Now you can taste a sample of wine with no alcohol.
http://tinyurl.com/pumm353

Beringer created a shelf-mounted merchandising fixture called the
Taste Station.

The self-serve display dispenses flavor strips wrapped individually in
flexible packaging. Each Taste Station holds a stack of the flat,
rectangular foil pouches and dispenses them one at a time. Beringer
currently is testing the concept in Kroger stores in 20 states.

On 2015-04-13, Ed Pawlowski > wrote:

> Now you can taste a sample of wine with no alcohol.
> http://tinyurl.com/pumm353

One would want to do this, why?

> flexible packaging. Each Taste Station holds a stack of the flat,
> rectangular foil pouches and dispenses them one at a time. Beringer
> currently is testing the concept in Kroger stores in 20 states.

I foolishly believed the display dispensed foil pkts of real wine,
perhaps an ounce. Silly me.

Have you ever tasted Beringer wine? No doubt plastic flavor strips,
fulla some kinda synthetic chemicals, other than a true, living,
breathing, liquid, are probably a step up from what Beringer actually
puts in their bottles. Besides, not sure I'd drink anything sullied
by Nestlé.

nb

On 4/13/2015 1:19 PM, notbob wrote:
> On 2015-04-13, Ed Pawlowski > wrote:
>
>> Now you can taste a sample of wine with no alcohol.
>> http://tinyurl.com/pumm353
>
> One would want to do this, why?

I can see it working in the mass market stores. Before you invest $15
in a five gallon box of wine you want to be sure you like it. There is
a lot of that stuff sold every day.


>
> Have you ever tasted Beringer wine? No doubt plastic flavor strips,
> fulla some kinda synthetic chemicals, other than a true, living,
> breathing, liquid, are probably a step up from what Beringer actually
> puts in their bottles. Besides, not sure I'd drink anything sullied
> by Nestlé.
>
> nb
>

Yeah, I'd take the strip over a glass of the real stuff too.

On 13/04/2015 11:08 AM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>
> Now you can taste a sample of wine with no alcohol.
> http://tinyurl.com/pumm353
>
> Beringer created a shelf-mounted merchandising fixture called the
> Taste Station.
>
> The self-serve display dispenses flavor strips wrapped individually in
> flexible packaging. Each Taste Station holds a stack of the flat,
> rectangular foil pouches and dispenses them one at a time. Beringer
> currently is testing the concept in Kroger stores in 20 states.

I visited a store in New Zealand where they had multiple-bottle tasting
stations that dispensed a 1,2 or 5oz taste, using those fancy inert gas
dispensers. You just plugged in a sort of credit card and pressed the
appropriate button and the cost was recorded and you paid up at the end.
That meant that quite pricey wines could be tasted and there was no
obligation to buy.
Graham

--

On 2015-04-13 2:01 PM, graham wrote:

> I visited a store in New Zealand where they had multiple-bottle tasting
> stations that dispensed a 1,2 or 5oz taste, using those fancy inert gas
> dispensers. You just plugged in a sort of credit card and pressed the
> appropriate button and the cost was recorded and you paid up at the end.
> That meant that quite pricey wines could be tasted and there was no
> obligation to buy.


Wineries around here used to have free samples. As the wine business
grew, wine tasting became a destination activity, so most of the
wineries started charging. If you go in just to sample you pay for the
samples, but if you go in to buy in some reasonable quantity they end up
comping the samples. My brother works part time in one of the few local
wineries that does not charge for samples.


Ice wine is a major product here. At the end of my sampling and buying I
will gladly pay for a sample of ice wine. I love the stuff.... in small
doses. I am not paying $50 for a half bottle of wine and having just
and ounce or two. That little sample does me just fine.

On 13/04/2015 3:43 PM, Dave Smith wrote:
> On 2015-04-13 2:01 PM, graham wrote:
>
>> I visited a store in New Zealand where they had multiple-bottle tasting
>> stations that dispensed a 1,2 or 5oz taste, using those fancy inert gas
>> dispensers. You just plugged in a sort of credit card and pressed the
>> appropriate button and the cost was recorded and you paid up at the end.
>> That meant that quite pricey wines could be tasted and there was no
>> obligation to buy.
>
>
> Wineries around here used to have free samples. As the wine business
> grew, wine tasting became a destination activity, so most of the
> wineries started charging. If you go in just to sample you pay for the
> samples, but if you go in to buy in some reasonable quantity they end up
> comping the samples. My brother works part time in one of the few local
> wineries that does not charge for samples.
>
>
> Ice wine is a major product here. At the end of my sampling and buying I
> will gladly pay for a sample of ice wine. I love the stuff.... in small
> doses. I am not paying $50 for a half bottle of wine and having just
> and ounce or two. That little sample does me just fine.
>
>
On my trips to France, I've avoided the "Degustation et Vente" as one is
expected to buy after a tasting session and one never knows whether it's
worth it. Some of the bigger chateaux charge for a tour with a tasting
but you must book months in advance.
Graham

--

On 4/13/2015 11:43 AM, Dave Smith wrote:
> On 2015-04-13 2:01 PM, graham wrote:
>
>> I visited a store in New Zealand where they had multiple-bottle tasting
>> stations that dispensed a 1,2 or 5oz taste, using those fancy inert gas
>> dispensers. You just plugged in a sort of credit card and pressed the
>> appropriate button and the cost was recorded and you paid up at the end.
>> That meant that quite pricey wines could be tasted and there was no
>> obligation to buy.
>
>
> Wineries around here used to have free samples. As the wine business
> grew, wine tasting became a destination activity, so most of the
> wineries started charging. If you go in just to sample you pay for the
> samples, but if you go in to buy in some reasonable quantity they end up
> comping the samples. My brother works part time in one of the few local
> wineries that does not charge for samples.

Charging for samples is a mickey mouse way of doing business. It implies
that your customers are scumbags and are not to be trusted.

>
>
> Ice wine is a major product here. At the end of my sampling and buying I
> will gladly pay for a sample of ice wine. I love the stuff.... in small
> doses. I am not paying $50 for a half bottle of wine and having just
> and ounce or two. That little sample does me just fine.
>
>

Forget about what I just said. :-)

On 2015-04-13 18:34, dsi1 wrote:

>> Wineries around here used to have free samples. As the wine business
>> grew, wine tasting became a destination activity, so most of the
>> wineries started charging. If you go in just to sample you pay for the
>> samples, but if you go in to buy in some reasonable quantity they end up
>> comping the samples. My brother works part time in one of the few local
>> wineries that does not charge for samples.
>
> Charging for samples is a mickey mouse way of doing business. It implies
> that your customers are scumbags and are not to be truste

I can understand it. When the business was just getting off the ground
it was a good way to introduce their products. People would realize
that the wines were pretty good and buy some to take home. Barring that,
the might feel some moral obligation to spend money after getting all
the free samples. But then people started taking advantage going from
one winery to another just to get free samples. There were local bus
operators who were organizing wine tours, charging busloads of people to
go on wine tasting excursions. They were making money on the
transportation and the wineries were paying for all the wine.

On Monday, April 13, 2015 at 2:16:08 PM UTC-10, Dave Smith wrote:
> On 2015-04-13 18:34, dsi1 wrote:
>
> >> Wineries around here used to have free samples. As the wine business
> >> grew, wine tasting became a destination activity, so most of the
> >> wineries started charging. If you go in just to sample you pay for the
> >> samples, but if you go in to buy in some reasonable quantity they end up
> >> comping the samples. My brother works part time in one of the few local
> >> wineries that does not charge for samples.
> >
> > Charging for samples is a mickey mouse way of doing business. It implies
> > that your customers are scumbags and are not to be truste
>
> I can understand it. When the business was just getting off the ground
> it was a good way to introduce their products. People would realize
> that the wines were pretty good and buy some to take home. Barring that,
> the might feel some moral obligation to spend money after getting all
> the free samples. But then people started taking advantage going from
> one winery to another just to get free samples. There were local bus
> operators who were organizing wine tours, charging busloads of people to
> go on wine tasting excursions. They were making money on the
> transportation and the wineries were paying for all the wine.

That's just my personal view on this - you catch more flies with honey rather than vinegar, yadda, yadda, yadda. I still wouldn't charge someone who took the time and effort to drive over. OTOH, I'd sure ask for a piece of the action from tour bus companies.

On Mon, 13 Apr 2015 12:34:02 -1000, dsi1
> wrote:



>
>Charging for samples is a mickey mouse way of doing business. It implies
>that your customers are scumbags and are not to be trusted.
>

The reason most charge now is many on the tasters are not customers,
just scumbags looking for a freebie.

Most places had some sort of a deal that when you buy, you get a
discount, rebate, or other compensation against what you paid. One
winery in particular that I've been to a couple of times charges a
modest fee for five different tastings. I've seen many people do the
tasting and walk out not spending a penny otherwise.

There is one vineyard I frequent that has a "Cellar Club" you can sign
up for once you buy something. You get tasting for two people on every
visit and you get a 15% discount every time you buy a case

On 4/13/2015 5:19 PM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
> On Mon, 13 Apr 2015 12:34:02 -1000, dsi1
> > wrote:
>
>
>
>>
>> Charging for samples is a mickey mouse way of doing business. It implies
>> that your customers are scumbags and are not to be trusted.
>>
>
> The reason most charge now is many on the tasters are not customers,
> just scumbags looking for a freebie.
>
> Most places had some sort of a deal that when you buy, you get a
> discount, rebate, or other compensation against what you paid. One
> winery in particular that I've been to a couple of times charges a
> modest fee for five different tastings. I've seen many people do the
> tasting and walk out not spending a penny otherwise.
>
> There is one vineyard I frequent that has a "Cellar Club" you can sign
> up for once you buy something. You get tasting for two people on every
> visit and you get a 15% discount every time you buy a case
>
All things being equal, I'm partial to businesses that don't consider me
to be a scumbag. Is this the wrong attitude?

On Mon, 13 Apr 2015 13:39:46 -0500, Sqwertz >
wrote:

>On Mon, 13 Apr 2015 13:08:29 -0400, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>
>> Now you can taste a sample of wine with no alcohol.
>> http://tinyurl.com/pumm353
>>
>> Beringer created a shelf-mounted merchandising fixture called the
>> Taste Station.
>>
>> The self-serve display dispenses flavor strips wrapped individually in
>> flexible packaging. Each Taste Station holds a stack of the flat,
>> rectangular foil pouches and dispenses them one at a time. Beringer
>> currently is testing the concept in Kroger stores in 20 states.
>
>I see people taking 5 or 10 of those at a time just because they're
>novel. They can't be cheap to produce either. At least $.06/ea. And
>are they really accurate representations of the wine?
>
>-sw

I'm sure they are NOT an accurate representation of the taste of the
wine. And Beringer's does make SOME very good wines, and a lot of not
so great ones.

John Kuthe...

---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
http://www.avast.com

On 4/13/2015 2:48 PM, John Kuthe wrote:
> On Mon, 13 Apr 2015 13:39:46 -0500, Sqwertz >
> wrote:
>
>> On Mon, 13 Apr 2015 13:08:29 -0400, Ed Pawlowski wrote:
>>
>>> Now you can taste a sample of wine with no alcohol.
>>> http://tinyurl.com/pumm353
>>>
>>> Beringer created a shelf-mounted merchandising fixture called the
>>> Taste Station.
>>>
>>> The self-serve display dispenses flavor strips wrapped individually in
>>> flexible packaging. Each Taste Station holds a stack of the flat,
>>> rectangular foil pouches and dispenses them one at a time. Beringer
>>> currently is testing the concept in Kroger stores in 20 states.
>>
>> I see people taking 5 or 10 of those at a time just because they're
>> novel. They can't be cheap to produce either. At least $.06/ea. And
>> are they really accurate representations of the wine?
>>
>> -sw
>
> I'm sure they are NOT an accurate representation of the taste of the
> wine. And Beringer's does make SOME very good wines, and a lot of not
> so great ones.
>
> John Kuthe...
>
> ---
> This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
> http://www.avast.com
>
I've seen kits to learn wine tasting that had little vials with the
various terms wine "experts" use like "petrol", "barnyard" etc. but they
were more expensive than I wanted. I'll have to look out for those
strips but there aren't any nearby Krogers. Incidentally, Beringer,
while not at the top, makes some decent winrs.
--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not." in Reply To.