NYC Beverage Market Watch Quickfire – The Fab Five
Back in the saddle with The Fab Five.
Enjoy.
The Fab Five
Canned answers
Canned wines are the fast-casual of the wine world.
I have written about this in the past but canned wines are exploding in the market (not literally). It has broken through the barrier and is now a viable category. This is part of a broader “make wine easier/millennial drinker” crescendo and we will see much more. There will ultimately be some losers, but in the meantime, watch this thing grow…
Who imported this, again?
A few short years ago, this was easy to answer.
Answer today: Who knows?
DTC, acquired from a private collection, etc., has changed the whole game and the impact has yet to be fully realized.
Remember that lockbox allocation of (insert famous name here) and all the trust, dancing, connection, space, budget issues and anger it sometimes produced? Now you don’t have to choose that route.
Someone is importing it who is not that producers chosen importer, and you have access if you want it.
And if you want an old vintage from a cellar in France? No Prob. Some collector in Jersey? Of course! Everything’s on the table…
Throw in the fact that many importers are competing directly with their own customers for producers to bring in and you see how real this is…a giant shift that is not to be ignored.
- New “rules” + high, flashy, rare wine or new producers + demand = New game.
Don’t @ SevenFifty me
Full disclosure: I use Sevefifty every day and I love it.
But, since I believe some are very confused: SevenFifty is not your sales rep. I am so glad you can search broadly – it is a game-changing tool – but don’t forget that the rep may be able to connect you to something new, delicious, and also, not easily found. The not to be missed shit.
To quote a friend: You will only ever find what you are looking for with this incredible tool.
There are elements in SevenFifty that deliver interaction and we should be using those together much more.
Mouse in a bottle…
I have recently been poured an increased number of mousey as F%^^ wines. Please don’t try and Jedi mind trick anyone by starting with “this is clean,” and pouring. We who taste are not convinced.
I have to wonder, though, are buyers’ tolerance for this flavor going up? Is the shift towards the mission/story of these wines outshining the actual flavor?
Personally, I rank this flavor up there with burnt rubber and it is not my thing – contrary to popular belief, there is nothing easy to drink about it.
One night stand sales…
For one night only! Bottle shot. Price slash…
Until it is gone! Bottle shot. Price slash…
Just one magnum! Bottle Shot. Price slash…And the band plays on…
What used to be a narrow field of one-night-stander marketed wines is expanding. This is “true follower” driven marketing that varies from restaurant to restaurant. Those who have the following win, while all the others pose and then drink the bottle themselves.
“ Canned wines are the fast-casual of the wine world.
BONUS
Out of the penalty box
It is nearly insane how many of the Raúl Perez wines are on lists and shelves in the city right now. Can you keep count? I certainly can’t. These wines are on a huge wave that includes volume and quality with extremely adept distribution. Nothing is stopping them in the short term.
EN. FUEGO.
Bonus en Fuego
Eastern Europe – looking good, along with a rebirth of Austrian coming strong.
I am noticing a shift, but haven’t tasted anything particularly moving…yet. All the wines I have tasted so far are perfectly serviceable. But the neophiliacs don’t care – they just see NEW, rare and imminently buyable.