Most Popular Wine Kits

[geocorn]

Just curious to see if you are curious.

 

[Angell Wine]

I don't mind has long as you post the least popular one's too.

 

[Brandst]

Would be interesting to see what others are making. And it may motivate some to try a wine that they would not normally look at if others think it's great.

Steve

 

[geocorn]

I should have re-phrased the question to "Would you like to see a list of the popularity of all wine kit sales?"

 

[masta]

Sure we love numbers!

 

[djcoop]

Yes, I would like to see the overall popularity!

 

[PolishWineP]

Yes! I think it's a great idea!

Can certainly be of help when trying to decide what to next make!

 

[smurfe]

Of course. I am always interested in statistics. I don't think I would rush out and buy something cause everyone else is but it would make me take a hard look at a product and see if it suits my needs.


What I would really like to see statistic wise are the kits that met expectations and those that didn't meet expectations as compared to a commercial made wine.


Smurfe

 

[geocorn]

As a general rule, most kits have exceeded expectations. I have had only a handfull of customers that were not satisfied with a specific kit. The most common complaint is that some of the Vintners Reserves are somewhat "thin". Most of the time, those customers upgrade to the Selection kits and are more than satisfied with the increased body.

 

[otto6183]

Yes, I believe that there is usually a good reason for the popularity of any kit. There might be other factors involved, but barring a complete media blitz, popularity can usually be construed to be a good indicator of satisfied customers and, hopefully, quality. In any event, the 'popularity factor' will definitely be an 'attention getter'.

 

[MedPretzel]

Yes, because I think it would be good to choose what kit to buy/not to buynext.

 

[grapeman]

George,


Do you have any way to track repeat sales of the kits you at least sell? This might be a good indicator in itself. If a person buys a kit several times, chances are they at least think it is better than others they have purchased. I know I have a few favorites myself even though I haven't been doing this that long.

 

[geocorn]

That is a good idea. I have the data, but will have to determine how best to provide it. It is a little trickier than just ranking the kits by sales.

 

[Bert]

This sounds like a good idea...It may help in deciding what else to make....Maybe I would find something else I really like...But than I haven't found any I didn't like.

 

[maize]

Good idea about the repeat orders.


But something to keep in mind... To me it often seems like there are too many interesting sounding kits and not enough time to do them all. In less than 2 years, I have started 16 kits - and I don't have any duplicates yet. Now, I like most of the ones that I have tried and I did plan to make a second of a RJ kit - but George had too many leakers. Many of the kits I have make are from the yearly special sets, so you often don't have a chance to order a second one later.


All that being said, I currently have a second Trio kit in my shopping cart. That was a delima, since there were some white kits I thought would be fun - but I finally decided on the Trio because I really liked it and the others would be around later - probably.

 

[geocorn]

Here is the first link. I will do more with it later, but I wanted to get the initial data out. Have fun!


http://www.finevinewines.com/Wine-Kit-Popularity.asp

 

[peterCooper]

It's a funny thing about expectations. The first time I made a WE Selction kit
it exceeded my expectations. As a result, my expectations were raised.
The second time I made the same kit it only MET my epectations

 

[grapeman]

Now those are interesting results. What I think I'm seeing is the result of a lot of first time buyers wetting their feet not being sure what kit to buy(opting for the less expensive ones).There are a lot of the cheaper kits near the top and a couple of good ones. A few people start with the best. Maybe you should throw out the first time purchases- kind-of like a poll where they lop off the top and bottom 10%. This might better reflect what people really think is better.


Then there are a few I really like that don't score as well- maybe it's just that nobody else has tried them yet.


Boy, a person could really interpret a lot of different things from this!

 

[otto6183]

I'm not at all surprised to see the SE Stag's Leap District Merlot and the SE Oregon Yamhill County Pinot Noir on the top of the list. I sure am glad I've got both almost ready to bottle........ and age for at least a year

I totally agree with 'appleman', there are indeed a lot of possible interpretations, although by comparing VR with VR, SO with SO, IM with IM, etc, there seem to be considerably fewer surprises.

Thanks for the info, George

 

[smurfe]

It's a funny thing about expectations. The first time I made a WE Selection kit
it exceeded my expectations. As a result, my expectations were raised.
The second time I made the same kit it only MET my expectations

I am with Peter. I used to enjoy my VR Cab kit. After a couple Selection kits came around after 6-8 months in the bottle and still getting better, that raised my expectations and thus now, I hardly drink the VR Cab kit and use it mostly for topping up. Kinda goes along with why eat a hamburger po-boy when I can eat a shrimp po-boy everyday. Save the hamburger for meatballs for the spaghetti!. A hamburger is good but I prefer shrimp. Plus you have to remember, shrimp is easier to get here and in many places, cheaper than hamburger so I guess that throws the theory off there.

While the list is interesting, everyone has to remember that everyone has different tastes and different budgets. Of the top 20 kits in sales, I personally would only make 3 of them again. I have made a few others in the top 20 list and while are fine, they don't suit my taste. The list shows the variety enjoyed by our fine group here. It gives me a vast resource to turn to in the event I want to make a wine I wouldn't drink for someone else or if I just wanted to broaden my knowledge and experiment.


Repeat sales stats would be interesting as well. And hey, even though I ain't gonna make it, I truly am interested in what others make as well and you never know, I could be swayed to acquire new tastes as well which in my opinion is what this is all about. Sharing your experiences andbuilding a friends network with the same passions.

It really gets my goat to read posts where the writer raves about a particular wine and more or less says if you drink anything else, you are more of a Street Wino than a wine connoisseur. Anyone who says they have a "mature palette" is pretentious and quite frankly not a wine lover.

Remember, no matter how "advanced" you palette is, poo still tastes like poo and honey still tastes like honey.

It's that simple. Our palettes are "matured" to suit our tastes, not anyone else's. If I make a wine and enter it in a contest and it scores horribly but I love drinking it. who's the winner there?

Thanks for the data George, it goes to show that you are truly part of the community and not just a retailer. Sharing your passion has created a living for you as well as many new friends. We all have made new friends here and attending Winestock has cemented that fact. I hope to learn more and hope in some way I can continue to contribute to the site for a long time to come.


Now, I have to try to remember why the heck I am sitting here rambling again and have strayed so much off the point. But hey, y'all know me and how I like to talk and yeah, I have killed a bottle of Amarone so I guess the results of statistical data are talking!

Smurfe