The Walman Report®
Featuring
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By Nancy Walman
As Heard on
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Copyright 2005 by
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Wine On Line®
Nancy Walman, Publisher
Copyright 2005 by
Wine On Line® News Syndicate
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NEW “DOG
HOUSE” WINES PROVIDE SOCIAL AND PSYCHIC BENEFITS
Premium “Dog House” elevates – 50 cents per bottle to non-profit Guide Dogs
for the Blind organization
There’s a new “dawg” in town, Randy… “Dog House” wine,
coming to a market near you.
A Wine On Line®
Recommendation for Under Wine Values $10
“Dog House” wine makes its debut on major grocery store shelves, independent
retailers and popular restaurant chains nationwide on May 2nd. The new premium
“fruit-forward” varieties, tagged “Max’s Merlot,” “Checkers’ Cabernet” and
“Charlie’s Chardonnay,” use 100% California grape varieties and
state-of-the-art barrel fermentation to raise the standard of the popular
animal-themed wine label trend, while helping to partner specially trained
guide dogs with people who are blind.
Dog House wines will retail for $8.99 a bottle and will be available
nationwide in H.E.B., Albertsons, QFC, Fred Meyer, Kroger, Meier,
Harris-Teeter, Publix, and Whole Foods. Fifty cents per bottle will go to
support Guide Dogs for the Blind, with a minimum pledge amount of $25,000.
“Guide Dogs for the Blind is excited to have this support and visibility,"
said Bob Phillips, CEO for Guide Dogs for the Blind. "We hope to be the
topic of conversation at every table where this wine is shared among friends.
We believe in the power of partnering to improve the quality of life. In
addition to providing safe mobility, our wonderful canines help make friends
for their human partners. It's only fitting that we toast their continued
success.”
The “critter-quaffer” marketing trend is largely attributed to an influx of
wines released from Australia and New Zealand, which depict a variety of animal
types, from penguins to pigs, on their labels. According to stories in The Wall
Street Journal and the Washington Post, among other media, many consumers,
especially young adult consumers, choose wines based on emotionally appealing
labels, not ones that are perceived as intimidating, confusing, or in some
cases, unpronounceable.
“For us, the draw behind animal-themed labels, like Dog House, is to offer
consumers a fun, delicious, lively, and emotionally satisfying wine,” said
Justin Jackson, Specialty Coordinator for Whole Foods Market. “Today’s consumer
seeks a high quality, yet affordable wine brand that can be purchased without
pretension or need for extensive wine knowledge. We want to make sure our
customers feel comfortable about purchasing a bottle of wine based on the fun
of it, and then be pleasantly surprised about how good a discovery it was.”
Bottled under screw cap wine closures, approximately 100,000 cases of Dog House
wine will be produced in 2005 with nationwide distribution. Another 150,000
cases of Dog House wine are slotted for production in 2006.
About Guide Dogs for the Blind
Guide Dogs for the Blind is a nonprofit, charitable organization that provides
and trains Guide Dogs for visually impaired people throughout the United States
and Canada. Guide Dogs for the Blind offers its services free of charge and
receives no government funding. For more information please call 800-295-4050
or visit www.guidedogs.com/doghousewine.html
About Dog House Wines
Carefully crafted by the same family that produces Kendall-Jackson wines, Dog
House wines come in three varieties, Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.
These premium wines are made from 100 percent California grapes. Dog House wine
was inspired by Jackson family canine
“Robbie.”
Consumer
Tips
As a service to consumers, Dog House wines offer the following tips to give the
Dog House a new quality perception. The Dog House, after all, is capable of
serving a higher purpose, a place to center and find your inner dawg.
* You lost your temper and people close to you are giving you the silent
treatment. You need to find a way to put a muzzle on your “mad.” Go to a place
where there are lots of trees, grass and fire hydrants. Think about your nature
and what is causing you to be so biting; find peace with your surroundings.
Resolve to do better. Show some hang dog humility upon your return to the company
of people.
* Your significant other has left you. You have been told not to pick up the
trail. Find a space with padded walls. Howl.
* You are about to lose your job. Maybe it’s at the firehouse, maybe it’s out
in the fields with the sheep. Maybe you’re an ad icon. Whatever the job is, get
under the covers, burrow into a hole or jump on the couch. Take stock. Think,
boy, think.
* It’s one of those days where there’s no energy. You are listless. Nothing
smells good. There’s nothing that appeals to you. This can’t go on forever. Go
sniff out a good gourmet deli. Snag a few samples of “stinky” foreign cheeses.
Take the time to savor each morsel while training yourself to recognize one
cheese from another. Then take a nap.
* You’ve been on an eating binge. It seems like your stomach is hanging halfway
to the ground. You’ve turned into a pig. Your own kind is even repelled by your
breath. Stop eating for a day. Drink a lot of water.
* It’s been 90 degrees for three days. The heat is unbearable. You don’t want
to move out of the shade. But there are people to see, places to go and leads
to chase. Find a body of water. Jump in and paddle. You will feel better.
* You’ve been burning the candle at both ends and spending all your resources
hanging with the pack at night. Heel, boy; take a week off and catch up on your
rest.
* Every single day for the past two years you have gone for a run after work.
Up and over the hill, through the park, back up and over the hill. You are
bored with your routine. You need a new trick. Join your local Ultimate Frisbee
team – one of the fastest growing team sports in the United States. Go fetch.
Get back in the game.
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