HarveyFamilyWineBlog

Blogging Inspiration from ZAP

Scott and I attended the general meeting for ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates & Producers) hosted at V. Sattui in Napa Valley yesterday.  It's a terrific organization and really works hard at promoting Zinfandel.  Scott was one of the founding members 16 years ago.  Today we make five Zinfandels (Vineyard 1869, Scott Harvey Amador Old Vine, Scott Harvey Amador Mountain Selection, Jana Napa Old Vine, and InZinerator) so it's a variety that's very important to us.

After a delicious lunch, the meeting portion began.  A scholarship fund at Sonoma State is being set up in honor of Don Reison, formerly of Ridge Vineyards.  In addition, they announced a raffle fundraiser for an amazing trip to Hawaii--roundtrip airfare for 4 and a 7 night stay at the Marriott Wialea.  Raffle tickets are only $20 apiece for this wonderful opportunity.  Contact us if you're interested.

Featured speakers were the following bloggers:  Andy Gamitian who created Flights Wine Blog, Christian Oggenfuss of www.vintuba.com, a wine centered video and podcasting blog, Thea Dwelle, Luscious Lushes blog, Ray Johnson author of The Good Life and Enjoying Wine, and Russ Beebe, Winehiker Witiculture.  The Twitter and social media specialist was Lisa Adams Walter of Adams Walter Communications.  Most of the speakers were early pioneers of blogging and it's been beneficial to their careers.  I'm glad Scott was there because now that harvest is over, I hope you will see many more posts from him.  He has a lot of knowledge to share. 

Wine & Magic Blended into One Great Event in Napa Valley

Back in June, I wrote about a great wine tasting/magic show that we participated in in Chico.  Well, now we are going to host  one in St. Helena. (along with our Fulton Lane neighbors--Big Horn Cellars, Calafia & David Fulton Winery).   Proceeds will benefit the St. Helena Kiwanis.

This is the first event of its kind for Napa Valley--an afternoon of Enchantment with international champion magician, David Minkin.  He has performed for the likes of Johnny Depp, Chriss Angel, & Rob Reiner.  The hardest part was determining a date when all of us AND the magician would be available.  Unfortunately, we didn't realize all the winemakers are scrambling in the thick of harvest.

Two Wine Tours & Shows on Sunday, October 11th.

Tour #1 begins 1:00 pm

Tour #2 begins 4:00 pm -  Limited Seating - 50 seats per show

Start your tour @ 890 Fulton Lane for Wine Tasting of five wines from Big Horn Cellars, Calafia, Scott Harvey, and Jana Wines paired with hors d'oeuvres from Fulton Lane's own Panevino--one of Napa's finest caterers.

An hour later you will meander across the street to David Fulton Winery for a taste of their acclaimed Petit Sirah and settle in to be amazed by David Minken's one hour of magic.

Amble across vineyard lined Fulton Lane to our house to enjoy dessert, chocolates, port and dessert wines and we can celebrate the magician, David Minkin's birthday.  This is where you can redeem your $20 gift certificate for a 4 pack of wines and have an opportunity to purchase any of the wines tasted at a 15% discount.

It would be great to see you there.  You can purchase tickets at www.scottharveywines.com/magic

Winery economics

We are often asked how a standard winery business plan works.  As with so many things these days it is changing as our style of marketing changes.  In the past we depended on and sold most of our wine through distributors in what is known as the three tiersystem.  We produce wine, it is sold to a distributor who sells it to a store or restaurant who then sells it to you. 

Lets say our cost of goods (what it cost to produce a case of wine) is $50.  We then sell that wine trying to generate a 50% gross margin, which means we would sell the wine to the distributor for $100. Out of the $50 generated above the cost of goods we allocate $20 for cost of sales (what it cost to sell the wine, salesperson wages and expenses, any discounts, travel etc.) and $20 for general and administrative (the cost run the wine company) and hopefully there is a $10 bill left for profit.  It is what we call the 50, 20, 20, 10 rule.

The distributor than takes the case of wine they paid $100 for and add their laid in cost, (what it cost them to get the wine to their state and their warehouse, any state taxes, etc.)  The typical laid in cost for a case of wine from our Napa Valley warehouse to a distributor in Chicago is about $8 dollars.  So they take the laid in cost , now $108 and work off of that.  The distributor then marks the wine up 33% on laid in cost or 25% of their selling price.  This number is the same, $35.64.  $35.64 is 33% of $108 or 25% of $143.65.  Often,if the distributor will be offering quantity discounts, they will add this to the asking price, so they can discount it back.

Next the store takes its purchase price, now $144 and and works on 50% on cost or 33% on sale.  This number is $72.  $72 is 50% of $144 or 33% of $216.  So the case of wine that cost me $50 ($4.17/bottle) cost the wine buyer in Chicago $216 case or $18.00 per bottle. 

This distribution three tier system is rapidly being taken over by the larger wine companies that can get and hold onto the distributors attention.  As a small winery the amount of money generated by our brands for the distributor is far less than that of a large higher volume winery.  The amount of attention the distributor sales staff gives your wine is directly correlated to the percentage of gross revenue your brand generates for the distributor.  Therefore, we are being forced to find other ways to get our wine to the consumer.  If we can sell our wines direct to the customer either through our internet website, our tasting rooms, wine clubs, third party internet websites, we can keep a higher percentage of the customer dollar or sell the wine for less.  As we slowly change from the three tier distributor system to direct sales our 50,20,20,10 rule changes more to a 60,30,20,10 rule or 70,35,25,10 rule. 

Blogging and the Opportunities it Creates

This blog is the first of what will hopefully be a daily blog.  A new discipline that I'm told I need to do for the ever changing way that wine is sold.  Actually, I think it is a good idea and a great opportunity to better communicate with our enjoyable and wonderful customers.

 

A high percentage of winemakers enjoy staying in the winery and the wine lab and are not fond of meeting the actual people that enjoy their art.  When you have a winemaker that is a people person, you have a real asset.  What better person to explain the art behind each wine than the person who put it together.  The winemaker is the most credible person for this job.  If they enjoy people and are good at public speaking, they are the best person to convey the wine's story.

 

For the last thirty seven years I have been doing just this selling wine through the three tier distribution system by visiting each market area.  While there I’ll ride around with sales people visiting wine shops and restaurants, do tastings for the distributor sales staff,  tastings for restaurant staffs and winemaker dinners all to get the story out. 

 

Along comes the internet.  A new opportunity to tell the wine's story directly to anyone interested in reading the blog.  How wonderful!  Now I can do it from my office, while looking out the window over the beautiful Napa Valley Vineyards.  Only problem, my prose seem to flow in an understandable fashion, but my spelling is horrific.  Thank goodness for spell check.

Wine & Magic - what a great combination because wine is magic

Scott and I had the opportunity to do a combination wine tasting and magic show at Monks Wine Lounge in Chico recently.  The magician, David Minken, is an international champion and through a personal connection, the town of Chico was very fortunate to have him perform there.  His expertise is close-up magic so David presents his sleight of hand to an audience of under 50 people.  He normally appears in Southern California, for the Magic Castle and celebrities like Johnny Depp.

A wine tasting is the ideal prelude to the show.  Scott and I had the opportunity to introduce five of our wines to the participants at the wine bar.  The wine was accompanied by delicious appetizers prepared by chef/owner Kevin Coy.  His wife, Keely, is the sommelier.   The tasting/show benefitted the local Humane Society.

Chico was an impressive little town.  We did 4 shows in two nights so it gave us a chance to explore the area.  After browsing the Saturday morning Farmer's Market, Bidwell Park was the ideal place to stroll.  It is one of the largest municipal parks in the U.S.  We stayed at a delightful B&B, the Goodman House,  owned by Tom and Margo Graham who are wonderful hosts.

All in all, wine, magic, gourmet food and Chico made for a perfect weekend.

Why the New York Giants are my team

We have a company of wonderful shareholders who we encourage to participate as much or as little as they want to in our company.  For instance, one of our shareholder benefits is called "tag along rights". Whatever I'm doing that day, be it blending in the lab or doing a wine tasting or walking the vineyards, any shareholder has the right to go along and participate.  Also, if the company can help a shareholder in a particular cause, we will make it a priority to try and help.

One such cause was the Rich Seubert Celebrity fund raiser for the Marshfield clinic in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.  The company is fortunate to have Charles Dowd as a shareholder.  He not only brings the company tremendous expertise as a financial guru sitting on both our financial board and our board of directors, but also helps promote our brand through a local charity.  Annually, the Marshfield Clinic in Eau Claire holds a fundraiser benefitting the heart clinic sponsored by Rich Seubert, the offensive starting center for the New York Giants.

The day started out with the Seubert Celebrity Trap Shoot.  We as contestants got to match our trap shooting skills amongst the whole New York Giants front line.  Rich Seubert was able to convince the rest of his starting line to support the Marshfield Clinic.  In was in the cheering section, since I haven't shot a shotgun for over twenty years.  Rich is from the Eau Claire area and the clinic saved his grandmother's life.  I haven't been one to watch or pay attention to football, but after this day, the team I'll follow will be the New York Giants.  What a great and giving bunch of guys.

After the Celebrity trap shoot we held a wine tasting featuring the Scott Harvey and Jana Wines.  Notice the tasting was held after the trap shoot, not before.  Following the wine tasting we all participated in a great evening and celebrity dinner where the wines served were also our wines.  All the wines were donated by sharholders, Chuck and Barbara Dowd along with their daughter, Katy and son in law, Frank.

It was a wonderful day with over $200,000 being raised for the clinic and our wines getting tremendous exposure thanks to the Dowds and the LoRussos.  In the picture from left to right are Frank (who is a doctor at the Marshfield Clinic,  Katy, the big guy with the Super Bowl ring on is Rich Seubert, next is TJ Burns (the marketing director for Buck knives), myself with beer in hand, Chuck Dowd and last is CJ Buck.  He also supported the day giving out the wonderful Buck Knives as prizes.  Personally, I have always carried a small Buck pocket knife since I was a teenager and still have one in my pocket today.

Celebrating Cheers St. Helena's first 1st Friday wine tasting

St. Helena is a charming town in Napa Valley but in recent years Yountville, a small town south of us has been gaining in popularity.  Yountville has all the new restaurants--one of the best new additions is Bottega owned by our chef neighbor, Michael Chiarello.  There are several storefronts for lease in St. Helena and it needs an injection of life--especially for its merchants.

Hence, the inspiration for Cheers St. Helena a gatherning of friends, community, and visitors to toast St. Helena and the Napa Valley.  Many stores kept their busnesses open until 9:00 pm where participants could wander through town to taste wines, shop, and try samples from many local restaurants.  The inaugural event was last Friday and in the worst weather we've had in early May in years.  Who would anticipate a downpour in May!  Everyone was concerned this could affect the attendance--after so much planning.  Well, concerns were allayed.  Great turnout in the rain.  Everyone was enjoying the experience.  Scott Harvey Wines poured at Goodmans Department and we had a wonderful time meeting new neighbors and introducing them to our wines.  I bought a shirt I couldn't resist for my husband, Scott.  He enjoys snapped button shirts and a turquoise color that would match his green eyes caught my eye.  We are looking forward to the first Friday of June and meeting more new neighbors and doing more shopping at Goodmans.

Birth of the New InZinerator Label

Somedays you just can't win.  In an effort to have a wine label that's unique, we asked our nephew, Michael Harants, who had just graduated in graphic design, to come up with some label concepts for us.  Being a comic book collecter and a gamer, he gave us three concepts of the Super Hero genre. We loved all three. We decided we would use them all. The consumer would then, instead of buying just one bottle, would want all three.  Scott created a delicous Zinfandel blend--very similar to the same blend he used when he created Menage a Trois.  This label has gotten mixed reactions.  It was even banned in North Carolina, thinking that we were trying to sell wine to minors.  The artist was actually 28 years old when he developed this label.  Retailers told us that it was confusing to their customers.  Someone would come in and purchase one of the bottles (not all three as we had hoped) and then would come back and couldn't find the label anymore.  The same wine was there in other labels but it didn't translate.  Another challenge was to let people know this was a good bottle of wine--not just a gimmicky label.  A Gold Medal at the California State Fair helped.  We released two vintages of these labels--2003 & 2004.  After fighting this battle for several years, we decided to release only one label per vintage.  We also received comments that we should have a female SuperHero--afterall, women buy 60% of the wine.  FemKnight (we call her) was born, created by the same artist. We thought she would be perfect to carry on the InZinerator flag. 

The next step was getting the labels printed.  Always challenging.  Collotype does a wonderful job printing our labels.  It is a fascinating place to visit.  Quite a high-tech factory.  We spent several hours just trying to get the right shade of purples.  You add a little red "here" and it changes the color "there".  Finally, we decided we were as close as we were going to get to the artists original drawing.  Here's a little glimpse of the printing process.

The female Super Hero is going to market and everyone wants to know if they can still get the three labels.  They just might be back again.  Stay tuned...........

The Winemakers of Fulton Lane

Living in St. Helena in Napa Valley definitely has its advantages.  The natural beauty is spectacular but one of its best attributes is the people. Scott and I are fortunate to reside on historic Fulton Lane, just 1/2 mile northwest of the center of town.  After several get-togethers over the years, we realize we have five winemaking families within a couple blocks of each other.  We decided to form an association call the Winemakers of Fulton Lane.  Here's a picture of our first official breakfast plannning meeting. The wineries consist of David Fulton, Chiarello Family Vineyards, Big Horn Cellars, Calafia, and our line of Scott Harvey Wines.  We decided our first event should be  walk-around tasting to several of our homes and our resident Fulton Winery.  It was to be trade-focused so we piggy-backed onto the Premiere Napa Valley event held every year at the CIA--just up the street.  Sunday morning between 9:00 am and 12:00 would be good before everyone started heading back home.  One of the challenges was what food to serve that early with wine--especially with David Fulton's Petite Sirah.  Our friend Dean Weitz, a chef from So Cal, was up to the challenge.  Breakfast potatoes, quiche, smoked salmon, sausage wellington, were just a few delectables that were available.  The morning of the event was pouring rain and we all figured we'd be eating breakfast potatoes for the next seven days.  At 9:00 sharp we had tasters knocking on our door, Wooters from different parts of the country.  The pace never let up until afternoon.  We figured we had about 60 people all in all going from house to house trying different wines and interesting food pairings.  Not bad for a first event.  We realized we have something very special that is difficult to duplicate--especially when a writer from the Chicago Times said she was in town to write a story about Premiere but the real story was our unique neighborhood gathering.

Food and Wine Pairing for a Wine Dinner

Wine dinners have been around for years.  I've always wondered at the marketing value of these dinners.  How many attendees even remember the name of the winery the next day?  For the chef,  It's a great vehicle to showcase his creativity.  Almost always, it enhances our wines in the best possible way.  Scott always says " it takes great food to really exhibit the nuances of his wines."  We have a lab in our home.  When we get down to the final blend, Scott and I will cook dinner and try the wine with food.  If the wine fights the food in any way, too flabby or acidic, Scott is back in the lab tweaking the next morning. 

This brings me to our latest wine dinner at Brooks Restaurant in Ventura, CA.  Unfortunately for me, this was one wine dinner that Scott went on his own.  Apparently Chef Andy Brooks pulled out all the stops. Scott found it one of the most outstanding food pairings he ever experienced with his wines.  We sent samples for the Chef to determine his menu.  We have a wonderful opportunity in this video to see what happens "behind the scenes" as a chef creates his masterpieces.

http://gallery.venturacountystar.com/video.cfm?VideoID=642