In reading through next week's case about the Mondavi family, I reflected on the parallels between Robert Mondavi and Sam Calagione in their respective industries (wine and beer). Both created the audiences which would make their products successful.
When Robert Mondavi started making wine, the '76 Judgment of Paris had not happened yet. It was an immovable fact in the minds of the consumer that wine from America was not worth taking seriously. Good wine was imported. Mondavi's success did not come from being the wine-maker whose product beat the French in blind tastings. Nor did it come strictly from cost-savings, volume production, and amassing wealth. The case suggested a different reason: Mondavi became the voice of Californian wine. As he traveled the world in search of innovative techniques in wine-making, he became an ambassador for serious wine-makers from California. After building up this brand, he was able to partner with Baron Philippe and make Opus One. He sold wine to a market that would not have been there to receive it had he not created it. Because of the space he made for himself in the industry (and now other great winemakers behind him), he is remembered as a giant.
Mondavi's story reminds of Sam Calagione as he writes about craft beer in Brewing up a Business. Even now, and especially as Sam started Dogfish Head in 1995, people thought American beer was Budweiser, or worse. Most American beers were lower-quality lagers with similar, bland taste profiles. Sam did not just make interesting American beers. A few people were already doing that. But Sam became the figurehead of the craft movement, teaching Americans to expect more from their beer and capturing attention from brewers around the world. His company was acquired by Boston Beer Company for 300 million dollars in 2019. Like Mondavi, his success will enable the flourishing of many behind him, but it will be difficult for anyone else to imitate him because he was a pioneer.
Aurora -
ReplyDeleteThank you for educating our class about other parts of the alcohol-bev industry! I think it's incredibly cool to draw parallels between wine and beer, and as such, I am very excited to work with you to learn more about this industry and your dreams for our final project!
In addition to Sam's evangelization of beer, I think the insights you shared in our group's industry discussion about Michael James Jackson are useful to detail for the class. Jackson was a leading authority on the quality and style of beer. He gained the nickname "The Beer Hunter," which later became the name of his popular documentary series, which aired in 15 countries (1). He emphasized the different flavor and style profiles of beer. According to 7x7 Bay Area, "Jackson’s primary goal was simply to see that beer was treated as a serious entity, as deserving of attention as wine. And... he succeeded" (2).
In fact, many refer to him as the "Robert Parker" of beer, shaping the understanding of and popularization of the taste profiles that marked the craft beer movement. While he didn't have the full critical acclaim that Parker did (in beer, individual critic ratings systems don't seem to have the same cult-ish following that they do in wine), he was certainly a tastemaker with similarly powerful influence on shaping the flavor profile of an industry.
1 - https://www.beermonthclub.com/michael-jackson
2 - https://www.7x7.com/rip-michael-jackson-1779040264.html