My good friend Zita Keely, from Hoboken, has embarked on her latest foray into the world of wine educatoring with a 3-part series called Time to Wine. Happily for us, she chose our Westfield store in which to film it. Even more happily, she shows yours truly to co-star in one of the episodes. Primetime it ain't, but with YouTube, everyone can preserve his or her Andy Warhol moment of fame...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vVWKPn8OPY
Monday, October 6, 2008
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Are we delivering on our promise?
As the summer comes to an end (autumnal equinox notwithstanding), I felt it would be appropriate to pause and assess whether we at CoolVines are fulfilling our mission. From the outset, we have sought to bring something new and valuable to the market of wine lovers – an environment where artisanal wines - hand-crafted in hundreds, not millions of cases; made by family wineries and innovative non-traditional wine makers, as well as top producers from classic regions - are accessible to everyone; not just the experts who comb the wine publications to stay abreast of the best and brightest.
Why do we pursue this mission and how do we hope to achieve it? For those interested in the musings of a kindred soul - after all, I still consider myself a CoolVines customer as well as its Founder, having created CoolVines out of my own frustration at the complexity of the consumer environment for such a simple product, then read on…
Why do we focus on artisanal wines and how we make them accessible to you. For two simple reasons, one noble and one, well perhaps less noble.
Reason 1: We believe that small-production, authentically produced wines represent the best value for the wine consumer today…which is why we don’t focus on expert-rated, big-label wines. Wine ratings, at one time serving the American public to help them find the best wines at any price, now, in my humble opinion, have reduced the diversity and value that is available to wine drinkers, as many wineries feel economically compelled to produce wines that suit the palates of the influential wine raters…even if this is not in keeping with a given winemaker’s traditional style. Kind of reminds me of bad movie sequels – Producers make these movies because they make money, not because they make great art. (Caddyshack II, anyone?) And far from serving the customer in finding great values, nothing drives the price up and availability down faster than a high point rating from Robert Parker or Wine Spectator. Is there any alternative? Yes! To find high quality, but not overexposed, wines from producers who focus on making good wine, not good wine ratings; who sink their resources into grapes, barrels and aging, rather than advertisements and label design. The bad news, though, is that today’s wine market – with over 100,000 wines released into the market every year - makes it challenging for wine lovers who don’t want to spend hours every week researching the wine market to find these wines. The good news is that there are thousands of passionate and dedicated winemakers like this and we LOVE searching for them!
Reason 2: Willy Sutton said it best. When asked why he robs banks, he replied simply: “Because that’s where the money is.” Applied to the wine business, the movement toward artisanal wines, while perhaps still a blip on Yellowtail’s competition meter, is definitely where the action is. Wine consumption continues to grow in the US, whether it’s Two-Buck Chuck ($2.99 in NJ) or Chateau Margaux 2000. But the most interesting subsegment of the wine consumer market (at least to us at CoolVines) is the emerging category of authenticity-seeking, adventurous wine drinkers who get excited about trying new wines that have a story behind them, rather than a lot of marketing dollars behind them. So, yes, we ARE in business to make a little money at this, but we chose our focus on artisanal wines mostly it’s because we want to enjoy hanging out with our own customers, and these customers are the most interesting to us!
How do we serve this market? Through our wine sourcing strategy and our in-store presentation of wines. Tune in for Part II of this blog to hear how we:
1. Choose only wines that fit our criteria of great wine and great value
2. Arrange the wines in our stores by how they taste and pair with food; not by their region of production or grapes from which they are made.
...to be continued...
Why do we pursue this mission and how do we hope to achieve it? For those interested in the musings of a kindred soul - after all, I still consider myself a CoolVines customer as well as its Founder, having created CoolVines out of my own frustration at the complexity of the consumer environment for such a simple product, then read on…
Why do we focus on artisanal wines and how we make them accessible to you. For two simple reasons, one noble and one, well perhaps less noble.
Reason 1: We believe that small-production, authentically produced wines represent the best value for the wine consumer today…which is why we don’t focus on expert-rated, big-label wines. Wine ratings, at one time serving the American public to help them find the best wines at any price, now, in my humble opinion, have reduced the diversity and value that is available to wine drinkers, as many wineries feel economically compelled to produce wines that suit the palates of the influential wine raters…even if this is not in keeping with a given winemaker’s traditional style. Kind of reminds me of bad movie sequels – Producers make these movies because they make money, not because they make great art. (Caddyshack II, anyone?) And far from serving the customer in finding great values, nothing drives the price up and availability down faster than a high point rating from Robert Parker or Wine Spectator. Is there any alternative? Yes! To find high quality, but not overexposed, wines from producers who focus on making good wine, not good wine ratings; who sink their resources into grapes, barrels and aging, rather than advertisements and label design. The bad news, though, is that today’s wine market – with over 100,000 wines released into the market every year - makes it challenging for wine lovers who don’t want to spend hours every week researching the wine market to find these wines. The good news is that there are thousands of passionate and dedicated winemakers like this and we LOVE searching for them!
Reason 2: Willy Sutton said it best. When asked why he robs banks, he replied simply: “Because that’s where the money is.” Applied to the wine business, the movement toward artisanal wines, while perhaps still a blip on Yellowtail’s competition meter, is definitely where the action is. Wine consumption continues to grow in the US, whether it’s Two-Buck Chuck ($2.99 in NJ) or Chateau Margaux 2000. But the most interesting subsegment of the wine consumer market (at least to us at CoolVines) is the emerging category of authenticity-seeking, adventurous wine drinkers who get excited about trying new wines that have a story behind them, rather than a lot of marketing dollars behind them. So, yes, we ARE in business to make a little money at this, but we chose our focus on artisanal wines mostly it’s because we want to enjoy hanging out with our own customers, and these customers are the most interesting to us!
How do we serve this market? Through our wine sourcing strategy and our in-store presentation of wines. Tune in for Part II of this blog to hear how we:
1. Choose only wines that fit our criteria of great wine and great value
2. Arrange the wines in our stores by how they taste and pair with food; not by their region of production or grapes from which they are made.
...to be continued...
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Questions of Taste Blog - August 2008
The New Kid on the Block
while I’m tempted to offer a defense to a few of these points (we are bringing in a ton of additional French wines within the next few weeks, for example), in the end I am pleased to see that a customer of our new store in Princeton sees in CoolVines a refreshing addition to the options for wine consumers.
It's definitely a happy day for wine lovers in the Princeton area. The wine store CoolVines just completed it's first week in it's new location, on Harrison and Nassau. Here's the rundown:
The location is a bit out-of-the-way for students. In particular, it is not within easy walking distance of the Palmer Square/Witherspoon St. area. On the other hand, it is within range of the Blue Point Grill, which is probably the best BYO within reach of student budgets.
The design of the store is elegant and innovative, if a little cramped. Wines are organized by color, body (light-med-full), and price (the cheapest wines are at the bottom, so bring kneepads!)...
Their selection needs a bit of work, as they themselves will admit. Currently it seems to be about 1/6th the size of the Corkscrew's. I'll be honest - I hadn't heard of a single wine on their shelves, but the first wine I purchased (a Chinon) was a solid selection. Perhaps their under-the-radar-wines approach is a good thing...
Read full article (link to web page)
Monday, August 25, 2008
ShopPrinceton.com - August 2008
CoolVines Now Open in Princeton
CoolVines presents a fundamentally different way to buy and enjoy wine. With their hand-picked selection of wines and straightforward wine groupings, you'll be able to choose wines in a much more intuitive way to match your preferences and fit the occasion. CoolVines, 344 Nassau St, Princeton, NJ 609-924-0039
Read original article (link to web page)
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