Nope. Not even waived if you’re buying current release Martha’s at $250/per.
I’m curious how many other ‘high end’ estates in Napa do not waive tasting fees unless you are a wine club member? I mean, that IS one of the reasons to becone a member, right? It does seem outrageous that they don’t waive those fees if you purchase, but at the end of the day, it is a ‘luxury’ business . . .
Also, do they serve any food with the tasting?
Cheers.
It’s a senior position that encompasses many roles, from overseeing hospitality to marketing to business. There are lots of people gainfully employed in that management role who work hard to make the winery runs as a business. It’s not that confusing.
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Don’t take Mel so seriously.
Is there a list of board members one shouldn’t take seriously?
There’s plenty of bullshit in wine marketing to make fun of, for sure. But I’ve got friends who are Estate Managers/Directors, and they’re senior positions. To dismiss it as “mowing the lawn” is more than just snark.
I’m curious how many other ‘high end’ estates in Napa do not waive tasting fees unless you are a wine club member? I mean, that IS one of the reasons to becone a member, right? It does seem outrageous that they don’t waive those fees if you purchase, but at the end of the day, it is a ‘luxury’ business . . .
Also, do they serve any food with the tasting?
Cheers.
Every place I went to in Walla Walla a few years ago waved their corkage fee on a one bottle purchase. Also they were generous when you started talking “wine geek terms” and poured older vintages. I would never go to Napa to a tasting with outrageous pricing like that.
To each their own - and we will see if that continues in Walla Walla as their pricing, and status, continues to increase from year to year . . .
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Marc,
We used to use the term general manager. Much more clear. Estate manager sounds like somebody in charge of Downton Abbey.
Soon we will have ‘regisseurs’…
I think it’s all part of the self-important title game that pervades business these days. No one is happy being a Manager anymore, they all need to be Director or Vice President whether it’s actually in the company structure or not.
We were there in March, and no, they didn’t wave the fee after purchase and we bought a library Martha’s.
And John said I shouldn’t take your comment seriously…
There is a vein of truth in the joke. The Estate Direct…General Manager would be the one yelling at people to go mow the lawn.
And when it comes to tasting fees. Napa has for the most part done away with the practice of waiving the fee if you buy a bottle. You’re now there for the experience more than anything else.
The days where your hosts were retirees looking for something to do to keep them busy and supply them with free wine are over.
We were there in March, and no, they didn’t wave the fee after purchase and we bought a library Martha’s.
Hope that had a new glass for each sample and at least a 2 ounce pour.
I hadn’t thought about how somebody would prefer the title of ‘estate manager’ over ‘general manager’. Perhaps if the owners threw in an embossed business card on very thick paper a person would feel even better. Personally I am a ‘show me the money’ kind of guy and with housing prices what they are …hmm, maybe the estate manager gets to live on the property in a cute cottage based on a design by Capability Brown…
My thought was that the whole game of giving people prestigious sounding titles makes them seem more important to the customers. The General manager is a person in charge of a bunch of mundane tasks, but the estate manager …one step away from hanging out with the Prince of Wales. We used to have brand managers. Everybody got tired of that so somebody came up with brand ambassador. Does a brand ambassador wear striped pants and a sash?? Maybe a monocle. The whole process elevates the status of the winery and everyone associated with it.
When you are served by a brand ambassador and the estate manager, the $75 tasting fee is chicken feed.
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Recently I got the chance to do a full vineyard assessment of Stony Hill. It’s an amazing property that will benefit from substantial investment. Large blocks of Gewurztraminer planted in the 40s. Chardonnay from the 50s. All very good condition but a nightmare to replant and manage. Add to that being in the middle of the 2020 fires and I’m glad to see it picked up by a Somm who cares about American wine heritage.
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Or…maybe wineries are getting smarter about hospitality and branding? And they realize that they’re fighting tooth and nail with hundreds of others for limited tourist dollars. And visitors are getting savvier and expecting more than just a swig at a crowded tasting bar? And it’s all part of the larger branding package?
Do you think it’s goofy that wineries use the word “estate” in their branding at all instead of “farm and production center”? I mean, it’s not “estate bottled”, it’s “farm bottled”, no? So what’s the difference with just adding that term to a title?
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I think these new names are brilliant marketing. Of course, after a while, every one will be either a brand ambassador, an estate director, or a winemaker…hmm, what new names can we come up for them?? Terroir tapper?? Head environmentalist??
This reminds me of a story told to me by Steve Dooley, who at one time was the enologist at Louis Martini. After he was hired, Louis P. said, let’s go out and look at ‘the plant’.
Wine farm is used in South Africa, no?? With the farm to table movement, maybe not a bad idea.
In the meantime I am going to get new business cards. No more ‘barrel pimp’ and ‘insultant’…I’ll have to think of something better.
I think epaulets would be perfect for a “Brand Ambassador.”
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Barrel Baron? Lord Lumber? Toastmaster General?
Well, Marshall… what about a codpiece??
Tom