What's New at Full Glass Research?  

• Just wrapped up my third year managing the OIV Wine Marketing Short Course at the University of California at Davis, along with co-host David Stevens. In my humble and biased opinion, this is the best crash course available on the U.S. wine market. The speaker roster features some of the most knowledgeable and experienced winemakers, owners, marketers, analysts, buyers and sales managers in the industry. I learn a lot myself every year, from both our speakers and the attendees, a mix of students in the Organization Internationale de la Vigne's MBA program, people working in the wine business, and those who want to invest their time or money into the industry. For more information, go to http://extension.ucdavis.edu/unit/winemaking/course/listing/?unit=WINE&prgList=OIV&coursearea=OIV+Wine+Marketing+Program

• Imports: what's hot? what's not? Wine Opinions has just released its 2nd Import Tracking Survey, which measures awareness, trial, perceptions of quality and style for wines from ten different countries among American high frequency wine consumers. This report provides useful insights into whether wines have a national identity, which wines are have the greatest familiarity and appeal, and how consumers decipher wine styles. Among the interesting findings this year are: (1) contrary to popular notion, Australian wines actually have weaker appeal to the younger Millennial drinkers, who have picked up a high regard for Old World wines; (2) Chateauneuf-du-Pape has joined the pantheon of classic top-of-the-line wines for high end wine consumers along with Bordeaux, Burgundy, Barolo and Napa Valley.

• Ex-profs' Economic Extravaganza: The annual Wine Industry Financial Symposium is a worthwhile event that I frequently present at, and always try to at least attend. This year two of my economic professors from Cornell days are speaking: Robert Smiley (Professor Emeritus, U.C. Davis Graduate School of Management) will deliver his annual summary and analysis of trade interviews, while Richard Thaler (Keller Distinguished Professor of Economics & Behavioral Science, University of Chicago) will deliver a talk on Behavioral Economics and Wine. Professor Thaler is one of the pioneers in the relatively new field of behavioral economics and there are certainly a number of consumer and trade behaviors in the wine industry that don't conform to classical microeconomics, so this should be fascinating. For more information, go to:  http://www.wineindustryfinancialsymposium.com/financial_symposium.htm

• Label, Package & Communications: please test them! We have recently performed a number of tests of labels, packaging concepts and AVA or ecological designations. You don't have to come to us, but I urge any winery planning major changes in these areas, or depending on them to change consumer perceptions, to give them a proper quantitative test before charging ahead. Surprisingly often, what we think the consumer will perceive or notice about the change turns out to be quite different in the real world.

• Conjunctive Labeling - what's that? Sounds dull, but in fact it's a hot issue that goes to the heart of regional identity. It refers to the combining of appellation and sub-appellation on a label, and whether this is recommended or even should be required. For example, should all wines from the Willamette Valley also say Oregon on the label? Does having Sonoma County on the label help or hurt the image of a Russian River Pinot Noir? Does this effect vary by region and variety?  The first question is partly philosophical. But we carried out a thorough consumer test to answer the latter two questions. Matched samples of core involved wine consumers were exposed to a series of wine labels, with only the appellations varying between them. The results were conclusive. Compared to either the county appellation alone, or the sub-AVA alone, conjunctively labeled wines (e.g. AVA + sub-AVA) always ranked first or tied for appeal as measured by quality ratings and estimated price. If the combination of variety and sub-AVA was prestigious and well-known (think Russian River Pinot), the sub-AVA alone also did well while the County appellation alone trailed. If the combination of variety and sub-AVA was not well-known, it was the reverse. Detailed results and analysis are available to members of the Sonoma County Vintners or the Sonoma County Grape Growers' association. They caused quite a bit of discussion in the press and blogosphere, which you can read about on my Press & News page. 

• Fine Wine is Everywhere! On a regular basis, I try to get out from behind my computer or podium and try some new wines. On vacation, in my business travel and at home, I have been continually reminded of just how much good wine is being made "off the beaten track". This summer's discoveries have included: tasty Zin-like wine made by Sierra Ridge from their plantings of the Macedonian grape Vranec; finely structured Rieslings from Black Star Farms and Bry's Estate in Northern Michigan; delicious Viognier-like Peach wine from Barlett Estate in Maine; dry herbal Posip white from the Island of Korcula in Croatia; and my favorite "house white" for 2010 - Ken Forrester's Petit Chenin from Stellenbosch in South Africa.

"Facts don't come with points of view, facts don't do what I want them to...."
David Byrne

Contact me: 510-847-5160