Wal-mart Wine!

[NiceCupOfTea]

This just dropped into my inbox:

> Wal-Mart Wine!
>
>
> Wal-Mart announced that they will soon be offering customers a new
> discount item: Wal-Mart's own brand of wine. The world's largest
> retail chain is teaming up with E&J Gallo Winery of California, to
> produce the spirits at an affordable price, in the $2-5 range.
>
> Wine connoisseurs may not be inclined to throw a bottle of Wal-Mart
> brand into their shopping carts, but "there is a market for cheap
> wine", said Kathy Micken, professor of marketing. She continued, "But
> the right name is important." Customer surveys were conducted to
> determine the most attractive name for the Wal-Mart brand. The top
> surveyed names in popularity are:
>
> 10. Chateau Traileur Parc
>
> 9. White Trashfindel
>
> 8. Big Red Gulp
>
> 7. World Championship Riesling
>
> 6. NASCARbernet
>
> 5. Chef Boyardeaux
>
> 4. Peanut Noir
>
> 3. I Can't Believe It's Not Vinegar!
>
> 2. Grape Expectations
>
> And the number 1 name for Wal-Mart Wine...
>
> 1. Nasti Spumante
>
> According to Micken, "The beauty of Wal-Mart wine is that it can be
> served with either white meat (Possum) or red meat (Squirrel)."
>
>


>> Edited by NiceCupOfTea on Saturday 11th February 13:31

[planetdave]

Ah. Stateside snobbery

[Trooper2]

[jimbeaux]

NiceCupOfTea said:

This just dropped into my inbox: > Wal-Mart Wine! > > > Wal-Mart announced that they will soon be offering customers a new > discount item: Wal-Mart's own brand of wine. The world's largest > retail chain is teaming up with E&J Gallo Winery of California, to > produce the spirits at an affordable price, in the $2-5 range. > > Wine connoisseurs may not be inclined to throw a bottle of Wal-Mart > brand into their shopping carts, but "there is a market for cheap > wine", said Kathy Micken, professor of marketing. She continued, "But > the right name is important." Customer surveys were conducted to > determine the most attractive name for the Wal-Mart brand. The top > surveyed names in popularity are: > > 10. Chateau Traileur Parc > > 9. White Trashfindel > > 8. Big Red Gulp > > 7. World Championship Riesling > > 6. NASCARbernet > > 5. Chef Boyardeaux > > 4. Peanut Noir > > 3. I Can't Believe It's Not Vinegar! > > 2. Grape Expectations > > And the number 1 name for Wal-Mart Wine... > > 1. Nasti Spumante > > According to Micken, "The beauty of Wal-Mart wine is that it can be > served with either white meat (Possum) or red meat (Squirrel)." > > >> Edited by NiceCupOfTea on Saturday 11th February 13:31

Now that's some funny Shite!

[FourWheelDrift]

Sounds like a Letterman top 10, if not he'll be doing it next week

[Don]

Very good!

[Balmoral Green]

I can think of folks who would buy that stuff too, and think it the height of sophistication.

[Don]

Balmoral Green said:

I can think of folks who would buy that stuff too, and think it the height of sophistication.

Well. If people are happy drinking "Lambrusco and lemonade" then more power to them.

Its like sodding hi-fi. You spend years training your ears to detect the tiny imperfections in the reproduction so you need to spend and spend and spend to get kit to cope with your new requirements.

I've spent years investigating wine, drinking wine, reading about wine, and enjoying wine. The result? I know why a £150 bottle of "Hill of Grace" is worth paying the money for....errr...was that a good thing?

Thankfully I can still enjoy a bottle of "Badger's Arse" with some bread and cheese when the sun is shining.

[deckster]

Don said:

I've spent years investigating wine, drinking wine, reading about wine, and enjoying wine. The result? I know why a £150 bottle of "Hill of Grace" is worth paying the money for....errr...was that a good thing?

I've often wondered - is it really? I guess it depends on your palate and budget but where does the law of diminishing returns kick in? For me it's around 8 quid supermarket/Majestic price - less than that and I can tell the difference, but the (admittedly fairly few) bottles I've had that were significantly more than that have all been disappointments. So was I just unlucky, or is my palate not up to the job - or is there really no point in spending over a tenner?

[Don]

deckster said:

Don said: I've spent years investigating wine, drinking wine, reading about wine, and enjoying wine. The result? I know why a £150 bottle of "Hill of Grace" is worth paying the money for....errr...was that a good thing? I've often wondered - is it really? I guess it depends on your palate and budget but where does the law of diminishing returns kick in? For me it's around 8 quid supermarket/Majestic price - less than that and I can tell the difference, but the (admittedly fairly few) bottles I've had that were significantly more than that have all been disappointments. So was I just unlucky, or is my palate not up to the job - or is there really no point in spending over a tenner?

As I said - Its like HiFi. Most people listen to the radio and reckon its OK. Then there's the hifi-buff for whom anything less than a DDD CD with a proper amp and £10Ks worth of electrostatic speakers is offensive to his ears.

For me I can recognise the value and quality in the complexity and uniqueness of a wine's flavours to a reasonably high degree of accuracy for an amauteur enthusiast. I'm not in the league of the MWs etc - but I know "something". Depending on what flavours one likes and where in the world they come from and who makes them (etc etc) the wine you like can be well priced or horrendously expensive.

Trust me - there is a world of difference between supermarket £8 wine and wine you have selected yourself from some specialist merchant at the £20 to £40 bracket.

Sadly.

I reckon, though, that the pleasure in being a wine enthusiast is obtained by drinking wine you would have happily stumped up £40 for - after paying only £8.

And to answer your question: Yes it can be worth spending more than a tenner. Your palate will be up to the job. If you've had disappointments its down to the selection of wine to match what *you* like. For me Hill Of Grace, for example, is the nectar of the Gods - others might not think so - perhaps because they're not so keen on red wine!

If you do go spend some money on a pricey bottle of wine go to a good independent merchant and explain what you like, what you're looking for and what does he recommend. Hit rate should be miles better.

>> Edited by Don on Sunday 12th February 08:44