Archive for January, 2017

Your Job As a Wine Shop Owner, Part

January 31st, 2017

We’ve written before about what your job is as the owner of a small wine shop. I’ve found another short, quick read that lays out the same idea: unless your shop caters solely to the very well off, your job is to find interesting wines that don’t break the bank. [level-members] Recently in his New York Times […]

Wine Industry News for January 30, 20

January 30th, 2017

Worries over the wine market and wine labor, the odd economics of wine fakes and why an empty bottle can be worth $300, and a fizzy fight in Italy. [level-members] The Washington Post reports that 2017 is shaping up to be troubling for the wine industry in the US, with concerns over the strength of […]

Food & Wine Pairing: Lambrus

January 27th, 2017

Lambrusco isn’t exactly a forgotten varietal, but it is hardly a go-to wine for many people. That should change given the wide range of foods with which it pairs well. [level-members] First, let’s make sure we’re talking about the same thing here: well made Lambrusco today is not the sickly sweet stuff of yore anymore […]

Wine Stories Worth Sharing: The Silly, The Strange, And Some Sexi

January 26th, 2017

Salt and wine: science or silliness? Strange fish stories from Japan, Lambrusco, bad pairings, and barrel tales. [level-members] From Prima in the UK, we learn (from Nathan Myhrvold, no less) that salt just might be able to rescue that bad bottle you’ve opened. I don’t have much experience with evil spirits (as in ghosts, not […]

How Long Will That Bottle of Wine Las

January 25th, 2017

How long will that bottle of wine last once you’ve opened it? [level-members] That’s a question worth answering for your wine shop customers, social media followers, and email subscribers. No doubt, you’ve done plenty of inadvertent experimentation on your own, but there are other resources that can help fill in any holes in your personal […]

Making Your Wine Shop Different While Making a Differen

January 24th, 2017

We talk all the time of the importance to your business of being different, but being different for different’s sake is often just plain weird. You want to be different in a way that makes a difference for your customers and that sets you apart from your competition. [level-members] Here’s a way to consider. Washington […]

Wine Industry News for January 23, 20

January 23rd, 2017

Wine and women, Phylloxera, Meritage, and more, including wine bottles designed to fit your mail slot. [level-members] Given events in the larger world, sexism in the wine biz is worth talking about, and that’s exactly what this article on Wine Searcher does. Bad news bugs in Colorado, where Phylloxera has been found in four vineyards over […]

Food & Wine Pairing: Rack of Lamb and Other Winter Wonde

January 20th, 2017

You don’t have to spend a lot to put an excellent wine on the table alongside an impressive meal. [level-members] From Wine Enthusiast, we offer this straightforward and simple rack of lamb recipe that pairs beautifully with any number of big reds. They are suggesting a pretty pricey Pinot Noir and Tempranillo, but you can […]

Wine Stories Worth Sharing – January 19, 20

January 19th, 2017

Tough grapes, canned wine, the problem with flutes, and alarmist news about white wine. [level-members] First, Wine Enthuisiast offers us “an informal survey” of canned wines for your next mobile, outdoor adventure. I have to admit I’m shocked at the variety of options. Then we have our first of two alarmist pieces for the day: […]

Wine Shop Marketing: Be the Same, But Differe

January 18th, 2017

It can be hard to stick to your guns and carve out a unique, defensible niche for yourself and your wine shop. The pressure is constant to just give the people what they want. Here’s a way you may be able to do both. [level-members] Let’s take, for example, the current rage (which we admit […]