For this project, I originally wanted to interview the Wine Steward at the Beaverton Fred Meyer. I also work there so I figured it would be a convenient way of completing this project. The Wine Steward's name is Richard Katz. He claims to know John and knows that John is involved with making wine.
When I looked for him on my breaks, he was never at the wine section. I asked the manager where he is at and when he works next. She told me that Richard is on sick leave and didn't know when he would return. The next step I took was going to the Walker Road Fred Meyer and conducted an interview with their Wine Steward. He was a man by the name of Gary Grille. He said he also knew John and that he was from La Bete Winery.
After looking around, these are the questions I asked him:
How are your wines selected?
Well we have a well rounded selection. It can be based on a number of things such as customer driven, price point, corporate, customers personal requests, demand, and popularity. Also it can be press driven. That is when a wine is mentioned in some kind of publication or is reviewed and that creates an instant demand from customers.
Who do you buy the wines from?
Here we have about 35 different wine distributors. One main distributor is McClasky's. Places out in Portland can easily have over 55 of them. Also we buy direct from the wineries.
How often do you get New Wines in?
Weekly, sometimes even daily. It is always changing.
Have you noticed any problems with this operation such as corkage?
All the time. We get bottles returned by customers such as this one (He shows me an open bottle of Merlot) I don't know why the customer returned this one. We have problems such as damaged labels, sometimes there will be a broken bottle in the case. Or the bottle won't be filled all the way. Customers or merchants will drop bottles. Also wrong bottles will be packed in a case that we didn't order.
What do you think of La Bete Wines?
(Pause) I really haven't tasted them in a long time.
Well thank you for letting me come in an interview you. He said good luck with school.
After conducting this short interview, I actually learned a lot. I just regret that I didn't have more questions prepared. When I looked at their selection, I noticed that the selection was greater than most Fred Meyer stores I have frequented. That means they spend more money on buying wines and have a broader list of distributors to fill the shelves.
I really don't know what the clientele wants. From my own experience I know that Cabernet Sauvignons, Chardonnays, and Merlots are the most popular. They always have sales saying "Hot Price, .99) on those varieties. I also know that at the store they have varietals such as Chardonnays that are sold for .99 apiece. These are usually Californian vineyards that have Cabernets for the same price that I have never heard of. Selling these cheap wines could be competition to Three Buck Chuck that I always hear about.
Also looking around at their selection, I see how the wines are grouped. An example is all the sparkling wines are all together with the expensive Champagnes towards the top of the shelf. I saw all the desert wines situated by the Ports and imitation ports such as Christiansen Bothers towards the bottom of the shelf.
Pricing is also quite diverse. There are plenty of the cheap wines such as Gallo's and Carlos Rossi's. But there are several expensive wines located in a glass locked case. Some of these were Dom Perignon, and several small dessert wines that were selling for and up. I also saw a California Cabernet with a black and white photo of a man's face selling for .99. So ultimately, the wines have several different prices depending on what the customer wants and how much they are willing to spend.
I really wouldn't do anything different about the operation that the store is running. I thought that the shelves, lightning, decoration, and location were all superb. One thing I do notice is that other stores have wooden shelves, and some have those old school metal racks used to shelf the wine. I would make every store consistent in that manner so a customer knows what to expect every time he or she wants to buy wine. This is most likely a corporate issue that is out of the Wine Steward's control.
The most interesting thing about the field work is the question about problems with wine. I never imagined that problems such as damaged labels and bottles occur so frequently. Or that they are not filled all the way sometimes. I wonder if people who box the wine inspect the bottles for accuracy. If not, a machine probably is to blame. I also want to know if they receive credit each time a problem happens.
From just five simple questions I received plenty of information that is knowledgeable to me and for my career. I know now that restaurant owners and managers face some of these same challenges for their operation. It makes me think that ordering wines and having them delivered is just a small part of it. There are many varieties and styles to choose from that will fit the general clientele. Then they have to price and pair them to become appealing to the customers.
