Becky Wasserman

@keepercoll #SommChat Thank you for tuning in and for your questions, we appreciate all your continued support of the wine community.

It was great to have Becky Wasserman @BeckyWasserman join us today for #SommChat. We hope everyone learned as much as we did!

@keepercoll #SommChat Michel Lafarge, René Mugneret. They spent hours with me in the vines, in the cellars.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm who were your mentors when you began in the #wine Business @BeckyWasserman ?

@keepercoll #SommChat The company motto is "We do not sell what we do not drink". France is rich in appellations, it's a treasure trove. The Loire, Languedoc, and Roussillon are examples. We look for something special, like a flash, quantity is secondary.

Q fr #SomMChat #Somm @BeckyWasserman You founded Becky Wasserman & Co. in 1979 and have been exporting #wines from #Burgundy and other regions! What criteria do you set for the wines you want to sell?

@keepercoll #SommChat Peter & Paul Wasserman are our roadies until we wear them out, then the younger members of the home team will go on the road. We are very much a hands-on company.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm to enter the new markets you mentioned, do you increase your sales team internally or do you contract that out to ppl in the countries where you are expanding @BeckyWasserman

@keepercoll #SommChat A glass of bourgogne from old vines is often tastier than a premier cru on its fourth leaf. The modest cuvées are a good indication as to the style of a winemaker. These wines often drink well when they are young.

@BeckyWasserman we were fortunate to learn from you many years ago about the beauty of #bourgogne (base) level #wines from gr8 producers - not trophy #wine drinking - can you share thoughts for #Somms on this?

@keepercoll #SommChat It's agriculture with a weather dependent crop, and we do our best. Allocations of certain domaines are evidently reduced. We honor our long term customers, each year is a new puzzle.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm How hard has it been to handle the smaller #wine Productions experienced due to weather and thus small allocations for your long-term customers and customers that are new @BeckyWasserman

@keepercoll #SommChat Our main market is the USA, and we are beginning to work in Scandinavia, Russia, the UK, Hong Kong, Chile, & Mexico. We do not work with volume so our possibilities for expansion are limited. We would like to work with more states in the USA as well.

.@BeckyWasserman What are your main markets that you distribute to and where would you like to expand? #SommChat

@keepercoll #SommChat Survival for myself, my family, and the company. Glamour doesn't enter into it, and inspiration comes from the winemakers we represent.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm @BeckyWasserman What has been your inspiration throughout your journey and conquering the #wine #world?

@keepercoll @stevenpmcdonald I've been banished from the office because my lack of computer skills. I work from the house, I answer my correspondance, and I receive customers at the house with the help of Russell.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm @BeckyWasserman you career is amazing to read about and imagine there is not enough time to tell it all! What is a day in your life working look like now?

@keepercoll @stevenpmcdonald #SommChat It is your song my friend. @stevenpmcdonald

.@BeckyWasserman why do you think there has been such an interest suddenly in #Aligote among #Somms in the #US (glad we were on the bandwagon for more than a long time:)) #SommChat cc: @stevenpmcdonald

@keepercoll @Decanter #SommChat So honored that someone from the trading side of wine received such a prestigious award. What this represents is a recognition of our entire team.

.@BeckyWasserman Congratulations on being awarded @Decanter Hall of Fame inductee 2019! What does this award mean to you and others that are forging after you? #SommChat

@keepercoll #SommChat David Croix (he's still young), Amélie Berthaut, Nicolas Faure, Thomas Bouley, David Moreau, Emmanuel Ogereau, Mathieu Deiss, Jean Baptiste Souillard, Paul Zanetti (Clos des Epeneaux), Charles Lachaux, Sebastien Cathiard.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm can you share any younger #winemakers that you think should be on our radar screen @BeckyWasserman ?

@keepercoll @JuneRodil #SommChat @JuneRodil Bad partnerships, they cause big damage and long recovery time. Miss you, June.

One more question from @junerodil for @beckywasserman what is something that you learned in your career from a misstep that could help us today? & thanks for all you have done and do for all of us everyday #SommChat

@keepercoll #SommChat A reliance on social media. Communication between winemakers from all countries. Women.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm @BeckyWasserman please share some ways you have seen the #wine world evolve since you began in this industry?

@keepercoll #SommChat For red burgundies - less maceration, whole cluster, very little sulfur. For whites - growers are less afraid of oxygen throughout vinification.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm are you seeing any new trends in #Burgundy that are at the beginning of a 10 year trend, as you say @BeckyWasserman

@keepercoll #SommChat Burgundians say that wine is a living entity. When a wine goes from one age to another - childhood, maturity, old age - it shuts down during the transition. We can't tell when this is going to happen.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm can you explain @beckywasserman what is meant by the #wines “closing down” and how do you know with #Burgundy #wines when this will happen?

@keepercoll @JuneRodil #SommChat @JuneRodil Trust your own taste, do not follow fashion. Trends last about 10 years.

.@junerodil sends question #2 to @BeckyWasserman What is one piece of advice that you would give to #wine professionals today based upon your immense experience #SommChat

@keepercoll #SommChat It is entirely a team decision. We taste together, we are three generations, and we hope for a consensus.

Q fr #SommChat #Somm How do you decide on #wines you will represent in your portfolio and do you make the decision or is it more than one person who decides @beckywasserman?

@keepercoll #SommChat @JuneRodil I would chose Greece. Greece is perhaps the oldest world, but it is new to the wine community.

@keepercoll Hello everybody, and thank you for tuning in to #SommChat. Also - happy anniversary so SommChat.

We're about ready to dive in w/questions, so shout out to Becky Wasserman @BeckyWasserman to say hello & so she knows you're here! #WineWednesday #SommChat