Mike Veseth's Blog, page 31

Air Provence: Provence Rosé Takes Flight

[image error]The list of regions around the world that make good Rosé wine is very long because Rosé is a style of wine, not a wine grape variety. But the word-association game answer is easy: Rosé? Provence.

And although my friends in California and the Languedoc and other places that have nice Rosé hate it when I say this, if you are talking Rosé here in the United States the conversation begins with Provence.

#1 Export Market: USA

The wine producers in Provence are understandably happy with this...

What Can We Learn from the Wine in Moderation Movement?

[image error]Some say that it is time for the wine industry to take the initiative to change perceptions through a generic promotion program. The “Got Milk?” campaign made people think about milk a bit differently. Maybe a similar initiative could shift the needle on wine?

One concern, as I wrote last week, is that as memorable as “Got Milk?” was, it didn’t prevent milk’s ultimate marketplace decline. Maybe “Got Wine?” isn’t the answer. But what would a better approach look like?

Wine in Moderation

I...

Got Wine? Is It Time for a Generic Wine Promotion Campaign?

I’ve had several conversations recently that circled back to the idea that the wine industry should invest in a generic promotion campaign. You know what I mean. Not “Got Milk?” (maybe the most celebrated generic promotion of all time), but something along the lines of “Got Wine?” or “Got California Wine?” depending on who’s talking.

“Got Wine?” is too copy-cat to work, of course. You can come up with something better if you give it some thought. But you get the idea.

Subsidy Wars?

One...

Thanksgiving Flashback: Black Friday Wine

[image error]Thursday is Thanksgiving Day here in the United States and it is a time for remembering and being grateful. I am grateful for friends and family and for all the wonderful wine choices we have today. As for remembering, here is an abridged version of a Thanksgiving Wine Economist column from 2009.

The Black Friday Wine?

I called Beaujolais Nouveau a “Black Friday wine” back in 2009 because good sales were critical for producers and distributors who wanted to finish the year profitably “in the...

What’s Up with Italian Wine in the U.S. Market?

[image error]Italian wine has a lot going for it in the U.S. market. Wines from Italy are by far the largest category of imported wines. Recent Nielsen figures (reported in Wine Business Monthly) show almost $1.2 billion in 52-week sales of Italian wines in the channels that Nielsen surveys — that is almost a third of all spending on wine imports and far more than #2 Australia ($720 million) and #3 New Zealand  ($496 million). France is #4 at $462 million.

Tariffs? Que Bello? Pazzo!

Italy has benefited from the hot mar...

What’s Really in your Glass? Transparency, Accountability & Wine

[image error]Are you the sort of person who looks at every new garment to see where it’s made (and of what material) and studies the nutritional information on the back labels of the groceries that you buy? Me, too, although I don’t claim to be consistent in these investigations and I am sure that I miss a lot.

FDA Meets TTB

Many people take an intense interest in the products they buy, especially food and drink since they go into our bodies.  Calories per serving, along with sodium, carbohydrates, and protein,...

Wine Book Launch Today: Discover Hungarian Wine

Our good friends, Charine Tan and Matthew Horkey of Exotic Wine Travel, are launching their fourth wine book today: Discover Hungarian Wine: A Visitor-Friendly Guide, available for pre-order via

The Future of Wine on “The Rocks”

[image error]The Rocks of Milton-Freewater is a distinctive wine region. Small in size, it is defined, more or less by an alluvial fan. The rocks go very deep and draw vine roots down with them. To provide perspective To Kalon, the famous Napa Valley vineyard that is the source of many cult wines including Opus One, is also an alluvial fan. Terroirist territory to be sure.

Rock Power

Early settlers to the Walla Walla...

“Around the World in 80 Wines” on List of 56 All-Time Best Wine Books

[image error]BookAuthority.org has included my book Around the World in Eighty Wines on its list of the 56 “Best Wine Books of All Time.” You can find it at #22, behind Wine Folly and Wine Bible (#1 and #2) along with wine books by some pretty talented wine writers. I’m flattered (and a bit surprised, to be honest) to be included on the list.

Here’s how this “Best Wine Book” list was made. BookAuthority uses an algorithm to rate the popularity and influence of hundreds of thousands of books in many categories. According to t...

What’s Up in Walla Walla? Wine Tourism

[image error]Walla Walla has become an important wine center and an exciting place to visit, but it wasn’t always that way. When Sue and I first came here years ago you could count the wineries on one hand and Main Street, which really was the main street of the town, was strictly for locals and their everyday needs. If there was a destination address on Main Street it might have been Brights Candies or the historic theater across the street.

Walla Walla’s business was agriculture back them –wheat, peas, and the famous sw...