I suspect you could email Mike and be able to do that.
As for the potential of Bedrock stepping in, how many SKUs can one winery support?
5 Likes
True and there is a little bit of crossover between the two.
2 Likes
When you click on View Offer in the email, there is a link in the text above your allocation that takes you to the letter.
If you click on the button to order in the email, it takes you to a page where there is a link for the letter. Itâs the same descriptive letter covering all the offerings that is included every time. This one also mentions their retirement at the outset.
WS says the brand is closing. Could not find a buyer. Which is mind blowing.
4 Likes
Mike always kept his prices reasonable and for that we have all been better off 
Cheers
8 Likes
Inflation raised production prices in California wines by 20-25% the last four years. If you have a Cab at $175 (and are selling it, which is not always the case) then you have a good amount of profit margin to deal with that. But when wines, even great ones, that typically sell at $30-75 have a 25% inflation impact, varietals like Zin and Pinot and Grenache do not have to ability to raise prices as much to offset it. I suspect a lot of wineries have seen margins drop to zero due to a combination of lower direct sales and higher costs. The last time the wine industry had inflation like this was in 1982, when the most expensive wine in America was something like $48.
3 Likes
âŚ
That makes no sense given the recent sales of Massican and Idlewild.
I know the Officerâs own Carlisle Vineyard (which is amazing), but was wondering what other vineyards do they currently own?
Massicanâs sale was 10 months ago. Inflation often takes 1-2 years to see effects on the economy and businesses. I think reality is starting to set in at many places.
And Idlewild was how long ago?
I feel you. Good people cross our paths, they make us better. Buzz was like that, and with the wines Mike made all of these years, the parties and offlines where we had so many of them open over the yearsâyour house, mine, Brigâs, Seiberâs. Those memories are gold.
Lot of talk here about the fruit, the wine industry, contracts, etc. Yeah, itâs part of the story, but for me, this is not where my head is with this news. The news is about a guy who made a long career, and brought a lot of people joy for a lot of years, doing something he loved and he made something bitchen with his sweat and effort. Him leaving that spot is the news for me.
13 Likes
âŚ
Zinfandel is not popular in the grand scheme of things. The two best selling Zinfandels in the US are thought of as blends (Prisoner and 8 Years in the Desert). Big companies donât do small well, especially with unpopular varietals, add in thatâs itâs only 9.5 acres and it makes sense someone doesnât want to over pay for brand equity when youâre losing the heart and soul of that equity.
1 Like
You think Carlisle is not big DTC?
I was saying the opposite - Massican and Idlewild have been very proactive at getting their wines out there onto wine lists, therefore exposing the brands to more people
Hope that makes sense
Cheers
Iâm just happy for Mike and the rest of the family and will look forward to drinking the wines that Iâve purchased and that my dad gifted me upon his passing (he was a huge fan of Mikeâs and continued purchasing well beyond when he was consuming them) . . .
Cheers
3 Likes
If you read the letter, it kind of sounds like thatâs not what Mike had in mind.
2 Likes