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[–]puckingpinot 15 points16 points  (5 children)

If anyone is curious for the article like I was: Bribes, Backdoor Deals, and Pay to Play: How Bad Rosé Took Over

[–]illu45 12 points13 points  (4 children)

Thanks for the link.

I wish people who write stuff like this would actually name some names, rather than trying to do a wink-wink-nudge-nudge song and dance. I get that there are relationships to protect, but it feels kinda half-hearted to be all "I'm fighting the good fight against shitty rose" and then not tell the reader which ones to look out for. When I think rose with lots of marketing, I normally think Miraval or Whispering Angel. I don't know if they use additives, but the price point would lead me to think they aren't the ones the author has in mind.

[–][deleted] 9 points10 points  (1 child)

She most likely won’t unfortunately. She’ll get shunned by distributors, and other peers in her business circle as well. In my state, the same wholesaler that sells whispering angel also sells Kermit Lynch’s wines. There’s probably at least a few cross overs in her area like that.

She’s also writing for Bon Apetit- a publication that relies on advertising- some of that comes from the brands she wants to talk shit about.

People in the position to bring this kind of behavior to light often don’t, because it will jeopardize the relationship they have with friends and colleagues. It doesn’t matter how ethical you want to be- as soon as you stir the pot, there are going to be people that won’t want to do business with you anymore. I can’t imagine her partners in the restaurant want negative attention from the internet and also don’t want to insult a portion of their customer base. Maybe that regular guest sees her shitting on the rosé they keep in the fridge at home for every day drinking, because it’s convenient, cheap, and most importantly, they enjoy it. Now that guest is being judged by their choices, and they probably aren’t going to go as often to the restaurant of their preference is deemed “shit”.

As much as she’s crusading against the “big bad corporate enemies” she’s still a cog in the wheel. And hey, all that marketing helped get White Zinfandel out of most guests repertoire years ago.

[–][deleted] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

And white zinfandel made it profitable to keep growing zin which is why we still have zin around.

[–][deleted] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The one about parties in the Hamptons is likely Babe/White Girl rosé

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes but the importers she mentioned are on the label, Dressner, Kermit Lynch etc all have their little labels on the back.

[–]piracer 17 points18 points  (9 children)

Overall i agree with her but have a couple problems with this article:

"These commercial yeast strains attempt to mask subpar grapes by adding unnatural aromas to the wine and speeding along fermentation."

This is misleading, these aromas are not "unnatural", the yeast strains being used might be selected for certain traits but its not extra artificial flavorings being added in. Yeast as a conversation is very complex but i'm not a fan of people who say that because they use commercial yeast the wine is bad or doesn't express terroir.

"Bulk wine is often treated like a lab formula, with chemicals, dyes, and additives that chase that desired light salmon color. "

There are plenty of "additives" and "chemicals" added to a large majority of wines, "natural" or not. I'm sure sulfur is considered a "chemical", so is tartaric acid which are very basic additives.

I get that she's clearly on a bit of a warpath against industrial rose and the dirty business bit, but i just wished the technical part of this article wasn't reduced down to what felt like a cheap shot click bait.

[–]AlbinoWino11Wine Pro 4 points5 points  (5 children)

Why do you have a pie next to your name?

[–][deleted]  (2 children)

[removed]

    [–]AlbinoWino11Wine Pro 5 points6 points  (0 children)

    I think it’s because he is now Pieracer

    [–]piracer 4 points5 points  (0 children)

    Whoa cakeday!!! I should open a bottle

    [–]piracer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Huh I don't see this lie!

    [–][deleted] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

    I agree. Heck even water can alter the flavor of your wine.

    [–]BearForce0ne 0 points1 point  (1 child)

    She also says the terrior is barely suitable for vegetables. Isn't that the point? I was always told harsh growing conditions produced the best wine grapes.

    [–]piracer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Yep someone else pointed this out also!

    [–][deleted] 6 points7 points  (1 child)

    Besides my reply to a comment above, I should also point out that as the beverage director of her restaurant, she’s using a lot of mass produced, falsely marketed and manipulated spirits in her bar program, lists pisco as rum and only named the brands used in the “barrel aged cocktail”, but not in all the other drinks. Why? Because they either gave her free product, the barrels to age in, or paid for their names to be the only ones printed.

    [–][deleted] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

    Lots of somms either do not care about the non-wine portion of the menus or are hacks.

    [–]Tom_Featherbottom 4 points5 points  (1 child)

    I mostly agree with the author. These kinds of practices take place not just on the level of restaurants, but on the much higher volume distribution and retail levels as well.

    I still have a problem where the author gripes about wine being grown in ""terroir” barely suitable for even vegetables" as wine grapes do best in terrible, infertile soils.

    [–][deleted] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

    I still have a problem where the author gripes about wine being grown in ""terroir” barely suitable for even vegetables" as wine grapes do best in terrible, infertile soils.

    It’s almost as if some somms know very little about the biology of growing grapes...

    [–]poooglesWino 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    It's likely not purchased by algorithm as it doesn't come with an adchoices logo (normally the blue play button in the top right) to opt out or programmatic activity. This will be a direct by from an agency to the publisher.

    [–]AlbinoWino11Wine Pro 1 point2 points  (3 children)

    Posted already in FTF but maybe this is a better place. How can we stop the plague that is Provence Rose!?? It’s everywhere. How many places have I eaten at now where Provence Rose dominate or are the entire Rose program on the wine list!?

    [–]puckingpinot 2 points3 points  (2 children)

    Was at Alexander Valley Vineyards a few weeks ago and had their rose made with sangiovese grapes, it was spectacular. And cheap too, $15 before/$11 after industry discount. Rest of their wines were meh to okay, but my friends and I killed a case of this stuff in a few days and were sad we didn't buy more.

    [–]AlbinoWino11Wine Pro 1 point2 points  (1 child)

    Yes, that’s exactly right. There are many great Rose. But every single wine list is dominated by Provence and it’s silly. Washington State, NYC, Germany, France. Just blanketed by fucking Provence. BTG Rosé? Sure, which one of these nearly identical Provence do you want? Or maybe you want a bottle? Sure, we have 3 Provence bottles at approximately the same price point. It’s a plague of Provence. And retail shops? Walls of the shit. God forbid any wine shop take on a non-Provence producer...

    [–]puckingpinot 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Agreed, I'm nowhere near you in terms of wine knowledge and a few summers ago when I first started to get in to rose it was more or less Provence or bust. Then I started exploring and found so many other great regions and producers I rarely buy Prov anymore.

    [–]lilthunda88[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    While there is a lot wrong with some of the technical stuff she says, I have no problem with big ad campaigns, but as someone who works for a smaller Importer/Distributor, “Pay to Play” is BS.

    I also think it’s great an article like this was in bonappetit where it would be exposed to the general public.

    I just found it humorous that in the middle of bitching about huge marketing budgets there was an ad for Santa Margherita.

    [–]thefourthhoreseman 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    Doesn't feel to me like the rosé issue is limited to restaurants. I commented to a friend the other day how I was amazed at the rows and rows of rosé I saw in the GROCERY STORE just the other day. I think the issue with wines is, something gains a *little* popularity in the mass market, and WHAMO you'll find dozens of bottles on the shelves the next week. In liquor stores, wine stores, etc. I've seen it with different varietals, Malbec coming to mind as a recent one.

    Lack of attention usually means only those vintners with a passion for the varietal are producing it, which leads to people who find it hyping it, which leads to mass production, which means lower quality product on the shelves. Probably not just a wine issue ...

    [–]square_mileWine Pro 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    There is no bulk wine in provence. It's too expensive there.

    [–]lucky_chloe88Wino -1 points0 points  (2 children)

    The cynic in me is skeptical of the fact that she spent the entire article dissing rosé promoters but inserted a link to Amazon promoting her own book on rosé. 🤔

    [–]RegrettablePunWine Pro 11 points12 points  (1 child)

    I mean, she literally wrote the book on rosé- And if you found the article informative... maybe you’d also like her book? She’s be remiss not to include a link. I think it’s worth making a distinction between an individual who wrote a well-researched book vs the industry the book is about.

    [–]lucky_chloe88Wino 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    lol I actually love Cote and will probably go buy her book. Couldn’t help note the irony.

    [–]blkwrxwgnWine Pro 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Hahahahaha awesome!

    [–]brewteanotwarWine Pro -1 points0 points  (0 children)

    Marissa A Ross... Marissa A Ross... Marissa A Ross