Last week, Vino 2010 (self-described as “the biggest Italian wine event ever held outside of Italy”) officially touched down in NYC.

One of the most anticipated discussions of Vino 2010, at least in the eyes of PR, media, and wine writers, was the panel “Blogging on Wine and Social Networking: New Tools in reaching Consumers of Italian Wine” moderated by Anthony Dias Blue.  1WineDude.com readers will already know that I was a bit concerned when I’d heard that Dias Blue would be moderating, as I felt that he was too publicly anti-blogging based on quite negative statements he’d made about wine bloggers last year.

That was before I learned of the panel members, who included some very pro-blogging (and very, very talented) friends of mine (blogger Alder Yarrow, PR wiz Steven Raye, and search guru Duog Cook), and the very public and open way in which the panel would be held.

The panel result is freely viewable on the Vino 2010 website, and has been included below in its entirety.  All 2+ hours of it.  If you care at all about wine PR, wine writing, wine blogging, and how to engage them all in the changing wine marketplace, then Id say all 2 hours are required viewing – and this is coming from a guy who normally cannot watch more than 3 consecutive minutes of video at any one time.

Why?  Because the panel members offer advice on how to engage wine writers in the new decade that is so spot-on it might as well be a blueprint for how it should be done.

Why is that important?  Because wine brands need to get into the engagement game if they have any prayer of truly understanding (and ultimately influencing) the conversations happening about their brands.

And I know of what I (virtually) speak here, because last week I started getting a firsthand lesson in brand-awareness…

Read the rest of this stuff »

It looks like my fears of VINO 2010’s “Blogging on Wine and Social Networking: New Tools in reaching Consumers of Italian Wine ” panel discussion possibly deteriorating into a blogger-bashing session can probably be put to rest.

In an attempt to expand the reach of the event beyond the walls of the Waldorf Astoria, VINO 2010 appointed James Rodewald, former Drinks Editor of Gourmet magazine, as its official blogger representative.  James will be tweeting live from the event as well as covering the event on the official blog (which contains a blogroll of the bloggers who are attending VINO 2010) – all steps in the right direction.

What really convinced me, though, are the panelists for the session on Blogging, which include friends of mine who I know for a fact understand the power of blogging in the wine world – namely, Alder Yarrow of Vinography.com and Steve Raye from Brand Action Team. 

And what sold me lock, stock, and wine barrel was this: for the panel on social media and blogging, the details will be covered live via the web and James will be taking questions for the panel via twitter:

“On Thursday, February 4th at 10AM – the "VIRTUAL VINO, MILLENNIALS, AND SOCIAL MEDIA DECANTED" panel discussion moderated by Anthony Dias Blue with Alder Yarrow (vinography.com), Dave Cook (Twitter), Steve Raye (Brand Action Team), and Ronn Wiegand. James will be monitoring the Twitter feed and posing questions Tweeted in from throughout the country. The seminar will focus on social media and wine bloggers as the future of consumer wine education, and potentially the wine trade.  You and your readers can tune in to the panel discussion at www.italianmade.com/vino2010.”

Now, if the on-line wine community excels at anything, it’s keeping people honest.  So I expect a pretty balanced and honest discussion about wine blogging and social media for that panel.

Whew… ok, I feel better now…

Cheers!

Well… this is… interesting.

Fellow wine fanatic and blogger Robbin Gheesling passed this tidbit onto me earlier this week:

Remember Anthony dias Blue?  He’s the guy who just this past summer had this to say about wine bloggers:

“…bitter, carping gadflies who, as they stare into their computer screens and contemplate their dreary day jobs, let their resentment and sense of personal failure take shape as vicious attacks on the established critical media.”

Not exactly a ringing endorsement.

Seems he might have changed his mind – dias Blue is currently scheduled to give a talk on wine blogging at the upcoming VINO 2010 Italian Wine Week in New York.

Here’s the skinny from the program:

Seminar # 7
Room: Louis XIV  Suite (4th Floor)
Presentation: “Blogging on Wine and Social Networking: New Tools in reaching
Consumers of Italian Wine ”  
Moderated  by:    Anthony  Dias  Blue  ,  WCBS  Radio,  journalist  and  author,  Los
Angeles, California

WTF?!??

I don’t want to disparage the guy the possibility that his tune on wine blogging has changed – and I sincerely hope that it has.  I just really, really, really hope that dias Blue has had a bit of self-revelation and has seen a turn-around in his thinking since July, or this might get really ugly, really fast. 

Because the last thing that wineries, PR, and media need to hear is that blogging and social media aren’t important or are somehow full of “barbarian… militant bloggers” (his words, from July), because both are patently false.

Cheers!

(images: gayot.com)