I find it pretty odd that the Oregonian, Portland’s and Oregon state’s primary newspaper, categorically only covers (reviews or writes about) wines that are $25 or less per bottle and distributed in local wine stores. This in a state nationally known for producing pinot noir most costing more than $25 and many well over $25. Is that “all the news that’s fit to print”? Hardly.
Tags: Oregonian, pinot noir
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Scott, on the second point, about requiring the wines to be distributed locally, I can tell you based on my experience in wine journalism that readers go ballistic when newspapers write about wines that can’t be found in their area.
And on the first point, it’s pretty clear the O tries very hard to focus under $25. But I’d say it’s hard to blame them. We in the wine business lose sight of the fact that for readers of general-interest publications, $25 represents a fabulously expensive bottle of wine. So this is another attempt — perhaps misguided, but well-intentioned, I’d suggest — to respect their readers, particularly during challenging economic times. That said, are you sure they “categorically” don’t cover wines priced higher than $25? Just a week or so ago, Kramer wrote about a couple of $30 wines. And I know Katherine Cole occasionally recommends Pinots north of $25. But those instances are pretty rare, and may indeed prove the rule.
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Pete – Thanks for reading and your comments. Buying wine through a winery website is trivial so I see no reason for the retail store requirement. Plus it supports the old fashioned three tier system.
The two up front requirements the Oregonian has for tasting a wine for potential coverage are 1) $25 or less and 2) carried in Portland-area wine store(s). Like most things the readership is a bell-curve distribution of interested wine people and I know the majority would view a $25 bottle of wine as expensive, but that doesn’t mean the Oregonian shouldn’t cover a broader spectrum of what’s going on in our own backyard. I’m not suggesting the Oregonian write about $150 Napa cab or $250 Burgundy, because that’s not local. Oregon has a wine industry that increasingly gains national recognition every year and that is local and that is news. And for good or for bad plenty of the wines driving that national recognition cost well north of $25. I think the Oregonian should write primarily about Oregon and NW wines, from the small producer (which Oregon is famous for) to Chateau Ste. Michelle making millions of cases a year.
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Pete – I don’t know how the Oregonian decides to go beyond their $25 limit.
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