The Feiring Line

V-Marketing and Vega Sicilia's Pablo

Pablo Alvarez, the general director (and owner's son) of the iconic wine, Vegas Sicilia looks like James Gandolfini. Low key, he delivered his message and opinion about marketing with an almost lithium-infused tranquility. And this understatement made his reaction to LVMH's Xavier even more powerful. During Xavier's talk I was doing my own little Yiddish theater, making comments out loud and swatting the table in reaction. I wanted to throw my own talk out and base my upcoming 'speech' to address the LVMH soldier. Pablo did exactly that. he swayed from his original talk and directly addressed many of Xavier's points. In direct opposition to what we all just heard Pablo said, 'The consumer's are not dumb. They and wine must be respected.' What a revolutionary thought. He insisted that Spain does not want to be Australia, and the way to make brands is with quality. The one nod he did give to Xavier was that most people when hearing the name of the winery Vega Sicilia ask: where in Sicily are you? Pablo knows he doesn't need to sell his wine to everyone, just to enough people. He said he was a rich man, but rich enough. His winery was big enough. Quality was more important than growth. While his delivery was unemotional and deadpan, his message and sentiment was powerful. In contrast to Xavier, (who could be selling luxury-minded cupcakes instead of wine) Pablo said, " I was lucky enough to fall in love with this wine world." I believed him. His father, David Alvarez Diaz, is one of the richest men in Spain, and he bought VS in 1982. It was then that Pablo went into the wine business. He talked of the wine as a man would take his wife's hand, look at her and say, heart plump with feeling, 'I was the luckiest man in the world to meet you."

V-Marketing and Vega Sicilia's Pablo

Pablo Alvarez, the general director (and owner's son) of the iconic wine, Vegas Sicilia looks like James Gandolfini. Low key, he delivered his message and opinion about marketing with an almost lithium-infused tranquility. And this understatement made his reaction to LVMH's Xavier even more powerful. During Xavier's talk I was doing my own little Yiddish theater, making comments out loud and swatting the table in reaction. I wanted to throw my own talk out and base my upcoming 'speech' to address the LVMH soldier. Pablo did exactly that. he swayed from his original talk and directly addressed many of Xavier's points. In direct opposition to what we all just heard Pablo said, 'The consumer's are not dumb. They and wine must be respected.' What a revolutionary thought. He insisted that Spain does not want to be Australia, and the way to make brands is with quality. The one nod he did give to Xavier was that most people when hearing the name of the winery Vega Sicilia ask: where in Sicily are you? Pablo knows he doesn't need to sell his wine to everyone, just to enough people. He said he was a rich man, but rich enough. His winery was big enough. Quality was more important than growth. While his delivery was unemotional and deadpan, his message and sentiment was powerful. In contrast to Xavier, (who could be selling luxury-minded cupcakes instead of wine) Pablo said, " I was lucky enough to fall in love with this wine world." I believed him. His father, David Alvarez Diaz, is one of the richest men in Spain, and he bought VS in 1982. It was then that Pablo went into the wine business. He talked of the wine as a man would take his wife's hand, look at her and say, heart plump with feeling, 'I was the luckiest man in the world to meet you."

V-Marketing Forum, LVMH takes the stand

I passed through security gate. Went to the lounge. Took out my computer to start to etch out what I learned, heard and saw at the V-Marketing forum in La Rioja, where I had just delivered my appeal for the region to get into rehab, kick the adjunct and alcohol habit. But reaching into my bag I realized it happened again. By beloved compter did it's stray dog act. Gone missing. Again? After racing through the airport, and a round trip to security, the silver bullet was retrieved. My heart resumed its normal pace. I think the world is trying to tell me something, or maybe I was distracted because of the juicy, limpid, other worldy, fresh waterfall with plenty of tangerine marcona almonds 1968 Lopez de Heredia blanco I had in San Sebastian last night---but more on that later. BELIEVE IT OR NOT Computer in lap and all well with the world at least for a few minutes, I tried to make sense of the afternoon I spent at the Logrono wine marketing forum. This was a pretty special event. Most of the time panels are mild mannered, everyone on best behavior, telling the audience what they already know. But at this one? Opinions were diverse, explosive and sometimes, also naive. As a warm up, Miguel Otero Toranzo,a marketing guy in the region, talked about seizing reasons for generating news. He related something that might be true, sounds true, but I haven't done my due diligence. He cited Bordeaux. He said the AOC plans to decrease carbon emissions by 15% in five years ( I said to my neighbor, did he mean 50%? No, he meant 15%). Hold on to your hats--they're going to use that to promote their Greeness. I think if I heard a rumor that Bernie Madoff was going to give every investor of his $50 to help ease the pain, I'd have a similar reaction. If you've seen the rampant usage of chemical in Bordeaux, you can see that 15% isn't even giving someone a tissue after a sneeze. Mr. Toranzo went on to point out that there is one Chateau who can't comply, but they will be helping a South African estate to go carbon neutral and so on their Bordeaux label, they will proudly claim how their helping the environment. This is a little like a Mafia boss who sends their son into the priesthood and expects to be sainted. That was just a warm up because the next guy up truly was the man with ideas. Director of Wine & Estates, LVMH, Xavier Ybarguengoitia. Dapper, direct, sometimes insulting, extremely prepared and quick minded, he came to help Rioja. I'm sure he thought that was his mission and message, and his message was brand. I am passing on of his comments. *Do you think someone in Shanghai knows where Rioja is? They have to find out where Spain is first. *Quality is not the reason connoisseurs buy wine. *People do not buy wine, they buy dreams. *We (LVMH) want the highest prestige. *We need profits way beyond what is considered normal in the wine business. *Create the Brand not the denomination origin. *Wine has to be easy to understand. *Most people are led by wine experts, this is the big problem. *Most consumers have no idea about wine, we must come to them with simplicity. Simplicity is essential. And then he projected two images: one of the Australian Cape Mentelle sauvignon blanc and the other a Bouchard Nuits St. George, Clos St. Marc. He proceeds to use the NSG as an example of derision, and of why Burgundy is doomed for failure. Does anyone out there reading this know the owner of Bouchard, Joseph Henriot's relationship to the other Bernie, Bernard Arnault? (# 3 in the series) Putting the Bouchard next to the Cape Mentelle, an Aussie, Margaret River winery owned by LVMH seemed like an insider joke, but a pernicious one. The current owner of Bouchard is Joseph Henriot who used to be with Bernie and broke off from the company, let's just say there was bad blood between the two men. So this director of LVMH uses a wine that JH owns as an example of what he views as the stupidity of the Burgundian label? But then Xavier was playing on his perceived provincialism of the Riojanians. Clos St. Marc is a monopole belonging to Bouchard. They have less than an Hectare. The production is tiny. I have no idea how many millions of bottles Mentelle makes. The situation is not analogous. But it is the same philosophy that is driving the EU, that wine needs to be dumbed down for the lowest common denominator. People inside of LVMH are aiming to take out real wine, or at the very least ridicule those who seek the real stuff out, and the wine team over at the EU seems to agree. It's like, you actually READ? But, what a waste of time that is. You try to make your own decisions? Here, let me tell you what to think. Much easier for you. Actually the philosophy is so similar I wonder if someone from LVMH is sitting on the EU wine advisory board. Xavier's point was that wine needs to be simple. Who else but an expert is going to know what that (burgundy) wine is? he asked. His next trick was to show how LVMH carves out special niches for their wines. He projected the Newton label which LVMH bought in 2003, when they made 95,000 cases. With great pride hs said in 2008 they produces 95,000 cases. 'At Newton,' he says. 'we PLAY with the concept of nature.' They frame Newton as a natural wine, good for the environment. They are proud that their boxes are bamboo, a detail that most in the room didn't quite get. He showed how they proclaim on the label how much of a % is given back to the environment (I don't know what this means). They orchestrate all of their wine events at restaurants with gardens. Then he reiterates 'You don't make a brand with a good product. You must have a concept.' For example, If Newton is about Nature, Cloudy Bay is about Purity. He finished up his talk by bringing the world back to the LVMH starship, Moet Champagne. He projected the models and the glamour and the dream used when marketing bubbles and I was reminded that the champagne group of LVMH probably makes more wine than Rioja produces. What Xavier forgot is if you don't produce billions of bottles, all you need to do is make great wine and find your niche. After all, what you spend in marketing, you could invest in respect to the soil and the wine and your consumer. Probably, LVMH would love to shift production to China, and when they demolish the AOC they will be able to grow cheaply over in Asia and bottle their Moet because after all, it doesn't matter, all that matters is branding. But Victor Pascual Artacho, president of the Consorzio of Rioja, was not so sure and he gave Xavier a piece of advice, 'With all due respect,' he said, 'never take the words Champagne off of your label.'

V-Marketing Forum, LVMH takes the stand

I passed through security gate. Went to the lounge. Took out my computer to start to etch out what I learned, heard and saw at the V-Marketing forum in La Rioja, where I had just delivered my appeal for the region to get into rehab, kick the adjunct and alcohol habit. But reaching into my bag I realized it happened again. By beloved compter did it's stray dog act. Gone missing. Again? After racing through the airport, and a round trip to security, the silver bullet was retrieved. My heart resumed its normal pace. I think the world is trying to tell me something, or maybe I was distracted because of the juicy, limpid, other worldy, fresh waterfall with plenty of tangerine marcona almonds 1968 Lopez de Heredia blanco I had in San Sebastian last night---but more on that later. BELIEVE IT OR NOT Computer in lap and all well with the world at least for a few minutes, I tried to make sense of the afternoon I spent at the Logrono wine marketing forum. This was a pretty special event. Most of the time panels are mild mannered, everyone on best behavior, telling the audience what they already know. But at this one? Opinions were diverse, explosive and sometimes, also naive.

As a warm up, Miguel Otero Toranzo, a marketing guy in the region, talked about seizing reasons for generating news. He related something that might be true, sounds true, but I haven't done my due diligence. He cited Bordeaux. He said the AOC plans to decrease carbon emissions by 15% in five years ( I said to my neighbor, did he mean 50%? No, he meant 15%).

Hold on to your hats--they're going to use that to promote their Greeness. I think if I heard a rumor that Bernie Madoff was going to give every investor of his $50 to help ease the pain, I'd have a similar reaction. If you've seen the rampant usage of chemical in Bordeaux, you can see that 15% isn't even giving someone a tissue after a sneeze. Mr. Toranzo went on to point out that there is one Chateau who can't comply, but they will be helping a South African estate to go carbon neutral and so on their Bordeaux label, they will proudly claim how their helping the environment. This is a little like a Mafia boss who sends their son into the priesthood and expects to be sainted.

That was just a warm up because the next guy up truly was the man with ideas.

Director of Wine & Estates, LVMH, Xavier Ybarguengoitia. Dapper, direct, sometimes insulting, extremely prepared and quick minded, he came to help Rioja. I'm sure he thought that was his mission and message, and his message was brand. I am passing on of his comments.

*Do you think someone in Shanghai knows where Rioja is? They have to find out where Spain is first.

*Quality is not the reason connoisseurs buy wine.

*People do not buy wine, they buy dreams.

*We (LVMH) want the highest prestige.

*We need profits way beyond what is considered normal in the wine business.

*Create the Brand not the denomination origin.

*Wine has to be easy to understand.

*Most people are led by wine experts, this is the big problem.

*Most consumers have no idea about wine, we must come to them with simplicity. Simplicity is essential.

Then he projected two images: one of the Australian Cape Mentelle sauvignon blanc and the other a Bouchard Nuits St. George, Clos St. Marc. He proceeds to use the NSG as an example of derision, and of why Burgundy is doomed for failure. Does anyone out there reading this know the owner of Bouchard, Joseph Henriot's relationship to the other Bernie, Bernard Arnault? (# 3 in the series) Putting the Bouchard next to the Cape Mentelle, an Aussie, Margaret River winery owned by LVMH seemed like an insider joke, but a pernicious one. The current owner of Bouchard is Joseph Henriot who used to be with Bernie and broke off from the company, let's just say there was bad blood between the two men. So this director of LVMH uses a wine that JH owns as an example of what he views as the stupidity of the Burgundian label?

Then Xavier was playing on his perceived provincialism of the Riojanians. Clos St. Marc is a monopole belonging to Bouchard. They have less than an Hectare. The production is tiny. I have no idea how many millions of bottles Mentelle makes. The situation is not analogous. But it is the same philosophy that is driving the EU, that wine needs to be dumbed down for the lowest common denominator. People inside of LVMH are aiming to take out real wine, or at the very least ridicule those who seek the real stuff out, and the wine team over at the EU seems to agree. It's like, you actually READ? But, what a waste of time that is. You try to make your own decisions? Here, let me tell you what to think. Much easier for you. Actually the philosophy is so similar I wonder if someone from LVMH is sitting on the EU wine advisory board.

Xavier's point was that wine needs to be simple.

Who else but an expert is going to know what that (burgundy) wine is? he asked.

His next trick was to show how LVMH carves out special niches for their wines. He projected the Newton label which LVMH bought in 2003, when they made 95,000 cases. With great pride hs said in 2008 they produces 95,000 cases. 'At Newton,' he says. 'we PLAY with the concept of nature.' They frame Newton as a natural wine, good for the environment. They are proud that their boxes are bamboo, a detail that most in the room didn't quite get. He showed how they proclaim on the label how much of a % is given back to the environment (I don't know what this means). They orchestrate all of their wine events at restaurants with gardens. Then he reiterated, 'You don't make a brand with a good product. You must have a concept.' For example, If Newton is about Nature, Cloudy Bay is about Purity. He finished up his talk by bringing the world back to the LVMH starship, Moet Champagne. He projected the models and the glamour and the dream used when marketing bubbles and I was reminded that the champagne group of LVMH probably makes more wine than Rioja produces. What Xavier forgot is if you don't produce billions of bottles, all you need to do is make great wine and find your niche. After all, what you spend in marketing, you could invest in respect to the soil and the wine and your consumer. Probably, LVMH would love to shift production to China, and when they demolish the AOC they will be able to grow cheaply over in Asia and bottle their Moet because after all, it doesn't matter, all that matters is branding.

But Victor Pascual Artacho, president of the Consorzio of Rioja, was not so sure and he gave Xavier a piece of advice, 'With all due respect,' he said, 'never take the words Champagne off of your label.'

Revving up for the V-Marketing Forum Report: Part One

I loaded myself onto the plane to Madrid with a pile of unread New Yorkers, prepped myself for an adventure. Read Julia and Byron by Craig Raine in the March 30th issues and reread almost every sentence, not for comprehension but to sneak over to the piercing white truffle, lift to my nose, and breathe it in deeply. 'When Julia was twenty-nine, her hair was already bar-coded.' "The medication had a beautiful name, Mandragorax.' 'I stripped the nerves of her heart,' 'I was the chemo before the chemo.' I left the plane, post Ambien, in a daze of language, into a language I could say no more than, buenos dias and gracias. Madrid, sunny, Francis Bacon show, unseen because my cards were not reading well in Spanish. Train to Zaragoza: tried the Cune crianza which has been reduced to watery oak juice. Sad. Drove to Logrono, past trees sprouting lavender fluff, past granite cliffs, white in the setting sun, and giant vanity bodegas, near to Logrono, those Murrieta old vines, en goblet, hooked up to the IV drip? Now we're up to speed. Almost. But first a terrific dinner with the ex-export director of Rioja Tom Perry, a few tapas on Calle Laurel (white anchovies, fresh and filled with herring goodness) and an honest meal at Restaurante Iruna--commencing with a plate of succulent spring which ranged from celadon to bottle greens and also a bottle of La RIoja Alta 904, 1995. Sigh of relief. 4Pm the V-Marketing Forum commenced. This was an edgy forum filled with counterpoint and head on clashing of ideas and points of view. I could barely contain my facial expressions from cracking new line in my face during Xavier Ybarguengoitia's presentation. The man is Presidente-Director General of Estates & Wines of Moet Hennesy Wine Division. If I feared I was going to offend anyone, hearing this outspoken and convinced of LVMH superiority man, set me at east. look for part 2

Revving up for the V-Marketing Forum Report: Part One

I loaded myself onto the plane to Madrid with a pile of unread New Yorkers, prepped myself for an adventure. Read Julia and Byron by Craig Raine in the March 30th issues and reread almost every sentence, not for comprehension but to sneak over to the piercing white truffle, lift to my nose, and breathe it in deeply. 'When Julia was twenty-nine, her hair was already bar-coded.' "The medication had a beautiful name, Mandragorax.' 'I stripped the nerves of her heart,' 'I was the chemo before the chemo.' I left the plane, post Ambien, in a daze of language, into a language I could say no more than, buenos dias and gracias. Madrid, sunny, Francis Bacon show, unseen because my cards were not reading well in Spanish. Train to Zaragoza: tried the Cune crianza which has been reduced to watery oak juice. Sad. Drove to Logrono, past trees sprouting lavender fluff, past granite cliffs, white in the setting sun, and giant vanity bodegas, near to Logrono, those Murrieta old vines, en goblet, hooked up to the IV drip? Now we're up to speed. Almost. But first a terrific dinner with the ex-export director of Rioja Tom Perry, a few tapas on Calle Laurel (white anchovies, fresh and filled with herring goodness) and an honest meal at Restaurante Iruna--commencing with a plate of succulent spring which ranged from celadon to bottle greens and also a bottle of La RIoja Alta 904, 1995. Sigh of relief. 4Pm the V-Marketing Forum commenced. This was an edgy forum filled with counterpoint and head on clashing of ideas and points of view. I could barely contain my facial expressions from cracking new line in my face during Xavier Ybarguengoitia's presentation. The man is Presidente-Director General of Estates & Wines of Moet Hennesy Wine Division. If I feared I was going to offend anyone, hearing this outspoken and convinced of LVMH superiority man, set me at east. look for part 2

Banderas in the Ribera

Just arrived, waiting for a friend to claim me for lunch. Looking at the Decanter site and see that Antonio Banderas has bought a share in a Ribera del Duero winery Bodega Anta Natura--which will be renamed Anta Banderas, and they're saying he is fulfilling a lifelong dream to become a winemaker. If someone buys into a ballet company are they a dancer? I do not understand. However, as I am still thinking about my talk tomorrow at the V Marketing Forum in Logrono and looking for fodder, I am struck that star power behind a 1.5 million bottle winery is one hell of a media push.

Banderas in the Ribera

Just arrived, waiting for a friend to claim me for lunch. Looking at the Decanter site and see that Antonio Banderas has bought a share in a Ribera del Duero winery Bodega Anta Natura--which will be renamed Anta Banderas, and they're saying he is fulfilling a lifelong dream to become a winemaker. If someone buys into a ballet company are they a dancer? I do not understand. However, as I am still thinking about my talk tomorrow at the V Marketing Forum in Logrono and looking for fodder, I am struck that star power behind a 1.5 million bottle winery is one hell of a media push.

Who Are the Future Wine Gurus of the World?

Next stop? Spain. Logrono. And the V Marketing Forum in Rioja. For some reason I'm big in Spain. There have been stories in major publications, my face has been given full -page treatment, plastered with the message--Heroina. Spain is also the first country to have bought foreign rights to my book---it comes out there in 2010! I'm curious about their Feiring fascination. Could it be that are pissed off that as an industry they've lost their way, in doing so, sold their identity to the lowest buyer now, especially Rioja, have no idea who they are. Do you think this is possible? For the conference, following the marketing person from LVMH (should I don a flak jacket?) my assigned topic: the next wine gurus and most importantly how to get the attention of a wine critic. What to talk about for thirty minutes that could have any impact or interest has kept me up at night. My stance is kind of anti-guru, but like it or not, people do become taste makers. People with outspoken vision find followers. But for at least in my lifetime I see the falling of one strong universal voice that will dominate the wine world for 25 years. That time is over. Unless of course it's this guy Yes, that's right. The successor to P***** is not David Schildnecht, not Allen Meadows, not even Eric Asimov BUT the the hero of Kami no Shizuku, (The Drops of the Gods), Shizuku Kanzaki. A cartoon is the most influential wine critic driving source of wine sales in Japan and Korea. He sneers at New Zealand riesling and swooned over a St. Aubin and sales plummet and rise. And what's more, he doesn't use scores. This is story driven stuff. A man is on a mission to find the ten best wines of the world. The journey is the beauty. Is the salavation of wine in a cartoon character written by a sister and brother team who might or might not have a palate? Brilliant. I don't know if something like this can translate into our culture. One of the main problems is that no matter what you think, we have no respect for wine in the States and there is no wine culture. We have a soda culture. Writers are getting fired. No magazine cares. Writing is reduced to what to drink tonight, and mostly these are whatever samples comes through the writers door. Not exactly the best, BUT, most available. As far as what's left in regular coverage, there is Eric over the Times and thank God (or Sulzberger) for it. There's Jon Bonne and his brilliant coverage over at the SF Chronicle, and then there is the insightful Mike Steinberger at Slate. All apologies to some remaining local papers with a wine columnist who I might have overlooked. But basically, they pale in comparison to the above three. And who knows if wine writing will exist in any form. If what only exists is the blog world, God help us. I'm not saying that some of my colleagues don't give great blog, but finding the knowledgeble folk who don't have something to 'sell' is tough. And then finding some voices who have done homework is even tougher. I am mourning the loss of words and culture meets research and questioning. I am hoping I'm nothing more than a Henny Penny with a piece of phony sky in my hand. Who knows, salvation might be around the corner. I love Shizuku. And I also love the fact that after I talk about him in Spain, those marketers are going to be trying to figure out not how to bring Rioja back to authenticity, but will instead try to send the cartoon character samples. And then there is this.
Robert Parker's Bitch from Josh Hermsmeyer on Vimeo.

Who Are the Future Wine Gurus of the World?

Next stop? Spain. Logrono. And the V Marketing Forum in Rioja. For some reason I'm big in Spain. There have been stories in major publications, my face has been given full -page treatment, plastered with the message--Heroina. Spain is also the first country to have bought foreign rights to my book---it comes out there in 2010! I'm curious about their Feiring fascination. Could it be that are pissed off that as an industry they've lost their way, in doing so, sold their identity to the lowest buyer now, especially Rioja, have no idea who they are. Do you think this is possible? For the conference, following the marketing person from LVMH (should I don a flak jacket?) my assigned topic: the next wine gurus and most importantly how to get the attention of a wine critic. What to talk about for thirty minutes that could have any impact or interest has kept me up at night. My stance is kind of anti-guru, but like it or not, people do become taste makers. People with outspoken vision find followers. But for at least in my lifetime I see the falling of one strong universal voice that will dominate the wine world for 25 years. That time is over. Unless of course it's this guy Yes, that's right. The successor to P***** is not David Schildnecht, not Allen Meadows, not even Eric Asimov BUT the the hero of Kami no Shizuku, (The Drops of the Gods), Shizuku Kanzaki. A cartoon is the most influential wine critic driving source of wine sales in Japan and Korea. He sneers at New Zealand riesling and swooned over a St. Aubin and sales plummet and rise. And what's more, he doesn't use scores. This is story driven stuff. A man is on a mission to find the ten best wines of the world. The journey is the beauty. Is the salavation of wine in a cartoon character written by a sister and brother team who might or might not have a palate? Brilliant. I don't know if something like this can translate into our culture. One of the main problems is that no matter what you think, we have no respect for wine in the States and there is no wine culture. We have a soda culture. Writers are getting fired. No magazine cares. Writing is reduced to what to drink tonight, and mostly these are whatever samples comes through the writers door. Not exactly the best, BUT, most available. As far as what's left in regular coverage, there is Eric over the Times and thank God (or Sulzberger) for it. There's Jon Bonne and his brilliant coverage over at the SF Chronicle, and then there is the insightful Mike Steinberger at Slate. All apologies to some remaining local papers with a wine columnist who I might have overlooked. But basically, they pale in comparison to the above three. And who knows if wine writing will exist in any form. If what only exists is the blog world, God help us. I'm not saying that some of my colleagues don't give great blog, but finding the knowledgeble folk who don't have something to 'sell' is tough. And then finding some voices who have done homework is even tougher. I am mourning the loss of words and culture meets research and questioning. I am hoping I'm nothing more than a Henny Penny with a piece of phony sky in my hand. Who knows, salvation might be around the corner. I love Shizuku. And I also love the fact that after I talk about him in Spain, those marketers are going to be trying to figure out not how to bring Rioja back to authenticity, but will instead try to send the cartoon character samples. And then there is this.
Robert Parker's Bitch from Josh Hermsmeyer on Vimeo.