Why It Matters that GaryV Hit (the Big) Time

If you are reading this blog, then it should matter to you that Gary Vaynerchuk, the lovably irascible wine guru from my go-to east coast retail store Wine Library and its accompanying multi-media extravaganza Wine Library TV, has hit the big time. Literally. In a story in Time magazine (which I heard about today from Tom Wark on Fermentation in a cryptic headline and on the wine business wires) correspondent Joel Stein records how he was won over in spite of himself to Gary and his wine message. (image from Bottleblog)

For any internet wine site to be profiled in a major national news mag is, I think, truly significant. It shows that the news is out about how the web is changing the face of wine in this country--internet wine retail, internet wine blogs, wine podcasts, and wine TV. These forms of wine information exchange are revolutionizing how we buy, drink, and think about wine.

The fact that you are reading this is evidence of this transformation. But for all of the tens of thousands of visitors that have stopped by here in the past 6 months, my traffic is miniscule in comparison to WLTV. The enormous number of people who flock to WLTV every single day go to see Gary drink wine, tell you what he tastes (and what he doesn't) and give highly opinionated commentary throughout the process. And that's the important bit, folks: Gary is not into objectivity. He loves the Jets, he loves wine, and he loves telling you why. None of this namby-pamby standing at a distance from the glass and contemplating it. Does he like it? If so, believe me you know it. And boy, you know it when he is less than impressed, too. Stein contends that only on the web could Gary get away with analyzing wine this way. In five years, I bet there are a lot more places you'll be able to get away with it, given the phenomenal success of Gary's WLTV programming.

Everybody who matches WLTV regularly has their favorite episodes, proving that Gary's wine-drinking viewing base is just as opinionated as he is. I don't know whether mine is the episode where Gary scours the supermarket to find things to taste to help you develop your wine palate and vocab, or the decanting episode. The Wine Is Fun...Period show is also classic.

Regardless of your favorite episode (and if you don't have one yet what ARE you waiting for? click on one of these links and let the addiction begin), the important thing here is that Gary makes it ok to be passionately opinionated about wine. And judging by the numbers of his loyal fans, this is a message that folks find appealing and inspiring. You know how I feel about wine and objectivity--it's all smoke and mirrors. Congratulations, Gary, for blowing away the smoke and showing us that everybody gets to have an opinion about wine. And here's to generations of wine drinkers to come who, thanks to Wine Library TV, will not be elitist, snobby oenophiles but relaxed, open-minded, wine enthusiasts. (After meeting Gary, Joel Stein is even going to try to get his mom to try something other than Yellow Tail).

When Does Blogging Turn Into Slogging?

Blog fatigue. It hits most bloggers, even the wine bloggers. That sense of dread as you contemplate your wine racks and think, "oh no, I have to drink a bottle of wine and then write about it." Sometimes this is accompanied by a sinking feeling when you realize that you want sauvignon blanc because it's hot and sticky, but you've reviewed six in a row. You really SHOULD drink something else, or your readers might get bored and pole off to some new blog.

My friend Judith recently asked "when does blogging turn into slogging?" Not yet, I'm happy to report. But it is summer, and some of my fellow bloggers are taking "sabbaticals," turning off their computers for a few weeks, and recharging their batteries. They leave apologetic notes explaining their absence, which is a testament to how seriously they take their blogging "job" which for most of us is an after-hours labor of love, not a paying gig. Still, stepping away from the computer and the internet is a big deal for a serious blogger. It's the mental equivalent of vacationing on a remote beach like this one. (photo courtesy of Ian Britton, FreeFoto.com)

Personally, I think this summer trend of blog breaks is great news, even though I miss getting updates from my favorite writers. But even bloggers need vacations, and we should all be getting more down time in this stressful world. So if you don't find a new blog post every day from your favorite bloggers, don't lose faith in them. They just need a rest. And wouldn't you rather they took a few days off than stop blogging entirely? I know I would. So here's a toast to Jeff at Good Grape, John G at Quaffability, and all the other bloggers who are taking some time for themselves.

We can't wait until your back.

Armchair Wine Shopping: domaine547

I'm working at home these days, meeting three successive deadlines and trying to get ready to go to England for a week. Things are manic, but I also need to dole out treats every now and again to keep my energy levels up. Usually, my favorite treat is to go to a wine store and browse the shelves, but lately that's been hard to fit in to the daily grind. (domaine547 mascots reproduced courtesy of domaine547)

So I decided to check out a new wine store right from the comfort of my armchair: domaine547. This is a new, LA-based retail outlet linked to an online wine community that includes a blog, a wine club, and a forum. I love their philosophy: that learning about wine is a journey, that wine should be part of everyday life, that wine lets you travel the globe when your bank account and work schedule won't let you, and that wine is not about snobbery. That pretty much sums up my philosophy, too, so it's not surprising I am drawn to their store and to their wine selection.

And what an impressive selection it is. Domaine547 may be a small operation, which means that they can't stock everything that's in the big chains. But who cares when they manage to stock what has become my Holy Grail of wine: Francois Chidaine. Brooklynguy, who knows a lot about Loire wines, puts Chidaine in his top two Loire producers but I never see it on the shelves. Score one for domaine547!

Their decision to stock Francois Chidaine was a hint of the good stuff waiting inside the online store--really interesting wine that was not the same old bottles you see everywhere else. In no time at all during my virtual walk down the aisles I filled my shopping cart with a half case of intriguing and affordable wine. I snapped up a 2006 SoloRosa Piccolo Rosso Pinot Noir ($17.99) from the Russian River Valley, a wine aged in stainless steel that sounds truly unique and was recommended to me by the folks at domaine547 as a good summer red in a comment here at GWU$20. I also got a nice selection of white wines, including an Alsatian gewurztraminer from Michel Fonne ($17.99), the longed-for Francois Chidaine from 2005 vintage and the Clos du Breuil vineyard ($20.99), and an Italian white blend (the 2005 Teruzzi & Puthod Terre di Tufi, $16.99). For fun I also selected a 2005 Gaujal Picpoul de Pinet ($9.99) which I know nothing about, but John at Brim to the Dregs likes his Picpoul, so I wanted to try one.

The other red I picked (a primitivo) was sold out, and like all good merchants domaine547 shot me back an email explaining the wine had just gone out of stock and giving me a variety of options including holding my order, shipping two orders, or replacing the wine with another wine of similar style and price. I picked the latter, and they sent me a Rosa del Golfo Primitivo that will be perfect with some pizza this summer. All the wine arrived in perfect condition, with some snazzy domaine547 coasters, and because they are in LA the shipping only took one day so there were no worries on my end about the wine getting damaged.

Domaine547 has a special section of their online store dedicated to wines under $20, and they've got the 2006 vintage of one of my favorite wines from the past year, Kris Curran's Grenache Blanc. Most LA area shoppers can take advantage of their current offer of free shipping to most zipcodes around the city (even some in the burbs, like mine) by entering the code "FreeLA" in the coupon box during checkout. I'm not sure when or if this offer will expire, so you might want to jump on it now. And if you live elsewhere in the US, they ship to you, too, as long as you live in a state that permits it--it's just not free!

If you are on the lookout for a new club, I'd consider domaine547's wine club. They have a good eye for wine, and you will not get boring stuff, or stuff that's overpriced. Their first club shipment focused on Napa Valley wines, and contained the 2005 Orin Swift "The Prisoner," the 2004 Seventy Five Wine Company Cabernet Sauvignon Amber Knolls, and the yummy 2005 Vinum PETS Petite Sirah. Club shipments are $75, and are accompanied by a great 3-page newsletter that talks about the varietals and where the wine is made, gives tasting notes, and has pairing suggestions and recipes. Next club shipment will focus on Burgundy and the pinot noir grape.

I know I'll be shopping at domaine547 in the future, because I love the convenience, the selection, the competitive pricing, and the great attitude they have about wine. Sometimes armchair wine shopping is just the thing when you want to give yourself a treat, but can't leave your desk. Stop by their store during your coffee break this morning and see what you think!

Taking a Virtual Winery Tour

I picked up a news story today about a website that hopes to make it easier for you to find out directly about your favorite wineries through a single portal. It gives you the opportunity to make a desktop trip through the vineyards of a particular region or to tour vineyards who bottle a particular wine style or grape. It's a great resource for those of us who have driving around to visit wineries in our summer holiday plans, since the information seems to be reliable and up-to-date.

AmericanWinery.com was founded in 2005 by Lloyd Benedict to provide consumers with information that would bring them closer to the folks who produce their wine. Currently, they have information on wineries from Arizona to Wyoming, and wineries are not charged any fee to sign up and have their information on the site. The site is growing now to include more interactive features, including virtual tasting rooms where you can browse through a winery's current offerings, check out their library wines, view photos, head directly to the winery's website, and see consumer ratings. In the future, Benedict will be launching a store that allows you to move to the next stage and actually purchase the wine you are interested in through AmericanWinery.com.

I spent a little bit of time on the site and right now it has good information, but very few customer ratings. So at present the site has lots of untapped potential, but it's unclear whether or how the wine 2.0 portion of the site will develop. If it does it will be reminiscent of AppellationAmerica with consumer input. With the retail outlet WineLibrary buying the wine 2.0 site Cork'd so that they can integrate a retail operation with consumer ratings, and other sites like WineQ and Domaine547 trying to link retail with interactive features in new ways, this integration of content and consumerism clearly seems to be the wave of the future.

The question that all of us have is will this work for consumers? I think one of the problems--and its one that WineQ has tried to address--is shipping. If I can find out about a wine that I think I'll like, and then pick it up at a local store, that's what I'll do in most cases because of the difficulties and costs associated with shipping wine. WineQ charges a monthly membership fee, and currently charges no money for ground shipping on orders $35 and over. AmericanWinery.com's press release hints that their virtual tasting room purchases will be discounted, which will also help to close the gap between local retail prices and a web purchase's associated shipping costs.

Click on over there if you've never visited their site. I like their winery focus, the "sneak peaks" they provide of wineries, and the site is easy to navigate. Take a virtual winery tour this afternoon when you're procrastinating at work and see what you think. It will be interesting to check back with the site in a year and see how it's developed.

Playing Blog Tag

Why do you blog? Russ at Winehiker started a game of blog-tag posing this question, and he tagged Farley, and Farley from Wine Outlook tagged me and now, I'm It.

It's a good question, and one whose answer we wine bloggers (and other bloggers, too!) take for granted. First and foremost, of course: I LOVE WINE. But here are 5 other reasons why I blog, with some subtle variations to the question:

1. Why start blogging? Part of my day job requires that I write--a lot. Often these writing projects take years--hell, sometimes they take decades. There is a lot of delayed gratification and long-term thinking involved in most of the writing I do. I started blogging because I thought that committing myself to write something every day, and instantly seeing the results, would have positive effects on the other writing that I do. And, I was right! Now that I write nearly every day on the blog, I find its easy to roll from the blog to my other writing. I also find that my other writing tends to be less forced and more fluid when I sit down to the other stuff.

2. Why do I blog about this? I went to school and then taught at UC Davis, i.e. Wine Education Mecca. I learned a lot about wine from the courses and contact with great professors there. (even though, I hasten to add, I was not a Vit-Eno major) This blog represented a way for me to focus my wine drinking and evaluation on two of the most valuable things I learned through those experiences: the importance of judging a wine by varietal characteristics, and the huge benefits associated with owning your own copy of Ann Noble's Aroma Wheel.

3. Why keep blogging? I never imagined anyone other than my parents and friends would read this blog, so it has come as a pleasant surprise to become part of a community of bloggers, wine geeks, and those just starting out on their wine journeys. I keep blogging not only because of #1 and #2, but because now that this blog is up and running it continues to engage both me--and a widening audience--of readers and contributors.

4. Why keep blogging about wine? Wine can never be truly mastered. It's all about the process. Even the most "expert" experts don't claim that they know all there is to know about wine. In fact, the greatest experts are often the most humble. (see also #1 on process)

5. Why do I think blogging about wine matters? Because everyone who writes, reads, or contributes to a wine blog is participating in an information revolution. I truly believe that blogs are changing the way people learn about and consume wine. In particular, I am committed to getting more women to actively engage with wine writing, because women purchase 77% of wine in the US and yet represent only a small (growing to be sure, but still small) fraction of wine writers both in the blogosphere and outside it. So I encourage everyone--women and men--to read, write, and leave comments as you travel through the blogosphere to keep the information rolling. New voices are crucial in wine writing, and those new voices include YOU.

So, now I get to tag people! This was truly hard because my possible options included all the people whose work I respect and admire, folks who inspire me, my blogging friends, and then folks like Jancis Robinson (I don't have the cajones to tag her, I confess, but if you're reading, Ms. Robinson, please feel free to respond). But to continue with my riff in #5, I decided to "remember the ladies" and tag some of my favorite women bloggers (minus Farley at Wine Outlook and Sonadora at Wannabe Wino, because they've already been tagged). Click on over to the sites below through the following links so they know they've been tagged--I know that they are probably too busy to read my site everyday and know that they're IT!

So here's what I want to know from the ladies below: why do YOU blog?

Catie at Through the Walla Walla Grape Vine
Gabriella Opaz and Adrienne Smith at Catavino (sorry Ryan!)
The Wine Chicks
Mary Baker at Dover Canyon
Sam Breach of Becks N Posh

Virtual Rose Tasting with Catavino

There's still time to join in the fun of Catavino's Virtual Wine Tasting event for April: Iberian Rose vs. ? Rose. Between now and April 30, see if you can find a Spanish or Portuguese rose. Wine critics and drinkers alike agree that the Iberian peninsula is producing some of the very best dry roses in the world, and Gabriella and Ryan of Catavino would like us to see what we think.

After whining that Spanish rose would be hard to find in LA, I found a surprising range of Spanish roses for under $10 at BevMo. And lots of French roses for about the same price. So, too, Mendocino and other California rose. If you want to drink along with me, here's what I'm going to be tasting and reporting on between now and April 30: the 2005 Cortijo III Rioja Rose Garnacha ($9.99); the 2005 Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare ($10.99); the 2005 Grand Plagniol Rose ($9.99). If you live in California, all these should be easy to find at your local Beverages & More. So pick up one of these bottles and drink along with me, comparing notes and seeing how different roses from different reasons stack up.

For Gabriella's brief, click over to Catavino for the details. And best of all, you certainly don't need a blog to participate, since they've set up a forum for our tasting posts. I will post my notes over there, but put a post here, too, with a link to the full range of responses.

It's spring. Time to think pink, and fire up the BBQ!

What Style of Wine Consumer Are You?

Overjoyed to be on vacation and have access to high-speed internet for the first time in a week, I caught up on my blog reading and browsed through Wednesday's New York Times--always a high point for me, since it has Eric Asimov's wine column. I admire and respect what Asimov has to say about wine, and what he is doing to broaden the knowledge of wine in the US.

This week, Mr. Asimov had two different wine shops put together mixed cases of 12 wines, with a budgetary limit of $250, that are to be drunk with food. The purpose? To learn more about wine. You can read the lists over at his blog The Pour if you don't have a subscription to the NYT, where (if you do have a subscription) you can read the whole story "To Study Wine, Buy and Drink." At The Pour you can also read the 40+ comments that this buying strategy has engendered. By the time you read this, it may be 50+. In the comments section, fans applaud the mixed case as a brilliant, innovative strategy for learning about wine. Critics deplore the preponderance of French wine, and wonder why there aren't more US labels in the boxes that Chambers and Sherry-Lehmann put together for Mr. Asimov. Some urge new wine enthusiasts to set the budgetary bar lower, say at $150 per case, to avoid bitterness and recrimination when they discover they don't like Grenache. And through what magical rites do you find these wines, wonder some, without having a trusted retailer fill a box for you and without falling back on the dreaded 100-point Ratings?

I, on the other hand, wonder what the fuss is all about, since this is exactly how I buy and drink wine on a monthly basis. 12 interesting, unusual bottles for $250 total. Hey, it's good wine for --mostly--under $20! Where have I seen a blog like that? And as for how to find these treasures, do the readers of Asimov's column read any wine blogs at all--except maybe The Pour? If you want a magical rite, here it is: Go to my side bar. Say "hocus pocus." Click on one or more of the links under Wine Blogs Worth Visiting. Presto. Wine recommendations you can count on!

I started thinking that maybe buying a the mixed case is really an uncommon way to buy wine in the US. Perhaps I was warped from years of living in the UK, where the mixed case is something every merchant not only offers, but also advertises. (like in the advert from the UK's Majestic Wine Warehouse at the top of the post). They even put together mixed cases on themes like "Southern French Finds" and "Unheralded Whites" and so forth. You pop in to a store or order on line and presto, 12 new wines for you to try. How do you think everyday wine culture takes root and flourishes, folks? From what I see in Europe, it's seldom the result of peddling expensive chardonnay and cult cabernets in season and out. Variety is the spice of life! Drink widely. Try carignane!

Then again, maybe my love of the mixed case says something about me as a wine consumer. True confession time: I have a low, low boredom threshold. Picture someone you know with the lowest boredom threshold imaginable and then lower their boredom threshold by the power of 10. That's me. I would no sooner drink bottle after bottle of pinot noir (much as I love it) as I would bottle after bottle of wine made by one producer. But there are folks out there who are just the opposite. There are folks who buy wines by the case from a single maker, collect verticals of their favorite wines, and seek to become expert in specific regions, varietals, or producers. If I am a member of the Low Boredom Brigade, then they are definitely marching to the beat of the Pursuit of Expertise Squad. And more power to them. That's why the blogosphere is such an unbelievable resource for all of us.

What kind of wine consumer are you? Low Boredom Brigade? Pursuit of Expertise Squad member in training? A bit of both? Leave a comment and 'fess up about how you buy, drink, and enjoy your vino. Yes, you can even confess that you don't drink wine with food if you want. Your secret is safe with us.

Yes, Virginia--Connecticut makes wine, too

When I went to school in Massachusetts, Connecticut was not thought of as a great viticultural center. But that is changing now, with more and more regions of the US trying their hand at growing wine grapes. While grapes have been grown in the state for hundreds of years on small family farms, the first modern wineries were established in the late 70s. Currently, there are more than 15 vineyards in the state, all producing wine with limited distribution.

Recently I had a wine from Sharpe Hill Vineyard in Pomfret in the eastern part of the state. Sharpe Hill's wines have have received over 185 medals in international wine competitions. The NV Sharpe Hill Vineyard "Ballet of Angels" white blend ($10.99, Colorado Wine Company), nick-named "Creepy Baby Wine" by irreverent consumers due to its distinctive label, is the best-selling Connecticut wine. And for me, it was a real eye-opener. This excellent QPR wine made from a secret blend of ten white grape varietals that probably includes melon de bourgogne, riesling, vidal blanc, and vignoles. Plentiful aromas of honeydew melon, honeysuckle, and citrus hint at the flavors that develop as you sip the wine. Though floral and slightly off-dry, a bracing acidity keeps the sweetness from becoming cloying or overpowering. This was a wonderful wine that would be exceptional with spicy food or Asian cuisine, like these Thai peanut noodles with chicken, or Thai salmon with rice salad.

The store where I bought this, Colorado Wine Company in beautiful downtown Eagle Rock, specializes in unusual, high value bottlings like these. It's worth stopping by if you live in the LA area or are here on a visit. They recently started a blog for customer reviews and discussion of wine. It's a great idea for Wine 2.0 types, and I've already found a great blog I didn't know about while reading.

The NV Sharpe Hill Vineyard "Ballet of Angels" is widely available throughout the country, but if its not to be found at a store near you, ask your local merchants if they can start carrying this great white wine. If you like Riesling, you will love the "Ballet of Angels."

What's in Your WineQ?

I read about WineQ some time ago, the new wine club based on the Netflix model, and cruised by their site but it was early days and though the concept was intriguing, I filed it away like Scarlett O'Hara to think about on another day. Recently, though, a bunch of us have jumped on board, including Winehiker who generated quite the blog-buzz last week with his post about joining up. So I wanted to add my kudos to Joshua Zader and Marshall Sontag, the brains behind the operation, and report that my wine arrived just when they said it would, complete in snazzy box with WineQ sticker, and in perfect condition.

What made me take the plunge? Well, when I saw that Twisted Oak and Escafeld (two wineries I feel I know because I follow their blogs) had joined the ranks of WineQ, that was all this blogger needed to sign up. And I'm really glad I did. Now that I've signed up and have received my first shipment, I'm happy to report that not only does the club represent excellent QPR, it also provides great customer service (and no, they didn't know I was a blogger when I started emailing questions). Joshua himself wrote back in approximately 1o minutes with the answers about how and if I could pause shipments during the hot summers.

WineQ has a small stable of wonderful artisanal wineries from California right now, but the list is growing each month and they are very open to suggestions of who they should approach about joining. They even have a blog to keep you up to date on the latest news, complete with profiles of new wineries as they are added. Wineries you can already put in your Q, in addition to Escafeld and Twisted Oak, include Ceja, Smith-Wooton, Lava Cap, Sapid, Deerfield Ranch, and Rust Ridge. When I was at the Family Winemakers tasting this week, I made a point to taste some of these wines and I can report that every one I tasted was a winner, and represented good value. Not sure about wines you've never heard of? There are customer reviews for most wines, and more are entered every week as new members like me pop their corks and take a few sips.

If you've ever been in a wine club where you've received wines you don't want when you don't want them--sound familiar?--this is the one wine club out there where you get exactly what you want, when you want it. Want nothing but whites? Don't put anything in your queue that's red! Want boutique cabs and pinots? They have them. Only want wines under $20? That's easy, too. Don't want wine next month because you'll be in the Bahamas? Just pause your shipments. Need 3 bottles one month and one the next? Okay. The site is intuitive and easy to use, allowing you to find wines that you like and drag and drop them into an ordered list for regular shipments at intervals you define. Or, you can turn this feature off and have complete control over when wine gets sent to you. And it's dead easy to make changes.

Even more than including great wines, WineQ represents excellent QPR. Why? Because for $4.95 a month in membership fees, you get unlimited free ground shipping for any order that totals more than $35. You won't find yourself in the unenviable position of Wannabe Wino when you do the math and realize that you've spent $1300 in wine shipping over the past year. Free ground shipping for $4.95 a month works great for California, but if you live farther away from these wineries, you should know that members get deep discounts on 2/3-day shipping (just $5 per shipment) and overnight shipping (just $10 per shipment).

My first shipment contained 3 lovely bottles of Escafeld Vineyards wine, and will be followed up next month by three lovely bottles of Twisted Oak wine. I figured Friday was a perfect time to post my reactions to WineQ, since over the weekend you might have the time to sit down and browse through their site. And if you're a member, feel free to let us know what's in your Q.

Wine Club? Start a Blog

I just discovered an interesting new blog, Vino Club, that I wanted to share with you because I thought it was such an great combination of traditional and non-traditional wine experiences.

It takes the new Wine 2.0 technology and the old standby of the friends who start a Wine Tasting Club and uses Blogspot's technology for multiple contributor submissions. (I'm guessing this is not unique to Blogspot, but I don't know for sure) What you get is a rolling set of notes and news written by seven friends who talk to each other in the comments as well as posting new entries. This is a new blog (they started on January 30, 2007 and have posted 17 posts).

They've also syndicated CellarTracker notes on their wines (presumably to inspire their future tastings?) I may steal this feature, since it's a good way to bring more voices into the dialogue about wine.

Welcome to the Blogosphere, Vino Club, and sorry it's taken me a few weeks to find you! And if you have a wine club, I think that blogging is a great thing to do!

Voting Begins for the American Wine Blog Awards

Tom Wark at Fermentation has announced the finalists for the 2007 American Wine Blog Awards, the first awards dedicated to wine bloggers (as distinct from food and drink bloggers). There are lots of familiar names in the categories, but also some that you might not know yet so take some time to do a fair evaluation of all the finalists before voting. Click on the logo to the left to be taken to the survey. You can only vote once, thank God--none of that crazy vote once a day nuttiness--so take your time and think about it. Not sure when the voting stops, but if I find out I'll let you know. Update: voting ends Friday, February 16.

All these dedicated writers deserve major kudos for their efforts to enlighten, educate, and entertain readers like you and me on subjects as varied as appellations and wine shipping laws. But I'd like to give some special recognition to friends of Good Wine Under $20, bloggers who regularly stop by here to leave comments or who have supported my newbie efforts, and who rose to the top of the judges' lists. So in your travels through cyberspace, be sure to check out the blogs of:

Mary Baker at Dover Canyon Winery (finalist in Best Winery Blog)
Jerry Hall at WineWaves (finalist in both Best Wine Blog Graphics and Best Wine Reviewing)
Joel at Vivi's Wine Journal (finalist in Best Wine Blog Graphics)
John G. at Quaffability (finalist in Best Wine Reviewing)
Craig Camp at WineCamp Blog (finalist in Best Wine Writing)
Tyler Colman at Dr. Vino (finalist in Best Wine Blog Writing and Best Overall Wine Blog)

This is a great chance for those of us who read and learn from bloggers to make a point about the power of the medium and the quality of what is produced by the very best among us. Thanks once again to Tom Wark for conceiving of the awards, and handling the process so impeccably and promptly.

How do YOU keep track?

Deadlines, shopping lists, calendars, to-do lists--keeping track of the 100,000 details of "modern life" is enough to make you crazy. I don't have any free brain cells to devote to recalling what wine is in the house to go with dinner, never mind calculating if it's ready to drink. On my calendar for today, however, it said "Renew CellarTracker." This I can manage. Renewing my subscription to CellarTracker, the online wine management community started by Eric LeVine, means that his divine computer program will do all the work of tracking my wines again this year. (logo reproduced with Eric's kind permission)

I emphasize the word community because this has turned out to be so much more than just a wine tracking tool for me. 26,636 users of CellarTracker have left 230,010 free wine reviews on this site for your perusal. I learn an enormous amount from my fellow CellarTrackers. I don't know who olivethegreat is, but I know we have sympatico wine tastes. Who is VinoMe? S/he is my go-to person for tracking my baby Bordeaux collection and its development. And I've yet to meet annsalisbury, but she shops at the same wine stores I do so I know I will bump into her one day.

The CellarTracker site operates as free shareware, but Eric is adding new features all the time available only to subscribers (like automatic cellar evaluations and links to Steve Tanzer's International Wine Cellar scores). How much do subscriptions cost? Eric suggests $30 if you have less than 500 bottles in your cellar--talk about excellent QPR, given the sheer number of reviews being added every single day.

Keeping tasting notes for the wine you drink is the #1 best way to learn about your taste preferences. I know you can do this with notebooks, label removers, and ink but if you're reading this (face it) you're a bit of a techno nerd anyway so why not put everything on CellarTracker? And, it has great features such as average cost per bottle ( mine was $13.29/bottle average for the past year), purchases over time (February oddly enough seems to be the month I buy wine!), consumption by region (US still winning but France coming on strong), and consumption by varietal (I drink LOTS of sauvignon blanc, apparently). There is lots more on offer (like printing out restaurant-style winelists to stun your dinner guests...), and after a little intuitive exploring you will soon have the system down pat.

I know there are lots of other systems out there for tracking your wine, both online and off, but this is mine. Registration is free so take a look and enter some bottles from your collection, or some tasting notes. I predict that within a few hours you, too, will be a subscriber!

Meanwhile, leave a comment and share how you keep track of your wine.

Toasting the Blogosphere

I know that a lot of new readers are seeing this post. You are clicking over here for one of two reasons: because my generous fellow blogger, JohnG at quaffability, put a link to my blog in his comment on Eric Asimov's The Pour; or because you got a lovely email from SNAP previews (those enticing balloons that open up and give you a preview of what my hotlinks contain) singling out Good Wine Under $20 and 9 other blogs for special mention among the 100 Most Interesting Blogs that use SNAP.

Since I started blogging in October over 9000 of you have dropped by my little corner of the blogosphere. Hundreds of you actually subscribe to my feed. And I have been touched again and again by the generosity of my fellow bloggers and readers.

Thanks to all of you, I feel that I am part of an expanding world of expertise and enthusiasm for wine that takes my breath away. Whether it's my "blogging twin" Neil (the Brooklynguy who started around the same time as I did and his love of Burgundy), or Tom Wark at Fermentation (who mentioned my blog one day when I was starting out), or the Big 3 (Alder, Beau, and Tim) who show us all what the blogging world is capable of every day, or Joel over at Vivi's Wine Journal (who posted about SNAP and started up a little social networking tool that I happen to love called Wine Life Today), or Sonadora (that refreshingly honest and enthusiastic Wannabe Wino in search of education or inspiration), or winemakers like El Jefe at Twisted Oak and Elsbeth at Escafeld (who actually make the stuff I love to drink and write about), or John at Brim to the Dregs (who brings his wry Southern passion to every post), or Jerry at Winewaves (who can just bring me up short with his wonderful photos and reviews), I learn so much and enjoy wine so much more thanks to all your efforts. Just take a look at my sidebar for all the blogs I read regularly.

Remember the old days, when you used to sit down with your copy of a wine magazine and wish you had somebody to talk to about wine? Take a look at us now! Some say Wine 2.0 is coming. I think it's already here.

So if you're new to the world of wine blogs, don't stop here. Click over to another site and check it out, too, using some of the links. And if you're a blogger, remember to pay it forward. By responding to your fellow bloggers and their posts, and promoting their good stories, you make the blogosphere a better place for us all. (vintage image available from the Charles Michael Gallery)

What's In Wine Life Today?

Over in the sidebar, you will see a new addition under "Recent Headlines from the Following Blogs": Wine Life Today's Front Page Headlines.

What's Wine Life Today? It's a wine news aggregator and feed service dedicated to bringing you the most up-to-date information that readers of blogs like you find interesting. I have nothing to do with this site, but I visit it regularly.

What's the problem? Very few bloggers are currently using this service. Regular posters include Tom Wark at Fermentation, El Jefe from El Bloggo Torcido, Winehiker, Elsbeth at Escafeld Vineyards, and yours truly.

And it's really very simple to use. Under every post here at Good Wine Under $20, for example, you will see the option to "Toast This!" Clicking on that link will put a link to the post in the Newsroom at Wine Life Today. As others find the story and toast it, too, the story moves from the Newsroom to the Front Page. These updates happen automatically as stories receive votes.

Do you regularly read a blog that doesn't have "Toast It" links, but think a post is great? Simply copy the URL into this form, adding a brief description when prompted you to do so along with the title, and click submit. If you are trying to submit a story that is already in the Newsroom or on the Front Page, it will tell you, so that you can toast it and add votes, rather than duplicating the post. If you've been frustrated by aggregators and social bookmarking sites that are just too diverse to help you find what you are really looking for, I urge you to start reading, toasting, and contributing stories today. You can even subscribe to Newsroom and Front Page feeds if you are a news junkie.

And if you're a blogger, what are you waiting for? Click over to their Blogger Tools and download the code to put a "Toast It!" link on all your posts automatically and help us all to find the content that we are looking for. I submit every story I write here simply by waiting until it appears on my blog, then clicking the Toast It! button to submit the story. You can also automatically post stories via feed (no adverts, though). And unlike some aggregators, only the description and title appear. To read the story, people have to click over to your site so there's no lost traffic and greater opportunities for readers to get hooked on the useful information you provide.

Remember: if you want the freshest news head for the Newsroom. If you want the most popular content, the stories that your fellow bloggers and readers are enjoying, head to the Front Page. See you at Wine Life Today.