Alder Yarrow of Vinography published an interesting piece last night on why DIY wine-review sites like WARPA and Open Bottles ultimately won't make it. He makes some strong points, although I do wonder if his wine knowledge and sophistication aren't disregarding the benefits of such blogs for those in the early stages of wine appreciation. Such sites are a painless way to become more engaged with the magic juice.
Anyway, I chimed in with a plug for the Wine Blog Association. The WBA approaches the "problem" with a different strategy, as I briefly stated in the following comment on Vinography. (As usual, I was running late for the subway and trek up to work in the Bronx.) I wrote:
You make some excellent points, Alder.
Some Italian friends and I MAY have hit upon a better way to
approach this need for organized wine criticism, etc. The Wine Blog
Association has just been started, spearheaded by the well-known
Italian wine writer, Franco Ziliani, and a blogger you know well,
Giampiero Nadali, alias Aristide. The WBA has several goals, one of
which is to gather the accumulated knowledge and wisdom of a lot of
people in the wine sector--amateurs, producers, journalists,
etc.--under its banner, and to provide easy access to a wealth of
opinions, reports, and so on, that might otherwise be overlooked.
Another important goal is to break that "Park-Tator" hegemony you refer to.
The only downside right now in these very earliest days of the
association is that all but one of the bloggers (me) writes in Italian.
But we are looking to attract bloggers from all over--the American
market obviously being a very big object of desire.
I mentioned the "accumulated knowledge and wisdom" of the many
contributors. The many viewpoints and types of experience are
beneficial for a well-rounded discussion and understanding of wine, and
the quality control issue you mention near the top of your article is
effectively banished by this approach. It may not be a solution for
everyone, but it will serve the majority of wine lovers well, some
time, some way.
Applications for membership are being accepted, by the way: wineblogassociation@gmail.com
Regards from Rome, Milan...and New York
I repeat my invitation for English-language wine bloggers to check out the
WBA, and apply. The principles and goals of the association are no
less valid for us here than they are in Italy. And international members will hasten the development of an English-language version. Non e' vero, ragazzi?
You make some excellent points, Alder.
Some Italian friends and I MAY have hit upon a better way to approach this need for organized wine criticism, etc. The Wine Blog Association has just been started, spearheaded by the well-known Italian wine writer, Franco Ziliani, and a blogger you know well, Giampiero Nadali, alias Aristide. The WBA has several goals, one of which is to gather the accumulated knowledge and wisdom of a lot of people in the wine sector--amateurs, producers, journalists, etc.--under its banner, and to provide easy access to a wealth of opinions, reports, and so on, that might otherwise be overlooked.
Another important goal is to break that "Park-Tator" hegemony you refer to.
The only downside right now in these very earliest days of the association is that all but one of the bloggers (me) writes in Italian. But we are looking to attract bloggers from all over--the American market obviously being a very big object of desire.
I mentioned the "accumulated knowledge and wisdom" of the many contributors. The many viewpoints and types of experience are beneficial for a well-rounded discussion and understanding of wine, and the quality control issue you mention near the top of your article is effectively banished by this approach. It may not be a solution for everyone, but it will serve the majority of wine lovers well, some time, some way.
Applications for membership are being accepted, by the way: wineblogassociation@gmail.com
Regards from Rome, Milan...and New York
Posted by: Terry Hughes at June 16, 2006 04:08 AM