Wines R Us
Telling Stories About Our Revamped Wine Program
I just finished revamping our wine program. Frankly, it had been in disrepair for some time and I was too tired (lazy) or distracted to tackle it. When I handed it off for others to manage I had several edicts and founding principles, very few of which were adhered to. (As a manager, I make a great dishwasher.) The post was recently abandoned on short notice and the program landed back in my lap. I’m glad it did. I have completed the first iteration on the revamp and I’d like to share my approach to selling wine with you.
Regular Customers: Our core customers are regular, repeat guests. Finding ourselves plopped in the middle of the strongest financial demographic in Oregon, we are surrounded by well-traveled, expert diners. Value, not price, drives decision-making. We strive to understand the criteria our core customers use in choosing us and aim our conversations, decisions and actions at the bullseye within those criteria.
Wine As Part of the Meal
Wine is a beverage! The role of wine in a meal is to make the food better. The role of food in the meal is to make the wine better. Get it?
“This is a really great wine for the price,” declare wine reps just once. Having been suckered by this pitch once or twice in the early days, I found those half-full bottles of inexpensive and correspondingly mediocre wines on the counter as I opened something decent to drink. I then decided not to carry anything we were not happy to drink and proud to serve.
The schtick in restaurant bar and wine programs goes like this: “This is where you make the money!” “Hrmph,” I say. What is the message inherent in this tactic? Some time ago Janet and I went tasting in Yamhill County and stopped for dinner at a nice place in McMinnville. It was a day of wine and I was looking forward to having a bottle with our meal. We carried some of the wines on that list and I knew their cost. Seeing the 3x markup just pissed me off. I had a beer. Gouging people is bad for relationships.
Relationship Matters
Spreadsheets are great for financial modeling, but it is a mistake to become attached to the inputs. I would rather make $40 profit (35%) selling a wine that cost $70 than 65% margin on a wine costing $20. The former gratifies your customer and distinguishes you from the competition. The latter sends an entirely different message: “Don’t drop your keys!” I was very unhappy with the prices I found when I recently took over and I have reduced prices across the board, contrary to the advice of just about everybody. If I have cellared the wine for a few years I give less weight to the original cost.
There are currently 230 wines on our list. That’s probably enough. From the Old World I aim for two each of wines from the iconic regions – Bordeaux, Rhone, Piedmont, Tuscany, Veneto, Rioja, etc. And then I offer a full and diverse selection of those recognized varietals made by local and regional New World artisans. Here we stock, for example, Barbera, Nebbiolo, Sangiovese and Tempranillo together with Cabernets, Merlots, Pinot and Syrah. We carry California wines but tend to eschew the narcissism and penchant for manipulation permeating that culture. We promote Southern Oregon and absolutely love Walla Walla.
Walla Walla
Walla Walla is our special place and we particularly value our relationships with the winemaker members of the Walla Walla Valley Wine Alliance. These members fund the Alliance based on volume. The big kids, like Woodward Canyon, Leonetti, Pepper Bridge and Doubleback pay the most and need it the least, but do so recognizing that the rising tide floats all boats. You gotta love those guys! Since the remodel we no longer have our “Walla Walla Wall A Wines,” which was a whole wall a Walla Walla wines. The wall is gone now, but there are still over 50 of the 230 wines on our list that hail from Walla Walla.
Pinot Noir: We are duty-bound to offer a wide selection of Oregon Pinot Noir. That selection had dwindled and it has now been recharged, with more on the way.
Here is a link to download our current wine menu.
Inventory
This is where you come in! I remember the days when I inventoried my wine and added up $10,000 in wine. Now the wines on our list amount to over $45,000 and the wines in our cellar at least that much more. And, since the remodel, I’m still treading water with brief periods hovering with my nose below the surface. So we be gonna sell some wine!
Holiday Wine Sale!
Buying wine from Bethany’s Table is not like shopping for wine at QFC. We simply do not have any crappy wine. Amongst our collection are wines from Leonetti, Doubleback, Cayuse and Figgins that are allocated by the wineries. We also have our collection of wines made by the best and brightest for sale at the annual Walla Walla Reveal trade auction. These we will offer up at great pricing together with a collection of fine Pinot Noirs, bubbles and way too much Brunello.
The one thing all these wines have in common is that they are all paid for. And Daddy needs cash!
Would you like to be invited to the pre-sale? Let us know here and we will send you a special invitation to tour the selection before the doors open to the public. The sale will be held on Saturday, November 18; just in time for Thanksgiving and plenty of time to buy for the holidays.
