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IT APPEARS THAT THE LONG bull market run of wine sales is beginning to plateau. In 2018, there was a tiny increase in wine sales, and it seems that 2019 [...]

Three out of four economists believe there will be a recession in the U.S. by 2021. Some believe that the recession could happen before the next presidential election, according to [...]

CALIFORNIA'S NORTH COAST IS LIKE MY SECOND HOME, SO IT WAS very difficult to watch the devastation from at least three wildfires that occurred during the second week of October. [...]

Recently there has been an amazing bull-market run for wines from Napa and Sonoma valleys. Can that continue with the 2019 vintage? I have just returned from winery visits to [...]

I RECENTLY SAT DOWN with Joe Arking, owner of two of New Jersey's larger wine and spirit stores, and the internet wine flash-sale site, Winestilsoldout (WTSO.com). Joe and his late [...]

I HAVE TRAVELED TO NAPA VALLEY on business regularly for the past 20 years, and it has become a dining mecca with some of the best restaurants in the country. [...]

IT HAS NOW BEEN 15 YEARS since the release of the Alexander Payne hit film 'Sideways.' Many credited this movie with killing merlot sales when Miles Raymond, played by actor [...]

THERE IS AN OLD ADAGE: The best way to make a small fortune in the wine business is to start with a large fortune.Making money in wine can be challenging. [...]

THIS HARVEST APPEARS TO BE ONE OF THE biggest and best in several years. Each phase of the growing season in Napa and Sonoma this year seemed to emerge with [...]

WE ARE APPROACHING THE ALL IMPORTANT fourth-quarter sales season where retailers have the opportunity to harvest cash with successful depletions leading up to and through the all-important holiday season. I [...]

MOST WINE RETAILERS WITH ECONOMIES OF SCALE have been import ing their own containers to take extra margin, while offering their consumers unique wines. Larger retailers typically direct import ('DI') [...]

I recently sat down with winemaker Bryan Davison, who took over the helm of winemaking in 2011 at the iconic Michel-Schlumberger Winery in Sonoma's Dry Creek Valley. Bryan is highly [...]

I RECENTLY CAUGHT UP with Jeff Kunde, chairman of the board of Kunde Family Winery, in the middle of his 2017 harvest to discuss sustainable wine practices. Jeff is a [...]

I AM A VORACIOUS reader and spent a lot of time digesting books on sales and marketing. In 2002,1 was impressed by the best-selling book, 'Why we Buy: The Science [...]

It is most important for premier wine retailers to immerse themselves in the world of wine and educate their palates. One of the best methods to expand your horizons and [...]

When we visit our local wine shop searching for that perfect bottle for the dinner table or for a gift, many consumers care about the label and the overall appeal [...]

AS I PEN THIS COLUMN, THE 2016 NAPA VALLEY CABERNET Sauvignon harvest is half completed, creating much more optimism than the previous harvest. The 2015 California North Coast harvest was [...]

I REMEMBER WELL THAT FIRST SPECIAL PINOT NOIR from the Willamette Valley that I drank almost 17 years ago. It was a Beaux Freres Willamette Valley Pinot Noir from the [...]

WHEN LIQUOR STORES N.A. recently purchased 51 percent of two Joe Canals stores in Lawrenceville and Woodbridge, New Jersey for $15 million it raised a lot of eyebrows. The two [...]

MY LOVE AFFAIR WITH BURGUNDY dates back a long time, but it wasn't until a trip to the region in 2000 that I became somewhat obsessed. My fascination began with [...]

ON THIS 73RD ANNIVERSARY OF THE WINE AND SPIRITS Wholesalers of America convention, I thought it appropriate to reflect on my tenure as Chairman of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board [...]

THE 2015 VINTAGE ON CALIFORNIA'S NORTH COAST (which includes Napa and Sonoma Valleys) is quite beautiful, but extremely tiny. And what was so surprising about the crop is that it [...]

IT WASN'T THAT LONG AGO that the Euro exchange rate was above 1.35. This made purchasing quality wines that represent true value from countries like Italy, France and Spain much [...]

PINOT NOIR IS THE SEXY GRAPE that makes Sonoma chic. There are so many marquee Pinot wineries in the region with signature names like Rochioli, Hirsch, Marcassin, Kistler and Williams [...]

WHEN WE THINK OF SUMMER, we think Sauvignon Blanc. It's a great aperitif, pool or porch wine and the perfect wine to accompany seafood and light summer dishes. It also [...]

I LEAVE NAPA VALLEY TODAY for about my 90th wine-purchasing trip over the last 15 years. The first seven years was when I was chairman of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control [...]

The article offers the author's insights on the challenge of sustaining wine sales on holidays and after holidays. Topics discussed include the focus of several wineries on direct-to-consumer sales and alternative channels, the concern of retailers on fierce competition in the industry, and the importance of explaining the marketing story to staff.

The article discusses environmental concerns over wine bottle's carbon footprint. It examines the possibility of reducing the size of wine bottles to reduce their carbon footprint. It also mentions the prospects for using kegs as alternative packaging for wines and highlights its advantages including less spoilage, oxidation and tainting.