I have been thinking a lot recently about how much things have changed since the 1990s and what the future might look like in this light. The event that has provoked this unexpected thoughtfulness is the upcoming Unified Wine & Grape Symposium, which will be the 30th edition of what has become North America’s largest wine industry gathering.
A Golden Age?
Looking back at the program for the first Unified, it is clear that the American wine industry was worried about the future. It must have seemed like obstacles and headwinds were all around. Problems in the vineyards. Rising foreign competition. And concerns about both government regulation and uncertain consumer demand. One session was titled “Who Isn’t Drinking Wine and Why.” That’s a question we are asking again today.
Looking back it is easy to appreciate these concerns (because they never really go away). What folks back then didn’t realize, however, is that they were in some ways at the start of a wine industry golden age. Baby boomers were entering peak wine-buying years. The economy was growing, fueling the rising interest in wine. The “French paradox” infused popular culture with the idea that wine (especially red wine) was actually good for you because of its role in the healthful Mediterranean diet. Wine made you feel good, it was good for you, and you could afford to drink it. What could
This Article was originally published on The Wine Economist
