Is this wine?

Mark Lipton wrote in news:dbjmrn$9m3$1 @mailhub227.itcs.purdue.edu:

does that come in two crust or lattice?

'"Purple, purple, and there is so much coffee, roasted espresso notes going on you might want a shot of cream....but, you don't need it because it is already creamy, lactic and glycerin-laden juice that carries the essence of Marie Callender's fresh baked cherry pie, sweet blackfruits and milk chocolate with a looooooong toasty, vanilla/clove/cocoa bean/toasted coconut/baking spice thing going on" Is this description supposed to incite me to buy the wine in question? It sounds more like a dessert than a table wine. Is this really what consumers (at least in the US) are looking for? The mind boggles... Mark Lipton'

If that is a good description for the wine, perhaps it would be good to soak a very dark fruitcake. I am not sure that even that would be very good, but it seems to be the least awful way to consume the wine.

Reply to snipped-for-privacy@cwdjr.net .

Mark,

Out of abject curiosity, which CalCab was this an "ad" for? Now, I've had some Zins, that might get close to the prose espoused here, but never a Cab, Cal, or otherwise.

Inquiring [SIC] minds want to know, Hunt

One of my college profs had a phrase for this ad - "puffing your wares"

- in other words, just marketing. Personally, I don't expect those notes from anything other than a Cal Zin.

Dan-O

] ] ] Mark Lipton wrote: ] > Excerpted from an Internet offer for a CalCab sent to me today: ] >

] > "Purple, purple, and there is so much coffee, roasted espresso notes ] > going on you might want a shot of cream....but, you don't need it ] > because it is already creamy, lactic and glycerin-laden juice that ] > carries the essence of Marie Callender's fresh baked cherry pie, sweet ] > blackfruits and milk chocolate with a looooooong toasty, ] > vanilla/clove/cocoa bean/toasted coconut/baking spice thing going on" ] >

] > Is this description supposed to incite me to buy the wine in question? ] > It sounds more like a dessert than a table wine. Is this really what ] > consumers (at least in the US) are looking for? The mind boggles... ] >

] > Mark Lipton ] ] One of my college profs had a phrase for this ad - "puffing your wares" ] - in other words, just marketing. Personally, I don't expect those ] notes from anything other than a Cal Zin. ]

Puffing, indeed. I don't think I've ever had wine that tastes like this, but then again I have no idea who Marie Callender is. She put's milk chocolate in cherry pie? Beurk.

Perhaps the US consumer really just wants sweet fruit. Berry juice and nutrasweet with a blast of alcohol. I'm with Mark though, the description makes me run for the hills.

I'm interested in what the wine is too, if only to avoid it. :/

-E

It sounds more like over-zealous creative writing intended to appeal readers of wine magazines that have become accustomed to similarly worded reviews.

Dana

Hunt, Sorry for the delay, but I was on a short holiday in Florida. The wine in question was one I'd never heard of: 2003 Corté Riva Cabernet, made by Romel Rivera, who makes various cult Cabs in CA. In the interests of full disclosure, I'll note that the prose was written by Stefan Blicker of Benchmark Wines, a man not given to understatement.

Mark Lipton

Well put, Dana, but the gist of my question (beyond just general grousing) was why they think that that sort of description would sell wine. If I were writing the copy, I'd say something like "dark, concentrated, rich with deep berry fruit" to emphasize its size and fruitiness, but lay off the dessert-like analogies. I guess that that's our junk food-obsessed society.

Mark Lipton

In my (admittedly limited) experience, most people equate the combination of "richness" and "sweetness" with dessert. It's not really about junk food as much as... richness and sweetness...

;-)

Dana

Mark, Sadly, it is VERY true that my fellow Americans are raised on a steady diet of sugar. Just visit one of our food markets - especially the breakfast food aisle - and you will see tons of toaster pastries and pre-sweetened "cereals" (confections, really). Add that to the fact that we are generally not exposed to wine at a young age (except sweet communion wine) but we ARE exposed to Pepsi, Coke, iced tea and other sweet drinks and that's probably why this marketer was playing up the wine's sweetness.

Dan-O (where's my sugar bowl?!)