Category Archives: Social Media & WIne

2010 Wine Bloggers Conference Sells Out! So Join the Wait List Now!

No, I don’t mean the Wine Bloggers Conference has sold out ethically–it’s sold out sold out! That means maybe if you’re lucky, and you join the waiting list TODAY, you’ll get a spot.

Why would you want to go? As someone who has attended the past two years in Santa Rosa as well as the European Wine Bloggers conference in Lisbon, I can tell you attending is an amazing experience. You can read about my experiences via the many posts I put up each year on the pages above.

The first year the conference focused on Sonoma country wines and those from New Zealand. In 2009, we traveled all over Napa to taste that region’s wines and there was a tasting of wines from Portugal also. The Portugal conference highlighted Portuguese wines in a way impossible without traveling all over Portugal. 2010’s conference will emphasize the wines of the host state, Washington with tours and tastings and talks.

These conferences bring to the wine blogger an astounding array of incredible wines. Often the winemaker is in attendance to share more about what makes his or her wines special. If you’re one of the 1,000 wine bloggers out there, you’d have the opportunity to up your game by tasting 100s of wines in the company of wine bloggers and wine professionals.

The conferences are a great value as well. The meals are absolutely fabulous and match marvelously with the wines! So what else could you ask for? Wine, food, friends, plus guest speakers and sessions designed to improve your knowledge of wine and wine blogging. Learn more at the Wine Bloggers Conference website.

If this sounds too good to be true, it almost is. Here are a few more details form the website about who should attend and how much it costs.

Who Should Attend

  • Citizen Bloggers who write about wine or the wine industry on their own. In 2010, we are also focusing on wine & food pairing and so invite all food bloggers as well!
  • Winery Bloggers who have a winery-related blog. We will have special content tailored to winery bloggers.
  • New Media Innovators who work in the world of blogging and social media.
  • Wine Industry members who would like to learn about new media or interact with bloggers.

Cost, Payment, Cancellation, and What is Included

The cost of the conference is $95 for citizen wine bloggers (those unaffiliated with a business or organization), $195 for industry wine bloggers (those whose blog is affiliated with a winery, retail store, or other business or organization), and $295 for non-blogger participants (industry, media relations professionals, friends and family, etc). We are able to offer a lower price to citizen bloggers and wine-industry bloggers because it is for these folks our sponsors underwrite the conference. If you are a member of OpenWine Consortium, you will receive a discount of $10 (just indicate your membership on the registration along with your member name and we’ll discount it automatically). Payment is required in advance by credit card.

Such a deal! There’s even a scholarship to help needy wine bloggers attend! If you can, please support this worthy cause with a small or large donation!

Twitter Tasting Event Picks Washington Merlot Thursday March 25

Thursday, March 25,  I will join in on the third Twitter Tasting event: Washington Merlot. The first one focused on California Cabernets and I tweeted enthusiastically about Old Creek Ranch’s Napa Valley Cabernet. For number two, my friend Tim Cabrera and I went to Summerland Winery where we tasted and he bought a bottle of their sauvignon blanc which is one of his favorite summertime wines (and I could sure see why!)

And since I am going on a Washington Wine tasting and blogging binge in order to compete in the WBC-or-Bust contest, it’s a no brainer that I will be participating in Thursday’s live Twitter Tasting for Washington Merlot.

Trouble is, I live in California, in a town some of us call “Ventucky.” It doesn’t boast much in the way of wine stores–although some people here do boast about our wine BARS. Granted, Nick’s Cave and the Ventura Wine Store is a wonderful place; however, he specializes in California wines, particularly local ones, and especially those that the distributor will give him marked down lower than some wineries are comfortable going.

So I went to Vons. We have five Vons in our small town, and fortunately for me, two of them have a decent wine selection. One of them, on Seaward by the beach, sells the most wine out of all the stores in California I’ve been told and makes the most money per square foot out of the whole chain. Probably because they carry and sell a LOT of pricey wine. CALIFORNIA wine.

I went to the Vons on Borchard. On their clearance shelf I got lucky and found one of my favorite inexpensive pinot noirs, Wild Rock, for 50% so I picked up two bottles for the price of one ($15)  plus a 2006 Babich unoaked chard for $5 and a Napa Valley White Oak Syrah for $13.

Unfortunately I could only find one Washington merlot, a 2005 by Chateau Ste. Michelle on sale for $10.

Since I bought six bottles, they took another 10% off. In addition, the other day I picked up two bottles of Ravenswood 2007 Vintners Blend at 50% off (two at $12), and I walked out of Vons with a 2008 St. Francis Chardonnay for $9!

This state of affairs is going to make it very very difficult for me to write much about Washington wines in the next month in order to be competitive in the WBC-or-Bust contest. I just bought nine bottles of wine and even at discounted prices, I spent some money, and I only ended up with one from Washington! And my Twisted Few wine club shipment just came in to my cellar up at my mom’s house!

If I get desperate enough, and move quickly enough, possible I could order wine for the event here: http://wine-beer-washington.com/announcements/washington-merlot-deals-discounts-and-doings/

One last dilemna: what to drink with the beautiful New York steak I bought for tonight? Do I drink the Chateau St. Michelle Washington merlot and get started on my challenge and prep my tastebuds for Thursday? Or do I drink one of these other fabulous wines I bought in the past 72 hours? I hope the suspense doesn’t get to you!

Want to join in the fun? Register for the Washington Merlot Twitter Tasting here; it’s free and you don’t even have to register to participate. Just get on twitter and let the tweets flow with the Washington merlot!

Word count: this one clocks in at nearly 600 words! I definitely should have turned this one into three posts!

WBC-or-Bust: Wine Predator Throws Hat Into Ring for Trip to WA Wine Country!

I’m signed up.

Signed up to what?

Compete in the WBC-or-BUST contest.

The what?

The WBC-or-Bust Contest!

Yeah, right!

No –Write! Write about Washington wines! Live it up! Be driven around to various top-notch wineries from Seattle to Walla Walla! Be wined AND dined! Stay in a way cool B&B along the way!

See the badge there on the sidebar? That means I’m official!

Well, can I go?

Only if you sign up and follow these “Rules & Guidelines”!

TO ENTER If you don’t already have one, create a free WineCHATr.com blogger account. Choose a “WBC-or-BUST” badge/banner from your WineCHATr.com account manager. Add the badge source code to your blog website, so that it is visible from any page.

Warning: This is a pain in the neck. But if I can do it, you can do it. They have a few badges to choose from. I like this one the best.

TO QUALIFY Once the WBC-or-BUST badge has been properly added to your blog website, simply blog about Washington wine throughout the span of the contest. No less than one Washington wine post must be published to remain eligible.

I don’t think this one will count, do you?

TO WIN 12 winning bloggers will be named at the conclusion of the campaign. Four (4) winners will be selected at random out of all qualifying participants. Two (2) winners will be chosen for posting the most Washington wine related blog entries (minimum of 150 words required for each post). Six (6) additional winners will be chosen for the best category based posting:

  • Top 2 Best Washington winery posts
  • Top 2 Best Washington wine or tasting note posts
  • Best Washington growing region post
  • Best Washington vineyard post

The huh? The final four winners will be selected at random out of all qualifying participants? Random? Can you see me scratching my head? Maybe 2 random and 2 because the writing overall was good or the person showed lots of potential or had proven her worth by blogging like a mad dog at other conferences?

Oh and FYI This post has 700 words if we count the title, well over the required number of 150 words per post. Since I tend to write posts of 750-1000 words, do you think I should break them into parts in order to be more competitive? Or add lots of extra words to my sentences?

A few more words in the fine print:

* Your blog has to have been started before the end of October 2009 (no problem there–I started this blog August 2008 and started psoting regularly October 2008; my main blog, Art Predator, I started November 2007).
* Washington bloggers/residents can’t compete (I’m definitely a Californian!)
* You have to have a ticket to WBC 10 (and those are selling out fast! I’m applying for a scholarship, but if that doesn’t come through, Reno is saving me a spot.)
* You have to make a 1 minute video and post it to you-tube and leave a link in your blog Just kidding! But here’s mine anyway! Just insert Washington Wine whenever I say M-G. I’m an equal opportunity blogger (within reason!)

Below are more details about this amazing opportunity. Check it out and you’ll see why I want to be on that bus or bust!

ROAD TO WALLA WALLA: June 23rd – 25th

DAY 1: Seattle & Woodinville Wine Country
WBC-or-BUST Preview - Day 1 Experience some of the best Washington has to offer from one of the premier food & wine destinations in the Northwest. {view itinerary}

DAY 2: Yakima Valley & Walla Walla
WBC-or-BUST Preview - Day 1 Travel across the Cascade Mountain Range to visit Washington’s premier growing regions and taste through a selection of premium wines. {view itinerary}

DAY 3: Start of the Wine Bloggers Conference
Arrive to Walla Walla in style just in time for the WBC with a deeper understanding of Washington and its thriving wine industry.

So here goes! Until this contest ends at the end of April, there will definitely be a Washington Wine slant to this blog. It’s gonna be a blast! And maybe I’ll get to blast off in June to my next wine adventure–in Washington!

Now to find my notes from the WA wines I tasted at WBC…they’re here somewhere!

How To Bag Wine Drinking Millenials: Crazy Bear’s Approach vs Randall Grahm’s

Above is the back label copy for Crazy Bear’s Charbono-Nay wine which is trying to bag the Millenial Market.

Below is how Bonny Doon’s Randall Grahm responded to Mutineer Magazine’s question:  “What do you want millennials to know about your wine?”

“A lot,” answered Grahm.

One, wine is alive. Wine has an intelligence. Wine changes. Wine needs time to develop and you need time to understand it. Don’t make the judgment in a second.  Don’t think you understand the wine in a second. Be patient. Spend time. Invest time. The average person doesn’t grasp the distinction, doesn’t understand that there are wines that are made through industrial process, that are very dependable, very standardized. You’re not going to have this variation from year to year, but they’re confections, and then there are other wines that are more artisanal, maybe they’re flawed, but there’s something more authentic and real about them…honest.

Read more at Mutineer Magazine:
http://www.mutineermagazine.com/blog/randall-grahm/

(Confections! What a wonderful word to describe that process. I knew exactly what he meant.)

Learn about Crazy Bear Wine’s approach to bagging Millenials here. The writing here is a marvel as well. In a different way.

PS And instead of sandals, I’ll be sure to wear my Ugg boots with my Patagucci skirt this summer should I get a chance to bag me some #crazybear.

Sauvignon Blanc Live Twitter Tasting Thursday March 4

Rick Bakas from St. Supery is at it again! A few weeks ago, he organized a live twitter tasting about California Cabernets. Tomorrow, March 4 from 5-7pm, he’s hosting a Sauvignon Blanc tasting. All you need to do to participate is taste and tweet about Sauvignon Blanc wine. If you use the hashtag, #sauvblanc, then other participants will be able to track what you’re saying along with everyone else using, for example, tweetdeck.

He also suggest you get a few friends together and a few bottles of wine and tweet, taste, and talk your way through them. Sounds fun!

Last month, I knew exactly what I was going to be drinking: a Napa Valley Cabernet from Old Creek Ranch Winery. This time, I’m not sure–I need to rummage around and see what I have or make a run up the hill to my mom’s where I keep my wine in the cellar my grandfather built.

Maybe next live twitter tasting I’ll see if John Whitman of Old Creek Ranch or winemaker Michael Meagher would host a group of us tweeters…

If only the #sauvblanc tasting was next Thursday! I’d have so much more to write about because I am going to a HUGE New Zealand tasting with lots of great Sauv Blancs at Nobu in LA on Tuesday March 9! I hope to get a post up about some of the highlights of the tasting on Wednesday March 10.

And be on the lookout for a post about #calicabs as well as one on the two Petite Sirahs I enjoyed for my remote Dark and Delicious tasting!

Live Twitter Tasting Focuses on California Cabernet Sauvs Thurs. February 11

Rick Bakas has organized a tasting of California Cabernet Sauv’s using 140 character comments on twitter for Thursday February 11. From 5-5:30pm, participants will taste and tweet first about cab wines from the southern  portion of the state (Paso Robles and down) from 5-5:30pm, taste and tweet about cabs from the middle region of the state from 5:30-6pm, then taste and tweet about cabs from the northern reaches from 6-7pm.

He encourages us to live it up and open, taste and tweet about wines from each region. I’m not sure whether I will do that; I do know that I will tasting and tweeting about wines made by Michael Meagher, winemaker for Vino V and Old Creek Road Winery. I wish I could make it to the Old Creek Ranch Winery,  and do this tasting with him,  but I’ll be here doing it at home. Next time!

Will you be joining in the fun? If so, use the hashtag #CaliCabs. You might also want to do a search and column on that hashtag so you can see what everyone else is tasting and saying.

What wine pairs with snow? Wine Blogging Wednesday #65 Announced!

What do you drink with a side of snow?

This month’s Wine Blogging Wednesday’s host Wine Girl asks:

“Even if you’re in warm sunny Florida or Los Angeles,” writes Wine Girl in her announcement of WBW #65, ” I want you to look out your window and imagine Snow. Snowmen, snow balls, igloos, snow trucks, snow … cold, cold snow. Then I want you to imagine what that makes you want to drink. Do you want to curl up in front of your fireplace with a port? Maybe you want to pull out a cabernet sauvignon or a big juicy zin and then put on your snowsuit. Are you a glutton for punishment and you’re pulling out a chilled riesling before heading out to build a snowman? Are you inspired by vintners who are braving frigid temperatures to make icewine? In this particular instance, I’ll even allow you to branch a little away from wine if you want. With a valid story behind you, there’s no reason you can’t pop open a cognac, a brandy, or even bourbon. Imaginary “bonus points” for anyone with a wonderful Snow Day story of their youth, a great photo of snow and wine, or even a Snowman and wine!”

This prompt is  too cool for school if you ask me! I just wish I’d known LAST weekend when we broke into two different bottles of port and we could have tried a third I brought to snowy Flagstaff. Fortunately, we’re heading to the snow again this weekend to celebrate my birthday–now certainly with some fortified wines! I’d love to find an excellent madeira or sherry which is really tough around here, but I will likely do some ports–maybe one each from three continents–Europe, Australia and here:  I have a tempting Kachina port that was in the gift bag at the Wine Bloggers Conference last summer.

Want to take part in WBW 65: Snow Day? It takes place Weds. Jan 20. Send links to wbw65@wine-girl.net.