Because of writer deadlines and the fact I was in Australia in December 2009 when the article about the Sonoma County Vintners deciding to explore a “conjunctive labeling” law appeared in the Press Democrat, you probably didn’t here me scream “Thank God! It’s about time!” In a nutshell, a conjunctive labeling law simply means that, if you’re using a subappellation on your wine label, you also need to put “Sonoma County” on it.
Those of you who are my long-time readers realize I’ve been preaching this for at least two or more years. I’ve accused wineries that don’t put Sonoma County on their labels of being ashamed of being here and maybe should just put “next to Napa” instead if they’re trying to get local identity. Why have I said Napa is smarter than Sonoma County when it comes to marketing? One reason is it saw the value of maintaining its identity and adopted this regulation way back in 1987, and then told the other knuckleheads who wanted to use ego-stroking subappellations to go ahead and try to say they’re better than others in the county. Even Paso Robles is smart enough to know that all of the subappellations floating around out there confuse the public and it, too, passed a conjunctive labeling law in 2006.
Since the wine world is floating in a sea of new labels from every corner of the world, only Helen Keller and other vision-impaired people couldn’t see the myriad subappellations in the county would only lead to consumer confusion with people saying, “Gee, I wonder what country Alexander Valley (or any of the others) is in?” Sound stupid? Have you ever looked at general travel guides available to tourists around the world only to find Napa under “Wine” as a destination while Sonoma County doesn’t even get a footnote? I just happened to have noticed that little tidbit while in the AAA office in Adelaide, Australia. We haven’t done our homework and let the egos run the show.
Maybe today’s soft market for high-end wines will wake up a few people to the fact that we need to make Sonoma County known as a world class wine area rather than just a collection of egocentric subappellations that no one knows. Yes, I know all of you wonderful, small subappellations are used to selling out and having a long waiting list to get your precious treasure, but could it be possible that the last year or so might be a wake-up call? Just studying the need for a conjunctive labeling law makes about as much sense as thinking that an inch of rain will fill Lake Sonoma. Will intelligence, smart marketing, and just plain common sense win out over egos and stupidity? In many past columns, I’ve asked all of you to look for and point out local wine labels that don’t say Sonoma County on them. If you haven’t figured it out, it’s a significant majority that is ego-driven, ashamed of being in the “other” valley, doesn’t understand marketing or all of these things.
An argument that adding Sonoma County to the label in the cases of Sonoma Valley, Sonoma Coast and Sonoma Mountain might be redundant or unnecessary is probably ridiculous at best. It’s also brought up the cost to change labels would be too much. That’s pure BS if you look at wine labels from any given winery and notice they change every year anyway as they try a new form of one-upsmanship or guess what the public might like this week.
My favorite quote comes from one of the smartest executive director/presidents I know, Nick Frey, who says, “Our market research suggests that, when you go outside of Sonoma County, you don’t have to go very far before people don’t really understand AVAs and their proliferation.” No truer words were ever spoken. Is it possible that the very slow high-end market has been a wake-up call for all our little egos? Does the fact the even some Russian River Pinot Noir sold for $1,000 per ton or less, and some was left hanging, maybe indicate better marketing might be needed and not everyone spends $40+ just because it says Russian River on it? Maybe you ought to ask the Oregon Pinot Noir industry how strong a $40+ bottle sells in a tight market.
No matter what you’re selling, a strong brand identity is important. Why is Coke almost synonymous with soft drinks and Kleenex with facial tissue? A sound product and great marketing might be the answer. Wouldn’t we like Sonoma County to be like that? I guess I don’t even have to say Napa has the edge right now because it’s smart and knows the value of its name and let the egomaniacs do their own thing with subappellations but still kept Napa on the label for the several million people who don’t know where Oakville is but do know Napa. What a surprise!
Give the Sonoma County Tourism Bureau and the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission a big vote of thanks for bringing this topic to the forefront. It’s just too bad it’s taken this long and a very dire market to prod the issue to the head of the line. Now the question might be: Is it too late? Or will people continue being happy with their less than $20 wines they’re finding surprisingly very good? Yes, Sonoma County has been known as the second best wine area in the country but, in today’s marketplace, that might be like kissing your sister. Can’t we still be more laid-back, independent-spirited, have diverse growing regions and still be smart marketers? Just thought I’d ask.
OK, head down to your favorite wine shop and see how many Sonoma County wines you can find that actually say it on the label. God, aren’t you glad you live in Wine Country so you don’t have to be confused and wonder where Bennett Valley or Knights Valley is? I only assume you know Knights Valley really is in Sonoma County. Many don’t!
