“Could Do Better”

According to a report quoted in yesterday’s Diario de Jerez, Sherry, at least generically, receives the 6^th most coverage of all Spanish wines in the Spanish press. That is very good, and there is little doubt that there is more press coverage in other countries too, and the future looks more promising than it has for a long time. The Consejo is to be congratulated for much hard and imaginative work on a tight budget, far smaller than that of some Spanish wine regions. But the Consejo can’t do it all.

The disappointing aspect of the report is that so few bodegas are promoting themselves. Obviously this will cost money, but as the Consejo has proved, much can be achieved with limited resources if they are well targeted. The green shoots of recovery are there to be seen and the bodegas must do more in the way of promotion to help boost the momentum. Many need websites – or better ones and more up to date, better distributors, more press advertising, more participation in events. The product is already excellent but more consumers need to know it is there, and while leaving promotion up to the big players might help generically, it will be they who make the sales. As my school reports always used to say: “could do better.”