Mike Veseth's Blog, page 41

Wine Tourism in Mendoza: Rethinking Best-Practices with the UNWTO

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The Wine Economist will take a break for the next two weeks while Sue and I travel to Mendoza, Argentina for the second Global Wine Tourism conference organized by the United Nations World Tourism Organization and hosted by the Argentina Ministry of Tourism. It will be great to return to Mendoza and to have a chance to discuss wine tourism strategies with both old friends and new ones.

Asking Questions, Rethinking Answers

Good conferences succeed because they work on several levels at once....

50, 83, 41, 44: There’s a Lot to Celebrate This Year at Chateau Ste Michelle

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Washington State’s Chateau Ste Michelle is celebrating its birthday this year and there is a lot to celebrate, as I will explain below, even if the exact number of candles on the cake is open to debate.

Happy Birthday to The Chateau

The Chateau, as we call Chateau Ste Michelle in these parts, goes for 50 candles — and I think that’s fine. It was 50 years ago, in 1967, that the first varietal wines were released by a little-bitty operation called Ste Michelle Vineyards. The Chateau has releas...

Flashback Friday: Can Wine Tourism Take Center Stage in Valpolicella?

Sue and I have wine tourism on our minds these days because we are getting ready for the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s global wine tourism conference in Mendoza, Argentina later this month.

We were in the Veneto at this time three years ago and wine tourism was on our minds there, too. Here is a Flashback Friday column from 2014 about wine tourism in Valpolicella.

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Valpolicella is well known for its great wines — Valpolicella Classico, Valpolicella Superiore, Ripasso della V...

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What in the World is Charles Smith Up to Now? A Visit to Jet City Winery

[image error]Charles Smith’s Jet City Winery is located across the street from historic Boeing Field in Seattle’s gritty but hip Georgetown neighborhood.

The building started life as a Dr. Pepper bottling plant. The public spaces reflect both the structure’s mid-century roots and Charles Smith’s signature aesthetic, with lots of glass, metal, and recycled wood. The cellar is sleek, efficient, and spotlessly clean.

Sue and I met up with veteran Wine Economist research assistants Bonnie and Richard a few we...

The Genius of Charles Smith and the Land versus Brand Wine Wars

What do you know about Charles Smith? He’s a marketing genius! Where does he get his ideas? Do you know what he is going to do next?[image error]

We were in a restaurant in Yountville, the heart of the Napa Valley, talking with one of the valley’s best winemakers. There was a lot to discuss, but our friend was pretty focused. He was fascinated by Charles Smith.

And that’s not really a surprise. Charles Smith has a reputation as a premier brand builder, a marketing genius. That’s not the whole Charles Smit...

Coming Up: Second UNWTO Global Conference on Wine Tourism in Mendoza

[image error]The second United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Global Conference on Wine Tourism is coming to Mendoza, Argentina on September 28-30, 2017. You can view the preliminary program here).

Sue and I had the pleasure to participate in the first UNWTO global wine tourism conference in the Republic of Georgia in 2016 and are excited to take part in the Mendoza conference. I am scheduled to give one of the keynote speeches. My topic will be “Wine Tourism for Sustainable Development: Oppor...

Big & Hot Wine: Cab Boom, Napa Bubble, Think Pink, Back to the Future?

Last week’s Wine Economist column featured a very basic “Big and Hot” analysis of recent U.S. wine market data, focusing on which parts of the market are the most interesting in terms of “big” total expenditures versus the fastest growing “hot” categories. (If you haven’t read the first column, click here to check it out.)

This week I invite you to give some thought to the implications of that information. Here are a few observations to get you started.

Cabernet Boom, Napa Bubble?[image error]

Cabernet Sa...

New “Wine by Numbers” + Analysis of Global & US Wine Market Dynamics

 

[image error]A new edition of Wine by Numbers was released a few days ago and it is required reading for anyone interested in global wine market dynamics. Wine by Numbers presents current data about global wine exports, imports and patterns of trade. It is a free resource provided by the Unione Italiani Vini, the Italian wine association.

Who Buys? Who Sells?

This special edition provides more data and deeper analysis, including essays by leading figures in the Italian wine industry about some of the mo...

Celebrating Milestones for Canada (150 Years) & Canadian Wine (37 Vintages)

Milestones. Do they mark how far you have come on a journey? Or do they tell you how far you’ve left to go? Both, I guess, which gives them a (wine) glass half full / half empty quality that invites contemplation.

Canada and Canadian wine have reached important milestones recently and I think there is something to gain in contemplating them in tandem.

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2017 is the 150th anniversary of Canada’s confederation — a significant milestone in its national history. The past 150 years have no...

When is a Wine Tourist Not a Wine Tourist? Lessons from Cyprus

[image error]We were sitting on the terrace at Nelion Winery, perched on the famous Paphos-Troodos road, talking with winemaker Marinos Ioannou and tasting his excellent wines. (We loved a dry red made from the indigenous Ofthalmo grape variety and brought home a bottle to share with friends here).

A Happening Place

Nelion was kind of a happening place while we were there. Lots of traffic, lots of visitors. This is not an accident. The Paphos-Troodos road draws many visitors who come to Cyprus and want to...