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Beverage Media
October 2012
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Photograph by Thomas Mangieri
Holiday Heads Up
A number of signs point to price resistance among consumers
softening. Better price/volume ratios reflected in stocks like
Brown Forman, Diageo, Anheuser-Busch/InBev trading a near
highs. Diageo reports “meaningful improvement in U.S. spirits
pricing, which was weak until now.” It started in brown goods,
and is now showing up in vodkas.
So, when it comes to the holidays, I am not suggesting you
refuse to discount to close that office party deal. Just that the
basic mentality has improved on pricing, and hopefully you
can take advantage of it this fall.
Speaking of taking advantage, if you haven’t taken the
time to sign up to our website as a complement to the access
we extend to you in the pages of the book, now is the time.
Sign up before the holidays and I promise you simple searches
to locate specific wines, for example, will come a lot easier, and
afterwards you’ll be saying, “What was I waiting for?” Email
to help get registered.
Jody Slone-Spitalnik
Chief Operating Officer
William G. Slone
Chairman
Autumn Walkabout
The fall season has officially set in, and that means lots of fall
portfolio tastings and preparation for the bustling holiday sea-
son. Be sure and check out our events calendar on pg. 134 as
well as online to stay current on industry happenings. In “Aus-
tralia Grows Up” on pg. 20, read about the maturing Australian
wine industry, bouncing back and offering better wines across
the board. We also take a look at New England-based wholesaler
and supplier M.S. Walker in “Back to the Bottling Line,” pg. 26.
“
Chile: Momentum Through Innovation” (pg. 30) shows that
innovation is the new normal.
“
Mezcal Steps Up” addresses the emergence of tequila’s crazy
agave cousin on the cocktail scene, pg. 34. We hope to see you
on October 12
th
at Trade Day of the NYCWine & Food Festival.
For a preview of the festival, please see pg. 76.
Intent
In the latest chapter in the battle over wine in supermarkets, re-
portedly, Wegman’s is attempting to side-step the issue by expand-
ing through the licensing of family members. Unfortunately, in
principle, the rule of law can’t allow for every contingency.
We have a system in New York that focuses, as a priority, on
the need to assure the most responsible distribution of our prod-
ucts. Which is not to say a family member or business associate of
Wegman’s would not try to act responsibly. However, an individ-
ually owned and run family business is totally dependent on the
rigorous monitoring of customer traffic, and extremely vulnerable
to any lapses in responsible service.
When you introduce chains, in any form, the intent of the
business model that provides this security for the community,
changes entirely. In this case, the hope is that administrators and
judges will be sensitive to the intent of the law.
Jason A. Glasser
Chief executive officer
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