Archive for the 'Industry Issues' Category

Statistics released last week by the Beverage Information Group indicate that overall beer consumption in the U.S. is down, as it has been trending over the past few years. It would be easy to jump to conclusions and fret that the beer boom is over, but a closer look at the numbers shows just the contrary: Although the Light segment continues to decline and contribute to the overall losses in the industry, growth in the Craft and Import segments remain significant despite their higher-priced items.

What does this mean, in a nutshell? Americans might be drinking less, but we’re drinking better! Hooray for us!

That’s right: More Americans are trading in fizzy yellow stuff for flavorful, artisanal selections created by brewers both abroad and across our great nation, looking for exciting selections and interesting, complex flavors that they’ve never experienced before. And with the most domestic breweries the U.S. has had in over 100 years (since about 1905) producing the widest array of styles, we have more delicious options available to us than ever.

Of course, the fabulous breweries that started this current craft trend about 25 to 30 years ago deserve the majority of the credit, followed closely by their later-blooming brewing brethren, but I have to believe that education has played a major role here as well. Associations like the Brewers Association and their array of consumer-education driven events like the Great American Beer Festival (which is coming up next week in Denver, CO) and Savor, homebrew groups and competitions throughout the country, savvy restaurateurs and programs like the Cicerone certification, and yes, media outlets including newspapers, magazines and even television shows have all helped to get the word out to consumers that there’s a world of flavor to be had for beer lovers.

And it seems like the people have heard. We all knew with the economic turmoil over the past couple of years that this transition wasn’t going to be easy, but it seems apparent now that while people are not as willing to spend more on alcoholic products, as they maybe once were, they’re comfortable getting less quantity for overall better quality.

But there’s still so much to learn, and so many beers to try. So keep up the good work, America. Keep drinking new and exciting brews, especially those made by small brewers right here in the USA.

To celebrate tonight, I’m gonna head to my local distributor after work and pick up something I’ve never tried before.  I’d love to hear what’s in your glass!

Cheers!

With the Jewish holiday Passover starting tonight, this past weekend was filled with questions about what wine to pick up for consumption during the traditional Seder. I’m sure I’ll get my fair share of these questions today as well, as people make their way to their local wine shops to pick up some selections before sundown. I don’t mind answering these queries; in fact, I love when people ask and I get the opportunity to geek out a bit. What I don’t like is how these questions, especially when it comes to kosher wine, are proposed.

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Every year, the CIVL (The Conseil Interprofessionel des Vins du Languedoc) organizes the Languedoc Ambassador Wine Tour, a trade and media tasting designed to promote the great diversity and superb quality of AOC wines found in the Languedoc wine region. This year is no exception, with fantastic wines announced today as the official CIVL Ambassador Wines of 2011.

It’s fantastic exposure for an oft-overlooked region.

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Public ownership of wineries is a relatively recent phenomenon–and one whose time is coming to an inglorious end. Recent press reports are that three huge multinational alcohol beverage corporations are shedding all or parts of their wine operations. Brown-Forman, Constellation Brands and Foster’s Group all seem to be at least somewhat disillusioned with the wine sector.

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The world of the cocktail is thriving. We are in a perhaps unprecedented heyday for everything related to the world of spirits, whether it’s the inventive mixologist, the eclectic spirit revived from the past or created fresh, or the artisanal, inspired drink. Anyone with an interest in creation will find something to entice in the world of the modern cocktail…an alluring balance of serious science and sexy swagger.

With any momentous trend comes the backlash, and certainly as the mixology and creative cocktail culture has spread into “mainstream” America, the world can become a parody of itself. At its best, shaped in the hands of serious studies of past and present like Julie Reiner, Dale DeGroff, Audrey Saunders and beyond, the evolution of the cocktail is not only enjoyable to the palate but an education in American history and culture itself. It’s also no different than the culinary world…chefs who push the envelope on flavor combinations and find new riffs on old classics are celebrated with appropriate fanfare.

The backlash comes from the scene taking itself too seriously, or being re-worked inappropriately. No one would argue that a perfectly crafted cocktail—especially one of the bespoke type that happens in the best cocktail clubs throughout the country—is something both the mixologist and imbiber should spend some extra time to appreciate and absorb. But that margarita slopped together with premade mix that’s now $20 because it has a clever name and is served with a big ice cube? It’s happening more and more. It’s not special. And to discerning drinkers who are also aware of their wallets, it’s downright insulting. Serious mixologists are not so happy about it either. The growing interest in premium spirits is the upside of this world going big, but greed can kill the culture if it goes too far.

The mystery and exclusivity surrounding many of the better cocktail clubs has also created some suspicion and pushback from customers who question if it’s worth the hassle. Unmarked speakeasy-style watering holes with militant doormen and impenetrable lists complicate the situation. But here’s the question…is the kind of person who’s eager to sample premium spirits with a sense of adventure the same person who’s looking for a happy hour special made with whatever’s behind the bar the same person? Is it wrong for a serious cocktail club to make some decisions about the number of people they let in, and the level of customer? That’s assuming a lot of course…and maybe the hassle is about seeing who really wants to be there.

Is the culture of mixology taking itself too seriously? What’s your take?

Demonstrators protest at the site of a new bridge over Germany's Mosel River.

The wine business has almost always had a complicated relationship with the natural environment. There is little natural about vineyards–nonnative species, terraforming, soil amendments, artificial drainage and/or irrigation systems, metal, plastic or treated-wood stakes and metal wires–all lead to a profoundly altered environment. Not to mention the various chemical treatments used in viticulture, even in certified organic and biodynamic vineyards.

Yet in the past couple of decades, wineries and vineyards have become more aware of environmental issues and made great strides in reducing chemical inputs, providing nesting boxes for native predators (as at Shafer Vineyards) and restoring native and riparian habitats (see the tremendous efforts by the Rutherford Dust Society to protect fish spawning grounds in the Napa River).

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Photo courtesy, Brewer's Association/Jason E. Kaplan

Let me rephrase that… reflections on the beer fest. Last week was the 29th annual Great American Beer Festival in Denver, Colorado, America’s biggest beer festival and Guiness record holder for the most beers tapped in one location as well as the largest selection of American beers gathered together on the globe. With close to 50,000 attendees over the course of four sessions in three days (Saturday afternoon is for Brewers’ Association members only), this is by no means a small production. Considering the amount of beers to try (over 2,200) and new experiences and information to be absorbed, all I can say is, good thing they give you a tasting book with the names of all the breweries and beers!

It’s a lot to take in, but after a week the haze begins to clear and coherent reflections can be assembled. Here are some of the highlights and epiphanies I experienced that I can’t wait to examine further:

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These days, everything seems to be a little easier thanks in large part to the internet. What used to take days, weeks, even months of digging through dusty papers and fragile microfiche in the library is now at your fingertips via online archives and resource sites. The phone book I had delivered to my house last week?… a good fire starter considering I have a handy app on my smartphone that doesn’t leave my fingers black. And of course it’s almost too easy keeping up with friends and family through the use of email, blogs and social media sites like Twitter and Facebook.

But one of the best reasons to love social media these days is the opportunity to follow people and events all over the world without leaving the comfort of your living room.

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Disclosure—no, not the Demi Moore-Michael Douglas 1994 movie that made Pahlmeyer Chardonnay a star—is one of the buzzwords of the Internet age. Everyone wants it, and everyone seems to feel like they’re not always getting enough of it.

Today, rather than rattling on about what levels of disclosure I feel are appropriate in wine criticism/journalism, I want to know what levels of disclosure you, our readers, expect.

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The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) has recently come up with a PinotG Style Spectrum, which is supposed to tell consumers what kind of Pinot Gris they’re getting, on a scale that ranges from “crisp” to “luscious.” As an industry response to the multitude of Pinot Gris styles now being made in Australia, it makes sense as shorthand, so that prospective purchasers don’t have to actually read descriptive back labels or know how to interpret technical notes.

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