So, does this heavy reliance on marketing mean that MB is just BM in a bottle that can’t sell on its quality? Would it be our Wine of the Week if it was?

MB (as it is abbreviated on the bottle neck and synthetic cork) is a fine sauvignon blanc that, for $10, is a great way to taste how this grape thrives in Kiwi country. It may not have the kick-you-in-the-head flavors of a sauv blanc from Kim Crawford (another great Marlborough producer), but that’s a wine that can turn off those used to drinking chardonnay.

But again, Monkey Bay has the requisite grassiness and gooseberry elements that say, “I am sauvignon, here me roar… or hear me go ‘oo oo, eee eee’ as I scratch my armpits.” Have it with salads and other light dishes and watch this monkey dance like an organ grinder’s business associate. Food brings out its flavors like “Baby Got Back” brings 30-somethings onto the dance floor.

Thankfully, the wine isn’t nearly as awkward as the dancers.

Cheers,
TSW

* - WoW's Party Wine designation is given to a wine that you can bring to a party, and it it'll make you look good, but you won't be devastated if you don't get any.

There are a few wine marketing tricks that seem to always work: Give a wine a good backstory and it’ll sell. You can move just about any wine from Australia so long as you name it after an animal, and you include a cartoon drawing of said animal on the label.

Lastly, you can sell anyone 30 to 38-years-old anything so long as you play off their insatiable need for nostalgia. When VH1 is airing “I Love the ‘90s” and bringing back every one-hit wonder from the past 15 years, you know this is true.

The marketing machine at the massive monopoly known as Canandaigua (they own just about every wine ever made, and that’s only a slight exaggeration) have figured out a way to work all of these tricks into their newest offering from New Zealand, Monkey Bay sauvignon blanc.

The story about how Monkey Bay got its name is right on the label. The animal in name and graphic representation are there, too. As for nostalgia, check this: Go into the attic and dig “Barrel of Monkeys” out of your old toy box. Aside from the curly tail (which would have made playing “Barrel of Monkeys” a lot easier) the resemblance is uncanny (or, unbarrely).