What's New at Full Glass Research?  

• It's done and it's big! Full Glass Research has finished the 2011 update of the Economic Impact of Wine and Wine Grape Industries on the Oregon Economy. The growth in Oregon has been remarkable since our last report in 2005. The total measure of everything from supplier industries to retail sales was $2.7 billion. The Oregon winery portion alone measured $1.1 billion, nearly as much as the total for all tiers of the industry in 2005. The combination of substantial investment from 2005-2008,  a 59% increase in sales and a strong rebound from the recession in 2010 all fueled the dramatic growth. Two key indicators that the Oregon industry is on the right track: sales outside the Northwest region and direct-to-consumer sales both roughly doubled from 2005-2010. These were two areas where Oregon had lagged in 2005. One additional feature for the 2011 edition: estimates of the economic impact at the regional and county level. If you haven't had some of the wines coming out of Southern Oregon or the Columbia Valley, you are missing some interesting developments. For further information, contact Full Glass Research (link at left) or the Oregon Wine Board (www.oregonwine.org)

• 2011 Tracking Reports: Consumer (available now) and Trade (upcoming) This Spring Wine Opinions released its CoreTrack 2011 report. It features a wealth of data on the opinions and purchasing trends of high-frequency wine consumers, based on a survey of the 5000+ person Wine Opinions panel. The report provides some surprising new insight into how, where and why wines are being consumed without food, and what are seen as wine-drinking occasions. Suffice it to say that some classic notions of wine's role is contradicted by the research. It also updates several annual tracking questions on consumer purchases by price segment, region and type of wine. Meanwhile, Wine Opinions TradeTrack 2011 survey is about to go out into the field, to a proprietary panel of 1000+ members of the wine trade. This edition will cover a variety of hot topics in the industry, including the market for Moscato, Malbec, keg wines and sweet reds, plus a variety of questions on use of social media and flash sites. Look for it to be released this Fall. For further information, contact www.wineopinions.com.

• Department of "I told you so" Talk of quantitative research, sampling and projection methods sounds pretty dry, but they can provide insights that will save trouble and money down the road. For a couple of years now, Full Glass Research clients have been warned of the inevitable tightening of the supply of some varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon in particular, based on analysis of acreage, planting and consumer demand. (Not that I am some unique grape guru, students of supply like Steve Fredricks at Turrentine and Glenn Proctor at Ciatti have made the same observations.)  Well, now it's happening, as grape/wine brokers and growers report increasing demand and prices (e.g. Sonoma/Napa Cab up over 50%) according to recent articles in the North Bay Business Journal.  Another example where paying attention to the research paid off: in 2006 Wine Opinions identified the emergence of a new consumer segment for box wines that was fueling demand for the 3L format - sales of 3L box wines increased an annual average of 23% from 2007-2010.

• Label, Package & Communications: please test them! This year we have performed a variety 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.

• Montepulciano! I managed to wedge in a splendid vacation and family reunion this summer at La Foce, just south of the famous wine town of Montepulciano. The landscape and hill towns of southern Tuscany are every bit as beautiful as reputed. Aged Pecorino Toscano from the Pienza region is some of the best cheese I've had all year. On the wine front, in the U.S. market poor old Vino Nobile de Montepulciano has languished in the commercial shadow of Chianti and the critical shadow of Brunello for a while. Undeservedly so, based on the excellent Rossos and Vini Nobile that we tasted there, with special kudos to Tenuta Valdipiatta and Poliziano. The wines are intense without being heavy, modern without being "internationalized." Keep an eye out for them.

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

Contact me: 510-847-5160