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Monday, February 2, 2009
Mega-wineries flourish as recession forces wine lovers to ‘trade down’
Check out this Santa Rosa Press Democrat piece on the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium in Sacramento, at which many sales figures for the previous year are released, and there’s plenty of analysis of wine trends for 2009 and beyond.
Those who attended the Boonshoft Museum’s “Science of Wine” event last weekend, at which wines from the E&J Gallo Winery family of wines were served, should take particular note of what the industry analysts had to say about Gallo’s 2008 performance. Hats off to the empire that Ernest and Julio built!
Here’s how Wine & Spirits Daily summarized the event:
High volume wine companies like Bronco, E&J Gallo and Constellation had one of their strongest years in 2008 as consumers shifted towards cheaper wines sold in grocery stores, said analyst Jon Fredrikson at the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium. Gallo performed especially well with 10 of its brands making the 25 best selling list of wines in the nation last year. The trading down trend is also supported by a consumer shift to grocery stores instead of restaurants in an effort to save money and stay at home.
Meanwhile, the trend toward cheaper wine is hurting high-end wineries, particularly those that built their business at restaurants. Restaurants and distributors “dramatically cut” wine orders last year because they anticipated poor holiday sales. Jon said shipments were particularly weak in October and November, with many area winery warehouses reporting 30% declines. He encouraged high end wineries to find new markets for their wine, such as direct-to-consumer shipping or deep discounts at retail. Jon also said not to expect a quick recovery in the restaurant sector.
Luckily, California grape growers are experiencing a shortage instead of a bumper crop, which would further drive down prices.
Luckily?
Guess it’s all in your perspective.
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Local restaurant poised to launch wine bar, retail wine shop nearby
Note: This was also posted on the Taste: Dayton Food and Restaurants blog.
Amelia’s Bistro in Bellbrook has signed a lease to open a wine bar and retail wine shop across the parking lot from its location at 129 W. Franklin St., according to owner Sharon Bistrek.
The new wine-and-cigar shop will be called Tastings by Amelia and will occupy space that formerly held Addie’s Attic, Bistrek said. The wine bar will serve appetizers and small plates prepared at the nearby restaurant.
The shop will feature an outdoor patio, where cigar enthusiasts can smoke a cigar while having a glass of wine, Bistrek said.
The restaurant owner and Sugarcreek Twp. Realtor said she has hired a manager for the venture: Stephanie Hetzel, a former employee of Jay’s Restaurant who recently has worked at a wine bar in the Atlanta area.
The cigar component of the shop is a bit of an experiment. Bistrek said she personally is no fan of cigars, but the patio that overlooks a creek seemed a good spot for cigar smokers who also enjoy wine, and a cigar shop may fill a void in the Bellbrook area. Still, if the concept isn’t embraced, Bistrek said she may decide to drop cigars.
Bistrek is looking into innovative technology that would allow wine enthusiasts to use a store debit card of sorts that allows customers to choose their own tastes or glasses from a selection of bottles in a system that uses nitrogen gas to preserve the opened wines.
Bistrek said she hopes to open the shop before the end of March.
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