How can you create a diverse and appealing wine selection?

In my experience the most important place to start is REALLY getting to know your guests/clientele. Listen to them and learn not just what wines they like, but what it is ABOUT those wines that appeals to them. That will help you source new and exciting options for them. You can find products that share some characteristics of what is already popular with your guests but veers from the path a bit and can offer something new for their palate. The next most important step is educating your team. You won't get anywhere if they don't know and love your products! A bartender or server will never suggest a wine to a guest that they haven't had the chance to learn about and hopefully taste. Why chance losing out on a tip?

Para conocer bien a tu “buyer persona” puedes ayudarte de: - hacer focus groups. - encuestas online entre tus consumidores. - Entrevistas “face to face” o telefónicas. - analizar las métricas de tu web y de tus redes, usando herramientas como google analytics, metricool o Linkedin analytics. Obten los máximos datos de tus consumidores y segméntalos tanto como puedas.

The key here is to know your customers. Your knowledge of them should guide your selection of wines for your list, but always have at least a few on the list to expand their wine repertoire and show them some wines they may not usually drink, but may still love if they try them.

Do not leave any wine region, large or small, undiscovered by your own palate. This is a practical experience which no theoretical study is able to replicate. We do this by attending every available Trade show within your capacity to go. The larger your experience profile the easier to suggest what your customer is seeking for his own pleasure.

Emphasis on local indigenous grapes with more popular one. for authenticity and character with low yield and high quality wine

Emphasis on local indigenous grapes with more popular one. for authenticity and character with low yield and high quality wine

… If you do wish to have a ‘crisp white wine’ with spicy food then an Albariño with its peachy fruit will do better than say a Verdejo. A buttery chardonnay or an aged biscuity chardonnay can go surprisingly well with a spicy steak tartar (not just red tuna tartar), that said the Amontillado/Palo Cortado/Oloroso weather the heat with exciting complexity, and if it’s a hot curry, for me the aged Cream option does indeed reign supreme.

Small to mid-size beverage distributors often have an eclectic portfolio of boutique vineyards. They have wines that you won't see in every restaurant. Purchasing from them not only helps diversify your beverage program but you also are supporting a local small business.

Let all your waiters try your menu with your wines by the glass; they’ll better sell the experience to your customers. For pairing spicy food rather than ‘crisp white wine’, try amontillados, palo cortados, olorosos & medium cream sherries (‘sweet with heat’ often works, as well as with salty cheeses); sherry & non-sherry Jerez wines are diverse, versatile & appealingly complex: palomino with varying amounts of flor yeast & oxidation, fortified or not, from solera multi-year & multi-vineyard to single year, vineyard area & cask, allowing in Jerez’s unique terroir, which also lends itself to PX, highly mineral Chardonnays, Tintilla reds, etc, varying in freshness & warmth with distance from the Atlantic. There’s a Jerez for every dish!

Offering opportunities for reimbursed formal training makes employees feel valued and allows them to connect wine theory with the bottles sold on premises.

In my experience, enhancing the visual appearance of the menu with the help of images of the bottles and wine maps will provide a lot more information to the guests. Including the pairing suggestions from your food menu can be helpful for the guests to choose the appropriate wine.

Wine is easy, it's the greatest connector. Humans make it difficult. I've learned that wine should be a fun space for learning, exploring, and experiencing. As the market changes we have to remember that consumers are our community and our job as leaders in the wine industry is to encourage and build confidence in whatever experience they want to have whether it's in a restaurant, wine shop, tasting room, or wherever a bottle can be shared :)