Our thoughts on wine, the industry, and how you can make the most of your experience.
Summer is the perfect time for a picnic! It’s also the perfect time for wine. Why not combine the two for a wonderful afternoon of fun? Just pack your picnic basket and head to any of these wineries (or others in the state). Here are some of our suggestions (in no particular order) for great wine and picnic adventures. Continue reading →
Hashtags are all over social media. They’re even in every day conversation. They’re used to identity messages/posts of the same type. But why is that important? How are they “made”? We’re going to explore that bit and help you learn why you need to use them in EVERY social media post.
As we’ve already stated, hashtags are primarily used to make searching for social media posts easier. You can find like posts more quickly. You can find others to follow more quickly. Others can find you more easily. You can join a conversation. Hashtags are often used for “chatting” online. This is particularly true on Twitter. Follow a hashtag, and you can follow a conversation.
Hashtags are also used to denote trending topics on social media. Social media users are often drawn to trending topics. It generates excitement and interest. Plus, it’s free! They are great marketing tools!
So, how do you build a good hashtag? You should start with something that is short and meaningful. This is especially critical on Twitter since there’s a character limit. The hashtag should be easy to read. Its meaning should be easy to discern.
How does all of this apply to North Carolina wine? It’s all about promotion and online presence. It’s about working together and creating a consistent identity for North Carolina wine. It’s all about #NCWine!
Here are some things to keep in mind:
To summarize, please use hashtags in EVERY social media post. And ALWAYS leave room for the #NCWine hashtag.
If you need more advice on hashtags, send us a note. We’re happy to discuss!
Cheers!
The locavore movement has exploded over the last few years. Folks are really interested in eating food that is grown and cooked locally. It harkens back to the days when folks grew a lot of the food they ate. With all of this interest in local food, why not local drink? Well, there has been more interest in locally produced beer and now locally produced spirits. Local wine is starting to take off too, but is more difficult to find outside of the local winery. Let’s take a look at wine specifically and talk about what it means to drink local wine.
Drink Local Wine!
Local wine is more than just wine produced by a local winery. Truly local wine is wine that is fermented, aged and bottled at a local winery, but it is also wine that is made only from local grapes, fruit, or honey. These grapes should come from vines that are planted in North Carolina soil. The fruit should come from North Carolina trees, bushes, etc. The honey should come from a local bee hive. Let’s be clear, a true North Carolina wine is made from a North Carolina product. This means that wineries that produce wine from grapes, fruit, juice, or honey from California, South America, and/or Europe are NOT making local wine. They’re making wine locally, but it’s not a North Carolina wine and can’t legally be labeled as such. Think about that the next time you visit a local winery. Ask where the grapes, fruit, or honey originated. Look at the label. Is it labeled accurately? Inquire as to why local grapes, fruits, or honey weren’t used. The “North Carolina doesn’t produce quality grapes” line no longer holds water. The same goes for fruit or honey. Drinkers of truly local North Carolina wine know better! Let’s be sure our voices are heard.
We must insist that local wine bars and local restaurants sell locally grown and made North Carolina wine. Farm to Fork restaurants and the like who aspire to serve food made from locally grown ingredients are quite hypocritical if they don’t have locally made wine on their menus. The same would be said for locally made beer and spirits. Let’s do our parts to help promote truly locally made wine. Remember the costumer is always right!
Finally, it’s ok to drink something other than locally made wine. However, let’s be sure we do know the difference between a local wine and not. And be sure that we don’t use the #NCWine and #NCFineWines to promote a wine that’s not truly local. Just remember, drinking locally helps the local economy, which in turn helps you!
Let us know what drinking locally means to you! Cheers!
Visiting a winery’s tasting room is one of life’s simple pleasures. Each experience is unique. It’s a great way to experience a variety of wine and find something new to drink. If you’ve never had the experience or if it’s been awhile, here are some suggestions to make the most of your wine tasting experience.
The tasting room at Parker-Binns Vineyard – Photo Courtesy of Karen Parker-Binns
These are just a few suggestions to make the most out of your wine tasting experience! Let us know what you think! Cheers!
American Wine has exploded over the last twenty to thirty years. The number of wine regions and wine regions producing quality wine has helped with this explosion, but does the average American wine drinker really know that there are more wine regions than just California? Sadly, it seems not to be the case. For those of us who love drinking local wine, it seems we have some educating to do!
Sure California produces great wine. It also produces nearly 90% of the wine made in American. Grocery store wine aisles, restaurant wine lists and even local wine bars are all full of California wine. California is known for its big, bold reds with high alcohol content. We would argue that these wines are overdone and take away the true essence of grapes when compared to old world wines. For those who don’t know, old world refers to Europe and the Middle East from where wine grapes originated in nature.
There are 32 other wine producing states recognized as having an American Viticulture Area.
Given California’s dominance in producing American wine, how are other wine regions going to breakout? As the saying go, it takes a village! Those of us fortunate enough to live near other American wine regions need to step up our game. We need to get out and visit local wineries. We need to buy local wine. We need to insist that local restaurants, particularly those claiming to represent the local food movement, add local wine to their wine lists! We need to introduce our friends and family to local wine. We need to share our experiences on social media. We need to attend events at local wineries. In addition, when visiting local wineries, we need to make sure that local grapes are being used. If you’re not sure, ask! We need to insist on high quality. If a wine’s not good, say so. Let them know!
So, what wine regions should you look at besides California? We, of course, are partial to North Carolina. Quantity and quality have continued to improve. 2015 was a fantastic growing year across the state. We expect 2015 to be THE vintage in North Carolina. Washington and Oregon should be considered. They account for over 4% of the wine produced in America. Other areas to consider are Missouri, famous for Norton. If you haven’t tried Norton and you like big bold, jammy wines, you’re doing yourself a disservice. Texas is another upcoming and coming wine region going Spanish, Italian and Rhône Valley grapes well. New York with the Finger Lakes and Long Island is producing high quality wines. The Finger Lakes in particular are now regularly reviewed in major wine magazines like Wine Spectator. Finally, Virginia can’t be overlooked. Just like North Carolina, quantity and quality have increased over the last several years. Virginia is producing superb Petit Verdot, Petit Manseng and Viognier just to name a few!
American wine is diverse as our country. Let’s all do our part in helping make sure that diversity is better known. Drink local, explore new wine regions and share those experiences with others! There is more to American wine than California! Get out there and explore!