Oregon wine goes European, today in the UK

Who said .... there is nothing new in the newspaper, an IDIOT I'm sure. There are millions, no probably billions that grab the paper every morning as I do.

Well this AM I found some interesting news in the back sections that some might have missed.

Today in London England there are folks lining up to have a taste of what we have down the road. A great Pinot Noir or a fine Cabernet Sauvignon. Not to slight any of other greats, I love you all.

A story in the local paper from the Associated Press reports that through a 200K federal trade grant, about three dozen wineries from the two states (OR & WA) will host a daylong professional tasting and education session Monday for restaurateurs, wine-shop owners and, importantly, the United Kingdom's internationally influential wine writers. Now that is a use of our tax money that will get little complaint from me and hopefully you too.

An interesting note from the financial page tells us the weaker dollar is making American wines more affordable abroad. Add to that fact the United Kingdom is a $20 billion wine market and It looks like we all need to offer our best luck to the Oregon group.

When Ted Farthing, Oregon Wine Board executive director was asked recently about the viability of this trip to London he stated, "You can't be a viable international brand without representation there." Two years ago, wines from 11 of Oregon's 350 commercial wineries were distributed in the U.K. That number has doubled and is growing.

Montinore Estate in Forest Grove, Elk Cove Vineyards in Gaston, A to Z Winery in Dundee are beginning to look abroad, and will be represented in London.

A to Z Winery's first 500-case shipment to the U.K. is barely a dent in its annual 130,000-case production, but they are not putting all their eggs in the European basket. . Deb Hatcher, a principal in the winery, said other international markets, such as Japan, Canada, South Korea and India, may be more lucrative. "But this is all about building relationships and being in this for the long term" Hatcher said.

The operation of the wine industry in Oregon is changing on a daily basis. We have grown ten fold since the mid seventies, from 32 bonded wineries then to over 350 and growing today. What this has done is broaden the industry and provided for much larger production wineries, larger investments in real estate, more vines on the wire and larger grape harvest.

However small crops in 2004 and 2005 left many wineries scrambling just to meet domestic distribution contracts. Some closed their tastings rooms or opened them only by appointment.
Harvests picked up in 2006 and 2007, meaning wineries can further age wines before shipping and use some of the surplus to explore new markets. This built the need for a limited number of Oregon wineries to explore areas to sell this lovely product in. It is the natural evolution for our "light to emerge from under the basket" and looking at international markets is the next logical step.

Consolidation of major U.S. wine distributors means a handful of them ship nearly 80 percent of the nation's domestic production. Small wineries, lacking volume and name recognition, face long odds but are far from being out of the market.

We are in the information generation and that puts the "little guy" toe to toe with the giant. There will always be a need for the "giants" to get the word out to the world that we are champions at what we do. We need the Willamette Valley Vinyards to promote our Pinot Noir on TV sitcoms, the late night talk shows and many thanks for their efforts. That has put us all on the map and gives the smaller boutique winery an even footing by building a "better" or more unique mouse trap. Not everyone uses cheese on the trap some use peanut butter. My point is both are food products and grapes are too. But the wine "trap" is in the mouth of the one that makes the purchase and that is because they like the taste, not what is on label.

The "little guy" can then coat-tail the giant and with a creative use of any and all forms of communication not withstanding what you are doing at this minute. It costs very little, in fact almost nothing to send your message around the world in a split second.

All it takes is some thought and that only takes effort. It is up to you to put forth that effort, I'm trying and I hope you do too.