Alice Feiring is shaking things up in the world of wine. Witty and outspoken, Alice has been writing about wine for twenty years. A vocal advocate for natural wines, her ongoing search for authentic 'unspoofulated' wine can be followed in her influential blog 'Veritas in Vino'. Uundeterred by controversy, Alice took on the world's most powerful wine critic in her book 'The Battle for Wine and Love: Or How I Saved the World from Parkerization'. She took time to share her thoughts with delicious life PR on Twitter, print media's disappearance, the rise of blogs and ongoing changes in the wine industry.

How has wine writing changed since you started?  Wow.

Well first of all there used to be more outlets. It was the golden years for the field—writers were allowed to write like Gerald Asher, who was given space to write and think. NOW it’s just ‘what to drink tonight’. There is little wine writing, no one cares. The line between writing and marketing is all but erased.

That said there is still interesting wine writing out there. Mike Steinberger is able to write about what he wants. Jon Bonn does a great job and I think the Brits are still putting out terrific copy.

Why write about wine?  Because it is an important part of life and culture. There’s much to be learned about this place where art and man meet science and nature. And yes, people do like to know about the magic or plonk in their glass.

How has blogging affected wine writing?  Blogs offer the opportunity for drinkers to find the writer whose tastes align with theirs—it allows more immediate recommendations. But blogs are too often unreliable. Without a journalist’s ethical background, wine background and a context for their writing, online blogging becomes ‘what to drink tonight’…and often a puddle of misinformation with an attitude.

You had said that you weren’t going to blog anymore…  I said I was considering not blogging anymore. I blog fairly frequently and was speaking out loud. I started to blog when media was just about to implode. I didn’t know if there was going to be a future in writing, and still have my doubts that whether this field can be saved. Having a blog is like having a conversation with yourself—but with way more work. I have to pull back or I’ll feel like some character in a Beckett play, filled with futility.

What’s your take on press trips?  Fewer and fewer magazines are paying writers to write, and many that do have stopped assigning stories. But if you don’t travel to the source your story is pretty weak. The press trip might once again become a necessity.

I might go on a press trip but my hosts must understand that it’s research–as I write for many publications which won‘t allow them.  I am lucky to have the reputation that I can’t be bought- Yet, press trips have introduced me to places which I could never have been on my own dime, they have enriched my knowledge and I have often gone back to write a story. It’s just that for me, getting a real story out of a press trip—which is a very canned experience—is extremely difficult.

Is print media dead?  I hope not. Loire winemaker Nicolas Joly—who I could sit and listen to forever—said, “The more fast food there is, the more need there is for slow food. There more the need there is for authentic food.”  While I think the big media companies will go electronic, you’ll see more and more small printing houses emerge with artisan papers—papers which are pieces of art. Print media has been around since the Egyptian time—it isn’t dead but it may take a while for it to find its new shoes.

Twitter?  Twitter is interesting—it’s a time-sync in a way that Facebook isn’t. I can do lots of little flashes. But I’ve yet to figure out what it does except talk to the people who already know about me. I haven’t twittered many tasting notes. I suppose I might if I was someplace really noteworthy,  really of the moment, or maybe if I couldn’t stand the person I was seated next to, but the wine was oh-sooo good. I will never tweet ‘what I drank tonight for dinner’ unless it’s ‘Oh My God‘. However, I do tweet good and bad wine lists.

How do small wineries get attention in this market?  It’s easy.  You have to have talent, really great soil, a message and a point of view. You’ll get noticed if you have a point of view.

How do you tell if a distributor is good or not?  Sometime’s it’s hard. I’d go with the one who wants me the most—they’ll work for you. You can’t give up responsibility. I’m shocked at so many winemakers who don’t work the market. It’s essential. Sommeliers, wine shops and consumers need to see the face behind the wine.

The winemaker needs to show up twice a year in New York and once a year in smaller markets. Many times the winery owner does a market tour, instead of strutting the winemaker—but the owner can’t tell you about the soul of the wine. I’ve yet to meet the winemaker who couldn’t pony up to a market visit. They may be shy, not so charming and have Asperger’s syndrome--but at least that’s authentic. 

How do larger wineries get positive attention?  I think the key is to not aggrandize yourself, know what your strength is. Find your story - it’s not always about how good the wines are. Give me a story—something that I can sink my teeth into. If Gallo started raising llamas, I’d write about that in a flash. I’d much rather right about that then their ‘biodynamic’ wines. Create a story and be visible.

Interesting wine regions these days?  I’m really curious about the Canary Islands and France, of course. Spain, more than any other region these days, is soul searching. They’re wondering ‘what the fuck is going on?’ A lot have gone international but they’re wondering if that is really the way to go? They’re smart—they’re promoting their food with the wine. 

The Finger Lakes is another region. I believe in their terroir greatly - it’s just underachieved. Their Gamay, Cabernet Franc and have great potential. You have to go where the land it—even if that‘s six hours from NYC. I would love to see them find success.

Some of the big players are struggling. What’s your take on Australia?  According to the news, they do seem to be in trouble, but at the same time as they are losing market share, they are also doing better at auction. The fact that Dr. J. Miller is covering Australia for the Advocate might have hurt the industry as well. They’re being forced to do some heavy duty soul searching, it will be fascinating to see when and if the natural wine revolution ever hits them. I would love to go and see for myself if it is as much of a wine wasteland as I think it is. But right now, I think there's one wine I know of that I can drink, made by Julian Castagna.

Argentina?   It has lost its identity. Their Torrontes tastes like Sauvignon Blanc. But recently I had a wine at a David Bowler tasting—a Malbec from Carmello Patti and I was thrilled. It was the real thing.

Explain the difference between organic and biodynamic winemaking?  I wish people and the media would stop confusing organic//biodynamic grapes with wine. Having organic grapes is not a guarantee that your wine is natural! That said, in winemaking there is little difference, except in this country you can use more sulfur in biodynamic wines. Both should employ natural wine making techniques.

The difference is in the viticulture. Both are ‘organic.’ But biodynamic is more like homeopathy for the soil. Organic is not timed to the seasons and is more conventional farming but without the use of chemicals.

American wine culture?  What wine culture? There’s very little of it outside of California where it is a part of the economy. There is a growing interest but we are still in a culture that frowns on drinking daily.

What projects are you working on?  I have book coming out, I’m working on a novel and I’ve proposed a new wine book... We’ll see!