WHY DEMOGRAPHICS STILL MATTER IN WINE At first glance, it may seem logical to take a broad approach to wine marketing—after all, shouldn’t the goal be to sell wine to anyone who’s willing to buy it? Not exactly. In practice, marketing to “everyone” is a fast track to appealing to no one. You water down your message, misfire your tactics, and wind up wasting both budget and energy trying to reach people who were never going to buy from you in the first place. Smart marketing is selective, not scattershot. And that’s where demographics come in. At their core, demographics are just the quantifiable details about your customers—things like age, gender, income, education, and marital status. But in the hands of a capable marketer, demographics become strategic tools. They help decode how different consumers make decisions, what cultural cues they respond to, and how best to approach them with offers they’ll actually care about. Wine, with all

Forget the harsh, high-proof jars of yesteryear. This is Moon Moonshine, a modern spirit for a modern drinker: smooth, flavorful, mixable, and built for today’s drinkers. It’s low sugar, low calories, no artificial ingredients, and has a lighter, smoother finish than most tequila or whiskey.  Crafted in Kentucky with non-GMO corn, premium limestone and shale–filtered spring water, and distilled in copper pot stills, Moon Moonshine delivers a clean, contemporary take on America’s original spirit. Three all-natural flavors—Citrus, Berry, and Tropical—come in at 35% ABV. Launched just four months ago, the brand is already picking up major traction in Florida. College bars, beach bars, cocktail bars—they’re all leaning in. And with good reason: Moon Moonshine is easy, versatile, and profitable for Buyers. “Moon Moonshine takes a timeless spirit and gives it a bold, modern twist. We wanted a people-forward brand that’s s

Walk into almost any winery this week and you’ll see the same thing: equipment everywhere, barrels tucked into every open spot, and crews doing their best to move fruit through a cellar that already feels packed. Harvest always brings some level of chaos, but this year the space squeeze seems to be hitting harder than usual. And when the cellar is this tight, it quietly changes how winemakers make decisions. Not in big, obvious ways — but in the small, practical choices that add up over the course of a vintage. That’s where the hidden costs start to show themselves. 1. Lots Are Being Shifted Earlier Than Planned A full cellar forces movement. Not thoughtful, deliberately timed movement — just movement. When every open vessel is already promised to incoming fruit, winemakers end up: racking earlier transferring before a lot is truly settled finishing fermentations in whatever vessel is available consolidating lots sooner than planned None of these decisions a

FAMILY FRENZY IN WINE COUNTRY: THE CASE FOR KIDS AND CANINES Let’s kick things off with a dose of reality. We’ve all been there: it’s a bustling Saturday morning in July, you’re bracing for a packed day at the Tasting Room, and Murphy’s Law is in full effect. Two of your staff are out sick; another is off serving the crowd at an art and wine festival downtown. You unlock the door at 10:01 AM, only to be greeted by a frazzled family of five: mom, dad, and three rambunctious kiddos. The younger two are reenacting a wild-west shootout with gravel as ammo, while the third is glued to an iPad, deep in the latest YouTube Kids saga. Mom and Dad look like they’ve just survived a hurricane, and you have a “high-roller” group arriving in fifteen minutes. And then comes the kicker: “Can we bring in our German Shepherd?” You contemplate if it’s too late to call in sick. INCLUSIVE IS THE NEW BLACK If you have yet to hear, exclusive

It’s Saturday, and I’m reading an article about the launch of Pepsi Co.’s new “Bubly Burst” product this week. The soft drink powerhouse is trying to shake up a previously vague market between sparkling water and sweetened soda with this new line of sweetened, 1% fruit juice, low-calorie, carbonic hydration with flavors. I take note, but it’s not the flavoring that piqued my interest. It’s the packaging. The Triple Threat It is not new that carbonated, flavored, adult beverages are fueling the “any-alcohol-is-bad-for-your-health” declaration by creating flavors like Bellini Bliss and offering recipes that are meant to encourage consumers to enjoy the flavors and creativity of craft cocktails without the alcohol. If we look at other adult beverages, we can see they are also leading the conversation around sustainability and innovation in packaging. In Pepsi’s case, they chose 16.9-ounce single-serve bottles of recycled pla

Afternoon Brief, March 14th

Wine Blogger from New Jersey Disappeared in Italy 5 Years Ago—FBI Seeks Help Trying to Find Him: The FBI is asking for the public’s help as they continue to search for a New Jersey native and self-described wine blogger who was last seen nearly five years ago in northern Italy...

Mom Juice Announces Retail Expansion into Target

Cheeky, Women-Owned Wine Brand Expands Retail Footprint in  Colorado and North Carolina DENVER (March 14 2024)— Mom Juice, is thrilled to announce its official launch in Target stores across Colorado and North Carolina. […]

The Australian ‘Black Summer’ of 2019/20, which saw bushfires destroy swathes of vineyard land across the country was a dramatic reminder of the growing challenges facing winemakers around the world. We spoke to leading Australian winemakers and lab technicians to find out how agile decision-making is helping to deal with the consequences of global warming. Offering alarming proof of the escalating effects of climate change, in November 2019 bushfires blazed through New South Wales, scorching more than five million hectares of land following Australia’s hottest and driest year on record. In December 2019, the fires swept through the Adelaide Hills, destroying 650 ha of vines in the region, and wiping out entire vineyards. Making matters worse, the smoke from the fires was far-reaching, rendering vineyard plots from Canberra to the Hunter Valley useless. Ravaging an estimated 24.3 million hectares of land in total and destroying over 3,000 buildings, the September 2019

Last night while I was sleeping, my heart beat 38,400 times. I didn’t ask it to keep beating through my slumber, nor did I thank it when I awoke. I just took my heartbeat, and my life, for granted. Shame on me. We do the same with wine. Sure, we enjoy the aroma, bouquet and taste. But we rarely reflect that this magical elixir is a natural farm product…a land preserver…a reflection of place and time…an artistic statement…a liquid food…a Biblical focus…a poetic inspiration…a cultural phenomenon…an economic engine…a noble beverage with humble roots which brings people together around the world. Wine is magic. So why don’t we tell people? Natural magic It’s easy to fret about the future of wine. Boomers are aging, younger generations are opting out, spirits are innovating and there are increasing warnings about the dangers of alcohol.  It’s deja vu all over again. We’ve been here before, and

What’s a winemaker to do when cool weather persists and Brix levels aren’t rising? Spring rains delayed the grape harvest by nearly a month, jeopardizing grape maturity as summer closed and temperatures cooled. Many vineyards are seeing persistently low Brix levels, causing worries among winemakers that temperatures won’t rise enough for grapes to reach optimal sugar levels before harvest. “Last year at this time, I was getting calls that juice had high VA [volatile acidity] levels,” says Bryan Tudhope, Founder and CEO of VA Filtration. “This year, they’re asking, ‘What are my options for fixing juice with low Brix levels? What can I do with high levels of Methoxypyrazines?’ These early calls are canaries in the coal mine. I expect the challenge for winemakers will be far-reaching unless we see sustained warmth through October.” Calling the right moment to harvest is difficult, even in a typical year. In 2023, the deluge of s