While perusing the Sunday ads, I came across Freddy Meyer's grocery ads. I'm always looking for something on sale to throw into my freezer for future use. Holy Bat $hit. Freddy is giving away wine. This stuff didn't get 95 in the Expectorator or win a gold medal at the Kansas Livestock Exhibition and International Wine Tasting, but it is all decent wine.
As an old winemaker, I remember the days when wine quality was based a lot on winemaking skill, not just the quality of the grapes. Those days are gone in the supermarket; although alive and well at some boutique wineries. The wines you find on the shelf today are technically perfect.
Someone once asked me, "Why doesn't Gallo make good wine?" I answered, "Because they chose not to." (Actually, Gallo does make some nice wines, but avoids the "ultra premium" market because there is no money there. Gallo has the best enologists and technology in the world and can make anything they chose to make.)
Back to Freddy. WOW! Look for the orange tags. I can have Ste. Mickey, Columbia Crest, Fetzer, Two Vines (Columbia Crest redux), Yellow Tail (all guys like a little tail now and then), or Bandit for $5.99. but wait, that's not all. If I buy six bottles, they will take off 10%. So for $32.35 (the price of one bottle of ultra-premium, hand crafted, award-winning, ultra-hyphenated, blah-blah wine) I can have six bottles which is almost a week's worth - well, more like three or four days' worth of wine.
Okay, so you are a wine snob. For $6.99 ($37.75 a week) I can get Red Diamond (Columbia Crest Redux part deux), Hogue, BV Coastal Estate, Snap Dragon, or Bear Flag.
The list goes on. I can get Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel, Riesling, Syrah, Gnarly Head (I'll take some of that!), or sparkling wine for under $10 per bottles.
I've already exposed Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy. What does it take to convince you the glory days of the wine industry are over? People are now having fun drinking wine. It's great to buy a bottle for $5.99 and find it is a really good wine. If it is, you go back and stock up with a case. Oops, there goes my wine budget for one bottle of Bobby Parker's sacred wines you can't find anyway. So, if it wasn't so great. It's alcohol. What's the problem, dude?
If you see some winery whose marketing plan is to sell to 'upper end restaurants and wine shops' please refer them to this blog. They need to get a bottle of Hot to Trot. Just $8.99 at Freddy's.
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