Robert Parket was the first blogger, and back then everyone thought he was an insane nut job for his predictions on the '82 vintage. But he proved himself. That was after 7+ years of his own "blogging"/writing ... We have(some of us) around 4-5 years, barely, of track record. I have a feeling we don't need to bother with this anymore. IN a few more years we'll be into the new age of wine writing fully and life will be grand. :)

Another point though, there are PLENTY of CRAP JOURNALIST IN MAIN STREAM MEDIA! Why are they never called out? Every small town in america has a "wine writer/food and wine writer" and while they probably have the same circulation numbers as blogs, they never get called out for their insane ramblings and incorrect wine knowledge. Hell, in the end the "cream" rises, and crap journalist never make it to the big time, and crap bloggers, never get read...no one has time to bother!

That said I disagree with many top bloggers opinions, they get read because they are smart, but differ in opinion with other people. I disagree with them not because they are bloggers, but because they hold views I disagree with. Parker would do himself good, by saying I disagree with X_person, rather than malign a whole category of publishers.

my two cents

But Control Board has such a pleasant ring to it! :)

No for you I'll send some samples with some specifications for your review...but that's between you and me! :)

Yes Southern Rhone rocks, and in all seriousness this is a great wine, that I think has a bright future.

We're working on getting some into Spain that we can then distribute. Hang in there, we'll make an announcement when we have more details

Hope I can find some more people to make it worth while. If I could find a shop in Portugal or group of shops it would make it possible for sure.

Your a Geek and you know it!

Sadly most of them have no clue that Social media exsists or how to access it...I wish we could change that

No actually many locations are very professional, though finding out that there are places to visit can be hard. The Alentejo has always been a great place to visit and the regions offices in Evora are always very welcoming and helpful when I've wanted information about the area.

The mess part is finding out where to go, what's open, and who to talk to. If your not in the BIZ, it can be hard. Fortunately Charles Metcalf's new book is a great way to start exploring. http://www.catavino.net/portugal/book-review-the-...

This is the NUMBER 1 annoyance I have with Iberian Wineries. Yes Port country does it well, but the rest of Portugal is a bit of a mess. That said I have consistently had better experiences in Portugal, where people actually smile and invite me in, as opposed to Spain, where I get looks of "why would we want to show you around".
Tio Pepe (GB) does a great job and so do places like Dinastia Vivanco, Torres, and Abadia Retuerta(our client), though these are the exceptions not the rule.

I'm hungry now!