Excellent. Seems like someone pissed you off. It’s nice to here blunt honesty especially with the way the market is. I would be interested to know what happened.

Welcome back. We missed you. Another good episode.

Gary:

Great to have you back. I missed W-L TV! Please e-mail me back and let me know what went down.

It has always been real (remember Frog’s Leap?) – perhaps episode 57 is a too (harshly) truthful? Gary, you’re such a nice guy (that is a compliment) – it is too startling to hear you go so negative.

Hey Gary,

Its nice to see you finally back. I got lucky because I was coming by the site to make some purchases and just happened to check and WLTV was back up. If you don’t mind me asking, fill us in on what happened. You seem a bit ticked off….although I’ve been waiting for you to simply annihilate a few wines that you have reviewed which I have previously tasted and knew were horrible. You’ve been politically correct before, and that is somewhat understandable. I’m sure that wineries get kinda upset when they are sending their wine to you to sell and then you cut them down to size on the V-blog. Hey, sometimes the truth hurts, though, and for the sake of the consumer and the industry as a whole, these wineries should not be placated and tiptoed around when they make wine that tastes like horse piss. I commend you on your honesty, but on the next episode, try to have some fun like you used to. Thats what this is all about. On this episode, you seemed out to settle a score. So, no more vendetta…..have fun with Wine Library TV…..we’re glad you are back……tell us what happened with the networks. I, personally, am thrilled that you stayed away from them. Doing it this way keeps it close to the consumer, truthful, unspoiled by bias, untainted by money or political pull, and fun, informative, an entertaining like it should be, and has been from the beginning. So, keep ’em coming.

JH

Gary-
Good to have you back and thanks for going with the honest (yeah, so sometimes it hurts – WAAAH!) approach. Honesty is what I and others count upon in listening to your tastings as well as RP among others. I recognize that tastes vary among people, but that’s not an excuse for padding low scores or talking down better competitors of big sellers. Please let me know what’s going on – as a clinical psychologist, maybe I can help. ROFLMAO!

I liked the show! I can never spit out the wine at a tasting and so I begin to forget what I liked and what I didn’t. I enjoyed your take on how the wines taste and smell and how much of a value they are for the price.

Gary Welcome Back! I have seen you blast several wines before. It must be hard be politically correct when the Winemaker is sitting next to you. If you think that is going to happen. Go ahead and tell them how great it is. When the episode is being aired just flash a Bulls&*t sign above you. They may never come back for a second interview! But who cares if the wine isn’t that great. The regular viewers will know the truth. Please email me the details.

Rick

Gee, Gary, difficult to know just how you feel about those wines. Seems you are in a wee bit of bother, as the Brits might say. I agree with John, be honest, but don’t color your commentary with descriptions that appear to be too personal, even vindictive. Be objective and as dispassionate as possible in judging the selected wines. Most of us can ‘hear between the ears’ that a wine described as ‘not a good effort at this price’ and ‘lacks all character’ means the same as
‘it sucks and it tastes like pickle juice’. And John is again right, go back to having fun!

Bravo! Bravo! Bravo! I couldn’t agree with you more …. I have tried the Paringa, THIS Rosemount (there are others that are excellent) and the Mitolo and I think you are right on the money. In fact I was at a tasting with Mitolo the top wine on the table (at least from a price point) several weeks ago, and the Hanenhof (wonderful wine from ANZ) was a much better wine and value. So keep up the good work. I fully support your approach. To me … the only value in Winelibrary TV is honesty … the wine is good or bad regardless of price – I absolutely support your providing an honest evaluation .. regardless of where that leads. Look forward to meeting you later this week ( and will be happy to hear the details!).

Gary,

Rest assured, the public appreciates the brutal honesty. Because of your willingness to say how you really feel, I have bought wines from you based in large part on your reactions to them on the shows and knowing they were honest opinions, as opposed to sales talk. Keep it up. and please e-mail me the details of what set you on edge.

Gary,

Best Episode yet ! Don’t let these people tell you how to say the wines suck. If they suck, you should say so. I don’t think you’re being “too personal” nor “vindictive”. When I saw Rosemount on your lineup, I couldn’t wait to see your reaction and what reaction that was. I was dying laughing and my gf thought I was crazy.

Anyway, it’s good to see you back. Keep up the great work.

I’m curious- why would you try the merlot last??- It seems to make more sense to try that 1st??- and why would you say never as long as you live buy the rosemount- you didn’t try multiple vintages –or did you??- it really did come off as a “personal”- type thing- this is a great way to get the message out there about lesser known wines and I certainly enjoy “WLTV” and the info. I have even purchased on your info- keep up the good work!

LOL, that was hilarious. Seriously, great to have you back. Seemed like you were trying to prove a point! It is important that things stay real, otherwise it would be like watching a bunch of commercials. Keep up the good work.

Great to see you back. I would like to hear about all of the sordid details vis a vis the networks. It is such a pleasure to see someone with some real integrity.

3 of 4 suck. Great candor. Keep it up, Gary!!! As much as we appreciate great finds, it’s just as valuable to the consumer to know what NOT to buy. Life is too short to waste time on crappy wine. Your credibility just grew by leaps and bounds.

In this episode, Gary suggests that we email him to find out what’s been the hold up with WLTV… what is his email address?

Excellent return. You are absolutely making the right move by embracing the video blog format and staying true to your own opinions, rather than risking compromise at the network TV level. The newfound brutal honesty is a welcome change, as it is a trait few critics in the wine industry seem to possess.

GV
I have watched almost all the episodes & never sent an e-mail……….this is the best/most exciting episode by far!!!!!
Could you review some more high-end Italian soon?
Keep up the good work – sell what you want to sell…..

Good to have the team back… honest- I was afraid that you would make a mistake by going to the networks. You are leading a wave in video blogging/programming – and it would be a mistake to give up your creative passions and ability to make the types of shows that people want to watch….
I like the honesty – too brutal? – you’ll never satisfy everyone!

Speaking of team – how about an episode where we turn the cameras around and see who else is involved…?

Gary, great to have you back! A classic episode, and your honesty is always appreciated 😉

Gary,

Let me add my voice to the chorus of people welcoming you back. Sorely missed you were, and your honesty.

The networks want you to sell product, ergo you can’t say anything bad about the product. I MUCH prefer to hear you call them as they are. I’ve bought many wines that you’ve recommended and you have been spot on every time.

In my mind (as a consumer looking for good wines), there is NEVER a reason for you to hold back on your opinion. I want good wines. I watch WLTV to find out about good wines. I’ve come to trust you to tell me about good wines I might want to try as well as wines to avoid. As a consumer, I don’t want to lose that.

And the networks have it wrong any way. I’ve bought more wine from watching WLTV than is healthy for my checkbook – way more than I would have bought without WLTV. As far as you should be concerned, WLTV has been an incredible success in separating me from by money! But I’ve never been disappointed, so we’re both happy.

In summary:

1. Welcome back!!
2. Call them as you see them
3. Make nice to no one
4. Take as much time on an episode as it requires. (Six minutes actually seems short to me.)
5. Keep doing exactly what you are doing

And though I can imagine what the networks wanted and said, I’d love to hear the details of your dealings with them.

P.S. I don’t think that you are too “brutal” or ever “vindictive”. Just tell it like it is. The vendors might not understand or like it, but we do. Truth to tell, I thouroghly enjoy watching you slam a wine. The BV muscat in Ep #39 was classic!

I appreciate the apparent honesty but I would temper the enthusiasm. While it is no surprise to say the rosemount sucks (no really, ya don’t say), to my taste, most aussie shiraz sucks for the same reason that most california wine sucks, namely that most producers from hot climes have forgotten what wine ultimately is for (or been lured by the call of the dollar) namely to accompany food. No fruit bomb with no acid is going to do much more than get you drunk. That’s fine I guess, but it doesn’t make wine I like, nor, in most cases, will it make wine that will age… in short, that is worthy of my money and my interest. I don’t see why I would pay more that 15 bucks for a wine that will last no more than three or four years and most cali and auz wine won’t–even at the 100 dollar price point…really.
This DOES NOT MEAN that neither california nor auz can make good wine. Both can. Strangely, it is often the lower end that is the most acceptable to me. The problem is that, drawn into the high alcohol fat fruit trap because it is easy in places with unrelenting sun, both places pick their fruit when it is dead (i.e. it has become grape prunes) rather than at a level of sugar when acid, alcohol and tannin will be well balanced. They do it because Parker has created a market for brawny wines with no class and no aging potential that one can charge a fortune for. In my book, wine above 14% alcohol, is, unless it has massive structure that will allow it to age for twenty years, not of any interest to me.
Thus, to get back to this and other episodes of WLTV, what is being touted are wines that Wine Library sells and wines that are all too easy to like, especially young. I am always worried about qualifications like “smooth” and “silky.” A wine that is smooth and silky, especially young, will likely not age, and will certainly not be refreshing or cleanse your palate if you are eating. Likewise, being told that there is acidity, as if this were a defect, is a bit worrisome as well. True, there is such a thing as green acidity, or unripe acids, but these can be distinguished from the acids that, for example, make the best of both the red and the white wine worlds, namely Burgundy (at its best). Not surprisingly, yet sadly, there isn’t much Burgundy reviewed here. Sadly because, between 15-40 dollars, there is a great deal of wonderful burgundy. OK, don’t like Burgundy or have something against it, how about covering German reisling more extensively, loire valley reds and whites, etc. Start choking and sputtering on Napa Pinot’s and saying they are a rip and then I will start believing. In the meantime, this is vaguely entertaining but hardly revolutionary.

Gary:

While I echo the welcome back’s that you have been getting, this episode was not you and the good, educational, fun, quippy, blog that you have been doing. I have been watching from Episode one and this one was just not right. Bashing the bad is fine, but you just seem pissed at the world in this one and that really detracted from your excitement about wine, which, to me, is the quintessential part of WLTV. I, and most people that work in the service industry, have bad days where people that can control or affect our lives piss us off. But, you need to step above that and provide the same, quality service that we have all come to expect. … unless, of course, this was a contrived effort for some reason to achieve a desired effect, in which case, bravo.

Dale

Wow – now that is what we need. As an Aussie I have long been embarrassed by various ‘big-name’ bottles of bat’s-piss mascarading as wine over here. I have been telling people to not buy Rosemount’s base offerings for years, and the Paringa (all versions of it) has always been utter crap (despite good scores). Whatever political pressures have been brought to bear upon you (it would be great to know!) should be resisted, and congratulations on doing so! Hang in there! Best wishes!!

Good to see your return, Gary. Like many others, I would like to hear what was going on while you were gone, i.e., what inspired the very beginning of this episode. Please email me with the info.

Regarding your comments herein (and the responses of some of the others on this page): while you do seem a bit upset in this episode, your honest comments on wines are why I watch WLTV. Please keep doing it your way. Those who appreciate what you do and the way you do it will provide an avid and continuing audience. Again, welcome back.