BARGAIN HUNTING

Anyone having read older posts I have written will know that I decry supermarkets and the way that they destroy brand equity through deep-cut discounting. They also do not provide enough choice for the wine enthusiast. That said though I still buy wine from supermarkets (more so now that I am self-employed and am watching the pennies). Today I picked up some bargains - Deutz Cuvee at 19.99 (14 bucks off), Mission Reserve Viognier at 19.99 (five bucks off plus a free memory stick), Penfolds Bin 28 24.99 (10 bucks off) and Rosemount Blue Mountain Shiraz Cab 29.99 (36 bucks off). That was not a typo. Fosters implosion is turning up bargains like this.Even discounted in Australia Blue Mountain should be well over 40 dollars (AUD).
There have been a lot of Rosemount, Wolf Blass and Penfolds specials recently as a result of Fosters (the parent company) losing their way in the wine world. I suggest to look out for the bargains and buy up large (please don't read this until I get back to Foodtown and buy some more).
I've been buying good Riesling and Chardonnay when the good brands come on deep-cut special. I don't buy Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris but there are particularly good deals on the good brands of these occasionally. What never turns up though is good Pinot Noir on special. In fact, supermarkets don't stock good Pinot Noir. Why is this? A few years ago Pinot Noir was scarce and suppliers would not sell it to supermarkets. When they did they didn't promote it. Supermarkets resorted to stocking cheap and crappy Pinot Noir from Australia and lesser regions. Now that good NZ Pinot Noir is plentiful things haven't changed. I refuse to believe that suppliers are holding out given that most of them are awash with the stuff. It just may be that the supermarket buyers are not chasing hard enough. Believe it or not it often happens where the supermarket buyer has personal preferences and dislikes that get in the way of sensible stocking and ranging. A few years ago a buyer for one of the major groups would not range Shiraz because he thought that it was not popular. At the time Rosemount Diamond label Shiraz was the biggest premium Shiraz brand sold in USA, was huge in Australia and in NZ was starting to dominate the (non supermarket) shelves. It took a long time for him to be convinced but once so the Shiraz he stocked took off.
Meanwhile I buy my Pinot Noir from specialist wine retailers and via the web. It annoys me though to think of the piles of unsold stuff sitting in warehouses somewhere.