How many articles have we written on the importance of wineries creating a strong Internet presence? Half a dozen, a dozen?

Global Economic Crisis and Spanish Wine, Portugal Pay Attention
Wake Up, Stupid Winery Marketing in Action
QR Code and Wine
Gary, Note to Self, Do Some Research! Portugal, Note to Self, Pay Attention to Gary!
Alimentaria, the Good and the Bad!

We have begged, pleaded, and gotten on both knees trying to convince the Iberian wine community to take notice, but it seemed as if our voices were merely bouncing off of brick walls, only reaching the chosen few who really were open to change.

So we tried another route, creating an Internet marketing company to provide wineries the support and tools they needed to launch themselves into the new Internet. It seemed to work, but our reach was rather limited. A dozen here, a hundred there, but nothing on the scale that we knew was necessary.

In turn, this led us to co-creating the annual European Wine Blogger Conference, in hopes of not only bringing together the vast array of wine bloggers around the world, but to also bridge a previously held gap between wineries and online journalists. The results were incredible, allowing all sides to find ways in which we could communicate and collaborate more effectively through the internet. (Note: more details on the 2009 conference coming very soon!)

Gabriella here, hoping to provide you a dash of clarity as to what happened in yesterday’s post. The image you saw was not an elaborate crossword puzzle, nor was our aim to hypnotize you, unless that translated to you sending us cases of great wine. Our intention was to introduce you to one of our many eccentric ideas in regards to wine marketing.

The image you encountered is called a QR-Code, a two dimensional matrix code created in 1994 by the Japanese company, Denso-Wave. “QR” stands for Quick Response, which permits the user to obtain the data at high speed with a scanner. While old school bar codes are capable of storing a max of around 20 digits, QR Code can not only take in several hundred times more information, but various types of information including Kanji, numeric and alphabetic characters, symbols and binary, to name a few. Originally utilized to track vehicle parts, the QR Code is now being used as a convenient and fast application aimed at mobile phone users.

The question being, how in the Lord’s name can you read the QR code we posted yesterday? Simple. All you need to do is download scan reader software to your cellphone. Once installed, turn it on, place the square over the code, and voila, you’ve got info! For how this code can apply to wine, read Ryan’s post below!

Approximately 8 months ago, I proposed an idea to my friend Andre. We decided to create a new label for a wine destined for

the US and targeted to tech geeks. …

Whew, our dog’s are a barking! To travel to Alimentaria, a gourmet food and wine show in the heart of Barcelona, is true dedication on our part. Although Ryan warned me after attending last year’s event, I wasn’t prepared for the sheer effort. To merely stand at the front door of the Wine Pavilion, it takes us two hours, typically, arriving in a fit of sweat after standing shoulder to shoulder (or nose to armpit in my case) on trains, subways and buses. With hundreds, if not thousands of people arriving on the dot of 10am, eagerly awaiting the chance to make another contact, you are forced to test patience and dedication for an act of love. Fortunately for us, it was absolutely worth it, if only for the fact that Ryan got to see the Prince and Princess of Spain!

A quick comment on Alimentaria: It’s toooooooo DAMN big! Sorry for the profanity, but this show is growing exponentially every year, without either a map to guide you or stand numbers to orientate yourself. Basically, it’s become an exercise in blind faith as we wander aimlessly around the pavilions, hoping to accidentally run into the stand we’re desperately searching for. The wineries who paid for the best locations became defacto information desks as countless lost importers approached them as a last resort when searching for their next $10 Tempranillo. Note to anyone (not likely) listening from the Alimentaria organizational committee, “Please make a map and catalog for EACH category of exhibitor. One large guide covering every category and priced at 60 euros is worthless!” I expect in two years to see little in the way of change, but hey, we can dream can’t we?

However, whether it was a result of blind …

After Gore’s speech, the keynote speaker at the II International Conference on Climate and Wine in Barcelona was allotted a certain amount of time dedicated to questions and answers. One question fielded by Pancho Campo and asked of Al Gore was, “what is the responsibility of the wine industry in relation to the climate crisis?”

After I had watched this clip for the umpteenth time, it dawned me that his passionate speech about brand loyalty as it relates to trust is really no different than what makes a blog successful. Trust is the key to any successful relationship and the foundation for future growth. It is because of trust that you choose to read and interact with us. It is because of trust that we come to many of you for advice and clarity. Without this trust, without this dynamic relationship, you would not share our site with your friends, nor would they with theirs. I say this because web 2.0 is the new marketplace, where friends tell friends about products they adore, sites they appreciate and companies they respect. I love this clip by Gore because it not only enforces a long held belief Ryan and I have lived by for years, but it give it a tangibility that it didn’t have before. Wineries who place conservation as a priority and the life of their consumers as a focal point is a winery that will have a better chance of succeeding in the future. Interesting thought, is it not?!

Video content from the conference was produced by Richard Gillespie please contact us if you are interested in hiring Richard for your next project.