SWIRLING IN ARBITRARINESS

The past few days have been a bit crazy. First, I have been waiting for the past month on the results of my CSW exam, and in my usual absent-mindedness gave them the wrong damn zip code, so needless to say, I have been waiting for a month for no reason. The good news is I passed, so now, it’s time to be enormously obnoxious with the letters C-S-W.

My post on Tuesday yielded unexpected correspondence with a notable magazine editor. Unlike what has been brought up in months past between this gentleman and fellow bloggers, I actually had what I perceive to be quite the academic exchange of ideas. Sure, we agreed to disagree, but the discourse was fairly cordial and enlightening. I promised him I would not post his emails, and I won’t – don’t need to – I just hope he can appreciate an impassioned retailer’s opinions, and maybe, just maybe, the seeds for a 100-point scale alternative can grow, at least sometime in the near future.

Just met with the local Budweiser reps, who have dipped their toes in the wine wholesale pool with a California producer, Chateau Diana. The wines are good, and priced decently, yet it remains to be seen if the Bud distributor wants to move product like their competitors, or be content to jack up prices like their beers.

I am onboard for the Washington Wine Road Trip, being held for retailers and wholesalers in October. Akin to the Oregon Pinot Camp, this wine juggernaut is boot camp for us second- and third-tier winos to help indoctrinate us further on the advantages and joys of all things Washington State. Of course, I will be blogging and tweeting from the road, so you’ll be in on all the madness.

Just some random updates for you. I’ve a weekend full of wine reviews, something like Kermit Lynch meets Philip K. Dick, with a touch of Allen Ginsberg for good measure.

Cheers!