Having spent the majority of my professional life in the food and restaurant industry, conducting business around food and amid meals is second nature to me. It always made sense to use the latest restaurant opening, the arrival of some rare wine or seasonal ingredient, or the simple expedience of mealtimes, as setting for whatever business needed to be discussed.

For me, even the most well appointed conference room can't hope to compete with the jovial racket and bustle of a bistro, the exotic smell of Indian spices, or the brilliant glow of a glass of burgundy above white linen. I have always found the rich sensory environment that accompanies any good meal to be stimulating and reassuring. Creating a positive impression, better yet a unique and memorable impression, is a top priority for every worthwhile restaurant, just as it is for every business interaction. Reinforcing one with the other has long been a favorite tactic of mine.

I've found too, that the rhythm of dining out is a powerful ally to business. Without any need to "stage manage", the progress from cocktails, to appetizers, to entrees and finally to dessert and coffee, creates a shape to any discussion, with built-in times for comment and reflection. Furthermore, nearly anyone has a natural understanding of this progression, and its conclusion, reducing distraction related to timing and ending the meeting.

The restaurant experience provides at worst, a conversational motivator of great quality. I can be frequently heard to denounce the banality and discomfort of small talk, but have no trouble engaging my fellow diners in endless banter about anything from the décor to the wine list, even at a table nearly full of total strangers. Unlike the usual spate of weather and traffic chat, even usually shy or reserved people will have enthusiastic opinions about favorite foods and drinks, often surprisingly close to the surface.

Perhaps most of all, eating with someone can't help but humanize them and encourage the formation of a bond. It is a shared experience of a very fundamental sort, one I enjoy far more than the inherently adversarial experience of staring at someone across an empty table. Table etiquette, appropriate to the restaurant in question, may also help encourage (or even restrain) the conduct of the discussion at hand.

Despite all that, some friends of mine shy away from doing business of any sort in a restaurant setting. Being in the industry myself, I sometimes forget that many people are uncertain about some aspects of the dining experience, and while that may not prevent them having a great time while out with their friends, it makes them wary of using it as a business setting. Therefore, I will in a series of occasional articles here, attempt to explain how to make the most of dining out, and highlight the advantages I think it provides to any entrepreneur. I know it will be good for my business, and I think it will be for yours too. Cheers!

Brian Sheehy is a restaurant consultant with over 11 years experience. Brian is currently living in Boston. To reach him, contact briansdining@gmail.com.

Labels: business dining, dining out

Lisa comes form a family of entrepreneurs and says that owning a business is in her blood. She is now a franchise owner and has the goal of bringing an affordable education to every student who desires to reach and exceed their potential.
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I come from a family of entrepreneurs. My sister owns her own business (a hair salon in Los Angeles, CA) and I have several cousins who own their own businesses. I guess you could say it's in my blood.

I am a franchise owner but my hope is to be able to bring affordable one on one education to every student who desires to reach and exceed their potential.

I spent several years in a family-owned restaurant business until I went back to school to finish my bachelor's degree. I graduated in December of 1996 from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, WI with my B.A. in History. After that I continued on to graduate school in Milwaukee. I graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in May of 2000 with my Masters in Library and Information Science. Even though neither one of my degrees are in the Education field I still have a desire to help people find the knowledge they seek.

I am married to a wonderful supportive man. We'll celebrate our fifth anniversary this July. He has two daughters but I have no children of my own unless you count my cat.

I don't find it that difficult since I don't have children and my husband's daughters are both older. He works from home as well so we always manage to find time to spend together.

I feel that being in business for myself gives me more freedom to make decisions that will help people in a shorter amount of time. That is what I really love about what I do.

I believe that I would have done better to begin with a little more knowledge about Education in general. Being open to learning as you go is a good thing as well.

I love the whole concept of women helping one another to grow their businesses. I'd like to make some new friends along the way as well.

Labels: wild we member of the month

When you walk into the local wine Shoppe and you are faced with one hundred bottles or more to choose from, how do you choose? How do you know you are getting a quality wine or a table wine, sweet or dry, varietals or blend? Maybe you can’t judge a book by its cover, but you may be able to judge a wine. The contents of wine labels are heavily regulated by the governments of each wine producing country and the indications on the label provide quit a bit of useful information.

So how do you read a quality wine label? Each wine producing country regulates its own labels, but there are a general 15 indicators that are considered in this regulation for a quality wine label. These indicators are either mandatory, permissible, or neither.

1. The word "wine":
   
   The word "wine" is not required to be on the labels of EC country wines because their controlled appellation systems already fill this function. Wines produced in the United States or any other non-EC country are required to have the word "wine" on the label. This is also true for any wine entering the EC from an outside country.
   


2. Country of Origin:
   
   The country of origin is mandatory for the labels of wine produced anywhere in the world. Wines that are destined solely for the home market (very limited) are excepted.
   


3. Denomination of Origin:
   
   The denomination of origin is generally based on a geographical region (e.g. Rioja in Spain) or on a vine variety (e.g. Barbera d'Alba in Italy). This indicator is mandatory in the majority of wine producing countries, but permissible in Israel, Romania, Australia, and Chile.
   
   


4. Quantity in Bottle:
   
   The quantity is mandatory in every country except Austria, where it is permissible. Quantity is generally measured in centiliters.
   


5. Alcohol Content:
   
   This indicator is mandatory in all countries except Cyprus, where it is permissible. This requirement is largely indicative of an increased responsible attitude towards alcohol on the part of governments and regulators. Alcohol content, mainly ethyl alcohol, is measured as a percentage of the total volume (12%), but may also be indicated in degrees (12º). The percentage must be exact to 0.5%.
   


6. Name and Address of the "Responsible" bottler/brand owner or lot number:
   The name and address of the "responsible" party is mandatory in al l countries except Romania and Argentina. This indicator has to do with allocation of liability. If a company is bottling wine under contract with another company (for instance the vineyard), then the liability rests with the company for whom the bottling is being conducted. If a company chooses to place their "own label" on the wine, then the liability falls on the company whose name and address appears on the label. Similarly the lot number or marking allows for a system where consumer initiated complaints trace the contents of an individual bottle back to the exact batch of grapes.
   


7. Quality Status:
   
   This indicator is required by countries that have a controlled appellation system. There are four recognized levels of quality: 1. table wine; 2. table wine from a designated region; 3. Quality wine from a designated region; and 4. Top quality wine from a designated region. As Examples:
   France:
   
   
   
   1. Vin de Table;
   
   
   2. Vin de pays;
   
   
   3. Appellation d'origine vin délimité de qualité supérieure (VDQS)
   
   
   4. Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC)
   
   
   
   Italy:
   
   
   
   1. Vino da tavola (VDT)
   
   
   2. Indicazione geografica tipica (IGT)
   
   
   3. Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC)
   
   
   4. Denominazione di origine controllata e garantita (DOCG)
   
   
   
   



Of course each country uses its own language and acronyms. If you are looking at wines other than French or Italian you can find the labeling requirements online or in a good wine encyclopedia.




8. Sulphite/additives declaration:
   
   A declaration of sulphites and other additives is mandatory for wine produced and imported into the US and Australia. This requirement is largely permissive in other wine-producing countries. Sulphite is sulphur dioxide and is used as a preservative in wine. The growing trend is to use as little of this preservative as possible. While most countries do not require this disclosure on the label, all additives are vigorously regulated in the wine making process. The US has been proactive in requiring this disclosure and is considering requiring that use of pesticides be disclosed on labels.



9. Grape varieties:
   
   Indicating the grape varietal is largely a permissible indicator, but if mentioned, it is strictly regulated. The percentage of varieties in a bottle is strictly regulated. In EC countries there may only be two varieties listed on a bottle. If one variety of grape is listed, the wine must contain a minimum of 85% of that variety. If two varieties are named on the label, they must equal 100% of the wine, with the larger percentage variety listed first. In countries outside the EC, a wine must be between 75 and 100% of the named variety.



10. The term "estate":
    
    Using the term "estate" on the label is mandatory in the US and South Africa, but is permissible everywhere else. This indicator tells the consumer that all of the grapes used to make the wine were grown only on the mentioned estate. This can be a bit misleading however, due to internal regulatory differences. For instance in South Africa, "estate" means that grapes came from that estate, but could also have come from a nearby estate with the same soil and micro-climate.
    


11. Vintage:
    
    This is another factor that is largely permissible, but if used, the US requires that 95% of the wine come from that vintage and other countries require that 85% of the wine come from that vintage.
    
    



12. Sweet/Dry description:
    
    This indicator is also largely permissible, only mandatory in Hungary, Austria, Israel, and Bulgaria. The description can be in the form of words or symbols (white wine generally uses symbols). For sparkling wines in the EC the sweet/dry descriptions are mandatory, such as Brut, Demi-Sec, etc.
    
    



13. Test of Quality:
    
    The test of quality can be conducted either by tasting the wine both before bottling and after aging or by laboratory analysis. This indicator has a 50/50 split between mandatory and permissible requirements, but is becoming more important and more common.
    
    


14. Official seal:
    
    The official seal is placed under the capsule and over the cork and shows that the regional controlling authorities have authenticated the wine's origin and quality.
    



15. 
    Single-vineyard specification:
    
    This is a completely permissible indicator, but plays an important role, as it signifies extra quality. This is a particularly important indicator in France's quality system.
    
    
    

This article was written by Jessica R. Manganello, Esq. Jessica is an attorney and "wine-nut" with Exemplar Law Partners, LLC at their headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts. Exemplar is the first large firm to abandon the billable hour and instead offers fixed prices and customized legal services in the areas of business/corporate law, international law, entertainment and business development. Exemplar also offers a discount to Wild WE members.

Labels: wines