wine 2.0

CRM is not a four letter word

Wow! My recent post on the need for CRM in the wine world has really sparked some inspired conversation. This is an exciting time, as the more people are talking and thinking about CRM for the wine industry, the more educated they can become.

Today, Silicon Valley Bank presented their annual State of the Wine Business webinar, which reinforced the need for an integrated CRM solution at even the smallest wine business; the ability to capture, track, manipulate, and analyze data is capital if you are trying to grow a business in this ultra-competitive market.

And still, wrapping your heads around the concept of CRM as a communication methodology as well as a technology is a tricky proposition, and even as an experienced professional it is something that takes time and education to accomplish. As the wine industry is notoriously slow to adopt new tools & technologies, they continue to struggle. This however, appears to be the year of change. As markets become younger, and boomers begin to age out of the fine wine market, the GenXers are a huge market force ready to take their place. With the dot com mentality of the 34-49 year olds, we are better situated financially and more aware of the enabling technologies that can benefit the industry.

One of the most important topics of conversation has been why smaller wineries should adopt a CRM philosophy (and therefore a tool), and how it can benefit them. In addition, the question of what tool to use is key. To help wade through the milieu, here are some of my thoughts on that.

First, do you currently think in a CRM frame of mind? Keeping in mind that CRM is a mindset as well as a tool, do you understand the full picture of your customer data? Do you want to? There are several CRM solutions you can choose from. But before you even start thinking about what tool to use, you need to be prepared to shift your business practices and thinking in to a CRM frame of mind.

CRM need not be a 500 pound gorilla on your back, nor is it a four letter word. The mere mention of the acronym can draw snark from even the most tech savvy people, and makes small to midsize wineries cringe with fear. Remember that CRM is a business practice and philosophy first and foremost, and enabling technology second. You may not be aware that your current solutions architecture (website, ecommerce, emarketing solution) may already have some inherent CRM functions within. Investigate your existing systems to see what you can leverage.

The important thing is that you find a tool that allows you to view all aspects of your customer data in a single source and that you are not replicating databases across multiple systems. The impact of having siloed databases can wreak havoc, result in multiple versions of the same customer, mass emailing snafus and general grumpiness from both the customer and your employees who are wrangling the data.

There are solutions for all budgets, from simple and low cost, to complex, customizable and more costly. The question is, what do you want to do? What is your business or marketing goal? Can you get there with your current data and tools? How much time and money are you willing to invest? Do you have the visibility to the data you need at your fingertips?

Have questions? Need help? Drop me a line.

Why your wine business needs CRM

Mar 29th, 2012

by winebratsf.

16 comments

I work in technology, but my heart is in wine. Every day I see things in the wine business that frustrate me; every day I see how archaic some things can be. The wine industry is notoriously behind the times when it comes to technology, and is even slower to adapt to new methodologies.

What are the reasons behind this? Part of it is certainly economic; however part of it is exposure. As an IT specialist who spends 8-10 hours a day working in CRM and another 12 thinking about CRM and how to integrate with back office systems, I spend my days working in CRM systems and designing solutions for a wide variety of companies. And yet, while there are a few key players that are opening their eyes to the value of CRM, the wine biz in general is lacking focus in this area.

On a daily basis, I see siloed, independent systems for finance, customer service, marketing, and order entry that make up a company’s operations. Each of these systems is independent from each other, with unique data sets that may or may not replicate to the rest of the systems in use. In the world of wine, for example, you might have your retail POS, a wine club management tool, and an ecommerce or marketing tool. Switching between the systems is time consuming and clunky, as you have to periodically update tech data set and ensure that each system has an accurate record of your customer.

The need in the rest of the world for an integrated solution to provide the full picture is great. Companies not only need to see the full picture of the customer, but they need to see the full picture of operations. The methodology behind a CRM culture (and we’re not just talking tools here, but rather a way of doing business), is that you get a full, complete picture of your customer at a glance. CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, is the art of knowing your customer, and knowing how you can better service them.

Yet today, CRM is still a great mystery to many wineries. Most understand that it would be helpful, but don’t understand exactly why, or how. If you reframe what CRM is, you will begin to understand how powerful it is. More than just software, it’s a lifecycle approach to marketing. A winery that understands this, knows that CRM can help you develop targeted marketing messages to specific customer groups. A CRM ecosystem can help your customer service reps receive and resolve issues quickly and effectively, maintaining an audit trail. A CRM order entry system can track your customer likes and dislikes as well as past orders.

What does this mean for DTC sales? Everything. Imagine the power of a tool, and a mentality, that allows you to report at your fingertips. What did Jane buy last month? Are you trying to move more bottles of the 2009 Merlot? Target your offer to those that have shown a consistent order history of merlot. Conversely, target your offer to those that have never seen Merlot. With the effective use of CRM based marketing, these efforts become dynamic, and your ROI can be tracked automatically. The use of a good CRM database can allow you to market in ways you never thought possible. In truth, if you build it, and market it, they will buy.

Further expanding on the idea of ROI, there has been a lot of debate recently about whether you can measure social ROI. According to Vintank’s Paul Mabray, ROI can be measured easily if you view it at a wide angel. No longer is social ROI a one to one measurement. If you are tracking the long tail of a marketing effort, the use of an effective CRM mentality will allow you to capture traffic on your website, and new lead management in one fell swoop. Twitter and Facebook landing pages become information gathering tools that feed in to your CRM database. Some more robust tools allow you to manage these campaigns and analyze the results from within the CRM system. How many Facebook likes did you get this week? This month? Are you prepared to offer your twitter followers a special deal based on how many times they mentioned you?

Additionally, for any business to consumer company, it is imperative that you have an effective customer service system. Email is no longer the tool of choice for issue resolution. Do you have an escalation and resolution policy in your customer service department? CRM tools that are customized to your internal policies will allow you to track, escalate and assist with resolution in a timely, pleasant manner. Many tools come with knowledge bases and FAQ structures that you can populate for self service. As a consumer, if I can answer my own question with a few clicks and suggested solutions, that makes me a happier customer, and gives valuable time back to your team.

But, at the heart of CRM, lies the contact manager. The base of operations, the contact manager is the centralized database of customer information that allows you to manage customer information across platforms. No longer do you have to update the customer information in multiple systems. This is a huge win for a customer, as I have had personal experiences where my information is different for each of the different people I talk to at the same company. This should never happen in this age. A good CRM system has a customer portal that allows for self service; enter this portal, and you enter the world of the customer. Can I update my own email address or subscription information? What about shipping data?

But, CRM is not a panacea for all that is wrong in the wine industry technology wise. Each system is only as smart as those that design it. You need to choose the tool that is appropriate for your business, but you also need to instill a culture of CRM within your employee ranks. Getting your data correct and maintaining it are constant battles in my world; the good news is, with technology, you can automate some of this. Can’t ship to Virginia? It’s easy to create a rule that states pick up only or customer not allowed. Dummy proofing your system will allow you to give more power and confidence to your employees.

CRM offers a universal view of the customer, in as much detail as you want to go in to. Do you have information signups in your tasting room? Where does that information reside? Can you automate that process of data gathering with a laptop or ipad instead a paper sign in sheet? Having this information populate directly to your CRM database makes it instantly available across the company and therefore available for marketing purposes. If you were a customer previously, that information will be available; this allows you to redirect your marketing efforts effectively.

The most important thing is that you have management buy in, and a good business analyst to determine what your true needs are. There is nothing worse than walking in to a system that has been designed without forethought or intelligence, and trying to use that system. Can you leverage your current tools to make CRM your operating philosophy?

So, to recap, why should the wine industry adopt a customer relationship management philosophy? We all know it’s a tight market out there. How do you plan to sell more wine this year? How do you plan to segment your customer base? Too many times do I get emails from wineries that don’t know my needs or wants. Why aren’t you paying attention to me as your customer? You know I bought 5 cases of pinot last year, so what are you doing with that data/ world of the custom?

Integrated database of customers and prospects
Full service 360 degree view of your customer
Develop more targeted marketing efforts
Have the power of analytics at your fingertips
Gain insider knowledge about your customers based on existing data patterns
Integrated POS, eComm, Marketing, wine club management
Customer service at your fingertips, including self service
Measure ROI for marketing and social media marketing campaigns

What CRM tool you use can be as critical as if you use CRM at all. There are dozens of choices out there, and reasons to choose many of them. What is important to your business? Do you need to know more about the existing customer database? Do you need to integrate with your e-marketing tools already in place? Do you want to analyze social ROI? Ask yourself these questions and look to some solutions.

Many of the existing eCommerce and POS systems have some form of built in CRM functionality. Will that suit your needs, or should you consider growing beyond those solutions? What information do you need to gather to make informed marketing efforts? Can you make those decisions now based on the information you have?

There are so many options when it comes to selecting the right tool; there are tools that integrate with Gmail. There are cheap tools that stand alone. There are full service tools that can be developed in to literally anything you desire, beyond CRM. There are tools that integrate with POS and eComm solutions seamlessly.

The most important thing to remember is to view the future, and don’t box yourself in. The biggest mistake that I see in my job is that a choice was made years ago without the foresight to the growth of the business. Moving from an outdated system that is inflexible and locked down to a flexible, growth oriented system is a painful process that can cost thousands of dollars. On the flip side, you can start with a cloud based CRM tool, using strictly basic functionality, and grow that in to a full service ERP, CRM, and marketing machine.

So, where do you want to go?

Have questions? Want to know more about CRM for your business? Drop me a line and let’s see how I can help rocket you to the next level.

Lessons on being a better blogger…writer…or whatever

Aug 1st, 2011

by winebratsf.

3 comments

Wine: The final frontier

These are the voyages of the Wine Brat, Thea.
Its 5 year mission (yep, it’s true. I’ve been blogging for five years!)
To explore strange new wines
To seek out new bottles and new producers
To boldly go where no wine blogger has gone before.

These are the voyages of a wine bloggers writer and lover, trying to discover more about herself and her passion for the grape.

Recently back from a weekend in Virginia at the Wine Bloggers Conference, where both New York Times wine critfc Eric Asimov and London Financial Times wine writer Jancis Robinson gave a key note speeches, my thoughts are jumbled and varied as I think about how to be a better blogger.

Both Jancis Robinson and Eric Asimov challenge the word, and somewhat the concept – of blogger. Is "blogger" still really a valid term? Bloggers are wine writers who chose to publish on line. Traditional print media authors choose to publish on paper. Writing is what brings us all together, today. Love, true love (of the vine). I am still getting used to this idea. I am a proud blogger and I like to refer to myself that way, because if I call myself a wine writer, the mass public naturally assumes that I write for a publication. Perhaps we should be called "online wine writers".

As wine writers, Jancis challenged us to do more investigative research before we blog. Er write. While the core value of this makes sense, I question the validity of her challenge; I am not a journalist, nor do i wish to be one. While the most successful wine bloggers (not in terms of making money but in readership) have similar core writing styles, none of them assume or claim to be journalists. Nor do I. I try to be accurate and truthful in my writing, but in the end – my blog is just my blog, and musings of what I feel like talking about. one of the major reasons that I decided not to pursue writing with an online wine magazine was because I didn’t want to be subject to the editorial rules that come with being a professional writer. I write this blog so I can express my thoughts in a meaningful way, and I hope that you enjoy reading it, and share with others.

One vital point that Jancis made during her speech was that writers, print or otherwise, need to sit up and take notice that while the book is not dead, the delivery method of the written word is changing. Online, kindle, ebook readers, print, newspapers, magazine. Essentially, they are all the same thing – but the delivery method is different. I have an ipad, but most of my books are just that – books. That said, the Kindle / iPad / Nook market allows you to give readers the option of how they will choose to accept delivery of your material. I read blogs primary via an RSS reader. Some people read blogs via the web or on their phone. The point here, is that you must make your material available and readable for all sorts of platforms, as well as an international audience. Don’t localize too much or you are putting yourself in a box; I write primarily about American wines, but just one click on Google Analytics, and I know that I have international readers. The balance is maintaining my wit and style, while limiting colloquialism that would be lost on an international readership.

A key point that both Robinson and Asimov were keen to make is that if you are an online writer, you are also your own editor and publisher, and you need to understand what this means. My task is to digest these nuggets with a blogger’s mindset, and interpreted to suit your needs. Jancis further implored us, as wine writers in an online world, to hone our writing skills. I work at this every day and in every post; but there are, sadly, too many blogs that use poor grammar or just don’t make sense. If you are a ~~blogger~~ online wine writer, you should ensure that you are taking the time to digest your thoughts, and work & rework your written words. Writers of all sorts go through multiple iterations before their words are put to print. I think we should do the same. Posting things that are not well thought out just add ot the misconception that ~~bloggers~~ online wine writers are hacks that don’t know what they are talking about. While I don’t think I need an editor to write a blog, I DO think I need to self edit – even if it’s at the most basic level of spelling. I believe I need to understand how to structure a sentence so that it makes sense and expresses my thought coherently; I also believe that to write a piece for a n audience that won’t hear my inflection and comedic wit, that i need to think about how it looks on the page, and not how I sound when I say it out loud.

Occasionally, writers suffer from a thought block or an uninspired lull. I am not immune to this but I have found that reading other blogs and using tools like Creative Whack Packs can help blast me out of lull. Another key trait of a good writer is admitting that you don’t know something. I hope that you see that in my writing; I don’t know a lot of things, and I’d rather admit that, than make something up. There shouldn’t be any fear in admitting the unknown. One of the keys in being to be open an honest in this is fostering a community, both of readers, and other writers, who you can uses as a resource. Encourage new readers to be engaged. Wine can be a scary subject for someone just starting to enjoy it, and when you get too esoterica and off on tangents, you will alienate some readers.

The following day, Eric Asimov, author of the New York Times column formerly known as The Pour (now incorporated in the Diner’s Journal), shook up the room my telling us that we shouldn’t write tasting notes. I emphatically disagree with this statement -0 and even though I think it was really meant rather flippantly, I think many in attendance are taking it too literally. I am spinning this with my bloggers mindset, and ensuring that my tasting notes have a place within the story of the wine at the focus of the post. We are, after all, wine bloggers (wine writers wine writers wine writers. I will get this down eventually!). To not write a wine review or tasting note for a year, if I take Asimov at his word, would cut out a large amount of wine blogs who are talking about the wine.

In fact, in a simple poll that I did on Facebook, I asked my blog readers if I should write more reviews, less reviews, or something entirely different. While the majority of respondents said they wanted me to write more about the winery, location, or the STORY, they also indicated that they wanted the tasting notes in context. So, for my part, I will try to make sure I write about why I like or dislike a wine, what emotions it evokes in me, and why I think you should try it, and try to stay away from triple berry crunch descriptors. After all, my schnozzberry might be your razzleberry.

The key takeaway I have from Eric’s speech (which I might add, I read on twitter, and watched online after the event – since I was suffering the creeping crud at the time) is that in order to write about wine, you need to learn about wine. Tasting wine is not enough. You need to experience wine. How do you do that? You drink a lot of wine, you explore wine, you read about wine, you learn about wine, you experiment with pairing wine with food. Why this is important is that it can give you the perspective to be able to think about situations in a new light. I knew, before going to Virginia, that the VA wines that I had tasted were probably not the best examples of what the state has to offer. I didn’t like VA wine. But, I went to VA with an open mind. I decided, before I went, that I was going to taste VA wines and yes, they might suck, but, then again – they might not. And, I’m happy to report, I was pleasantly surprised by some of the wines I tried. This changed my pre-concived notion about wines from the area, and I’m more apt to try a wine from someone off beat as a result.

So go forth, and learn. I am my own worst critic and I often question if I write well, or if I know anything about wine, so I am ever striving to learn more and do better. The secret to success in most things is to be on a continuous journey of education. I know what I like, and I chose to write about that because that’s what I know. The unconformable challenge, is to learn about what I don’t know, and to share that journey with you.

Wine blogging has evolved. Even if you write your blog out of passion, as I do, writing with professionalism and knowledge is key to being heard. That doesn’t mean your blog shouldn’t express your voice, but it does mean:

Learn your subject matter
Dive in to your material, and don’t be afraid to dig deeper
Be honest
Ask questions
Be inquisitive
Be welcoming and gracious

Happy reading!

Putting the PLUS in Google

Jul 29th, 2011

by winebratsf.

13 comments

Recently, while at the 4th Annual Wine Bloggers Conference in Charlottesville, VA – a discussion on wine and technology was moderated by John Meyer who started 9 Clouds, Paul Mabray of Vintank, and Philip James from Lot 18 and Snooth.

Part way through the session, which included a lively discussion on flash sale sites like Lot18 and whether harm or help the wine industry, a vibrant discussion (ok fine it was me) erupted about Facebook, Twitter, and various forms of Google. Currently, the latest hot button platform is Google+. What is Google+ you ask? Like it’s predecessors Google Wave and Google Buzz (which are both alive but atrophied), Google+ promises to be the next social media flashmob trigger. Basically, I call it Twitter on steroids, with a dash of Facebook thrown in for good measure.

Essentially, on Google+ you friend up people by adding them to Circles. Circles are groups of people you are following, and can be defined any way you want. Social media experts advise creating as many circles as possible, so you can slice and dice your followees and folowers; I might have gone a tad overboard on this but it will shake it self out. Based on your circles, you will have a stream. Wait, isnt’ that Twitter? Or Facebook? Sort of. The cool thing about Google+ is that you can target your stream, based on circles. So I can see just my wine circle or just my friend circle in my stream. This is simliar functionality to twitter lists, but where you get the power of google+ is that you can now target your posts to specific people, and specific circles. This functionality currently exists in Facebook via Lists, so it’s not news to those of us who like to keep grandma out of my morning rants on The ‘Book.

One thing that Google+ is lacking however is the ability to expressly BLOCK peole from reading a post. This can be helpful if you don’t want someone who might be in a group to see a post. Say you’re planning a surprise party for Joe, and you want all the Wine Bloggers to plan but dont’ want Joe to know. you’d hav eto create a new group with everyone except Joe.

A feature that that G+ has already proved to add great value and provide content is the Hangout. This weekend, at the WBC, our illustrious leader Joel Vincent started a Hangout – or group chat room basically – to broadcast WBC news and keynote videos to people not in attendance. As I was stuck in my room in the depths of some nasty bug, I would have loved to watch via the stream. It’s my own fault I didn’t know the hangout existed, but bloggers who weren’t’ at WBC were able to watch Eric Asimov’s speech real time, via G+. Pretty powerful! Yes you can accomplish this with WebEx or a recorded video, but this allows you to share LIVE data in a real time stream. The only thing that Hangouts don’t do is save content.

A feature that is NOT available on the web platform (wtf? Come on people, that is stupid) but IS available on the mobile app is the Huddle. A huddle is another group chat, which allows you to have text conversations with a group of folks on the go. You simply start a Huddle and add a circle or individuals. We had a mini WBC huddle going pre-conference, and it was a very effective way to community pop up parties and meetups to a small group quickly.

Are you looking for more blogs to follow? Maybe more information about a specific subject to augment your already overflowing knowledge stream? Sparks are great to augment your information stream. Enter a few sparks in the search box, and you will get a ton of posts and data that you can read, share, and contemplate. This is a great way to discover new blogs, and in turn. have your blog discovered. Type in wine. Type in a specific wine. Go ahead! See what happens! If it works well, then it could be a invaluable service that means you’ve always got something cool to check out – if not, there’s a danger that it could become a very annoying form of spam. You can delete interests from your list if they begin to bore you and we would expect that they’ll be a few other ways of tweaking the settings, too.

The real power of Google+ comes when you use extended sharing or public sharing to post links, information, content, pictures, and whatever else you want. If I post a blog to Google+ and select all of my wine circles, and use extended sharing, then that post will be visible to everyone that is in a circle of a person in my circles. Capice? Additionally, if you enable Public sharing, your post is in the public stream and is visible to everyone. If you are trying to get more traffic to you site, this is a great way to be picked up on the Spark stream and broadcast your message.

So why is Google+ better than Twitter or Facebook? I don’t want to say better, I want to say different. I am one of the few people that do NOT think that Twitter has jumped the shark. I love twitter. not only for my personal snipes, rants, and chirps, but also – as a wine blogger, there is a vibrant community of wine writers, lovers, and business people on twitter. You can cast a wide net. If you’re account is open and you use hashtags that are relevant, you can reach a targeted audience. It’s the most effective crowd sourcing, and information gathering tool I use. I can generally get an answer to a question with a few tweets, retweets, and please helps. Google+ has the potential to be better at this. Twitter also ha sa list ability. While you cannot compartmentalize your tweets by list, you CAN follow people by lists. Because i have 4000 followers, I can’t possibly follow the primary stream on a regular basis. To streamline the info that I want, I rely heavily on lists. Lists in twitter allow you to add people (even without following them) to your stream. I have Friends, Wine Bloggers, WIne Biz, and many more lists that make up my Seesmic dashboard. Occasionally, I also look at the main stream, if I neglected to add someone to a list. This helps manage the constant influx of tweets at a reasonable speed. Facebook is aslo becoming an important tool in social media reach. My blog page gets readers on Facebook that I dont’ garner from any other source. For that reason alone, Facebook matters. I can also talk to my best friend from high school. There is a powerful tool in Facebook with Lists; you can compartmentalize your posts. When I talk about makeup, I don’t think my wine friends care. So I don’t share it with them.

Bottom line, Google+ has the POTENTIAL for being ANOTHER great resrouce. It is not the end all be all, because as most Google products go, early adopters and tech geeks are there first and in depth. If you don’t use Chrome, you run at a deficit because many of the tools that make Google+ more useful are Chrome extensions. If you don’t use Google email, you are also at a deficit because Google integrates email, chat, and all other tools seamlessly. What I need to make Google+ part of my overall social media strategy, for persona and for my blog, is a social media desktop application that allows posting and streaming. With multiple twitter accounts for different purposes, facebook pages for blogs and work, and Google+, I need a single sign on platform mission control. Now, as I prepare for both the next WBC Scholarship fundraising campaign, as well as the 5th Annual Wine Bloggers Conferecne in Portland, Oregon I will be mining Google+ for new resources and people. Information is my diesel baby!

Are you on Google+? Add me to a circle. Need an invite? Let me know!

WBC here I come!

Jul 11th, 2011

by winebratsf.

3 comments

It’s less than 2 weeks before the annual Wine Bloggers Conference, and I’m finally getting a little jazzed with it. life has been busy these days, with my day job, the WBC Scholarship, and, well, STUFF but I’m looking forward to a few days off spent with my 300 closest friends in the sweaty summer weather in Virginia. As a 4 year veteran, some things that I’ve learned on the road to blogging:

Get to know your sponsors. We have a few hours on Friday to learn who has made the event possible; stop by and say hi! You never know what relationships might form.
Attend the keynotes with Jancis Robinson and Eric Asimov. These sessions are great kick starters and will get you in to the groove.
Go with the flow, don’t get overwhelmed.
Be prepared to want to do more than one thing at once
have FUN!
Don’t be overly structured
Spit spit spit. I can’t emphasize this enough. Yes, there are moments (dinner, after hours parties) where I don’t spit and enjoy myself, but you are representing bloggers as a whole, and should have some decorum. It’s a business conference at the core, disguised as a party. Present yourself accordingly.
Don’t forget to sleep!
Engage in the “Anti-Conference” spontaneous events; these are the best way to network with your fellow bloggers, writers, and industry professionals.
Participate in the Unconference sessions. These informal discussion panels let you get involved.
Have an open mind. You never know if there are wines you wouldn’t normally try, that you will love!
Bring something from home that represents your region, style, and / or personality. This could be wine, but it could also be food, a book, or a t-shirt.
Bring business cards. yes it may seem archaic, but it’s the best way to quickly introduce yourself with a memorable item. The stacks of cards collected are reminders when we get home to follow, tweet, and read otehr peoples information.
Follow the #wbc11 twitter stream. Make sure you are not protected (my main account is, but I tweet under @luscious_lushes for public consumption). We want to hear your thoughts!
Find time to post a few quick blog posts with your thoughts BEFORE, DRUING, and AFTER the conference. First impressions are great conversation starters.
Spend some time on Friday morning meeting the sponsors. They are the reason we are all able to attend this event, and they want to know the bloggers are much as we want to know them.
Participate, however briefly in the after hours events such as the Other 46 Tasting and the International Wine Night. While there will undoubtedly be parties at the time time, it’s a great way to get to know other people.
Find a party to attend! This is a great way to get ot know people on a personal level. Sponsors, wineries, and bloggers all host formal and informal parties during the event.
Attend the break outs. Too many people don’t attend the core of the conference and they miss out. While You Need to choose which bits are important to you as a blogger, just to pull the meat out.
am Content

Here’s what I thnk I”ll be doing:

Keynotes, of course
Breakout 1 - Online Technologies and Wine. I am really looking forward to hearing more about current online technologies and how they relate to blogging and the wine world. Hey, I work in IT. Once a geek, always a geek. This stuff fascinates me.
Live Wine Blogging: Red and White – Also known as Speed Tasting, Speed DSating, or Insanity, I get a kick of out fast first impression tastes and the twitter storm that occurs. you can tweet or blog, or take notes to blog later. I suggest tweeting, as it’s the fastest way to keep up with the tasting.
The Other 46 Tasting - I’m the first to admit, I’m a snob when it comes to wines being made in other states. But, in keeping with my belief that you need to go with an open mind, I’ll show up to taste wines from Texas, Indiana, and other states (spit cup in hand). Who knows! I might find something I like!
Saturday Morning Wine Country Visit – one of the core events of every WBC is visiting a local winery or two and learning about the local wine culture.
Vibrant Rioja After Hours Party – I like Rioja, and what’s NOT to like about a wine and food crawl?
Unconference Blogger-Led Discussions – This was one of my favorite events at the first WBC, and I’m pleased to see it has finally made it back. Part of the inspiration for me, is hearing what other bloggers think on topics. This format allows us all to have a structured but informal conversation on topics we all want to hear about.
Ignite Wine! – Five minute mini presentations on all sorts of topics. How much can YOU distill in 5 minutes?

As you can see, there are some sessions not on my personal agenda. It’s not that I don’t find them valuable, it’s just that I don’t think I will be personally interested in them. In leaving them off my “must do” list, I create some free flow, where I can catch up with my blogger friends, experience some of the local restaurants, write some posts, join an off the grid get together, or just chill.

I will see you in 10 days and can’t wait to report this year’s news!

When socializing goes mainstream

Mar 16th, 2010

by winebratsf.

10 comments

What’s a tweetup you ask? Why would you tweet something up? Recently, I had the opportunity to meet and greet with dozens of the Bay Area’s finest, bloggers and wine professionals, as well as just some very cool people at the The Napa Valley Tweetup – Presented by Robert Mondavi Winery.

Earlier in the day, the Social Media Seminar provided an in depth look at how social media is changing the wine industry, and how users are becoming more engaged via blogs and other social media platforms. Then it was time to have some fun! Hidden int he stunning To Kalon Cellar, with it’s giant redwood tanks and awe inspiring barrel cellar, the in crowd assembled to taste Mondavi’s wines and mingle over a social media cocktail. In the rather cavernous dungeon, we were greeted by Gabriel Carrejo, who is the cheerleader behind many digital media tweetups and networking events.

Once inside, atop the catwalk above those giant redwood fermentation tanks, there were stations set up with each of the wines, where we were instructed to check in on FourSquare at east tasting station in the hopes that we might win some swag. More importantly, the social locator allowed us to see who else might have been at the event, and seek out those individuals that we might want to meet, by nature of the geo locating tool. Say what you might about tools like FourSquare – but for social location, networking, and impromptu meetups over a glass of wine, it is an invaluable tool.

As I wandered from station to station, I saw many of my old friends, and was able to reconnect over a glass of wine. In addition, it was a spectacular networking event as I met many more tweeters and industry insiders that were in attendance. The benefit to events such as this are difficult to measure; however, on a personal level, having the ability to meet many people that I have not otherwise had the opportunity to do , and to revisit a winery that I have not been to in a while is invaluable. Changing perception in this business can be challenging; too often, large wineries write people off if they are no longer repeat customers. this is a poor business decision in a challenging economy, as EVERY old customer can be a new customer provided that the experience is a good one.

Mondavi is one such winery that I have been underestimating. Long ago, I was a frequent visitor and a fan. Then I grew up, and started visiting smaller wineries, and other wineries, by passing the monolith as I cruised up 29. On this night, I was shown the light, both in the warm welcome by the Mondavi staff, and in their willingness to embrace social media and us, the Mediaites, by providing an elegantly casual setting where social media users and curiosity seekers mingled, discuss business, blogs, twitter, and just have a good time, puts the Social back in to social media. Don’t underestimate the power of inclusive events such as the tweetup. Personalities such as Hardy Wallace have been instrumental in challenging market perceptions in brands like Murhpy Goode, which are often written off by more experienced wine drinkers (ok fine, me) as the mass produced and overdone wines.

Later that weekend, I stopped by Amista Vineyards (@amistavineyards) in Dry Creek Valley during barrel tasting. An effective user of Twitter, Amista has been attracting tweeters with their personal attention, and inviting tweets promoting their wines and lovely picnice grounds. While out and about, Vicky tweeted that I was only 3 miles away and should stop by. Far be it for me to refuse and invitation, so my friends & I grabbed a picnic and headed out to the grounds behind the tasting room. Having a personal touch with a warm greeting and a welcome sign will bring in people more times than having a cult cab. Wineries should take note – it’s about relationships first, wine second. If you are treat a customer poorly or indifferently, when visiting a tasting room, they are almost certainly not going to becoming a lifetime customer. Treat a customer like a valued friend, and they will cmoe back over and over again. Amista has won my Customer Loyalty award, along with Holdredge, Manzanita Creek, Mounts, and Michel-Schlumburger – to name a few in Sonoma. In Napa, the winners are St. Supery, Titus, and Domaine Carneros, which proves that you don’t need to be a small family winery to understand excellent customer service.

I hope that this tweetup was just one of the first in a long series, as it will go a long way in expanding the value of social media and proving that it’s not just about the static post or tweet anymore. Social media is a living organizsm, and requires maintenance, just like freindships.

Special thanks to Robert Mondavi Winery, Vintank, Amista, and all of my new & old social media buddies who are now valued friends (and I can’t list them all so here are a few of my rockstars, who mentor me and are just generally awesome)

A smattering of tastings – WBC Day 1

Aug 1st, 2009

by winebratsf.

2 comments

Where does the time go? The Second Annual Winebloggers Conference has already come and gone, and I am left wondering “what the heck was that bus that rolled over me “.As one of the voices behind the curtain of the WBC Scholarship, and as a huge cheerleader, proponent and fan of the WBC, I am pleased, shocked, elated, bummed, and catching my breath after the weekend.

On our first day, the rag tag Twisted Crew (@sonadora, @thebeerwench, @winehiker, @eljefetwisted, @ryanopaz, @gabriellaopaz, @houstonwino, @winewonkette) and I pulled up to the Flamingo after fighting what seemed to be an eternity in Central Valley and Infinion drag racing traffic followed by the usual Friday flow in to Santa Rosa. Arriving at 12:30 or so, I didn’t spend much time with the sponsors, something which I regret doing. Partially because many of them were familiar to me, partially because I was just plain exhausted due to unfortunate events the day before, I found my fellow people and sat down to eat some lunch.

I was excited to see so many of my friends, both those that I know in person and those that I knew only online, as new recruits tot he WBC posse. After catching up, albeit breifly, with some regulars, I was circulating the room trying to spy new faces while inspecting their name tags without looking like I was completely crazy. Fortunately, I caught up with a few new regulars.

After lunch, we attempted to do the speed tasting sessions, but well for reasons so many have discussed, it failed. Miserably. Like died on the operating table failed. In its stead, we heard about the Wine Blogger Awards. Unfortunately, I had purposely planned to skip this male dominated prom king style popularity contest, and moving it up unfortunately resulting in people not being there to accept thier awards. Eventually the wireless supposedly turned back on but as I tried to tweet my tasting notes, the wireless only stayed up for 10 seconds at a time, I gave up and just enjoyed the wines. Sorry folks, no tasting notes from me.

After the speed tasting, we beat a hasty retreat to our short but sweet annual Anti-Conference BYOB session in the small space at the front of the hotel. We did get to enjoy a large plethora of wines from attendees, and I really look forward to this time to meet new folks, try new wines, and just have a good time in an unstructured way.

Not wanting to miss a beat, we then made our way out to the pool for a very crowded very crazy Sonoma Grand Tasting. Not wanting to get crushed in the milee I pretty much avoided this, and found a spot at a table with Wine Biz Radio’s Randy Hall, his wife Jen and her amazing goat cheese, as well as some fellow bloggers. There, we shared some wine, I opened some wine,

Chritophe (@cork_dork) from Titus opened some wine, and we made our own tasting. PS for next year, PLEASE do no try to squeeze 250 people in to a space meant for 50, it just doesn’t’ work. I am sorry I missed many great wines, but I count myself lucky that I have tasted many before so didn’t really feel like I was losing out. It was just too much of a mosh pit to really enjoy your self and so instead, I opted to find an empty poolside table and sit with my buds catching up. Jen, Randy Hall’s wife, had brought some of her homemade goat cheese to share and with some wine to sip on, we snacked and chatted the afternoon away.

Oh – I forgot to mention. During all portions of the Speed Tasting and Sonoma Grand, I was readily accosted for my unusual jewelry of Wie BLogger Bling. It looks like my ribbons and charms were a hit, yet again! Yes, t

his was the idea, and I am pleased that so many of you enjoyed the camradierie of being a Naughty Wine Minx or saying tot he world Screw It! More WIne! That was the intention behind the blogger bling, as there were so many people I didn’t know and knew I wouldn’t get a chance to meet; I was pleased that it afforded me the opportunity to have random strangers become aquaintances via a common love of all thing wine and silly.

After the Grand Tasting, we made our way in to the dinner session, where I had a tizzy of a time finding not only a seat, but a seat at a table where I at least recognized one face. I know i know, I was going to mingle, but even this cowgirl gets the “I’m shy” blues and wanted a friendly face. I sat down with my favorite Cellar Rat Alan Baker, and we had a great time trying our wines and catching up, while I went table hopping to poach different wines. The table layout was that most tables were hosted by a winery, and we had a few of their wines plus others on our tables. Since I wanted a variety, I found Brad Cooper’s table (@bradinator) and poured a nice big taste of his Black Cloud Pinot Noir. WOW! Who knew such beauty came out of of British Columbia in a bottle! (Hey, @winebard stop throwing things at me).

Even though I was operating at 45% sanity, both physically and mentally, after dinner I wandered in tot he after hours tasting hosted by Russian River Winegrowers. I was please to see many wineries I knew here, and was able to taste some more treats, and chat with the locals on what was new. In there, I met up with Julie from Windsor Oaks, whom I’ve written about before here. Julie is a pioneer in the industry and is working hard to make sure that she is in tune with not only bloggers, but with what her customers want and need. I was so pleased to get a gift of their Unoaked Chard, which is just a lovely treat. Anyone in the area, MUST stop by and try their wines! They will welcome you as one of their own, and the wine is pretty good too .

I tried and tried to stay up for the after after after party but I just couldn’t do it. My body and my brain gave out. I’m sure I missed out on a lot and I’m bummed, but well, Saturday was another day!

(How long til WBC 10?)

I’m a mom!

Jun 6th, 2009

by winebratsf.

7 comments

Ok well, no not really, but I made you look right? Seriously though, I have my own baby! My own little baby itty bitty delicious not yet fruit bearing vine!

At the graciousness of Hahn Family Wines, a group of bloggers got together and planted The Bloggers Block, at Hahn Family Winery in the Santa Lucia Highlands. The good folks at Hahn dedicated 1.5 acres of prime Santa Lucia Highlands land to the Bloggers Block, proving themselves as a shining light in the dark path of new media adoption in the wine business.

Soledad is about 2.5 hours south of San Francisco, so I got myself up nice and early on a Saturday and heaviliy caffinated myself. I stopped by to pick up a Winehiker (no no not a HITCHhiker!) and we hightailed it down 101, through the rolling hills of San Benito County, and through the lettuce fields of Salinas. As we drove through the flatlands of the Salinas valley, I was struck with how litlte it has changed since East of Eden.

The cool foggy overcast was driving inland, and I wasn’t entirely convinced we’d have sunshine for our day in the vineyards. Finally, as we popped in to the Santa Lucia Highlands, the sun came out. Past veggie farms and up to the west side of the valley, we found the Hahn driveway and slowly drove up the hill. Every few feet I had to stop and say “ohhh lookie!” because it was so stunning. Finally, at the top of the hill, we found a little yellow house at the top of a vineyard, which is now the tasting room. Being the first to arrive, we stopped to breathe the fresh air and look at the view before being enthusiastically greeted by Philip Woodrow, Hahn Family Wines Director of Marketing and Communications.

Philip has only been in this role for a few months, but he has taken it on with a gusto and has made blogger a welcome and integral part of the Hahn family. Once inside the tasting room, Philip pointed out our snack of Huntington Sauvignon Blanc, one of my personal faves, and Hahn SLH Chardonay, paired with some lovely cheese and nibbles. We waited for our posse to arrive, Russ and I chatted with Andy Mitchell (Director Vineyard Operations) and Paul Clifton (adorable winemaker at Hahn Estates), as well as Philip.

From there, we went down to the Bloggers Block, which is at 720 feet, and we were planting some delicious Pinot Noir, clone 828. We even got the exact location of the block, so we can keep track of it on Google Earth! Yes, we are geeks. You can keep track too, with the flyover file here. In the dirt, the vineyard manager explained to us that the vines we were planting were on 3309C rootstock. We were given specific instructions to dig our holes 12 inches deep, where we would then drop a nutrient teabag in the bottom, and stick our vines in – with about 4 fingers left above ground. Luckily for us, the nice boys had pre-dug our holes, so we really didn’t have to work that hard .

After we filled the holes back in, we had to protect our babies from critters, birds, and other elements, by covered it with what looks like a fancy milk carton, which we twist tied to the stakes to hold them down. Once all the vines were planted, the drip irrigation turned on, and we could see the vines relax in to their new homes.

After we played gardner, we gathered for a lunch under the trees near the tasting room, and enjoyed the full lineup of Hahn wines. I’d have to say, th

e 2006 SLH Syrah was amazing, as were the Lucienne Pinot Noirs. Given the price point for all of these wines, they really are excellent QPR. At lunch, we

had the chance to talk to other bloggers, and pick the brains of the Hahn folks about the wines and our block in particular. After lunch, we headed up to the winery itself to take a tour and learn about the winemaking process. There, we got to taste some barrel samples of the finished Lucienne that were able to drink with our lunch.

All in all, a totally awesome day! In a nutshell, Hahn gets it. They understand the importance of bloggers and how they can make themselves stand out from the crowd. In the words of Hahn’s President William Leigon,

I believe that the blogging community is a vital part of the future of the industry. In the many debates of what is or isn’t ethical in regards to the winery/wine blogger relationship what seems clear to me is that the best, most ethical thing we as a winery can do is provide the blogging community with quality products, quality information and quality wine experiences regardless of race, sex, color, creed or brand of wine. We are using our vineyards because that’s who we are. I believe that the more the blogging community learns about wine, the better it is for all of us.

It is a vital connection; just like the winery/wine writer connection; the winery/wine buyer connection; and of course the winery/consumer connection. It does us no good to create great wines if no one knows about it. I just can’t drink that much. The wine business is a relationship business. We must create an emotional connection to our consumers. We do that through many means and I believe Social Media is a major part of creating that connection.

The internet and Social Media allow you to do that only it accelerates the number of people you can reach to a degree that I can’t even comprehend. It allows me to establish a relationship and an emotional connection to someone in Germany that I have never met face to face. It allows me to create connections with multiple people in multiple countries simultaneously and in a very personal way.

As you can see, Liza and I were very happy campers.

Cheers!

You've been ZAPped!

Jan 21st, 2009

by winebratsf.

2 comments

ZAP, the Zinfandel Advocates & Producers trade organization, is dedicated to advancing public knowledge of and appreciation for American Zinfandel. Next week marks its 18th annual festival, a weeklong celebration of Zinfandel themeed events.

Being the Zinner that I am, I look forward to this event every year. I also am a volunteer, so I have seen first hand how the love of zinfandel has grown over the years. Although the public tasting on Saturday, Jan 31st, can be a bit of a zoo, there are several other events throughout the week that make this event an enjoyable experience.

Wednesday – Jan 28th

Flights!

Prepare for take-off…
Take a seat and buckle-up to embark on a voyage of discovery. Your crew at our intimate, seminar-style setting will include the intrepid men and women winemakers and owners who grow and craft these remarkable wines. The City College of San Francisco Culinary Arts & Hospitality Studies program will create delights for your taste buds to savor during the walk-around Zinfandel reception following the seminar.

Also on Wednesday, Crushpad is hosting a BYOB Zinfandel event to help kick off ZAP. I love these mixers at Crushpad, because we get to taste a lot of great wine, but also meet some new people. This time, bring a bottle of zin. Crushpad will brown bag it, and present it with the other offerings for you to sample. At the end of the evening, we vote on our faves, and reveal! So much fun, and perfect for an economical evening out. Please RSVP here

Thursday – Jan 29th

Good Eats & Zinfandel Pairing

If you are a devoted foodie with a passion for Zinfandel, make plans to indulge your “inner epicurean” and spend the evening at Good Eats & Zinfandel Pairing! Noteworthy restaurants and award-winning wineries turn the art of cooking and wine pairing into an entertaining and approachable affair. Talented chefs present the ultimate combinations of distinctive tastes, while winery proprietors offer stunning Zinfandels to match.

Detailed menus are here. This is my favorite event of the week, because you get the opportunity to taste some speical wines that aren’tr always poured on Saturday, in a quieter more relaxed atmosphere. Take a look at these sample menus!

Zinfandel Braised Pork Shoulder with Butternut Squash and Cipollini Onion Ragout with Carol Shelton Wines

Miniature Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Easton Zinfandel Barbeque Sauce with Easton wines

Friday – Jan 30th

Evening

with the Winemakers

This event is a benefit auction and dinner, and is the ritziest of the week. This elegant sit down dinner benefits the ZAP’s Heritage Projects–preserving the historical and viticultural significance of America’s Heritage Wine–Zinfandel, including scholarships and other designated charities.

Wine 2.0 Best Practices Seminars

Wine 2.0,

the innovator in social networking and events in the wine industry and ZAP, invite you to participate in “Winery Best Practices,” an education session on January 30, 2009 at Ft. Mason in San Francisco.

1. Winery eCommerce: 12:00-12:45 pm – A panel moderated by Jeff Carroll of ShipCompliant on best practices and n

ew tools for e-commerce success in 2009.

2. Winery Social Networking: 1:00-1:45 pm – A panel moderated by Lisa De Bruin of Hahn Family Winery with lessons on best practices for social networking in the year ahead.

3. Building a Great Consumer Direct Organization: 2:00-2:45 pm – A presentation by Lesley Berglund of WISE Academy on best practices in direct-to-consumer programs with lessons learned from industry research covering the past 18 months.

Sessions will run for 45 minutes each (with a 15 minute break between sessions) starting at 12 noon on January 30 in the Building “D” Theater at Ft. Mason. Up to 300 winery professionals are expected to attend. 40% of ticketing proceeds go towards ZAP’s Education Programs.

Order Tickets here, $35 per session or all three for $90

Saturday – Jan 31st

ZAP Grand Tasting

Over 250 member wineries will pour their zins! Pick a target path. I like to select a region, or select a list of wineries that i haven’t heard of. Make sure you spit!

Trade 10am-1pm

Public 2pm-5pm

Bloggers can request media passes by emailing your RSVP with contact information to abdi@winetwo.com. There will also be a blogger lounge at the back of the room in each pavillion.

Finally, there are some great promotions going on! Vin Village is giving away 7 tickets to the Good Eats & Zin evening, as well as 7 tickets to the Grand Tasting.

There are two ways to enter:

1. Go to http://vinvillage.com/zap-wine-festival-ticket-contest-sign and sign up for Vin Village. IT’s a great site that has some interesting content, and you can wine stuff!

2. At the Crushpad BYOB Zin event, Vin Village will be drawing a name out of the hat for the same tickets. Be there or be square!