I knew it would happen. I got caught up in the details of the every day and let numerous days slide by without a post. Of course, it wasn't just any old detail, but Split Rock.
I've been pouring wine there since 1999 back when I was with Mount Nittany. Just the name "Split Rock" makes me tired. Don't get me wrong, it's hard to beat any weekend anywhere for the sales we make there. It's mind-boggling how much wine we sell in twelve hours. It takes a couple days to gear up for it every day (load-up and load-in), and a couple days to put everything away. But for six days of effort, we move huge amounts of wine and win innumerable new converts to Allegro.
Granted, we sell mostly sweet wines to lots of sweeties. But let's not lose sight of what wineries are around for. It's not for making wine. Wineries only exist to sell wine. Winemakers make wine, and wineries sell wine. The two do meet from time to time. I have ongoing arguments in my head almost daily when the two don't see eye to eye. Luckily for me, the winemaker wins on the dry wines, and the winery wins on the sweets. And it's the sweets that keep our lights on and pay for the French barrels and low yields in the vineyard.
So, we survived another Split Rock Wine Festival. As the years go by, either I am getting numb to it, or the festival is getting tamer. I remember years ago that there were way too many people falling over and sirens in the distance. This year, we only had to flag one group. It's hardly Split Rock anymore. Maybe Pennsylvania wine drinkers are growing up. One thing's for sure, they're buying more wine than ever. Even in this economy, we sold almost as much as last year. Imagine that. I'd like to think it has something to do with the wine quality we put into each and every bottle of Allegro wine, from the dry wines to the sweets.
I've been pouring wine there since 1999 back when I was with Mount Nittany. Just the name "Split Rock" makes me tired. Don't get me wrong, it's hard to beat any weekend anywhere for the sales we make there. It's mind-boggling how much wine we sell in twelve hours. It takes a couple days to gear up for it every day (load-up and load-in), and a couple days to put everything away. But for six days of effort, we move huge amounts of wine and win innumerable new converts to Allegro.
Granted, we sell mostly sweet wines to lots of sweeties. But let's not lose sight of what wineries are around for. It's not for making wine. Wineries only exist to sell wine. Winemakers make wine, and wineries sell wine. The two do meet from time to time. I have ongoing arguments in my head almost daily when the two don't see eye to eye. Luckily for me, the winemaker wins on the dry wines, and the winery wins on the sweets. And it's the sweets that keep our lights on and pay for the French barrels and low yields in the vineyard.
So, we survived another Split Rock Wine Festival. As the years go by, either I am getting numb to it, or the festival is getting tamer. I remember years ago that there were way too many people falling over and sirens in the distance. This year, we only had to flag one group. It's hardly Split Rock anymore. Maybe Pennsylvania wine drinkers are growing up. One thing's for sure, they're buying more wine than ever. Even in this economy, we sold almost as much as last year. Imagine that. I'd like to think it has something to do with the wine quality we put into each and every bottle of Allegro wine, from the dry wines to the sweets.
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