Tag Archives: label fraud

Winebits 397: Label fraud, direct shipping, social media

label fraud ? Handmade wins one: A federal judge has ruled that Maker’s Mark can call its bourbon handmade, even though it isn’t, because a reasonable consumer would know it isn’t. The Wine Curmudgeon, having reported the opposite result in a similar label fraud case, marvels at the U.S. legal system. If this judge thinks it’s OK to call something handmade when it isn’t, invoking the concept of reasonableness, then why did another federal judge rule that a reasonable consumer would confuse $7 Spanish sparkling wine Cristalino with $200 Champagne Cristal? No wonder my mother wanted me to be a lawyer. It sounds much more exciting than wine writing.

? The cost of delivery: Want to know why direct shipping is still such a tiny part of overall U.S. wine sales? This, from the Shipping Compliant consultancy, addresses the myriad laws and three-tier confusion that hamper direct sales, but also puts everything in perspective with one fact: “When a customer buys wine online, about 20 percent of every dollar they ?re spending goes towards shipping. … In a world with services like Amazon Prime, customers hate spending money on shipping. …” Which means, even if three-tier disappeared tomorrow, direct shipping would still likely remain a tiny part of overall U.S. wine sales.

? Kill all the wine writers? Because, apparently, we don’t need them. A study says U.S. adults 21 and older rely more on peer recommendations and social media than they do on traditional advertising when buying alcohol. Some of you may argue that wine writing isn’t advertising, but I’d point out you haven’t been paying attention. The report was conducted by a company that makes a social media platform and which queried its users, which is what should raise questions about the findings. Still, it claims four out of five consumers said they have bought alcohol they discovered on social media, and almost three-quarters use social media on their smartphone or mobile device when they’re buying booze. I guess I need to tweet more often.

Winebits 395: Prosecco shortage, sweet wine, label fraud

Prosecco shortage ? Plenty of bubbly: The Wine Curmudgeon has not mentioned the news reports over the past several months heralding a Prosecco shortage, mostly because the “shortage” made my reporter’s stomach hurt. It’s the just the kind of “news” that offers an excuse for price increases — coincidentally, as the euro drops — and it turns out my hunch wasn’t far from the truth. The head of the Prosecco consortium, which oversees production of the Italian sparker, told Wine Business Monthly that supply increased almost 18 percent in 2014, and that there is no shortage. “We call on those who write, market and educate people about wine to do their part to inform the public about what Prosecco represents as a specific wine of place year,” he said.

? Deciding what is sweet: Sweet wine is making an impression in Canada as well as the U.S., as Bill Zacharkiw writes in the Montreal Gazette: “There still seems to be some confusion about the role of sugar in wine, as many of these emails ask what the relationship is between residual sugar and quality. But there are other interesting questions as well.” Which he answers quite intelligently, noting the same thing that I have found. It’s not sweetness itself that is the problem with sweet wine, but how badly made too many sweet wines are. Says Zacharkiw: “I cast no judgment here. In the end, you choose what you want to drink. I simply want people to know the facts, and believe you should have access to all the information in order to make an informed choice.” Couldn’t have said it better myself.

? Fix the label: Remember how those “artisan” spirits were going to fight to the bitter end the lawsuits accusing them of not being especially artisan? Templeton, the Iowa producer using whiskey from Indiana, has settled, and I would expect more settlements to follow now that a precedent has been set. The Templeton co-founder said his whiskey’s marketing ?should have provided more clarity,” in one of those wonderful understatements that I so enjoy. Hopefully, the wine industry, with its artisan and hand-crafted claims for brands that make hundreds of thousands of cases, is paying attention.