My Pinot is Bigger than Your Pinot

Come on, who's Pinot's really bigger? Do you think one area in the world, hands down, makes the very best Pinot noir? You know you have an opinion. Well, on July 15, from 6-9pm (PT), this varietal's gonna duke it out on Twitter once and for all and we're placing the fate of the winner in your hands. The whole world will be watching on July 15, 2010 from 5pm-7pm PT/8pm–10pm ET, when, for the first time ever, Pinot lovers gather from far and wide to participate in a #PinotNoir Twitter Community Tasting.  The online community will have the rare opportunity to taste, tweet and vote for which ever Pinot noir appelation they think produces the most mouthwatering, perfectly balanced and complex wines. The people will decide which region they want to see crowned winner at the end of the night. Talk about bragging rights. 

For those new to the Twitterverse, a Twitter Tasting is just a simple online tasting party. For two hours, people from all over will be tasting and talking about Pinot noir in various settings—from bars, restaurants, tasting rooms—even the comfort of their own home. For more information about Twitter Community Wine Tastings, visit http://www.facebook.com/TasteAndTweet

You should know though that this isn't just an ordinary Twitter Tasting. This is the ultimate Pinot Play-Off! You may remember some of the successful tasting events of the past, beginning with Rick Bakas of St. Supery's brainchild #Chardonnay and continuing with Josh Wade of Drink Nectar's #WAMerlot and then his ingenious follow-up #WAwine. According to Josh, 370 people on Twitter and about 50 people on Facebook contributed 1850-2000 updates about #WAWine. Additionally, it's estimated between 1000-1500 (approx) people attended various tasting events across the state. Well, the Pinot Play-Offs are going to blow those away!

What sets this event apart from any other Twitter Tasting? People everywhere will have the unique opportunity to determine which Pinot producing region reigns supreme simply by tweeting and using an additional two-character hashtag after #PinotNoir. For example, if you’re favorite Pinot is from Oregon, simply tag the end of your tweets with: #PinotNoir #WV and voila voila, you've voted… easy breezy.

Some examples:

#WV – Willamette Valley, Oregon

#NV – Napa Valley, CA

#RR – Russian River Valley, CA

#CN – Carneros, CA

#SB – Santa Barbara, CA

#SN – Sonoma Coast, CA

#MN – Mendocino, CA

#SC – Santa Cruz, CA

#BU – Burgundy, FR

#NZ – New Zealand

#?? – Add your own!

The evening will culminate with tallying the votes and giving the winning wine region the hearty pat on the back they've worked so hard to earn—right there, directly in front of the online world, for millions of people to see! And yes, we will really be counting the votes. No, nobody's for sale (right Joe?). Definitely YOUR VOTE COUNTS, so vote (Tweet) often!  Which region will emerge as the champion? You can probably guess who I'm rooting for, but who knows, maybe I'll surprise you and open myself up to a little gem from the Russian River Valley.

For more detailed information, please visit the invitation created by my Pinot-partner-in-crime Ed Thralls of Wine Tonite at http://pinotnoir.eventbrite.com/. Ed's even been helpful enough to include some basic instructions on how to get started on Twitter (so no excuses!!) and this blogpost by him could help you truly maximize your sales for this event! 

All eyes will be on Pinot Noir between now and July 15th, so don’t miss the opportunity to have your brand in the spotlight and your region a contender for the title. If you have any questions or need any help, please don't hesitate to contact me (tbelgard@gmail.com). Spread the word and share this invitation with all the Pinot players you possibly know. This is one party the cops won't break up and one brawl that won't end up with pepper spray (well, not unless you want it to). It will however end with countless bottles of Pinot Noir being opened, consumed and talked about around the globe. My fickle Pinot noir will be the center of attention. As it should be.

If you're a winery, there are a number of ways you can make sure you're involved. First of all, I can't encourage you enough to try and get your wine into Tweeters hands. If you're on Twitter, you probably have a good idea of who the wine Tweeters and/or bloggers are. If not, we need to talk. Seriously. Another way to be involved is to organize Twitter tasting events with your cellar club and fan base. Invite these people in during the tasting time and offer them a little something special, they will be Tweeting (talking) about your brand with their entire following (which could be anywhere from 100-100,000 or more people who actually care about what they have to say). Oregon wineries, this could be just the easy kickoff into IPNC (International Pinot Noir Celebration) you're looking for. Wineries and retail establishments everywhere can offer discounted "Taste Packs" for sale at retail or on their websites. If you're not sure how to promote this event, please contact me, I'm here to make it an overwhelming success—let me help you.
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One of my favorite women in wine, Andrea Robinson, Master Sommelier (whom I actually got to see speak at the Wine Bloggers Conference last week), is the designer of the new TheOne stemware collection and is also participating in this event. She's provided a a very special offer to participants, so be sure to take advantage:

50% off a 4-pack or single red stem of TheOneTM

4-Pack ($24.96 + s/h) Offer Code: PinotTweetupBox

Red Stem ($6.25 + s/h) Offer Code: PinotTweetupSingle

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