Originally published in Vino and Voyage, my Substack newsletter featuring Miami dining news & events, wine & travel stories, and real talk on working in wine & media. I wanted to share a taste of that publication here on my original blog. Subscribe if you wish to read more articles like this.
If the local Miami wine community had a welcome mat, it would say: “We’re happy you’re here. But also… who are you, and why?”
The Magic City has that glamorous sparkle that makes wine brands (and other industries too, but for this article, wine) think, “Yes! This is where we must be.” And to be fair, they’re not wrong. What other U.S. city can power through 95-degree humidity and enjoy a bottle of Provence rosé at 3 p.m. on a Tuesday without a single regard for whether it’s a “work day” or not? But for every success story, there are other brands wandering around town like they’ve been dropped in by drone, without a clue about how to reach us mythical Miami creatures.
That’s the thing about this city: beneath the neon skyline and the glossy, filtered Instagram posts, Miami is a small town, and a tale of two cities. Everyone knows someone who knows someone, and most of us know that it’s not always Champagne and all-night parties. If a wine brand shows up acting like they’ll own us just because they’re popular in another U.S. city and come from 14 generations of winemaking, but with no clue about how things actually work, we notice. Fast.
This is the inside scoop, folks. The good, the cringe, and everything fermenting in between.
Read more and finish this story on Vino and Voyage…
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