The online Washington Wine Tasting Event of the year is on March 25. This leaves only a little time to secure your Washington Merlot and prepare your activity for the evening. The beauty of a Twitter Tasting is that you can participate however you feel comfortable. With nearly 80 Washington State wineries participating and hopefully 1000 tweeters, there will be plenty of opportunity to join the conversation. Think of it as a giant cocktail party. You may not be a part of every conversation happening in the room, but the opportunity to network, connect with other wine lovers, and learn about Washington State wine and the great wineries is awesome! You can even participate from the comfort of your living room…in your boxers (just close the blinds).

Below are two videos that showcase ways to maximize your participation in a taste and tweet event.

WINO PARTICIPATION

• If you’re near a participating winery – stop by their tasting room for a bottle of their Merlot. Join them for the event on March 25, starting at 5PM.
• OR…Get a group of friends together and host a tweet-up. You can do this from home or at a local bar or restaurant (just make sure they have Washington Merlot).
• OR…Shop local! Support your local wine shops and buy a Washington Merlot to drink from the comfort of your own home.
• Follow along on Twitter using the hashtag #WAMerlot (video shows instructions).
• Tweet what you’re drinking, join in the conversations, share your tasting notes.
• After the event you can search the hashtag #WAMerlot to follow new wine lovers and connect with the wineries
• HAVE FUN!

*If you’re not on Twitter, follow along at http://search.twitter.com – enter #WAMerlot in the search box to follow along.

WINERY PARTICIPATION TIPS

• Sign up at http://wamerlot.eventbrite.com so we can properly promote you before and after the event
• Promote your tasting room gathering using your email list, Facebook fan page, and on Twitter (use the #WAMerlot hashtag so we can re-tweet you)
• Offer a special on your Merlot through the event
• During the event, encourage people in your tasting room to tweet using the #WAMerlot hashtag. Even better, have them mention you too!
  • Some wineries are projecting a twitter stream on a wall for a visual Twitter interaction too
• Hopefully you’ll be busy, but if you have the opportunity tweet fun facts about your winery, Merlot, and Washington State
• Interact and have conversations with people tweeting
• After the event, search the #WAMerlot hashtag to follow new wine lovers and connect with people who mentioned you and were drinking your wine.
• HAVE FUN!

This is a celebration of Washington Merlot. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to @ me or DM me (@nectarwine) or send me an e-mail josh@nectarcoffeeandwine.com

This event would not be the success it is without the inspiration and participation of the following people on Twitter @RickBakas, @WAWineReport @SeattleWineGal @WineBeerWA, @Shona425, @yakimavalley @wineeyak, @wbcorbust, @nwwineandre, @catie, @lunabeanmedia

Tweet, re-tweet, friend, fan, follow, hashtag, status update, like, comment, @reply, DM, micro-blog.

Five years ago were these words in our everyday vocabulary? When did it become normal to verbally tell 3028 people that you have a headache and bacon is the cure? Do people really care that your dog just spit up on the new carpet? While skeptics argue that Social Media is removing all sense of privacy and creating a generation of narcissistic people with a lack of interpersonal skills, the new normal is an interconnected world of information that moves at the speed of light.

So, what now? You know you should be twittering on the interwebs. You’ve even created a Facebook “fan page” and have a Twitter Account. Why do you still feel unsure about the difference between a tweet and a re-tweet?

The following video posts will help uncover ways to maximize Twitter and Facebook. These videos are intended to be basic and quick. Stay tuned for additional posts in this series that uncover more in depth uses of Twitter and Facebook.

The Strategy Basics: 5 minute tips

If I could distill the benefits of social media for business into one sentence, I think it would be, “Extending the relationship and engagement with your customers beyond your brick and mortar (or web site).” This manifests itself in so many ways from customer service, to relationship building, product launch excitement, and more. A good strategy can turn your fans into brand ambassadors.

Fantastic Facebook Fan Pages: 5 minute tips (okay, six minutes)

Most people are familiar with Facebook for their personal lives. 350 Million people use Facebook. What are the ways to maximize Facebook for your business without being consumed by Farmville and Mafia Wars? Facebook is a one to many conversation. When you speak, many people see your message. There are strategies to develop conversation and engagement with Facebook, but the nature of the platform remains largely a one to many communication channel.

Top Twitter Tips: 5 minute tips (maybe a little longer)

Twitter was developed as a mobile tool. It provides real time instant access to information and interaction with other people. Currently 75 million people passionately engage in twitter conversations. Tweets range from the mundane “I ate a huge stack of pancakes for breakfast” to the TMI category (too much information) “My toe fungus keeps spreading, does anyone know how to make it stop.” Tweets can be self serving, informative, conversational, inspiring, derogatory, etc. Twitter is a many to many conversation. When you say something, not only do your followers see it, it is easy for them to share that information with their followers. Good content, information, and news can travel across the world at a breakneck pace.

Social Media = Business

• Before the car, the horse and buggy let you connect to your customer across town
• The car let you more easily connect to your customer across the state
• The plane let you more easily connect to your customer across the country
• The internet let you connect to your customer across the world
• Social Media lets you connect to your customer immediately, personally, and passionately like never before

Use the tips in these videos to maximize your Social Media presence. Watch for future video posts that expose greater Twitter and Facebook engagement tips.

Social Media is changing the way we interact. The idea, an online wine tasting. The subject, Sauvignon Blanc. The marketing medium, Twitter / Facebook / Blog. The result, nearly 600 people simultaneously tasting, tweeting, and talking about Sauvignon Blanc. That is just online. Add in the dozens of wineries who hosted local tweet-ups as a part of the event and the economic impact is staggering. A non-scientific guess puts Sauvignon Blanc consumption at over 3000 bottles in a two hour period.

The cost of promotion: ZERO $$

The economic impact goes beyond the wine consumption and expands into brand awareness, food consumption, and more.

Rick Bakas, Social Media Director of St. Supery Winery, organized the event and promoted through his influence on Twitter and Facebook. Rick’s previous event #CaliCabs focused wine lovers on a single grape from California. He has arranged two future events that focus on #WineBlends (April 1) and #Chardonnay (May 6). Save the date for these future events.

The Next Event: #WAMerlot

In celebration of Washington Wine Month, Washington invites you to turn Sideways upside down and celebrate #WAMerlot. Join dozens of Washington Wineries and hundreds of people on March 25. All you need is Washington Merlot (or a Merlot blend) and the Twitter hashtag, #WAMerlot. If you’re looking for Washington Merlot, check out the great deal from Wine Library (shipping to 36 states) – thanks, Gary!

The NectarView

2007 One Hope Wine Sauvignon Blanc

• The Stuff: 100% California Sauvignon Blanc 50% of profits donated to charities that help save the planet
• The Swirl: Light crisp and slightly darker than water. Very pale
• The Sniff: Floral, melon, lemon peel and acidity
• The Sip: Smooth and tart describes the wine. The wine has a slight Chardonnay buttery coating but then opens up to a crisp tart apple flavor.
• The Score: At $18 (and because of the charitable support), this wine scores a 3+ (out of 5)

2007 Desert Wind Winery Sauvignon Blanc

• The Stuff: 100% Wahluke Slope Sauvignon Blanc, Stainless Steel fermentation; 432 cases made
• The Sniff: Wholly tropical fruit Batman. This wine instantly transported my nose to Hawaii with Guava, Peach, and Pineapple aroma. I instantly fell in love with the nose and wished it could be bottled as a summer body spray for my wife.
• The Sip: Less dynamic on the flavor profile. The guava was mellow on the front and earthy herbs presented themselves on the mid-palate. The finish was lemon/lime tart but washed away nicely after a few seconds.
• The Score: At just $15, I score this a 4 (out of 5). This is a great value and is a wine that will impress at parties and provide a fantastic drinking experience in the summer months.

*The wine was provided as an industry sample with the intention to review

Final stats of the night show that nearly 600 tweeters contributed 2700 tweets (according to www.wthashtag.com/sauvblanc). Tweeters represented from Europe, Australia, New Zealand, United States and more. The top tweeters of the night were @cestbeth (with 131 tweets), @mmwine (with 101 tweets) and @SIPthegoodlife (with 64 tweets).

Cool Facts on SauvBlanc

#SauvBlanc was one of the first wines to be distributed with screw cap

Did you know that there are nearly 200,000 acres of #SauvBlanc planted worldwide

Top #SauvBlanc producers are France (60k acres), New Zeal (22k acres), Chile (22k acres) S Africa (21k acres) California (15k acres)

You’re invited to the largest simultaneous online Washington Wine tasting event ever (well at least that we know of). Gaining inspiration from @TasteLive (focused tasting events) and Rick Bakas’ #CaliCabs event (and the #SauvBlanc event on March 4), a group of Washington wine writers and bloggers are hosting a national #WAMerlot taste and tweet.

RSVP for the Event at http://wamerlot.eventbrite.com

Join us Thursday, March 25 from 5 – 7 PM (PST)

Participation is simple – Find a Washington Merlot, open the bottle, drink it and tweet about it using the #WAMerlot hashtag. Using a program like TweetDeck will make participation easier (see the video on the upper right of this page).

Can’t find WAMerlot? Fear not, a special collaboration with Wine Library brings you three choices in various price ranges. Buy one or buy all three. Click the image below to see the killer deals Gary Vaynerchuk and team put togther for us!

Are you a Washington Winery? Click here for details on how YOU can make this an effective event for you!

Why Merlot? This is not a screw Sideways and shaft Miles event. This is an event to celebrate a wine variety that helped put Washington on the map. Previously I asked the question, “Which one grape best defines Washington?” The challenge, many grapes grow well and thrive in the various climates of the state. Along with smooth and rich Merlot, Washington is known for big Cabernet Sauvignon, bold Syrah, richly crafted Chardonnay, inspiring Riesling and more. With 122 votes, the outcome is below. While Merlot may not be the clear winner, it is more widely planted and more wineries across the state feature a Merlot or a predominant Merlot blend. Over the next four week’s leading up to #WAMerlot, I’ll feature a special segment on Merlot!

This event is co-sponsored by some great people on Twitter:

@seattlewinegal, @wawinereport, @nwwineandre @shona425 @wineeyak @yakimavalley @lunabeanmedia @winebeerwa @catie @walla2winewoman

Drink Happy!

Wineries in California had the chance to observe the power of a unified voice on Twitter on February 11. Like a gigantic tasting room frenzy wine lovers, wineries and wine makers converged on Twitter for two hours to focus on California Cabernet.  In his effort to promote California wine and show wineries in the region the power of Social Media, Rick Bakas (director of Social Media for St Supery winery) launched the event through word of mouth using Twitter, Facebook and the good old fashion phone call.

When I talked to Rick on the phone you could tell that while the event has some built in exposure for Rick and St. Supery, he was jazzed about the buzz happening at other area wineries. Rick lives and breathes the power of Social Media but he also has a genuine passion for California wine.

Early stats indicate that the event was a success with over 1500 tweets from 250 people during the two hour block. Those numbers don’t take into consideration the countless people NOT tweeting but still participating in California tasting rooms and tweet-ups.  All told, in one two hour time frame, over 1000 bottles of California Cabernet could have been consumed! Total marketing cost of the event $0 (that’s ZERO)!

Steam continues to build as Rick announced a Sauvignon Blanc focused twitter tasting on March 4 (hashtag #SauvBlanc). Also, stay tuned for a huge Washington wine event in late March that hopes to have some national tie-ins and collaboration with several Washington wine influencers on Twitter (announcement coming on February 23).

The NectarView

2007 Liberty School Cabernet Sauvignon

• The Stuff: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from Paso Robles AVA
• The Swirl: Very dark plum with hints of ruby jewel tones toward the edges
• The Sniff: Moderate hints of black and blue berries. The strongest scent is green briar or evergreen. Nice notes of spice dance around on the back end.
• The Sip: A pleasing front end with some sweet fruit that is Syrah-like. A subtle vanilla oak pokes through right before the tart tannins grip your tongue on the back end. It’s not a Darth Vader death grip, but still pretty stout.
• The Score: At only $14, this is a heck of a value and a well made every day Cabernet. I score it a 4 (out of 5) for price to value. If you ever find this wine on sale for $10-$12, but several bottles.

Other scores from Cellar Tracker range from 84 – 90 points

2004 Croze Cabernet Sauvignon

• The Stuff:100% Napa Valley Cabernet, 42 months in oak, 13%ABV, 637 cases made 
• The Swirl: Nice dark rust colored plum with a little translucence (almost see to the bottom of the glass)
• The Sniff: I never wanted to stop smelling this wine. Floral perfume kissed me first, then gentle bright blueberry and strawberry aromas held hands and skipped through my nose. They were followed up by some mellow vanilla notes. This is the kind of wine scent you wish for in every bottle of Cabernet!
• The Sip: Definitely does not disappoint – The fruit is soft and supple like a long slow French kiss. The passion builds as some spicy pepper jumps in. The finish is super balanced and longs with enough tannin to keep the wine strong with food.
• The Score: At $35 this is a 5 (out of 5) wine for me. I love the complete package and would definitely buy this bottle again.

Other score on Cellar Tracker is a 93 and well deserved!

Did you participate in #CaliCabs? What wine did you enjoy? If you didn’t participate, what is your all time favorite California Cabernet and why?