// BLOG
What the Wine Man Is Doing…
June 13, 2011
Hi again everyone! It has been quite a while since I have had time to write my blog articles for you. About 6 months ago I accepted a position of Sr. Buyer Food and Beverage for the Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. The grand Ol’ Gal had been closed for a major restoration from the floods that ravaged Nashville in May of 2010. It re-opened again in 6 shorts months, wonderfully restored and improved. She really is a Grand Hotel!
We have been extremely busy right from the opening and still have not slowed down. It’s great! The Gaylord Opryland Hotel is one of the largest Hotel and Convention Centers in America. Outside of Vegas there are few that compare in stature and sheer size. If you ever get a chance to visit Nashville come and stay with us. It really is beautiful!
As part of my assignment, I have the responsibility to buy all the Liquor, Beer and Wine (food too!) for the Hotel and all the attractions including The General Jackson Showboat, the Gaylord Springs Golf Club, and the Grand ol’ Opry amongst others. Needless to say that’s a lot of buying. That brings me to my topic for the day. Purchasing.
Wine purchasing especially in large volume can be difficult and a daunting task. Dropping large orders in scale to overall business levels, can be intimidating. It demands a well thought out and strategic plan. You spent a lot of time developing a wine list that you believe showcases your restaurant and its food. You need to spend time working out your plan for purchasing and stocking that wine cellar. The key points you need to consider are:
- Budget- Yes it does really come down to the dollars and cents of it all. Putting together a strong list does cost money, especially with today’s overinflated wine costs. Be sure to put enough money into the program to sustain periods of slow business. Taylor your expenditures to your programs concept and focus. Knowing that your list is strong in California Cabs but maybe a little weak in lower cost Zinfandels give you maneuvering room to shift some menu slots to the lower cost, high profit % wines.
- Take Advantage of Vendor Programs- In an economy where every penny counts, push your vendors for accessibility to their volume wine programs. See what programs are available and plan your volume purchases and your features around high profit deals that are offered. The laws on programming wines are different in every state. Get to know what you can ask for. Sometimes there are monies available right from the producers, or free goods. It could be something as small as server incentives to big things like buy 1 get 1.
- Never assume your vendor will tell you everything that is out there. Your vendor is usually a savvy business veteran too. He’s not going to give up the ship every time you ask. Get to know your brokers too and ask them for program information. You’d be surprised how much is out there for the taking.
- ASK! You never know what’s out there until you ask!
The bottom line to purchasing is planning. Put your plan together and follow it. It may make you nervous spending dollars now for future sales but in the end it is usually worth it. Just be realistic. If you sell 2 cases a week in wine you are not going to be eligible for the same programs as some of your competitors. Nor will you be able to take advantage of them if you were.
So, if your ever passing through Tennessee or just looking for a place to spend some quality time for R&R, stop on by and visit us in Nashville and the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. We’d love to show you why we think you’ll fall in love with this town!
Spain’s Hottest Wine Region!
June 12, 2011
While Spanish wines have been around for a long time, many wine drinkers are just discovering them for the first time. Spain offers a diversity of wine styles which will please many pallets.
Wine production in Spain has undergone a major overhaul in the past 40 years. New world grape growing techniques and production methods combined with modern thinking winemaker’s have elevated Spanish wines to a level unprecedented in their history.
Long relegated to the bottom of a wine list or the back of a wine shop, Spanish wines are becoming much sought after and extremely expressive. Wines made from many different grape varietals some indigenous and some not offer many complex wines from all regions of the Spanish countryside.
One region is currently trending higher then others in regards to popularity of new age wines. That region is Catalonia. Here are just a couple of reasons
a) With more than 50 organic winegrowers Catalonia has the highest
concentration of organic winegrowers than any other country.
b) Barcelona- the capital of the region is a very popular and chic place to
visit. With its diverse culture, unusual architecture, art history and its
wonderful array of internationally renown restaurants Barcelona is one
of the Mediterranean’s jewels
c) Price Points- Although some wines from this region can fetch a good
price, most of the wine s produced in this region offer exceptional value
Although many wines are exported across the globe from Catalonia, the star of the region has been the Cava’s or Sparkling Wines. Many made in the traditional Methode Champenoise, and aged in wonderful caves high in the Mountains of the region, the sparkling wines offer the drinker a wonderful reflection of the wine regions offerings.
Priorat produces wonderful approachable wines made predominantly from the Granacha grape. Many high end wines are produced in this region and its popularity amongst winemakers has pushed this region into becoming Spain’s second .
Tarragona, Montsant, Terra Alta, Penedes and Pla de Bages round out an impressive group of diversified growing regions, mainly with coastal influences.
Venture out even if you can get to travel their. The wines of Catalonia offer wine drinker’s a glimpse into the culture and diversity of the region.
Robert Mondavi…….A look Back
June 5, 2011
I just finished reading a book written by Robert Mondavi. Yes that Robert Mondavi. It’s an older book, written when he was about 85 years old. Its called Robert Mondavi, Harvests of Joy. It was published in 1999. Sadly, Mr. Mondavi passed away in 2008 leaving a legacy of one of Americas greatest ambassadors. And Not
just the wine arena
I won’t give you a critique on Mr. Mondavi’s writing style or his punctuation. But one thing I wanted to talk to you about was the one thing I extracted from the book. Mr. Mondavi was the ultimate driven guy. And what usually drives a man (or woman)?
Passion
. Plain and simple.
Mr. Mondavi quite literally, carried the California Wine Industry on his shoulders for many years. It was through his dedication and passion about his craft that the international wine community finally took wines from the new world seriously. I am sure that eventually the European Wine community would have looked at the wines from “The New World” as rivals but back in the 60’s it was blasphemous for them to even think that. Through countless hours of repetitive “Selling” (for lack of a better word), Mr. Mondavi “talked” his way into the hearts and minds of many important wine people around the world. He used every opportunity he came across to ambassador California wine to the world. He was always promoting the soil, the climate, the grapes and techniques for making wines. Tireless and to a sometimes to a fault, Mr. Mondavi’s relentless pursuit of making world class wines drove him achieve what now one thought could be done. Now that’s Passion!
It got me to thinking that maybe what your restaurants could use is a little passion. Establish your staff as “Ambassadors” for your restaurant. When they are out and about they should be “Selling” you place and your wine programs. It certainly takes commitment but if they truly believe in it, it should be easy. But it would be hard to get your staff excited about it if they don’t feel your passion. So be passionate!
The world would certainly be a better place with Mr. Mondavi in it, but through his children, Michael, Tim and Marcie, he has left us a great legacy and example to follow.
By the way, they do make great wines! A Tavola!
Wine Menu…A Wine Tool to Increase Wine Sales
October 31, 2010
The right wine menu can make all the difference to grow your wine sales….
I have seen many a wine list while traveling the globe. Some of them are as simple as a small insert card on a food menu while others need to be carried out on a cart with two big and burly servers to lift it on your table.
I can not speak for either end of the spectrum such as the previous examples but I will say they are probably not very good wine sales tools.
Your wine menu is the number one sales tool you have, besides the server. It is an important element in your wine sales process yet too many restaurants spend little effort maximizing the effectiveness of the tool. Why is that?
I think that most restaurants are afraid of their menu. Let me explain. Unlike tomatoes or shrimp for a food menu a vintage bottle of wine changes quite regularly. Wine as you know is not in everlasting supply. The production may end, the vintage changes, your cellar may be depleted. These are factors which make keeping the wine list current a hard task to complete. Not to mention the printing of new menus.
I believe you should look at your wine list as part of your wine marketing and treat it as an extension of your program. If your program is basic keep the menu basic. Congruently, if your program is extensive, your wine list should reflect the programs depth and diversity.
Let’s face it, the server can not stand at the table for long periods of time and answer every question a guest might think of. Your wine list should help answer questions for your guests. Make the wine list work for you. Here are some notes that may help you develop a better wine list.
1) Make wine list legible-
Using the right font, color and paper can make a big difference. Test a few different combination for ease of readability, factoring in the lighting at different times of the day. Then select the one that reads easiest.
2) Make wine list concise
– Most guests will skim through a list and look for keys such as a bottle they know or a price point they are comfortable with. Don’t make it to hard for the guest to find these things. Keep the descriptions from becoming to Wine Spectator like. And mix the pricing points around as to not make the list to linear.
3) Use boxing or highlighting to draw attention to featured wines. If you found a way to use your wine procurement to bring the cost of a feature down and make a little extra margin on the wine, feature it and give it a top billing.
4) Wines geographically correc t- Check for accuracy on the list. Usually keeping up with vintage changes is tough. The wine distributors are not very good about letting you know when those changes occur. You need to keep on top of the wines by checking them in against your current list and keep it current. Listing the wines in a geographic order helps define your menu for your guests and let them pinpoint wines of interest.
5) I believe a wine list can be too big
. For those restaurants that have a really extensive cellar, I recommend a list and then a Reserve Style list. The regular list is what you present to every guest with the offer to review the Reserve List if so chosen. Your regular list should be a manageable list that is easy to add or remove wines. Your Reserve List should include all bottles you wish to sell. This removes a little of the intimidation factor a big list can have and makes the guests who are not wine savvy a little more comfortable ordering wine.
Using your wine list as a sales tool is important to the overall health of your wine program and your servers should become familiar with the list in use. Test them on their knowledge of the list and soon you will have a winning combination of a great tool and great servers!
The Right Wines Increase Wine Sales
October 19, 2010
I may have written about this before so stop me if I sound familiar. I recently took some time off my writing schedule to open a new restaurant in Florida
. It’s a nice place but really more of a pub then a restaurant.
The food menu is chock full of standard pub fare, the bar is fully stocked and we do quite a bit of promoting for music and such. Things are going well, all be it a bit slower than I would prefer.
One of the owners is wine savvy and would like to see us expand our wine listing to more than just a house wine and feature card. He believes that a bigger wine list will help attract wine lovers to the pub and sites many of his friends as the reason. While I am usually happy to oblige, in this case I believe it would be over kill. Here is why.
As I have said we are a pub, Irish at that. We cater to the local shot and beer guys, happy hour crowds and draw from the local colleges for late night traffic. This is not normally, a wine appreciative group. While I admit, we do get the occasional wine drinker who may feel slighted, I fear that the moderate sales we are showing within that category are not a reflection of the choices but lack of interest from our base.
This is when you need to use your head. While I love wine and everything that is wine, I had to recognize that this place may not be a wine establishment. Don’t let pride or ego get in the way. Make the decisions that will help make you place more profitable. Having 5 opened bottles of wine for your glass pours is ok, but not if your selling 1 or 2 glasses per night. Waste is a terrible thing (someone else once said that).
Anyways, I have been asked again by the owner so I think it is time we sat down and talked about it. I will stick to my guns and until I see the traffic that will support a progressive glass pour program I will continue
PS Just in case I have a couple of boxes full of wine at home, for just such an emergency! LOL!
