Being involved in lifestyle marketing really has its perks. When GrapeThinking was in its infancy, and the only client was Tastevine.com, it was really easy to mix business and pleasure. As a group of Millennials passionate about promoting things that bring people together, we didn’t find it too demanding to travel to major cities and throw parties promoting particular wines, and of course, the Tastevine wine community.

As the “tech” guy, my traveling is not quite as adventurous as say Ruarri’s travels to Morroco, or Meghan’s trip Paris, but I do get a chance here and there, and I always try to make the best of it. Apparently, I’m starting a tradition of going to a concert/music festival to complement my business trips. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the highlights of the Morocco trip my wife and I recently took was staying with La Baraka Auberge just outside of Merzouga, on the border of the Sahara, about 100 km’s from Algeria. Our host, Hassan Outaleb, was a film-star cum philosopher Berber of nomadic heritage who has run La Baracka for several years.

Rather memorably - if not because it was highly rehearsed, he would impart his own cultural wisdom onto us between meals and volleys of mint-tea ‘Berber Whisky.’ I think the point he made most strongly was ‘what’s bad for the rest of the world, is good for Berber.’ Primarily - at the heart of it, he was referring to the perception Read the rest of this entry »

Hello after a long break from being at the glass’s rim. Grapethinking had a bit of a re-group, and for those of you who have been visiting of late you will have noticed the fantastic work that Jake has done with the site and have appreciated how our project has matured.

2007 was a tremendous learning curve for us, and 2008 will be the year that our vision of millennial marketing comes to life and we look forward to sharing it with you all.

There’s quite a bit to catch up on from my side, seeing as I haven’t written a post in a while, but we have plenty time for that. Read the rest of this entry »

A few weeks ago I was in New York staying at the Surrey Hotel on 76^th Street between 5^th Avenue and Madison right near Central Park. Before heading down to the meatpacking district for dinner and some fun with a business associate we stopped into Café Boulud next to the hotel for a drink. The restaurant is owned by famous French chef Daniel Boulud.
As we were sitting at a 4 top table in the bar area looking out over the simple and elegant dining room, we had a decision to make on this very hot August early evening in the city….what to drink?…a special cocktail?…a glass of white wine? Neither seemed appropriate….it must be a glass of Champagne.

The Maitre D’, John Winterman, suggested a glass of Pierre Peters Blanc de Blanc NV Champagne.

Honestly, I had never heard of the producer, however, I certainly was comfortable accepting the recommendation. Boy, it did not disappoint. Actually, it was fabulous…the setting did not hurt either. Blanc de Blanc is made from 100% Chardonnay grapes. The bubbles in the glass were incredible….1000’s and 1000’s that never stopped. This was perfection in a glass…smooth, flavorful, clean, refreshing, with just a hint of that wonderful yeastiness that is so unique to Champagne…so very balanced. It was not cheap at $25 a glass; however, it was worth every penny. You will probably pay around $45 a bottle at retail. Special time, special moment, special wine…this is what life is about…creating special memories. Go out there and try new things…many times you will be very pleasantly surprised. By the way, the meatpacking district was a blast. A story about that later…

When I first read Tom Friedman’s ‘golden arches theory’ it just struck me how beneficial trade relationships and liberal democracy are to international relations. If two countries, no matter what their differences, are doing trade with one another, and benefiting from the relationship then there’s really a huge disincentive to go to war. We’ve already explored the fact that wine reduces your carbon footprint - but imagine a world where wine made the world more peaceful…

Read the rest of this entry »