfield of wines as it doesn't get any respect. Many WZs are one-dimensional quaffs with overwhelming fruit (usually strawberries) on the nose, moderate alcohol and a low price.

When a WZ comes along and pushes the boundaries: that is something worth talking about.

My impressions: Medium pink in the glass. First in the glass my immediate impression was CHARDONNAY. As it opened up the initial predominant Chardonnay nose softened to crushed raspberries with a hint of flowers. Slightly tannic - think of crushed grape seeds. Moderate acidity on the ripe-berry finish. Recommended.

Second and Third Thoughts: Much, much more interesting than the Beringer White Zinfandel which I sampled a few weeks back. Decent acidity - some food pairing options here. There is a hint of woodiness here which is most noticeable on the finish and I don't know if this is a result of the wine spent any time in oak. One day after tasting I begin, I see this wine as more of a Rose than a WZ.

I think you'd find this an interesting alternative to the too-sweet, run-of-the mill White Zinfandel's.

$9.95 at The Wine Seller in Herndon, VA.

~ Terry

Counterfeit Wine?

2010-04-21T18:46:00.010-04:00

Terry post:

How difficult is it to sell counterfeit wine? I would estimate that it is only slightly more difficult than it is to make counterfeit wine.

David Molyneux-Berry is very a knowledgeable wine guy having run Sotheby's wine sales. In 2007 he noted that, “...one of Château Lafleur's late owners had said that only five magnums of the 1947 Lafleur were produced, yet 18 magnums purportedly containing this legendary Bordeaux have been auctioned off in the last three years alone.”1

Should you worry about the contents of your wine cellar?

It is not like counterfeiting dollars: the Treasury doesn’t worry about fake $1 bills, but they do worry a lot about fake $100 bills. Conventional wisdom would have you believing that only rich collectors have a problem. Not so.

E&J Gallo’s supplier of pinot noir for their Red Bicyclette brand stands accused of diluting that wine with less expensive varietals including merlot and syrah. While not an expensive fake on a bottle basis, a small fraud multiplied several hundred thousand times equals a lot of money.2

But the rich guys have issues too.

Billionaire wine collector and all-around interesting guy Bill Koch filed suit in March against Christie’s International accusing them of conspiracy to defraud. His complaint goes back a few years when he purchased bottles of French wine which, it was claimed, had been owned by Thomas Jefferson. Research, which only a billionaire could afford, resulted in Koch’s claims that the Jefferson bottles were fakes. He has also recently hired wine detectives to comb his 35,000 bottle collection to seek out other fakes. He is also considering lawsuits agains Zachys, and Acker Merrall & Condit for selling fakes.

What then, does this mean for the average wine drinker?

It really means nothing. I'd be thrilled were I to learn that a multi-millionaire wine collector was reading this blog for guidance, but I consider THAT to be highly unlikely. For someone like Mr. Koch who will spend $500,000 for one bottle of wine - the issue is real. Yet, he has the means to conduct due diligence on bottles of that pedigree.

What is likely that individuals such as you and I will continue to visit our wine stores and shop for the brands and varietals which we have come to know and trust.

Bottom line: Will we drink a fake wine or two in our lifetimes? Likely so. Will we be able to tell the difference? Likely not.

~ Terry

¹ http://www.slate.com/id/2173361/

² http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/42288

Interview: Tim Pearson, 7 Springs Vineyard - Part 2

2010-04-21T15:39:00.001-04:00

ONLINE INTERVIEW – PART 2

Two Wine Brothers: Wine making is a capital-intensive business with the time between when you plant the grapes and you are able to put bottles on the shelves of retailers is measured in years. How has the global recession impacted your ability to raise capital?

Tim Pearson/7Springs Vineyard: Building a wine making facility from scratch is a very capital intensive business, you are correct. I am in a fortunate position to have an established business which has helped fund the development of the vineyard, winery and tasting room. Vaughan and I are going to use money we have in our pension funds to finance the building of the winery and tasting room, so you can see the absolute commitment we have for Seven Springs (the name, co-incidentally comes from the seven natural springs in the nearby spa town of Caledon).

Architect Rendering of Seven Springs Winery

The global recession has had an impact on my UK business but this has not been significant. We have merely stood still, in terms of growth, for a couple of years. What impacts us most is currency fluctuation. To give you an example, since we purchased the land in 2006 the £ Sterling / South African Rand has varied between 11 Rand to the £ up to 18 Rand to the £. This effect will obviously have the reverse consequence when it comes to exporting our wines.

So to answer your question; we have not needed to borrow a penny (or should I say a cent) from the banks. At the moment we have put the winery build on hold as the current exchange rate is around 11 Rand to the £. Once the £ strengthens against the Rand we will transfer the money over and commence the building.

Two Wine Brothers: The post-Mandela political landscape has been soft on "property rights". How are you managing the risk of losing your vineyards by government expropriation?

Tim Pearson/7Springs Vineyard: First, can I say the current political situation in South Africa is far fairer than it was during the apartheid era. I have no idea what will happen in South Africa in the future, just as I do not know who will be in power in the USA or in the UK in a few years time. If there are government ‘land grabs’, or expropriation as you put it, so be it, we will have little influence over that.

We are in the fortunate position of having an income, and a capital asset with no debts, from my business in England, we own our house here in England and one in Le Marche in Italy. So, as the saying goes, we do not have all of our eggs in the one basket. Life itself is not without risk and I fully understand that things can go wrong. I have never been interested in wealth creation; the idea of creating something special from scratch is much more appealing, so we do have provision for different scenarios.

Two Wine Brothers: Now that your first vintage (2010) is behind you and resting in barrels/tanks, when do you anticipate releasing your first wines? Can you elaborate a little on where and when consumers will ultimately be able to find your products in general, and in the United States, in particular?

Riana van der Merwe, Winemaker

Tim Pearson/7Springs Vineyard: We will release our first wines, Sauvignon Blanc and our un-oaked Chardonnay, around July/August of this year. We will await Riana’s, our winemaker, decision as to when the wine is ready to bottle. We have no commercial pressure to ‘get the wine on the shelves’ and would rather release the wine when it is perfect to drink.

Our lightly oaked Chardonnay (in second fill barrels) and our Syrah will be ready mid 2011. For our first year we were going to release only in South Africa and the UK, concentrating on building our brand and our market in our ‘home’ markets. However, we have been overwhelmed by the interest that we have had from the USA and are reconsidering our options regarding the US. We have been in talks with Fiona Phillips, who runs an online, South African only, wine retailing business. Fiona, is English but based in Franschhoek, South Africa, and is establishing her business to export these wines into 26 US states from May 2010. Check out the Cybercellar website www.cybercellar.com as she has an exceptional portfolio of wines at very reasonable prices.

Two Wine Brothers: We look forward to the opportunity to experience the 7 Springs Vineyard wines as they become available and wish Tim Pearson and his family much success. Please take this opportunity to visit his website – 7Springs Vineyard!

Thank you, Tim!

Two Wine Brothers,
Brad & Terry Johnson