Ijwbr 09 2013 0036

International Journal of Wine Business Research
A content analysis of influential wine blogs

Stefanie Beninger Michael Parent Leyland Pitt Anthony Chan
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IJWBR
26,3
A content analysis of influential
wine blogs
Stefanie Beninger, Michael Parent and Leyland Pitt
168 Beedie School of Business, Simon Fraser University,
Vancouver, Canada, and
Received 25 September 2013 Anthony Chan
Revised 8 January 2014 Division of Industrial Marketing, Lulea University of Technology,
Accepted 18 February 2014
Lulea, Sweden
Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this exploratory study was to analyze the content of influential wine blogs.
Design/methodology/approach The study used content analysis software, Leximancer, to
analyze the entire contents of five influential amateur wine blogs.
Findings A key finding is that these blogs all balance self-promotion with the content of their blogs,
namely, wine and wine-related topics. The wine blogs, though evaluating wines in different ways,
review not only the product attributes but also the experience surrounding wine.
Research limitations/implications Limitations of this study include that the analysis only
included five wine blogs and the content analysis was conducted by a sole researcher using a
computerized approach.
Practical implications Wine blogs have increasing influence in the wine industry, especially those
written by amateur wine bloggers. As such, understanding the tactics used by wine bloggers is of
interest to practitioners who aim to market their wines using such channels as well as providing insight
into this contemporary platform for current and aspiring wine critics.
Originality/value This is the first content analysis study that analyzes the content of wine blogs as
the readers themselves see it. It provides insights of value not only to those involved in marketing in the
wine industry but also to those interested in the developments of amateur blogs in marketing.
Keywords Marketing, Wines, Not applicable, Psychometric/qualitative
Paper type Research paper
1. The wine industry

For a product that is produced in most countries on all continents and for one in which
there is so much heterogeneity in character, taste and price, wine is surprising and
almost unique in that the demand for it, certainly in the developed world, is influenced
very strongly by just a handful of tastemakers. These writers and critics include
Jancis Robinson, wine writer for the Financial Times, James Suckling, of the magazine
Wine Spectator and the Emperor of Wine (McCoy, 2005), Robert Parker of Wine
International Journal of Wine
Advocate. Of these tastemakers, Corinne Mentzelopoulos, proprietor of Bordeaux First
Business Research Growth Chateau Margaux says If two or three of these people say it is a bad wine, it
Vol. 26 No. 3, 2014
pp. 168-187 becomes a bad wine (Deighton et al., 2006, p. 8). It has been said of Parkers ratings that
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1751-1062
the effect of his independent views are felt throughout the price setting and distribution
DOI 10.1108/IJWBR-09-2013-0036 system. Wines can see their price tumble because of a bad rating or soar when it is
especially good (Langewiesche, 2000). A Bordeaux negociant also notes that the three Influential wine
aforementioned critics address different markets:
blogs
Parker writes for wine aficionados and connoisseurs while the Wine Spectator for instance
appeals to a younger and wider audience. And of course they dont always agree. Parker is
rather supportive of our Bordeaux wines while James Suckling keeps saying Bordeaux is out
of fashion, except maybe for the first growths. But then he lives in Tuscany [] (Deighton
et al., 2006, p. 8). 169
Wine is a high-involvement purchase for which consumers rely on information from
many sources to make a purchase and consumption decision. These sources of
information include, but are not limited to advertising, product reviews (online and
offline), salespeople and point-of-sale information. The service provided by these
sources are valued by consumers due to the nature of wine. Wine is described as a
highly differentiated, internationally traded experience product (Stricker et al., 2003,
p. 253), which can be viewed as a credence good (Klein, 1998). Experience goods have
attributes that are known through experience (Klein, 1998), while credence goods have
attributes that are inherently unverifiable (Darby and Karni, 1973) and reliant on
consumer expertise (Ford et al., 1988). Though taste is a primary attribute of wine,
experience of a particular wine can be simulated by expert sources prior to purchase,
such as through shared tasting notes or through increasing the importance of non-taste
attributes, such as the history of the wine by marketers (Klein, 1998). As such,
specialists, such as wine critics, are important for consumers, as they help reduce
perceived risk through providing information prior to purchase (Klein, 1998).
What these critics all have in common, however, is that they charge for their content.
Robinsons readers need to purchase the Financial Times to access her columns or buy
her many books or access her Web site by means of subscription
(www.jancisrobinson.com). The magazine Wine Spectator requires purchase or a
subscription, and its Web site (www.winespectator.com) charges for most of the detailed
access. Parkers Wine Advocate used to be available as a subscription-based, printed
newsletter, but is now an online repository of information, regularly updated, at a
subscription of around US$100 annually (www.robertparker.com). Does the interested,
engaged and somewhat insecure wine consumer have an alternative? The advent of the
Internet and the phenomenon of blogging have somewhat democratized wine
journalism. There are now many thousands of wine blogs, most of which are free, and
some of which are achieving audiences that Robinson, Suckling and Parker are probably
taking note of. These wine blogs are the focus of this paper.
This paper intends to shed light on the nature of wine blogs, their content and the
influence they might have on wine consumers. It seeks to answer questions, such as
what is the nature of the content of wine blogs? To what extent do wine bloggers differ
in their content, strategy and style, and if so, might they cater to different audiences? Do
wine bloggers strive to differentiate themselves from each other in terms of their content
and style and in terms of the topics they address and the themes they pursue? To answer
these questions, we conducted a very detailed content analysis of five of the most
popular wine blogs. We believe that the results do indeed shed light on the nature of
wine blogging and offer insights to wine scholars and practitioners alike.
The paper is structured as follows: first, we discuss the phenomenon of blogging in
general and of wine blogs in particular. Next, we outline our choice of five wine blogs in
particular as targets for our content analysis and also describe these blogs in a little
IJWBR more detail. Then, we outline the methodology of our content analysis before presenting
our results and a discussion of these. We conclude by considering the managerial
26,3 implications of our findings, acknowledging the limitations of our approach and
outlining avenues of future research for wine marketing scholars.
170 2. Of blogs and wine blogs

Blogs and the blogging phenomenon have been of particular interest to practitioners
and researchers alike. Firms have recently found that, in many cases, one of the best
ways to get their messages across to target audiences credibly is through blogs and the
bloggers who write them (Pitt et al., 2011). Formally defined, a blog (a contraction of the
term weblog) is a type of Web site, usually maintained by an individual for regular
entries of commentary, descriptions of events or other material, such as graphics or

video (Blog, 2011). The great majority of blogs are really just online diaries, maintained
by people as a way of recording their lives to keep friends and family members informed
and amused. Some blogs have more purpose, however. Organizations use blogs to
inform and communicate with stakeholders. Some journalists have resorted to blogs
both as a way of attaining a more immediate rapport and interaction with their readers,
as well as vehicles for generating income. Many consumers value blogs because they are
more current than most mass media. They also view them as more credible than most
mass media not only with regard to advertising, but with regard to content as well
(Ghazisaeedi et al., 2010; Van Heerden et al., 2009).
The wine blog, the focus of this study, is an interactive tool for potential and current
wine consumers. Blogs allow anyone with access to the Internet to become content
creators, who can serve as independent experts (Trammell and Keshelashvili, 2005,
p. 969) of focused content (Reyneke et al., 2011), such as wine. Specifically, the wine blog
is defined as an:
[] interactive website in which a blogger writes wine reviews and informational or opinion
pieces about wine, and encourages readers to type their responses to the blog so that others
may read and respond as well (Thach, 2009, p. 145).
There is a proliferation of wine blogs on the Internet and not only by wineries. For
example, searching for wine blog online generates 44 million results (Doyle et al.,
2012). Professional wine writers and critics, amateur wine enthusiasts and other
wine-related individuals and individuals are also creating and contributing to wine
blogs. Though blogs, in general, became mainstream in 2004, wine blogs did not seem to
make an impression on the industry until 2006; however, the importance of wine blogs
has grown since then, including an annual Wine Bloggers Conference launching in 2008
(Vintank, 2012). Additionally, as the Internet grows as a sales channel for wine, wine
blogs will likely continue to rise in number and increase in importance.
English-language wine blogs number in the hundreds, indicated by a ranking site called
Cellarer, which ranks just the top 250. Based on the reported number of readers on
specific wine blogs, it appears that many individuals are using blogs as a source of
information about wine. For example, Vinography estimates a monthly readership of
just 100,000 readers a month across the globe, while another leading wine blog called
1WineDude reports that 10,000 people per month read the blog.
Amateur wine blogs are challenging the reigning reviewers of the wine industry.
Indeed, some of the older more established wine blogs provide wine reviews and
ratings that rival those of international wine critics (Thach, 2009). These reviewers, the Influential wine
so-called Power Critics, such as Robert M. Parker and a number of others, estimated to
number in the dozens, have seemingly decreased recently, and this decrease is
blogs
speculated to be due to decreasing numbers of print wine columns, an increasing
amount of content and an information glut based on decades of stories that have
already been written (Vintank, 2012). Further, blogs that do not charge a fee to readers
are more accessible to the public, allowing the amateur wine blogs to further their 171
influence. Amateur wine bloggers are also readily searchable via the Internet, which
contributes to an increase in search engine optimization rankings for the wineries that
they review (Vintank, 2012). Additionally, the vast majority of bloggers are also present
in other social media channels, such as Facebook and Twitter, which further extend
their reach. For example, a wine blog called Dr. Vino has almost 25,000 followers on
Twitter. These wine blogs are not yet as influential as, say, Robert M. Parkers Million
Dollar Nose, which makes or breaks wines and wineries (Berthon et al., 2009, p. 55).
Nonetheless, they are increasingly influential for consumers. As such, certain bloggers
have earned a minor celebrity status among their community, as they are well-known
and regularly linked by others (Trammell and Keshelashvili, 2005, p. 968), the so-called
A-list.
3. Choosing five influential wine blogs

The goal of this study is to understand the construction of the content and tactics of wine
blogs. Furthering our understanding of the content structure of wine blogs is a
worthwhile avenue of study, given its growing importance in the wine industry. To
achieve this, this study conducts an analysis of five leading wine blogs through an
analysis of their content. After a search and analysis of the multitude of wine blogs
available on the Internet, five blogs were selected for the purpose of this study. The
criteria used to select them included the following: blogs are written in English; the
target market of the blog is wine consumers; blogs are updated at least once a month on
average and were founded at least five years ago; the bloggers write individually
(single-authored blogs) from their own knowledge, and they do not receive payments
from subscriptions to their blogs; the bloggers do not work for or own a winery or related
organization, and their wine blogs must not be attached to any larger organization,
media or otherwise; and the bloggers have to have, or have had until recently, sources of
income aside from their wine blogs. Though not quite professional, mainstream critics,
some of the worlds more influential English-language wine bloggers have contributed
to other, traditional forms of wine reviews, such as in newspapers and magazines, as
well as other online sites. As such, though some of the wine bloggers may argue that
they are actually more than amateurs, given their long history as bloggers and their
influence, those blogs who meet the aforementioned criteria are defined as amateur wine
blogs for the purpose of this study.
There is no complete list available of all the wine blogs on the Internet, and
information about the blogs is inconsistent. As a result, it was challenging to gain
insight into the metrics of the various wine blogs, such as the number of readers, given
this lack of information available regarding individual wine blogs. Nonetheless, a
selection of five of the most influential blogs fitting the above criteria was made.
Influence of the wine bloggers was gauged through frequency of mention across an
assortment of lists of blogs, including Vintank: The 8 Most Important Wine Bloggers in
IJWBR the USA, Navigator: Top 10 Most Influential Wine Bloggers on Twitter, Wall Street
Journal: Five Wine Blogs I Really Click With and Cellarer: Best Wine Websites.
26,3 The selected blogs that are both influential and meet the specified criteria include
Vingoraphy (founded 2004), 1WineDude (founded 2007), Dr. Vino (founded 2002),
Wannabe Wino (founded 2006) and Benitos Wine Reviews (2005). These bloggers
appear to write about wine from a place of passion. Some of the bloggers have streams
172 of income related to wine outside of their blogs, such as writing on other Web sites and
the publication of wine related books, as described further below. All of the blogs
generate revenue through advertising on their blogs, with the exception of Wannabe
Wino. Additionally, all of the blogs maintain a Twitter account, with followers
numbering from 700 to over 15,000. The five blogs also have a Klout score, which ranks
online influence, of at least 57 out of 100, well above the average Klout score of 40 (Klout,
2013). Further details about each of the wine blogs is included below, using the
information provided on each respective blog as sources.
3.1 Vinography (Vinography.com)

Vinography is a wine blog created and maintained by strategy consultant Alder
Yarrow. Not only does this Web site include wine reviews, it also includes topics, such as
wine event coverage and book reviews of wine in San Francisco and around the world.
It is a self-described source for non-mainstream wine writing [] [that] create[s]
alternative to the traditional sources and styles of wine journalism. The impetus to start
this wine blog came from the authors realization that, in 2003, Google returned no
results for a search of the phrase wine blog. On this blog, it describes that Yarrow is
considered a pioneer of wine blogging, including being called The Wine Worlds
Brightest Cyberstar. The blog has been honored with numerous awards, including the
American Wine Blog Award. The blog includes a specially created Aroma card,
provided in seven languages, which is a teaching tool that can help consumers to learn
how to better identify the flavors and aromas in wine.
3.2 1WineDude (1winedude.com)

1WineDude is a wine blog created and maintained by musician and consultant Joe
Roberts, who formerly worked for MARS Inc. for 15 years. The wine blog was started in
2007 originally as 2WineDudes, but dropped to just one after the other founder left the
initiative. The blogger provides mini-reviews through his Twitter account and uses a
report card format on his blog to rate the wine. Unlike mainstream wine critics, he does
not just taste wines, as aspects such as origin and price can and do affect the overall
rating. Joe Roberts does not review every wine sent to him, though he states I wish I
could, and if I turn pro someday that I might [] there isnt enough time in the day for
me to do that for all wines. Recently, Joe Robert has also become a freelance wine
columnist for Playboy.com. The blogger released a Wine Tasting Guide, in the form of
an e-book, which is available through his blog.
3.3 Dr. Vino (drvino.com)

Dr. Vino is a wine blog created and maintained by Tyler Colman, a wine enthusiast
with a PhD in political science, who teaches at universities, including a class on the
Fundamentals of Wine. He started the blog prior to finishing his PhD in 2002. On his
blog, Coleman writes about wine-related topics including wine reviews and happenings
in the wine industry, such as sales of wineries. Further, he offers tips on wine
preparation, such as how to chill wine in five minutes. He has written two books on Influential wine
wine, one on wine politics and one reviewing wines as well as being published in
newspapers and magazines. He provides wine maps on his blog, which shows wine
blogs
shops and related restaurants and bars in New York City, Chicago, Paris and Los
Angeles.
3.4 Wannabe Wino (wannabewino.com)

Wannabe Wino is a blog written by an anonymous attorney from Northern Virginia.
173
After a trip to Sonoma, California, where the blogger purchased 18 cases of wines, the
author realized that no one seemed to be saying much (online) about these small, mostly
family-owned wineries. As a result, she started her own wine blog in 2006. She provides
candid reviews of a variety of different wines, some as result of wine she received from
public relations representatives of wineries as well as providing live blogging from

her trips to wineries. Recently, Wannabe Wino became involved again in Wine
Blogging Wednesday, where a group of bloggers participate in writing about specific
wines, such as being tasked with choosing a dry rose with which to celebrate the best
of summer.
3.5 Benitos Wine Reviews (wine-by-benito.blogspot.ca)

Benitos Wine Reviews is a blog created and maintained by Ben Carte, a quality
assurance agent, from Memphis, Tennessee. He started the blog in 2006, in his words,
merely as a way to keep notes on the wines I was tasting at the time. He does not claim
to be a wine expert or wine collector, but reported that he tasted over 3,000 different
bottles of wines from 27 countries. Additionally, he states that he is not a wine snob []
(and that) crass anti-elitism is annoying. The wine reviews include information about
the taste, potentially good pairings, among other topics. He was a finalist in the 2012
Wine Blog Awards for the best wine reviews blog and the winner of the Home
Entertaining Blog Award for best wine review blog for 2012. His blog provides a list of
and links to other notable national and global wine blogs.
4. Method of content analysis

The five wine blogs in their entirety were downloaded from the Internet, and their
content was analyzed. Conducting an analysis of such an immense body of data (one of
the blog files alone exceeded 10 gigabytes) poses significant challenges, especially given
that more influential blogs could have been adding content on a weekly basis for a
decade or more. The volume of posts poses a challenge to analysis, and, as a result, an
automated content analysis approach was identified as the best solution. Specifically, a
content analysis package called Leximancer was used to analyze the text content, in
HTML file form, of these five wine blogs. Following the technique of Trammell and
Keshelashvili (2005), this method was chosen over other methods, such as a survey, as it
is a chance to study what the blog readers actually see, rather than conducting a study
about the perceptions of its readers or authors. Leximancer was chosen as a tool, given
that its flexibility and comprehensiveness as well as its approach that encompasses both
natural language processing and data mining (Robson et al., 2013). This software
conducts both thematic and relational analysis of the text based on the Bayesian theory
and learns as it analyzes the text (Campbell et al., 2011), resulting in a concept map of the
analyzed text, which shows the key themes present in the analyzed content linked by
clusters of related concepts. Given that Leximancer is able to disregard pronouns and
IJWBR conjunctions (Campbell et al., 2011), the data from the blog did not require cleaning prior
to analysis. This process was found in trials to agree with the judgment of expert
26,3 humans (Rooney, 2005), with the added benefit of being quick in providing concept
maps necessary for analysis.
These resulting concept maps were assessed within the individual wine blogs and
compared between the wine blogs as described below. The assessment of the concept
174 maps is interactive; as such, limited snapshots of the resulting concept maps can be
found in the Appendix. This assessment of the concept maps is a limitation of the study,
as it is inherently subjective in nature. Concepts that are physically closer together or
overlapping on the map are closer linked in the text, and darker circles on the map
indicate the increased importance of that theme (Robson et al., 2013; Campbell et al.,
2011). This form of analysis has been used by other scholars across diverse areas of
studies (Robson et al., 2013; Campbell et al., 2011; Martin and Rice, 2007; Smith and
Humphreys, 2006; Scott and Smith, 2005), with 870 academic publications to date using
this software (Leximancer, 2013).
5. Results
The five blogs analyzed did differ somewhat in terms of their content, orientation and
themes. However, we found the extent to which these themes overlapped to be quite
strong. This is not unexpected, given that all of the blogs deal with wine. All five writers
were quite concerned with legalities, which stands to reason considering the topic they
are dealing with is restricted to those of drinking age and the concern that they would
not want to be promoting illegal consumption of alcoholic beverages. What is more
surprising is the extent to which the bloggers engaged in blatant self-promotion. It was
not enough to talk about wine, the bloggers had to repeatedly state their expertise, their
topicality and the overall superiority of blogs in general, including especially theirs, as
sources of authority. These results are discussed in more detail by the respective blog
below.
5.1 Vinography
This blog was unique in its single-minded focus on the flavor of wine. In fact, Flavour
was counted 53,000 times in the blog, as was wine. The sub-themes included the
following flavor-related concepts: black, dark, garnet, color, acidity, finish, tannins,
bright, fruit, zest, long, among many others. Additionally, tasting of flavors was a
dominant concept. Interestingly, adventures was a concept that is linked strongly
with the flavors, wines, and tasting. Adventure was also linked with places, such
as San Francisco, event, people and wineries. Finally, the concept of time was
apparent in the analysis. Time not only linked to the theme of wine, but it also linked
to adventures, events, people, family and love:
Finding 1: Flavors and time were described both in regard to the taste of wines and also in
regards to experiences. This leads us to conclude that this blog is hedonistic in nature, focusing
on the whole of the wine consumption experience, as it extends through consumption of the
product to the events that this consumption might be associated with.
A second strong theme that emerged from the analysis had to do with Legal terms that
were not at all related to the dominant themes of wine, flavour as well as the
locations. The terms theme included the Web site terms and publishing information in
regards to the site:
Finding 2: Legal protection is a key concern of this blog. The blogger appears very concerned Influential wine
with protection of his intellectual property and of safeguarding the site. The repeated use of
legal terms appears to reinforce his assertion that his is original work. blogs
A final theme that emerged for this blog was Alder, the surname of the blog author.
This theme is linked to all other aspects on the blog, especially so with wines and flavors,
and less so with legal terms. It is interesting to note that the authors name was more
predominant than the blog name: 175
Finding 3: Self-promotion of the blogs author is central to this blog. The blog, we surmise, is
a tool for the author to create and perpetuate his authority as a wine reviewer.
5.2 1WineDude
Wines was by far the most prevalent theme of this blog, followed by wine and find.
The following related to these themes: reds, tasting, learning, taste, year, winemaking,
time and road. Road refers to the segments entitled on the road, where, for example,
the blogger visited Chile and Argentina and sampled their wines. Find was a theme
from the Web site where, after the wine reviews, a link was provided to
Wine-Searcher.com labeled find this wine:
Finding 1: Finding, tasting and learning about wines are important themes in this blog. The
blogger not only provides opinions, but more importantly, purports to serve as a portal to the
Wine-Searcher.com Web site. We can only speculate that he does so mainly to earn affiliate
income from Wine-Searcher on clicks originating from his blog (clickthroughs).
Another important concept in this blog was that of interesting. This seemed to be in
reference to the bloggers top-ten list of wines of the year. The concept of lists was also
an important one in this blog. The blog publishes a mini round-up of wines, which is a
weekly list of wine reviews and tasting notes that have been published on the blogs
Twitter account:
Finding 2: Providing lists about wines is a technique used in this blog. The blogger displays a
sophisticated knowledge of social media, integrating the blog with Twitter and using the latter
to drive traffic to the blog site. Again, clickthroughs help the sites ranking and drives
readership, and thus, any advertising revenue from visits to the site.
Finally, the concept 1winedude, site, blogging, blogs, bloggers and twitter
and review were prominent in this blog. This indicates that this author is not only
discussing his blog but also blogs in general. This could be an indication that he is
attempting to raise the profile of the concept of blogs in the wine industry. Similarly, the
theme book came up within the wines concept. This theme is connected to
self-promotion, as the book in reference is How to Taste Like a Wine Geek: The
1WineDude Wine Tasting Guide, an eBook published by the author:
Finding 3: Self-promotion and, less so, promotion of blogging in general are central concepts in
this blog.
5.3 Dr. Vino

Dr. Vinos leading themes are wine and wines, million, and Vino and the Web
site address of the blog.
IJWBR Wines and wine are central themes in this blog, accounting for over 56 per cent of
the relative count of concepts. Wines was linked strongly to wine, whereas both are
26,3 also strongly linked to concepts of blog, Vino and the blog Web address, talk and
easy. These concepts seem to be prevalent, as they are part of the payoff of the wine
blog, which is Dr. Vino: wine talk that goes down easy. As such, this is an indication
that promotion is essential to his blog. This promotion is not about the author, rather
176 about the blog itself:
Finding 1: Promotion of the blog is a central theme of Dr. Vino.
Million is a key theme of the blog. Million as a concept is linked to tasting, wines
and wine. A Google search of the blog indicates that there are blog posts regarding the
worth and revenues of wines and wineries, accounting for this term million appearing
as a theme:
Finding 2: The worth of wines and wine-related entities is a dominant theme in this blog.
Aside from the promotional aspects discussed above, the themes of wine and wines
included the following concepts: tasting, find, spit and think. Great and find are
tightly connected with each other, though all are linked to tasting. The concept of
time is also an essential part of the wine and wines themes. Time is about the passage
of a year and years and the past, but also about the time in regards to a bottle:
Finding 3: This blog predominately describes sensory experiences surrounding wine.
Additionally, home is a concept that appears on this blog. This is a navigation tool that
allows readers to return to the home page.
5.4 Wannabe Wino

Wannabe Winos main themes were wine, alcohol and month. Alcohol, as a
theme, was closely connected to the following concepts: wines, bottle and bottles, wine,
retails, closure, white, red and volume, among many other concepts. Other descriptors of
wine were less dominant concepts, including great, mouth, glass, favorite and
love. Additionally, time-related concepts, such as month, year, night and
different months, were present on this blog:
Finding 1: The alcohol in wine is central to this blog, inasmuch as it acts as a surrogate or
indicator of taste and of the value of the wine.
Within the themes of alcohol and wine, action concepts were present, including:
drinking, tasting, picked, tasted, think, clocked and find. Only tasting was part of the
concept of month as well:
Finding 2: Actions surrounding wine and alcohol are prevalent concepts of this blog.
A less dominant theme on this blog is Sonadora, which was the authors name. This
theme, though present, was not a concept that was tightly linked to others on the blog,
though the concept post was present in both reference to the month and her name.
Additionally, there was a concept of blog that spanned the themes month and
wine:
Finding 3: The blog author is an important theme on this blog, reflecting her desire to promote
herself as its author and as an authority on wine and wine consumption.
5.5 Benitos Wine Reviews Influential wine
Wine was, by far, the dominant theme on this blog. It was strongly connected to almost
all concepts, more so than in any of the other blogs. Flavours was another theme that
blogs
arose. Flavor concepts included a variety of different descriptors: wines, including fruit,
aromas, cheery, finish, dry, light, sweet, full, red, white, black and nice:
Finding 1: The flavors of wine were a prevailing theme in this blog. Wine was described
mainly in terms of associated tastes. 177
The wine theme contained a variety of concepts about wine itself, including grapes,
grape, bottle, bottles and glass. There were other associated nouns as well, including
dinner, food, couple and people. Additionally, there were a variety of action words, such
as find, tasting, think and found. Overlapping with the wine theme was the theme
sauce. In reference to wine, the theme sauce included shared concepts, such as
dinner, glass, pretty, time, big and found as well as unique concepts: cooking, beer, dish,
cheese, delicious, sauce, side and served:
Finding 2: Though wine is the most dominant theme on the blog, food is also an important
theme. More specifically, the blog discusses winefood pairings and cooking with wine,
extending the wine consumption experience.
Memphis was a dominant theme on this blog. This included a variety of time-specific
words, such as years, past, back, recently and ago. Memphis is where the author lives
and grew up. The theme also shares the following concepts with wine: family, couple,
local and people. The concept home is found within Memphis, wine and sauce:
Finding 3: Inclusion of the authors home town is a prevalent theme on this blog.
Interestingly, Benitos Wine Reviews does not include extensive promotion for himself
or his blog name, rather he promotes his hometown of Memphis, and, less so, the concept
blog. This could be because Benito is not the authors real name. He originally created
the name in attempt to be anonymous and to sound more interesting. As the blog became
more influential, Benito released his real name. This could be the reason that
self-promotion of his name is not present on the blog.
6. Discussion
Blogs have the dual advantage of conferring both legitimacy and structure to their
authors. Their medium, the Internet, is paradoxically highly structured and unfettered.
By this we mean that the rules for publishing and the conventions around Web pages
(e.g. programming languages, frame building and the like) are rigid, while the content is
completely uncensored, un-reviewed and in the realm of the authors opinion. As a
result, they offer voice and agency to those whose opinions might otherwise remain, for
better or worse, obscure. As the ultimate democracy, the Internet also reveals power
through sheer numbers. It is enough to conclude that if your blog or Web site receives a
lot of traffic, it must be true. Our study of the five truest non-commercial wine blogs
supports this assertion and is consistent with previous research on blogs in general. To
wit, wine reviewers are not immune to the leveraging effect that the Internet has
afforded other categories of consumer goods or services.
Our results indicate that the wines and wine-related topics in the blogs are not just
about the products themselves. Rather, these blogs weave product reviews into a larger,
compelling story of wines, namely, the sensory experience surrounding wine. The
IJWBR importance of sensory experiences for consumers has been found in previous research.
A pleasing sensory experience of wine is expected by consumers, where an experience
26,3 includes not only taste and smell but also extrinsic factors, such as packaging and
perceptions of the winemaker (Bisson et al., 2002). Purchase decisions of wine hinge on
extrinsic cues (Mueller et al., 2010), while evaluation of the sensory experience was found
to be influenced by brand (Lange et al., 2002) and geographical origins of the wine
178 (Felzensztein and Dinnie, 2006). Further, expert sources can influence the subsequent
product experience. Indeed, it was found that the rating of a wine by Robert Parker
influenced consumers wine tasting experience and subsequent product evaluation
(Siegrist and Cousin, 2009). Further, the actual intrinsic sensory experiences of wines
during tasting as well as expectations prior to experience can influence subsequent
purchase intent (Mueller et al., 2010).
Wine is a product whose consumption has long been woven into the fabric of society,
whether it is special events or everyday life. These blogs all mimic this trope and
attempt to be memorable and compelling by linking wines to life. One reason these five
blogs might dominate is that they are especially good at doing so and resonate with their
target audiences. In all five cases, we see wine and the drinking of wine interwoven with
events and with definitive statements of where, when and how the wines might be
consumed.
The blogs are also very similar in the extent to which they engage in ongoing
promotion and self-reinforcement. This is an interesting finding for wine critics
everywhere. As noted earlier, reviewers like Parker and Robinson built their reputation
one glass at a time and by influencing other, well-known influencers (like newspaper
editors and the like who published their opinions and by subscribers, whose
subscriptions validated the reviews). Unfortunately, reading a blog is free and switching
costs for readers are zero. If a visitor does not like a blog, a quick Google search will
reveal hundreds of alternatives. As such, Web site traffic (# of unique visitors, repeat
visitors, time on site, clickthroughs) are the metrics that determine a sites popularity
and thus authority (leading ultimately, to steady revenue streams). Therefore, it is
incumbent on wine bloggers to quickly establish and constantly reinforce their
authority. As a result, all bloggers engaged in copious and continuous self-promotion on
their blogs, designed to affirm and reinforce their authority, their voice, to readers.
While all of the blogs broadly dealt with wine and wine consumption, they differed
widely on how they reviewed wines and wine-related topics, including the content of the
reviews and the techniques they used. Vinography focused on the flavors and the
technical side of tasting wines, represented through the use of such concepts as
tannins and nose. Likewise, Benitos Wine Reviews included a variety of
flavor-oriented concepts. Wannabe Wino, on the other hand, focused on the alcohol in
the wines. 1Winedude did not have any dominant themes related to the wine
specifically, aside from the word red, as the process of tasting, finding and learning
about wines being the dominant themes over that of the wines themselves. Similarly,
Dr. Vino did not have flavor-related types as dominating themes, focusing more on the
thinking and tasting of wines, in addition to content about the worth of wines, with the
theme million dominating. Aside from the content, the techniques used to describe
them, such as telling a story or describing a tried food pairing or using lists to cover
many wines in one blog, was also evident. These findings indicate that there is little
consensus over how to review wines, with these five influential wine blogs
demonstrating very different trends and styles across their writing. It also suggests that Influential wine
wine bloggers are not immune to the basic principles of business strategy. In the absence
of any external validation of their credentials that would drive traffic to their sites, the
blogs
bloggers must somehow differentiate themselves from one another to occupy a unique
place in the market and thus readership. These successful blogs recognize and embody
this truism.
Across all five of the blogs studied, wine and wines appear as themes, which is fitting. 179
However, beyond just writing about the product, the experiences surrounding the wines
are dominant. This indicates that wine is not just about the product itself for these wine
bloggers but also about what surrounds the product. The blogs are not just limited to
tasting the wine and reporting on wine, they also include the process of discovering or
findings wines, whether it be through trips to wineries or adventuring on the road.
Thinking about the wines and what occurs around the tasting, such as people and food,
are also key concepts. Time is also reflected in the results, where time is linked to the
wines themselves, presumably the vintage, but also in reference to the experiences
surrounding the wine. As such, it is important to note that these blogs seem to contain
elements of story-telling, rather than just reviewing. The stories are about the
discovering and enjoying of and reflecting on wines. By putting the experience as
central to their blogs, it also puts the author as a central component, as they are the
individuals engaged in the process. This idea of putting the author into the story is also
reflected in the self-promotion that is evident across the blogs.
As noted above, all of the blogs conducted ongoing promotion. This promotion was
for their blogs, for themselves as authors, for related online platforms, such as Twitter or
eBooks, for blogs in general or for their city. These promotional activities were balanced
or in tension with the content about the wines and wine-related topics. Self-promotion is
a form of impression management, and a balance between self-promotion and other
goals, such as disclosure of self, has been found in previous literature regarding blogs
(Trammell and Keshelashvili, 2005). Indeed, for both Dr. Vino and 1Winedude,
self-promotion of the blog and the author, respectively, were leading themes found in the
analysis. Self-promotion is also evident across the other social media accounts of the
blogs, such as the microblogging site Twitter. For example, with the exception of
Dr. Vino, all the bloggers use their full or partial names in their Twitter name or Twitter
handle. For Vinography, 1Winedude and Benitos Wine Reviews, they use their full
names. Additionally, two blogs, through concepts, such as blog, blogger and the like,
seem to be promoting the concept of wine blogs in general, rather than promotion of their
particular blog. This could indicate that they are striving to raise the profile of blogs as
a platform for review in the industry. Overall, these blogs, though run by
non-professionals, reflect a certain level of marketing savvy, as they are using, perhaps
without realizing, marketing principles in their execution. Indeed, these nonprofessional
wine bloggers are becoming increasing sophisticated, as demonstrated by their
connection with and promotion to other online platforms, such as Twitter, eBooks and
guest appearances on other Web sites as well as their commitment to self-promotion.
7. Managerial implications and directions for future research

Given the rising importance of both the Internet and of wine blogs on the wine industry,
this study contributes to our understanding about the content and tactics they use. As
the influence of wine blogs and of amateur critics continue to grow online, their impact
IJWBR on mainstream wine critics, wineries and other organizations in the wine industries will
likewise continue to grow. It is through sustained study that scholars will understand
26,3 this trend and the impact it has on the marketing of wine. This study offers some
insights into how such a program of study might evolve.
For practitioners, it is interesting to note the differences between the various wine
blogs. These blogs have cultivated their own niches, and, for the wineries that wish to
180 promote their wines or wineries through these blogs, it is important to understand their
differences. Indeed, luxury wine brands have room to improve regarding their social
media strategies (Reyneke et al., 2011), and having their wines reviewed on these and
other blogs could be part of this strategy. For example, for a wine positioned on the
technical aspects of wines, it could be beneficial to utilize Vinography as a potential
marketing platform by providing the author with a sample of the wine. Additionally, for
bloggers, recognizing the importance of self-promotion and promotion of wine blogging

in general is key. As the wine blogging sector becomes more cluttered, promotion will
become increasingly crucial to cultivate an audience.
As this study was limited to five wine blogs, it could be interesting to conduct a
similar analysis of other weblogs that fit the sampling criteria. As these forms of wine
blogs are as unique as the individuals who write them, it is anticipated that the results
will likewise differ. Additionally, assessing the purchasing behavior of the readers of
each wine blog could be interesting, as it could shed insight into which technique of
blogging wines is most successful. Further, it could be fruitful to engage in a
longitudinal study, by conducting the same content analysis on the same blogs in the
future. It is anticipated that the themes of the blogs could change over time. In the future,
it would be advantageous to compare the findings of this study to wine blogs written by
experienced professional wine critics as well as official wine blogs from wineries. It
could be that the findings of this study differ depending on the respected authors and
goal of the wine blogs. For example, a wine blog maintained by a winery is, most likely,
being offered as part of their marketing activity, and that can have an impact on the
themes discovered in the blog. Finally, conducting other forms of analysis, such as
through surveying readers or wine bloggers, could provide a broader picture of the
current status and development of wine blogs. It would be particularly enlightening to
study how wine blogs influence consumers and what aspects enhance or undermine that
influence, if any. For example, research could confirm the extent which readers and wine
consumers are skeptical (or not) about the content of blogs (Ghazisaeedi et al., 2010; Van
Heerden et al., 2009) and whether this is related to such characteristics as age, gender,
income and wine consumption, and at a more advanced level, wine knowledge.
8. Conclusion
This research has provided a content analysis of five influential wine blogs. The
findings demonstrate that the world of wine reviewing goes beyond just commenting
on the product attributes and well beyond the paid wine review sites. Rather, it is
apparent that sharing the story around the process of experiencing the wines, from
finding wines to reflecting on them, is just as important. Further, the self-promotion of
the bloggers on their sites indicates a level of marketing-savvy that has heretofore not
been codified and understood. As the number of wine blogs continues to grow, so will
the noise, making consumer choices more difficult. The five blogs we studied have
succeeded in creating a resonant voice and in attracting a loyal audience. As a result,
they have generated an inordinate amount of influence for themselves, competing with Influential wine
more traditional media outlets and critics. As this phenomenon continues to grow,
understanding how these blogs are created, maintained and leveraged will become
blogs
increasingly important for both wine business scholars and practitioners.
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Appendix 1: Selection of resulting concept maps Influential wine
blogs
183
Figure A1.
Vinography
26,3
184
Dr. Vino
IJWBR
Figure A2.
1WineDude
Figure A3.
185
blogs
Influential wine
26,3
186
IJWBR
Figure A4.
Wannabe Wino
Influential wine
blogs
187
Figure A5.
Wine by Benito
About the authors

Stefanie Beninger is a PhD student at Beedie School of Business, Simon Fraser University,
Vancouver, Canada. Stefanie Beninger is the corresponding author and can be contacted at:
sbeninge@sfu.ca
Michael Parent is Professor of Management Information Systems and Marketing at Beedie
School of Business, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada.
Leyland Pitt is Professor of Marketing and Dennis F. Culver EMBA Alumni Professor of
Business, at Beedie School of Business, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada, and
Adjunct Professor of Marketing, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) Stockholm, Sweden.
Anthony Chan is Adjunct Professor in the Division of Industrial Marketing, Lulea University
of Technology, Lulea, Sweden.
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A content analysis of influential wine blogs

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1. The wine industry

170 2. Of blogs and wine blogs

entries of commentary, descriptions of events or other material, such as graphics or

3. Choosing five influential wine blogs

3.1 Vinography (Vinography.com)

3.2 1WineDude (1winedude.com)

3.3 Dr. Vino (drvino.com)

3.4 Wannabe Wino (wannabewino.com)

public relations representatives of wineries as well as providing live blogging from

3.5 Benitos Wine Reviews (wine-by-benito.blogspot.ca)

4. Method of content analysis

5.3 Dr. Vino

5.4 Wannabe Wino

7. Managerial implications and directions for future research

bloggers, recognizing the importance of self-promotion and promotion of wine blogging

About the authors

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