XChateau Wine Podcast

From an outsider's perspective, Jason Wise, director of the SOMM movies and founder of SOMM TV, has been able to find stories in the world of wine that interest a broad audience. To control more of the content pipeline and how the shows are distributed, Jason founded SOMM TV. Using "Somm" as more of a curator, SOMM TV has wine at its core and covers food, travel, and other alcohol, making it appealing to a broad (and younger) audience. Learn more about the business of wine films in this episode of XChateau! 

Detailed Show Notes: 

SOMM movie (2012) - Genesis of the movie

• Made when he was fresh out of film school (where he didn't focus on documentaries)
• Met Brian McClintic, who asked him to watch their tasting practice
• Jason found the practice similar to a sporting event
• Met Ian Cauble and found his determination to become a Master Sommelier

The success of the film

• The obsessive personalities made the film
• Builds to an actual event (the MS exam)
• The wine industry was ready for something like the movie
• Not a "wine film," a different way of looking at wine
• Introduced a new group of people who can tell you what to drink (vs magazines)
• Documentaries became popular with Netflix
• Not made by wine people, the outsider perspective made it enjoyable for outsiders

Media business model

• Movies usually have a distributor
• Theaters are a big marketing arena for wine
• iTunes - make a % of revenue
• Netflix - pays the distributor a fixed fee; if put on the 1st page, it can reach millions of people. It often pays based on what it costs to make. They can own rights outright or rent the film
• Amazon - get paid 6+ months after it's up, get a tiny cut of incremental revenue
• YouTube - don't make any money on
• Created SommTV to control more steps in the business model - more control of content pipeline, partnerships, and a place to premiere new films (e.g., SOMM 4)
• Before Covid - events were a big part of the business

Media platforms

• Hulu - Jason's favorite, takes the biggest swings in content
• Stars - has the best movies
• Netflix - very careful; content is very similar to each other; often licenses something then makes their version if it works (e.g., Uncorked is a similar series to Somm)

Cost of making films

• Big range - SOMM 2 ~$100k vs ~$850k for another wine film made by someone else
• Documentaries - can be millions, when there's real music, at least $500k
• Do not pay people to be in the film

SommTV business model

• Employees on salary, which is unusual in film
• 90% original content
• It started with originals and, now, trying to license other content
• Focused on wine, food, and alcohol; food is going to be a big part
• It started the streaming service because it's an underserved audience, and wanted to super-serve them
• Content pipeline - they would ideally love to have new content every day
• Hundreds of thousands of subscribers (as of Jan 2022) - believes the potential audience is in the millions
• "Somm" is defined by Jason as someone who curates - wine at the center, but food, travel, etc…surrounding it
• Pricing - $6/month, $50/year
• Lower cost doesn't necessarily mean more subscribers
• Technology - a mix of own-developed and 3rd party apps; the goal is to bring the technology in-house

SommTV subscribers

• Younger, usually 24-37 years old (~70%), middle class
• Screenings/events - more varied audience
• 52% male, 48% female - women growing fast
• Key markets - US largest by far, UK, Brazil, Nordic countries (not allowed in Iran or China)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Frustrated by a lack of understanding of consumer taste preferences and a lack of data-driven decision-making about winemaking, Katerina Axelsson, CEO and Co-Founder of Tastry, built an AI and chemical analysis system to solve this. With custom-built algorithms that take chemical analysis and develop flavor profiles and a database of consumer taste preferences that map to the US’s 248M adults, Tastry is paving a new, innovative way to use data to make and market wine.

Detailed Show Notes: 

Tastry was founded around 6 years ago, but 1st 4 were more of an R&D project, officially launched Dec 2021

• The wine industry is trying to anticipate what consumers want
• New wines have an 85% failure rate in the 1st year
• People describing flavors in wine doesn’t correlate with if they like it

Tastry uses AI and Machine Learning with chemical analysis to break down a wine’s flavor

2 databases - wine’s flavor profile and consumer taste preferences that are matched together

Wine database

• Analyze 10,000’s of wines/year
• Chemical analysis is done in-house on standardized equipment but with proprietary software
• The Top 2,000 wines based on IRI annually are analyzed to build a baseline data set as wineries’ samples are proprietary

Consumer taste database

• Did double-blind tasting panels, asking consumers if they both liked or did not like wines; the negative preference is important for the flavor profile building
• Consumers also asked analog questions that became the Recommended by Tastry quiz
• Use algorithms to relate data and predict preferences for the rest of the population (248M taste profiles)
• Can now predict individual consumer taste profiles if they take the Tasty quiz with 93% accuracy in how they would rate the wine
• Palates are very unique; the largest cohort is only 13 people
• Demographics don’t show a lot of differences in taste preferences

Customers - work with >100 wineries, 22 of 25 largest wineries

Winemaker use cases

• Computational Blending - uses simulation to match profiles from different blends and adjustments; winemakers set parameters on what they are trying to achieve
• Winery had to switch from barrels to adjustments to 5x production and used blending to get a similar profile
• Navigating smoke taint (3k tons, $10M worth of fruit) - came back with a recipe that solved the issue
• Maintaining year-over-year consistency

Winery marketing use cases

• Recommended by Tastry plug-in for wine clubs
• Look more at finished wines and at competitive sets and overlap of consumer preferences

Retailer use cases

• Recommender helps get more niche brands discovered
• There is more traction for e-retailers now; pilots with big box retailers
• Dec 2023 - Tastrt will announce a scalable way to access a broad # of wines

Strong ROI - 44-215x, benefits mainly cost savings, increased revenue

Business model - Vertical SaaS with consumption-based model

• Subscription to dashboard
• Lab analysis of samples provides ~$3,000 worth of analysis for a $370 list price
• Compublend - per simulation charge
• Access to competitive data sets from the Top 2,000 wines
• Pricing is the same for winemakers, marketing, and retailers

Raised ~$10M in funding from individuals, early stage VC’s, and strategic investors (wine, AI, retail)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the first iconic wine of Chile, Don Melchor has paved a path for many others to follow. Enrique Tirado, CEO and Technical Director, explains the vision behind Don Melchor, how it became an instant icon of Chile, and how it stays on top of its game.  

Detailed Show Notes: 

Enrique’s background - studied agronomy and enology, joined Don Melchor in 1993, became winemaker in 1997, in 2011, Don Melchor Winery was created and became CEO

Don Melchor overview:

• One specific vineyard in Puente Alto on the north bank of the Maipo River at the foot of the Andes Mountains
• 1st vintage - 1987
• 127ha, 151 parcels
• Mainly Cabernet Sauvignon
• Uses ~60-70% of the vineyard for Don Melchor wine
• ~12-15k cases of 1 wine produced each year

“One unique history, one terroir, one wine” is the ethos behind Don Melchor

The remainder of the fruit goes to other wines in the Concho y Toro portfolio (e.g., Marquis de Casa Concha)

Becoming an iconic Chilean wine

• It was 1st to create an “icon” wine in Chile
• It was the most expensive Chilean wine on initial release
• 1988, 2nd vintage, was in the Top 100 of Wine Spectator - the only Chilean wine and a big deal at the time which established Don Melchor’s status
• A string of critical praise - WS Top 100 9x, 3x in the Top 10, 100 points from James Suckling, Best of the Best from Robb Report

Export 90% of the wine to 70 countries; main markets include the US, Brazil, China

Becoming iconic today

• It is easier for other Chilean wines as Chile’s reputation is more established
• The country’s image is critical and requires collaboration with other producers
• Consistency of quality is critical for both winemaking and the commercial side
• Add value to the wine world - e.g., come from a unique place, have a unique expression and personality

May create a 2nd wine in the future

Staying on top

• Requires a singular focus on quality and consistency
• Need to focus on communication and optimizing the best routes to market
• Wine critics are still important, and they make consumer communication faster
• Customized routes to market by country (e.g., US, Brazil) and have offices in different countries

Sold by the Concha y Toro sales force

• Have a specific team for premium wines
• Not on La Place de Bordeaux 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the #2 global wines & spirits company, Pernod Ricard seriously emphasizes promoting its brands globally. One method of doing this is its global network of Brand Ambassadors (“BA”). Fabyola Soares, Global Senior Wine Education Manager at Martell Mumm Perrier-Jouët, describes her team of 30 Brand Ambassadors, their mission, their role, and what traits make them great.  

Detailed Show Notes: 

Fabyola's background - studied to be a sommelier in Brazil, joined Pernod Ricard in 2013 as 1st Champagne Ambassador in Brazil, now oversees global education program and Champagne & Provence Brand Ambassadors (“BA”)

Pernod Ricard (“PR”) is #2 worldwide in wines & spirits, >200 premium brands (e.g., Absolut Vodka, GH Mumm, Perrier-Jouët)

Pernod Ricard has a range of Brand Ambassador programs

• Programs overseen by brand owner
• The oldest program is for Jameson Irish Whisky, founded in 1991 with 80 BAs in 15 markets worldwide
• BA programs don’t span multiple categories but could represent similar ones, e.g., 2 Champagne houses
• The scope varies by market - e.g., Hong Kong BA represents Champagnes and Provence, France - different BAs for each house, US - 1 Sr BA for Champagne

Champagne & Provence Brand Ambassador program

• 30 BAs, 15 international markets

Brand Ambassador roles

• Targets trade and passionate consumers
• Mission - “to win hearts and minds”
• Engage in brand education, trade activation, business development, interact with media/journalists, organize cellar master visits, and teach wine certification programs
• Collaborates with marketing and commercial teams
• Don’t sell wine - commercial teams (Private Client Directors, Prestige Sales Teams) responsible for sales across the portfolio
• Career paths - can be promoted to senior BA or join global market and strategy team (7 former BAs work there)

Rare wine offers - mostly sold via auctions (e.g., 1874 Perrier-Jouët sold at Christie’s in 2021 for a record £42,875) or private client directors

Key Brand Ambassador traits

• Need to be credible and respected by experts - focus on formal wine training, launched WSET in-house and developed Champagne Specialist Course with the Wine Scholar Guild
• Must embody house essence and be an effective spokesperson
• 4 key characteristics PR recruits for - passion for wine, strong communications skills, adaptability/resilience, and spontaneous charisma
• Must be able to personalize interactions and customize messaging to meet customers’ interests
• Prior relationships are a plus, depending on the level being recruited for

Building relationships

• PR founder often said, “Make a new friend every day” - key for BAs
• Commercial teams will make introductions to local customers
• Connect with as many people as possible, often surprised by who brings in new business opportunities

Benefits of relationships with BAs - e.g., invitations to curated events and experiences such as the Belle Époque Society by Perrier-Jouët

Social media is more important in some markets (e.g., Brazil) than others

PR also has Lifestyle Ambassadors (part of the Marketing team) who have social media as a KPI

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the aim of safeguarding the wines of personality from special vineyards (or “pagos”) from across Spain, the Grandes Pagos de España is a private group of wineries on the forefront of Spanish wine. President María del Yerro, of Alonso del Yerro, and VP Enrique Valero, CEO of Abadía Retuerta, discuss the history, objectives, how to join, and their new Terroir Workshop Series.  

Detailed Show Notes: 

María’s background - was a translator, husband took over family winery in Rioja, 2002 - bought a 56ha vineyard and started Alonso del Yerro

Enrique’s background - worked at Diageo and Gonzales Byass, became CEO of Abadía Retuerta

Grandes Pagos de España (“GPE”) history

• 2000 - 5 wineries established Grand Pagos de Castilla
• 2003 - included other wineries from Spain and renamed to GPE
• 35 wineries, all single vineyards
• Pago is defined like “terroir”, a vineyard with different characteristics
• Common Goal: produce exceptional wines that reflect unique terroir
• Inspired by VDP and French concept of Grand Cru, but adapted to Spanish context

Goals & Objectives of GPE

• Promote and safeguard “diversity and personality” of wines
• Foster research and innovation
• Conduct educational and promotional activities

Criteria for joining

• Most wineries apply to be a member
• Criteria - single vineyard, 100% estate fruit, min 5 years of internationally recognized quality, must pass internal tasting committee that assesses the personality of the vineyard
• Most vineyards ~50-75ha
• Some wineries may produce wines that are not Grand Pagos

Member benefits and requirements

• Fees based on quota system by # of bottles produced (3 levels - <40k, 40-150k, >150k bottles), no winery is >500k bottles
• Networking w/ other wineries; e.g. - winemakers meet 2x / year to share learnings
• Promotion of wines domestically & internationally (e.g. - wine fairs, education)
• No logo on label

Priority markets

• Spain is the primary market
• 4 international focuses - USA (include for broader influence of press and blogs), Mexico, UK, Switzerland

GPE wines at least 4-5x more expensive than avg price of Spanish wine (~$40-300/bottle in the US)

Wine tourism program - many GPE wineries will showcase other GPE wineries in their tastings

KPIs for GPE include # of people at events, PR/comms results, results of last 10 years of new applicant tastings

Marketing GPE

• Building CRM of trade / sommeliers from tastings to keep in touch
• Partner w/ wine influencers, somms, other associations
• Highest impact initiatives: US - big tastings; Spain - tastings w/ somms

Launching a new Terroir Workshop Series

• Main push for the next 3-5 years
• Global education program for concept of pagos and 35 GPE wineries
• Starting in US, Mexico
• 3 brand ambassadors chosen and trained - help bring a 3rd party voice and local perspective on GPE
• Partnered w/ Gregory + Vine - helped clarify messaging and identified brand ambassadors
• Designed primarily for wine trade

Next priorities for GPE

• Climate change
• Global competition - need to maintain a high reputation
• Sustainability and social responsibility

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Having existed through the glory and the doldrums of German wine, the VDP, the association of top wine growers in Germany, has set out to re-establish German wine as one of the finest in the world. With 20 years under its belt, the Grosses Gewachs (“GG”) system has elevated the status of dry German wines in a short time. Theresa Olkus, Managing Director, and Steffen Christmann, President, discuss the history, goals, and role of the VDP and how the GG classification is bringing quality back to dry German wine. 

Detailed Show Notes: 

Verband Deutscher Prädikats- und Qualitätsweingüter (“VDP”)

• “P” standards for quality, those looking to produce top wines from top vineyards
• The goal is to bring the global recognition of German wines back to when the wines were considered some of the best in the world
• 201 members (2023), up from 160 members (1990)
• 10 regional associations

VDP history

• Started end of 19th century
• A movement to counter the industrial winemaking trend
• Created quality requirements (e.g. - estate bottling, wine was sold in auction by the barrel and bottled elsewhere; no additions except sulfur, sugar was added before)
• Post WWI/WWII - cheap, sweet wines became popular
• German Wine Law of 1971 - created quality classification based on must weights, varietal agnostic, leading to consumer confusion
• The late 70s/early 80s - German wine quality sank (yields too high), and the law created consumer label confusion, leading to VDP revamp, focus on vineyard sites

Joining the VDP

• 1990-2023 - 130 new members, 1-2 new members/year
• Must fulfill criteria, blind tasting, vineyard, and cellar inspection
• You can’t apply or buy a membership; a region must invite a winery

Benefits for VDP members

• Knowledge sharing 
• Leveraging the VDP brand (eagle logo) - an international sign of quality
• VDP events and marketing
• Exporting expertise - 27% of VDP wines exported

Leaving the VDP

• 1-2 members/year leave
• Most coached to leave
• Mostly leave post generational change - don’t want to follow VDP rules, quality not at the top level

Dry German wines

• Traditional style before 1900
• Germans drink as much dry as anywhere else in the world, and the reputation for sweet wines is an international perspective
• Historically - 2-3% potential abv difference between entry-level and best wines. Today, due to climate change, the sugar levels are the same; only the yields and quality of site create differences
• ~60-70% of VDP members don’t make sweet wines, Mosel/Nahe most make sweet, Rheinghau ~20-30% do sweet

Grosses Gewächs (“GG”)

• 2002 - implemented in all regions, started w/ Rheingau 1994/5, Pfalz 1996
• Created positive brand for dry German wines - increase in the average price of GG wines - 2002 - €16, 2023 - €40 (range from €25-150+)
• German market response was positive, creating pride in German wines
• UK pushback - writers thought dry German wines were too sour and lacked quality; last to adopt the new style, only in the last 5 years
• Scandinavia - a hot spot for German wine
• Elements for GG success - wineries can only make 1 GG wine from 1 Grosses Lage site; wines have gotten better
• Significant markets for GG - used to be Northern Europe, Asia (China, S Korea, Thailand, Singapore)
• Africa/India/S America - not strong for German wines
• More than Riesling - Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, Silvaner

The next priorities for VDP

• Renewing German Wine Law, potentially moving VDP classification into law
• Sustainability/climate change

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the wine director and partner of the Lettuce Entertain You restaurant group, Richard Hanauer oversees ~100 restaurants' wine programs. Seeing beverage sales grow from single digits to ~20% of sales, Richard discusses the role beverage plays in restaurants, sommeliers, the elements of good wine programs, and his newest wine country themed concept, Oakville Grill & Cellar. 

Detailed Show Notes: 

Lettuce Entertain You ("LEY")

• ~100 restaurants in Chicago/IL, CA, NV, FL, TX, VA, DC
• Partitions of different culinary groups

Beverage impact on sales - can be 0% - 50% of sales

• Fine dining and wine sales used to have a positive correlation
• More casual concepts w/high-end beverage programs (e.g., luxury whiskey w/ casual BBQ)
• LEY - Wine was single digit of sales, now high teens-20% over the last 20 years
• The volume of sales driven through by the glass ("BTG") programs (e.g., RPM Seafood sells 4-5x Pinot Grigio vs. Sancerre, which is 2x the price)
• Wine program drives return visits vs. initial visits - people come back for the person who recommended the bottle

Definition of a good wine program

• Used to be verticals of great traditional producers
• Now, more about how the wine program fits into the restaurant (e.g., Piedmont wines w/ Piedmont food)
• Need good stemware; not great stemware
• Wines at the right temperature and match the menu

Role of the Sommelier

• Operations - wine binning/storage, ordering, tasting, building wine menus
• When not involved in wine, they should be "hospitalians," helping with everything else
• Best somms build relationships with wineries (get access to unique wines) and guests (getting them into the right bottle, not the most expensive -> brings customers back)
• Average fine dining ratios - 24 tables, 1 somm per 12 tables

Somm turnover

• Pre-Covid - average tenure 18 months
• Re-training takes 6-12 months
• LEY - tries to retain employees, treats them well w/ 401k, benefits, opportunities to grow career w/in LEY

Restaurant pricing

• Rent is the most significant expense -> increases COGS for everything, including wine
• Food/cocktail ingredients are blended together, but wine is not, making pricing a more significant issue
• Goal - keep COGS down while holding price (sometimes achieved through relationship w/ wineries)
• Try to get less available wines - have less price transparency
• Markups lower on higher-end wines - standard markups would make the wines unsellable

Oakville Grill & Cellar - opened April 2023

• CA wine area themed restaurant
• Napa inspiration - "Never pretentious, never formal…very comfortable, pleasurable, elevated service & quality of food, rarely decor"
• The entire wine program is from CA

Cellar Door - tasting studio w/in Oakville Grill

• 6 person suite
• Partners w/ different winery every month
• Re-creates the winery tasting list down to vintage and wine pricing
• Gets training from the winery
• Guests can sign up for winery, take home wine
• ~500 guests/month capacity (4 seatings/night, 5 days/week)
• Winery requirements: right pricing (not low or high), interesting tasting list, pedigree, make sense w/Chicago's seasonality, open to all of CA
• Also, BTG in Oakville Grill and usually on the wine list before and after

Trends for Restaurants

• Authenticity - e.g., Aglianico w/ Neapolitan pizza
• Wine getting more expensive -> The cost of building a cellar is higher, which leads to more focused wine lists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a valley of ever-increasing prices, Malek Amrani of The Vice, is trying to bring value and discovery to Napa.  Producing 18 varietals from 16 sub-regions, The Vice showcases the full spectrum of Napa Valley at $29 a bottle.  Malek is “going against the grain” in many ways - focusing on value, discovery, and underserved markets to build The Vice brand for the long run.  

Detailed Show Notes: 

“The Vice” named after Malek’s main vice of wine

• Focused on value and discovery of Napa Valley

Production

• 27k cases total
• ~65% house tier, ~30% single vineyard tier (~20 wines/year), ~5% ultra-premium
• #1 SKU is House Napa Cab - ~11k cases
• They make 18 varietals, from 14-16 sub-regions w/in Napa, a little bit of Russian River Pinot and Chardonnay
• Sources both fruit and bulk wine

Cost mitigation measures

• Secure better pricing through pre-paying for grapes
• Being proactive - purchasing fruit from southern Napa vineyards in 2020 that weren’t impacted by fires, talked to 12-15 glass distributors to mitigate the 200-300% price increases

Focused on the wholesale channel (~80% of sales)

• Spends ~75% of the time outside Napa working markets
• In 2020, traveled every month except April working w/ retailers -> 100% success rate, added 400 retailers in NYC
• FL/TX buy more single vineyard wines; NY/NE - very House tier driven, CA/CO - good mix
• FL - a red wine state (driven by Boomers), NY - big in orange wine, nearly outsold House Cab in spring 2023

Customer demographics

• Equal split - Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials / GenZ
• Orange wine (~3,500 cases) - 75% Millennials / GenZ, ~25% Gen X
• Single vineyard Cabs - ~85% Baby Boomers & Gen X, Millennials focused on lower price points
• Appellations important primarily to Boomers who grew up with Napa becoming famous, Gen X sees Napa as a symbol of status, Millennials/GenZ appellation less critical, more price-driven
• Believes Napa will remain important, driven by tourism - 4M visitors/year

Orange vs. Rosé

• Swapped production of rosé wine for orange wine
• Believes rosé hit the ceiling in 2019 - rose a more social drink, also very vintage driven with closeouts on prior vintages damaging brands

Spirits vs. wine marketing

• Spirits has lots of product innovation, e.g., many flavors of vodka -> led to The Vice producing many different varietals and Napa sub-regions
• Spirits spend millions on advertising -> likely would not work for wine; better for the brand to be built account by account w/ gatekeepers

Consumer awareness of The Vice

• 2020/2021 - spent heavily on Google, FB/IG ads, had to shift when Sept 2021 privacy laws changed
• Awareness from a lot of referrals and through retail placements
• Some social media, in-person visits, and press/media - ratings are still important
• Pair wine w/ other vices - e.g., cannabis, candy, ice cream
• Thinks about pairing w/ the senses - e.g., vision (most important), hearing, smell (linked to memory and emotion) - instrumental hip hop, sex toys for a bachelorette party
• Works under targeted regions - e.g., Staten Island and the Bronx retailers
• Likes to go against the grain - be more value-oriented vs. higher end

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Coming from a long career in technology, Kia Behnia, Founder of Neotempo Wines, was galvanized by the 2017 Napa fires to create a more sustainable path.  This started in the vineyard, where he’s utilizing technology and leveraging real-time data to improve quality and decrease cost.  Kia maps opportunities he sees in weeding, irrigation, mildew prevention, & automated crop evaluation as part of the foundation of a new “Smart Farm.”  Beyond the vineyard, Kia has redesigned what sustainable packaging means for wine for Neotempo to address the most significant shortfalls of the industry today.  

Detailed Show Notes: 

Neotempo overview

• Replanted vineyard (Kiatra), sold fruit, and now starting a winery
• 2017 Napa fires - nearly lost property, vineyards acted as a fire break, became the catalyst to focus on sustainability leveraging tech and innovation
• Creating a brand for modern times, responsible and sustainable
• Launching Fall 2023 w/ Kiatra Cab Sauv, ~$250/btl
• We will roll out less expensive wines in the future

Tech in the vineyard

• Can help solve the labor shortage (cost of labor in Napa up 38% in last two years)
• Large opportunities - weeding, irrigation, mildew prevention, automated crop evaluation
• The use of data in the vineyard is low; data is available but not integrated

Vineyard Tech examples: 

1) VineView - scans the vineyard to monitor vigor

2) Phytech - monitors soil temps for irrigation; installed 30 sensors across 4 acres / 4,000 vines; measure the stress level of vines to inform watering vs. scheduled watering

• Used 25% less water
• Able to do pre-watering for upcoming heat stress events (in a morning of high heat, 3-hour events) -> only lost 5% of the crop in 2022 vs. much more at other vineyards
• Gets real-time data at 3ft and 1ft under the soil and at canopy level
• Extending to misters in 2023 to control temp and hydration more

3) Crop Evaluations - establish the health of the vineyard at individual vine level

• Mapped and graded each vine 0-6 (0=blank, 1=rootstock only, 2=dead vine…6=healthy vine)
• Graded during the 7 stages of the growing cycle, including 1 week before harvest -> helps determine the replanting schedule
• It also uses grape samples and lab analysis (phenolics) as inputs

Exported all data into the analytics platform to do more reporting and analysis

No vineyard farming platform yet, mainly just products and features

ROI of vineyard tech - only invests in positive NPV projects

• The cost of farming went slightly up
• Believes innovation will reduce labor requirements
• Will create new capabilities - e.g., disease prevention

Challenges to moving forward

• Lack of entrepreneurship culture in farming
• Lack of funding
• Lack of openness of farmers to adopt new technologies

Neotempo packaging - building architecture for sustainable 750ml wine bottle

• Designed own lightweight, high-end bottle (550g, 40% lighter than alternatives, 100% recycled glass)
• Temp-controlled styrofoam alternative, no plastic - every component recyclable or compostable

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuing our two-part episode, William Kelley, Deputy Editor of The Wine Advocate, expounds on the evolution of the business elements of Bordeaux. From La Place de Bordeaux to wine critics' score compression, Williams shares his view on how these institutions are changing and evolving their place in Bordeaux and how that impacts big and small chateaux. 

Detailed Show Notes: 

La Place de Bordeaux

• Latour's leaving the en primeur system, but not La Place, did not have a meaningful impact, outside of when the wine is delivered, and did not tempt anyone else to leave en primeur or La Place
• Focused on the Top ~50-150 Bordeaux wines
• Now represents several non-Bordeaux wines, giving a bit more glamor for negociants to sell
• More consolidation is happening in the negociant space
• Negociants now do not have the time nor capital to care about "petite" chateaux
• Several business models emerging, including high margin or high turnover with less inventory kept
• Not a great way to build durable customers (e.g., may sell in Korea one year and Costco in Wisconsin the next)

Petite chateaux - need to differentiate and find direct distribution to be successful

Implications of health trends, consumers drinking less

• Wine with great personality continues to benefit
• Bulk wines, lower-end wines struggling (e.g., lower-end Bordeaux wines, petite chateaux)

Wine Critics

• Scores are getting inflated and compressed - lots of new critics are coming around and pushing scores up
• William believes a more credible review is more worthwhile than high scores on their own
• E.g., Burgundy doesn't get high scores, yet sells very well
• William publishes en primeur scores before the 1st release, therefore can't tell if they have any impact on pricing

Next for Bordeaux

• The 2019 vintage had lots of good deals with Covid impacts and price increases of Burgundy, making people interested in Bordeaux again
• The region needs to get people back to Bordeaux who have given up on it

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.