I could divide the world of wine into 17 groups, or 167, but for the purpose of telling you how to get wine writers’ attention, I’m going to narrow it to two.
Group 1: You make wine that will retail for over $100, presumably Napa Cabernet. (If it’s something else, you really need to rethink your pricing.)
Group 2: You’re making anything else.
For group 1, you have a lot invested in your wine, so don’t skimp on hiring a marketing professional. Don’t risk failure without giving it your absolute best shot.
Now I’m talking to the rest of you.
The first thing you need to realize is just how much wine we wine writers get. Right now I have wine bottles lining both sides of my hallway; it overflowed my closet and I don’t have room in any of my three wine refrigerators. And I don’t write for Wine Spectator or the Wine Advocate.
So just sending somebody a bottle of wine doesn’t guarantee she’s even going to open it, much less immediately post a rave on her blog.
Now I want you to think about how you feel when you get an email that was clearly sent to 1,000 people from someone who doesn’t know you or your personal situation. Maybe it offers a good item on sale: Discount Fares to London! Do you open that email and read it carefully?
You see what I’m getting at? To get a writer’s attention, you need to approach that writer as an individual. So do a little research to figure out who you want to write about your wine – and whether it’s even possible. Just because you want your wine reviewed in the Baltimore Sun doesn’t mean it’s going to happen if the paper doesn’t do wine reviews.
You also need to do some background research on yourself. Very few writers will be excited to learn that you think you’ve made a great Lake County Cabernet. Some do care only about the taste of the wine – including, signficantly, critics at the Wine Advocate. But most writers also want to know something about the story behind the wine.
Before approaching writers, you should create a website for your winery and your wine. Eventually you may want an e-commerce website, but don’t delay on creating an informational website; you can always replace it with an e-commerce site later.
Why do you need a website? Because when you call or email a writer, asking if he wants to try the best Viognier currently being made from Mendocino County, the first thing he’s likely to do is Google you to see if you’re interesting.
Different points are interesting to different writers, and your website should address all of them. It should talk about who the owners are, what your background is, and why you’re making wine. Ditto for your winemaker. The site should have all the facts a CV has, but also let us feel your passion for wine, and show us your personality.
Each wine you’re releasing should have its own page, at the bare minimum listing retail price (the single most important fact), vineyard sources and alcohol percentage. A nice high-res label or bottle photo that I can quickly copy and post on my site is very helpful.
If there’s something interesting about the vineyard – how much fog it gets, who its neighbors are, what its history is – by all means include it. Gathering this information about each wine is good practice because you should include a fact sheet with every sample bottle of wine you send. (Don’t ever expect wine writers to pay for your wine, or to write about your wine without trying it.)
Now you’re ready to approach writers. I wouldn’t start small. Personally I would approach the Wine Advocate first. In the past, publisher Robert Parker seemed to take pride in new discoveries. But Antonio Galloni is still getting on his feet as Parker’s replacement and may not immediately be as open to new wines. So I would make concurrent efforts elsewhere.
When considering Wine Spectator, be realistic about the style of your wine. If you’re making a Spectator-style wine, by all means submit it for ratings. If you’re not, they’re not going to change their ratings system for you, so you might want to consider avoiding getting a poor rating.
Most of all, don’t put all your hopes in one critic. I am one of several critics who rates wine on the 100-point scale for Wine Review Online. You could take a few minutes to look over that site and consider which critic(s) you might want to approach.
Once you have a review or two, post them on your website where other critics can see them, and that will add to your credibility. But remember my hallway full of yet-to-be-reviewed wine, and I’m not even close to No. 1 on most wineries’ wish lists. I’m sorry to tell you that getting wine critics’ attention takes effort. Which brings us full circle back to my advice to Group 1.
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Good points on knowing your target audience. It’s also important to know what to do with reviews once you have them.
It seems a score under 93 points from one of the three majors doesn’t really move the needle. Because of this, I encourage folks who want wines reviewed, to have realistic expectations.
That said, reviews don’t have to be a waste of time. While a 91 point score or double gold medal may not bring many new buyers to a brand, the results can be used as a vehicle to reaffirm the wine’s quality to their existing core of buyers. Since it takes a lot of effort to bring a new client into the fold, it’s important to find ways to keep them coming back. Positive reviews let the existing circle of buyers know they’ve made a smart choice.
Bronze medals? Silver medals? Scores under 90 points? It’s probably best to keep quiet. They only raise questions as to why the wine didn’t receive a more favorable review.