After twenty years of meeting in the Rhone varietal rich
Central Coast town of Paso Robles, the organizers of the Hospice announced that
they are taking the event to Tennessee in 2013. This event had brought about
1,000 lovers of Syrah, Grenache, Viognier and other Rhone wine grapes to the
region for seminars and tastings, detailed in a blog posted prior to the event
earlier this spring. The three day event was a sell out this year. It brought together
makers and fans of wine based on the twenty two varietals grown in the Rhone Valley,
and included representative of the world-wide regions growing them.
The announcement was via email with a copy posted on the
event’s web site and signed by John Alban, the winemaker who convinced Matt
Garretson to move his fledgling Viognier event to the Central Coast two decades
ago. Vicki Carroll, the director of Hospice also signed the letter, which laid
out plans for moving the event to more outreach and education in other parts of
the country. It appears the hub will be Blackberry Farm in Tennessee, well
regarded for its lodging and food & wine programs including Hospice
seminars for small groups over the past few years.
I may understand the decision from a marketing standpoint
but have mixed feelings about the abandonment of the Rhone-ish capital of
California. That may not be the case as the announcement does not say that the
new concept would exclude the Central Coast. I hope not. It allowed the
attendees to actually visit many wineries producing they style and kept the
logistics fairly simple for the many small producers involved. Another plus is
the lure of the area as a general travel destination. Those who came for the
event (many from overseas) could easily justify the three days with extending
their stay and having a long list of things to enjoy with all that the state
offers between San Francisco and LA.
It may also prove a smart move to take a more evangelistic
approach to spreading word of Rhone varietals. Despite our local fervor for the
grape varieties of that region, even fairly knowledgeable wine drinkers can seldom
name a half dozen of the wine grapes grown in the Rhone Valley. One thing that
hurts moving the production is a lack of distribution. Increasingly
consolidated over the past couple of decades, few of those who make less than
25,000 cases of wine are of interest to those who fill shelves in the major
markets. That volume describes most of the winemakers who are dedicated to the
purpose of HdR and since they can’t get the ear of the distributors, there is a
lack of proselytizing on behalf of their product.
Wholesale reps are paid to move cases not spin tales of a
tiny winery with a great $40 Syrah blend, of which they have only two cases and
contains a couple of grapes unfamiliar to the buyer. It is often the other way
around; good sommeliers and savvy wine focused retailers ask about the wines
from places they’ve been or read about. Many are not available in their market,
generally due to financial and logistic realities. It is also true that many
wineries offering Rhone style wine have found it is just easier to blend
something with Cabernet or Zinfandel to make it easier for the consumer to
relate. Sales are easier if they can say, “This is our Cabernet blend with
Grenache”, even if the ratio is 10 to 90%. In any case, it was a pretty good
run for twenty years and I wish Hospice the best in taking the word to the
street. I remain hopeful that now and then that will continue to be Spring
Street, Paso Robles, CA.
You may wish to see Fred Swan’s take on this and an interview with the HdR director at NorCalWine.com
