Wine Spectator Rants Redux

Well you have to love the Wine Spectator...as if. I have ranted in the past about what a misnomer their name has become. Today they are no longer the "Wine Spectator". Instead, they are the "Lifestyle Spectator". And wouldn't you know it, this issue has done it again. Their "second annual" food issue was out this week and they have managed to spend over 70% of the article material on this issue on anything but wine. Cheese, spices, meats whatever they could come up with but nary a drop of wine to talk about. Come on. If you are going to call yourself the Wine Speculator, speculate about wine, not about every other darn thing on earth.

Then both Jimmy Laube and Matty Kramer discuss the ridiculous state of Bordeaux futures. Much to my surprise, Laubeeee gets closer to my previously stated views on this than Kramer, with whom I am usually in much more agreement. Laube sort of dances around the issue of the greed of the Bordelaise and kind of makes the point that those buggers are trying to upcharge to get the auction price on the wine before it goes to auction. He does seem to indicate he agrees with me, there is a real risk of those people who are buying on futures may not be able to sell at auction at a higher price because the wineries raised price to capture that markup before auction.

Kramer, on the other hand, seems to indicate he believes the wines are a deal and will appreciate by the time they are released. Further, he does not take the greedy pigs to task for overcharging, like Laubeee sort of does.

But both of these knuckleheads miss the point to a certain extent. Have you ever heard of Internet Capital Group? How about any of the other of those internet companies that crapped all over greedy investors at the end of the last century. I think '05 Bordeaux is an internet stock purchased in 1996. I heard from an employee of Wine Discount Center that a few of their customers asked for as much '05 Bordeaux as they could get, ostensibly so that they can turn around and resell it after release. Problem is, there is no guarantee they will ever be able to sell it for a profit, at least in the short to medium term. And what kind of asshole buys a consumable product meant to be enjoyed as an investment, especially untested (or untasted) years before it is available. Two kinds, rich guys who probably will never drink it but will never bother to sell it either, and greedy, stupid bastards with more greed than money who I hope lose their shirt.

If you buy futures, buy them to secure supply and save money (prepaying should save you money) and drink the wine when it shows up, like I do with Ridge Monte Bello.

And for the Speculator, they have done it again. Decided to be a lifestyle magazine and refusing to call the bluff of their advertisers (the Bordelaise).