Another Wine Blog: Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery added to Boycott
keith miller
· 2 months ago
Are you guys serious...lol. This practice of buyouts and takeovers has been going on for years..( I still say wine bloggers (most ) have never been in the business). People start writing and suggesting things like boycott.. Whatever! Its business and if someone wants to sell a winery to Foley and so be it.
The funny thing about this is, the original post is from 2008 and omg this like i said takeovers like these have been going on for YEARS!
The end of an era at Sebastiani... so what! There are plenty of people (small businesses) coming up now to take that place of creativity...
Let me tell ya... if it wasnt for people like Foley many of these wineries would go out of business. It takes a lot of dough to run a winery and most don't make it without help.
Spend 20 plus years in the wine business as a retailer or resturant owner and come back and start commneting... And tell a store "I am boycotting that label" Ohh great !! lol .
Sure anyone can boycott whatever but if you really knew what goes on in the wine business you probably would not buy wine anymore...It si business folks not fantasy land.
Keith Miller
Hows that for stirring the pot?
Amy Corron Power
· 2 months ago
Perhaps you'd like to read the referenced post on Pink Bunny Ears, and all those regarding the subject, and as you say, then "come back and start commenting." Or perhaps just read this one through -- and figure out that reporting on a boycott, and organizing a boycott, are, of course, two different things. Because, even though we just started posting in, omg, 2008, we learned to read in the 60s. Cheers!
WineDog
· 2 months ago
Well, Keith, maybe you should stop by your optometrist. The post is from yesterday and is a direct reference to the WS article of 11/15. The point, which seems to have eluded you is that the wine business will irrevocably change, just like the title business did, and not for the better. The product that title companies now provide is substandard at best. Bill Foley is absolutely to blame. I suspect you know very little about title companies and title insurance. I've got 33 years experience in the field. Actually longer than Bill Foley, who made his original money with Carl's Jr.
In ten years when no one is making good wine because the little guys have been forced out... well, I for one hope that day never comes. I hope that wineries continue to be family owned and continue to nurture the land like Mike Benziger and Michael Keenan do. I hope that they continue to move towards sustainability and merging the earth, the vines and the elements into an experience in a glass. In my Fantasyland, businesses like Frog's Leap and Spottswoode can coexist with Kendall Jackson and Graziano. They don't have to worry about being bought up by some guy who cares more about increasing his distribution than he does about the product and the people who make it happen.
Houstonwino
· 2 months ago
OMG! Reading comprehension and stuff like grammar and spelling are so 2008 too!
How is that for stirring the pot? Hmm, pretty lame.
Buzz
· 2 months ago
Read the article in the Nov 15th issue of Wine Spectator. This guy saved a business the family ran into the ground and lost interest in. All of them have other wine interest and one is responsible for Smoking Loon...boycott him not the guy thats cleaning up the mess. The article says he is adding staff and investing money to bring it back to a profitable business for years to come. Whats wrong with that?
Amy Corron Power
· 2 months ago
Perhaps reading the referenced post on Pink Bunny Ears would give you more information.
Buzz
· 2 months ago
I read the rant of a scorned man with an axe to grind. What does any of that have to do with wine?
Amy Corron Power
· 2 months ago
Oh, and note that I not only mentioned the November 15th issue of Wine Spectator, I also quoted from it, which would indicate that I probably read the entire article before reading the PBE post, as well as writing this one.
Buzz
· 2 months ago
Perhaps you dont answer the question about what that has to do with wine because the answer is a obvious as your agenda.
Buzz
· 2 months ago
Oh, and note that people like you and the Wine Mutt make me want to buy more not boycott. Foley should offer higher case discounts if people enter your name as the coupon code...: )
Buzz
· 2 months ago
final note is dont bother defending yourself or the mutt because this blog sucks and I wont be back to see the response. Also, who you kidding about learning to read in the 60's...more like the 40's
Wine Harlots
· 2 months ago
Wow, "Buzz" who peed in your Wheaties?
If you can’t post something constructive, please stop wasting your (and our) time with your vile bile. You don’t have to agree, but you have a duty to the community to be civil.
Houstonwino
· 2 months ago
Hey Buzz, excellent name, my man...only someone completely f**ked up could post anything that stupid. Thanks for not coming back. Everyone concerned is grateful!
Look, as was pointed out above, we are not organizing a boycott, just spotlighting an issue that exists. Try being a shill without the attempted snark, we're better at it than you are. Snark, that is...you've got the shilling part down pat.
Amy Corron Power
· 2 months ago
I'm trying to figure out exactly what a guy in his early 40s who sells computer software in Dayton, Ohio would know about the wine business? Do tell!
Fred
· 2 months ago
Amy what is your background??? You have never been in the wine business... So why are you commenting on him being in the computer business??? I dont get that...
Houstonwino
· 2 months ago
Hi Fred, thanks for commenting. Got anything to add to the actual subject of the post?
Amy Corron Power
· 2 months ago
Fred, I'll refer you to the blog, comments and PBE to find your answers. Reading: it's Fundamental!
TitleSlug
· 2 months ago
Sebastiani was a family business that no longer served the family's needs. Like the Mondavis, the Sebastianis worked, loved and fought side-by-side for generations. Over the past 20 years more and more family members drifted from the business. Finally, it made more sense to sell the winery rather than continue to run it. Bill Foley bought Sebastiani because it was good deal. Tradition means nothing more than value add over product. If the perception of tradition means the product is worth more, than Mr. Foley will sell tradition. More than likely he'll leverage existing distribution contracts and business practices he's "fine tuned" throughout the rest of his grape juice empire and apply them to the "Sonoma Tradition". If he can boost earnings per share by importing grapes or exporting juice he'll do it. If the multiples of the wine industry can't be bent to his expectations he'll sell it. Creating quality wine is NOT his interest. Collecting more of your dollars IS his interest. His past tells us so. There are many, many great wine producers in Sonoma, Napa, Santa Barbara and the rest of Northern California. We as consumers have choices. We don't have to suffer MBA inspired wine. We can buy elegant wine that is an expression of where it was grown and an expression of the winemaker's vision. We don't have to buy wine that exhibits an expression of the CEO's vision for expanding profit above all else.
Kelly
· 2 months ago
Well, this sucks! I was completely smitten with Sebastiani's Merlot for several years, and visited the winery in 2005. Thanks for this post, and to Wine Dog. I OPT OUT.
WineDog
· 2 months ago
Kelly, thanks for "getting it". There are a lot of awesome merlots out there. I'm a huge fan of the merlot in spite of Sideways. :-) Two great ones are the Unti, which may be hard to find depending on where you're located and Longboard's DaKine Merlot. For companies with bigger distribution try Trentadue or Freemark Abbey. And do be sure to see the movie MerLove. It's out on DVD now. Cheers!
Century City Tax Lawyer
· 1 month ago
Of course they had to change. It's survival. It's a recession. It's big business. Let's just hope the wine doesn't get lost in the gentrification.
All Comments
The funny thing about this is, the original post is from 2008 and omg this like i said takeovers like these have been going on for YEARS!
The end of an era at Sebastiani... so what! There are plenty of people (small businesses) coming up now to take that place of creativity...
Let me tell ya... if it wasnt for people like Foley many of these wineries would go out of business. It takes a lot of dough to run a winery and most don't make it without help.
Spend 20 plus years in the wine business as a retailer or resturant owner and come back and start commneting... And tell a store "I am boycotting that label" Ohh great !! lol .
Sure anyone can boycott whatever but if you really knew what goes on in the wine business you probably would not buy wine anymore...It si business folks not fantasy land.
Keith Miller
Hows that for stirring the pot?
In ten years when no one is making good wine because the little guys have been forced out... well, I for one hope that day never comes. I hope that wineries continue to be family owned and continue to nurture the land like Mike Benziger and Michael Keenan do. I hope that they continue to move towards sustainability and merging the earth, the vines and the elements into an experience in a glass. In my Fantasyland, businesses like Frog's Leap and Spottswoode can coexist with Kendall Jackson and Graziano. They don't have to worry about being bought up by some guy who cares more about increasing his distribution than he does about the product and the people who make it happen.
How is that for stirring the pot? Hmm, pretty lame.
If you can’t post something constructive, please stop wasting your (and our) time with your vile bile. You don’t have to agree, but you have a duty to the community to be civil.
Look, as was pointed out above, we are not organizing a boycott, just spotlighting an issue that exists. Try being a shill without the attempted snark, we're better at it than you are. Snark, that is...you've got the shilling part down pat.
Bill Foley bought Sebastiani because it was good deal. Tradition means nothing more than value add over product. If the perception of tradition means the product is worth more, than Mr. Foley will sell tradition. More than likely he'll leverage existing distribution contracts and business practices he's "fine tuned" throughout the rest of his grape juice empire and apply them to the "Sonoma Tradition". If he can boost earnings per share by importing grapes or exporting juice he'll do it. If the multiples of the wine industry can't be bent to his expectations he'll sell it. Creating quality wine is NOT his interest. Collecting more of your dollars IS his interest. His past tells us so.
There are many, many great wine producers in Sonoma, Napa, Santa Barbara and the rest of Northern California. We as consumers have choices. We don't have to suffer MBA inspired wine. We can buy elegant wine that is an expression of where it was grown and an expression of the winemaker's vision. We don't have to buy wine that exhibits an expression of the CEO's vision for expanding profit above all else.