At least I’m calling it a success although there were some technical challenges of getting everyone on the island (sorry if you couldn’t make it). And it was difficult to follow the discussion fully in real time, so I will be reading the transcript in the morning and posting a summary then. In the meantime, you can continue hearing the conversation at our new Google group page.

Another meetup will be planned in December, but probably not in Second Life.

Just so everyone knows where to show up tonight, here’s the coordinates to Capozzi Island in Second Life.  Just click and sign in and you will be teleported to the right place.  Look on the mini map for all of us on one of the platforms.

See you a bit later…

While I was grabbing a quick lunch today, I noticed a post over at Hugh MacLeod’s blog about a BBC radio appearance by Stormhoek’ s Andrew Porton. I realized with the time difference that it was only a few minutes out so I tuned into BBC 5’s stream for the interview.

I have to say that the BBC presenter seemed more intent on exposing the offer in question as not what it seemed to be rather than focusing on the key story. In a nutshell, Stormhoek blogged about a “friends and family” coupon at one of their UK retailers and the uptake via word of mouth was quite a bit higher than anyone would have expected. It’s actually enough of a story that it has crossed over into the mainstream media now. This not only shows the power of blogging but also the a key tenant of Wine 2.0 marketing strategy: viral, word of mouth marketing can be quite powerful if done right. In this case, it was a compelling offer (40% discount) that was an exclusive (blurring the lines of who “friends” really are) and disseminated via an A-list blogger in the form of a PDF voucher. The network effect took over from there and now there’s tens of thousands of customers ready to use these coupons.

It’s not surprising the mainstream media missed the point here. They seem more interested in chasing controversy than reporting an interesting business story, but I digress.

I’m hoping this kind of offer spreads the wine retailers in the US. Anyone listening from Surdyk’s, Haskell’s or Solo Vino?

Jeff at Good Grape posted an interesting piece about the Long Tail today that got me thing about Wine 2.0. Since I don’t expect most of you to be über web marketing geeks like Jeff and me, I’ll back up and start with some definitions.

First, what I call “Wine 2.0″ is basically the so-called Web 2.0 applications in the context of wine. I’ve also expanded it a bit in my Minifesto to include wine marketing. The Long Tail is an idea that was first proposed by Chris Anderson in a piece in Wired magazine and later expanded into a book of the same name. The main thesis is that the internet enables a market for very small demand products or services that would not be economical in traditional distribution models.

By this logic very small wine producers can find ready markets online that would be not viable in the standard three tier distribution model.

So Wine 2.0, to me, is basically an online medium for producers of any size to connect with buyers and sell stuff.

Hmm, 370 or so words in the Minifesto now reduced to 20… Yea, that’s about right

PS:  In reading what I posted, I must say that I totally missed the social aspects of sharing recommendations, tasting notes, etc. previously discussed here.  It’s late… more tomorrow night after the meetup.

I just tried to login to Second Life and found that they have upgraded the software (at least for us niche MacOS X users). You might want to check out your setup before we get online tomorrow evening for the virtual Wine 2.0 meetup.

Also make sure you have a Grenache to sip during the event. Details here.

I know we’re only eleven months into 2006, but I think I’ve seen the more ridiculous wine accessory released this year, the Clef du Vin. I’ve resisted talking about other farfetched wine “enhancers” in the past because I think every new invention should be given the benefit of the doubt. Or at the very least a test before judgement is passed.

Not with is one, however. The seller is promising an easy way to determine if a wine will age well or not by simply dipping the Clef du Vin into a wine sample. I can’t believe that any instrument, no matter what it’s made of, can replace the human palate and experience in determining how a wine will age. I’m no chemist but this thing seems way too good to be true. In my experience, they usually are too good.

I’ll believe it, when (if) I see it. Until then, I remain unconvinced.

Just a reminder that the Wine 2.0 get-together in Second Life is coming up this Thursday evening, November 30, 2006. It will be held on Capozzi Island from 6:00 pm PST/9:00 pm EST/2:00 am GMT.

To date, I have 12 confirmed attendees; a good cross-section of Wine 2.0 site entrepreneurs, wine bloggers and winery folks. There is still plenty of room for more attendees, just post your Second Life name here or at the other post and I will send you a friendship offer (from “Vino Rosetta”) and Josh will put you on the list to teleport to his island (from “RussianRiver Vallely”).

We’ll start off with a few general remarks, then split up in groups to mix and discuss the current state of “Wine 2.0″ (roughly, wine + Web 2.0 + social media, but I’m hoping we flesh this out a bit more). I’ll post a summary of the event after we finish, which will probably be an hour or so given that we will be typing the whole time. Also, it was suggested that we have a wine to enjoy along with our discussion, so I’m going to follow El Jefe’s suggestion of making Grenache the official varietal of this event.  It doesn’t matter where the wine comes from, as long as it’s mostly Grenache and good

I’m looking forward to meeting everyone and advancing the conversation.

This wine didn’t get opened until yesterday and it went great with Thanksgiving leftovers. It is from Joseph Drouhin, one of Burgundy’s best known négociants who started in the late 19th Century and remains a family run company some 130 years later. Besides their range of Burgundy, they also produce Chablis, Beaujolais and Pinot Noir & Chardonnay from Oregon’s Dundee Hills.

Joseph Drouhin, Beaujolais Nouveau 2006 ($15) - Bright purple-ruby color with aromas of strawberry, bing cherry and a touch of banana. In the mouth there are candy-like strawberry flavors with watermelon and plenty of acidity. The finish is slightly marred by some bitter tannins suggesting this might be somewhat better in a month or two, or perhaps next summer. An atypical nouveau more like a typical Beaujolais-Villages. Overall an enjoyable Beaujolais Nouveau but not the best value.

12.5% ABV
Natural cork closure
Score: 81

Buy this wine online

Wine 2.0 Minifesto

1. The most passionate and loyal wine customers are members of the tribe of the internet. Via wine forums, email newsletters, websites, blogs and podcasts they are consuming information and recommendations that carry almost as much weight with them as Parker scores.
2. The new “wine experts” are anyone with a passion for the subject and the means to express themselves online. These manifest themselves as blogs, aggregators, wikis, mash-ups and podcasts.
3. Millions will join this tribe in 2007 as RSS goes mainstream in Windows Vista, IE 7, Firefox 2 and Mac OS 10.5 “Leopard”.
4. Customers are looking for great wines at the lowest price. They are using search engines to find them. Wineries need to be plugged into what these networked customers are saying and actively join the conversation.
5. Bad news travels at the speed of light around the world. Wineries need to be a part of the online discussion or they will pay the price in lost sales and damaged reputations.
6. Wineries need to treat all customers like an old friend whether they buy a single bottle in the tasting room or 10 cases in the wine club. You never know how your reputation spreads via word of mouth, but some will likely share their opinions online.
7. eCommerce does not equal Wine 2.0. Online sales is a key channel of Wine 2.0, but the essence of this new online wine conversation are communities who share information. Online sales only comes after this interaction and the social promotion of recommendations.
8. Wine 2.0 includes feedback that can be measured and quantified. It is based upon sound direct marketing practices and technology platforms.
9. Customers are making their own choices and are not blindly following critics scores, traditionally marketed and distributed brands or the winery with the most impressive website or print ad.
10. On the internet, there is unlimited shelf space and the means for customers to find your “porch“.
11. Wineries can sell 100,000 cases a year without spending millions on marketing.
12. However you join the conversation about your wines, do so with a pure heart, speaking with an honest voice. And never stop responding.

- Version 1.0, by Tim Elliott, November 24, 2006

This Minifesto was inspired by Hugh MacLeod’s call at gapingvoid.com that was inspired by John Dodds’ “J Train” Minifesto who seemed to have read The Cluetrain Manifesto and is familiar with ChangeThis.com

This is a draft for discussion that I hope will be carried forward to version 1.1 after the Wine 2.0 event in Second Life next week. Comments, trackbacks, etc. welcome.

Rock on, Hugh!

Jeff over at the most excellently re-lauched Good Grape blog was pondering the other day about the lack of hard-edged opinion in the wine blogosphere. It seems like we all write up our wine news, post tasting notes, participate in our monthly rituals and discuss the odd topic, but there are few dissenting voices.

Sure, you have St. Vini (formerly Huge Johnson) pointing the stick in the side of the wine business every once in a while and Alder has his rants, but nothing is close to the tone of someone like Jason Calacanis or the writers of Valleywag.

I agree with Jeff’s thoughts on this issue and will join him in arms here in coming days, weeks and months.

Arrr! It be time for a manifesto after ye smartly hoist me colors!!