Support Independent Winemakers with Naked Wines

Wine by-the-glass (BTG) is more important than ever. Recent trade coverage and Coravin’s 2025 Wine By-The-Glass report all point to the same development. Guests are ordering a higher proportion of their wine BTG than in the past. Consumers want variety, guaranteed freshness, premium options, and flexibility. They want to explore without committing to a full bottle, drink a little less, and sometimes drink a little better. At the same time, operators are being expected to deliver more choice, better freshness, and faster service while protecting margins in a more challenging operating environment. That’s a tall order when oxidation, waste, and slow service are still built into most BTG programs. This is where wine on tap from reusable steel kegs becomes a win-win. ✅ For consumers, it delivers consistent freshness, access to better wines, freedom to explore, and the most sustainable way to enjoy wine. ✅ For wineries, it protects quality, reduces packaging waste, allows their wines to show as intended glass after glass, and increases accessibility to non-traditional venues like taprooms and sports bars. ✅ For operators, it supports broader BTG selections, premium pours with confidence, faster service, less waste behind the bar, and more consistent margins. Coravin deserves credit for helping elevate the BTG conversation and providing a competent tool for some scenarios. However, the broader takeaway is clear. Wine BTG is more important than ever. And wine on tap is increasingly one of the smartest ways for helping make it a win for everyone involved. Recent BTG Articles/Reports: Coravin "US Wine By-The-Glass Report 2025": https://lnkd.in/gWRY7m_x The Buyer "Debate: The impact wines by-the-glass are having on the on-trade" https://lnkd.in/gE-AYSa3 Gambero Rosso "Fewer bottles, more by-the-glass: how to build the wine list of the future" https://lnkd.in/gzY8h-yy Wine Enthusiast "The Untapped Potential of Kegged Wine" https://lnkd.in/gKBcA37H WineBusiness Monthly "Pour Decisions: Revamping On-Premise Sales with Wine on Tap" https://lnkd.in/gbqa8QiD

Required wine industry reading as we kick off 2026. Erica Duecy dove deep into data and winery interviews. One nugget- "White wine stands out as one of the most consistent bright spots. White blends are up 13% in dollars and 7.8% in volume year over year, In practice, these wines are succeeding because they are approachable on price, flexible across occasions, and easy to understand — qualities that matter more than ever in a crowded beverage landscape." -Erica Duecy https://lnkd.in/g--8XU7F

We all have that one friend who is waaaayyyy into wine and loves to share their opinions with great flourishes and swirls - raving about tobacco and berry notes, blah blah blah. It's exhausting - but it also gives us a window into human perception and how the brain ascribes value. A few years ago, Belgian sommelier Eric Boschman helped pull off a fascinating prank on the Gilbert & Gaillard International Wine Competition. Boschman and the team behind the Belgian TV show On n’est pas des pigeons set out to make a statement about the power of marketing in the wine world—and beyond. They bought one of the cheapest wines available, costing just €2.50, and transformed its image entirely. Renamed “Chateau Colombier,” the bottle was dressed with a refined label and an invented history suggesting a respected, high-end vineyard. They then entered this newly branded wine into the Gilbert & Gaillard International Wine Competition, a respected event where wines are evaluated on perceived quality. Remarkably, the €2.50 bottle didn’t just pass—it earned a gold medal. Judges applauded its depth and character, unaware that the award-winning wine was, in reality, a bargain-basement bottle elevated purely by clever branding. From a psychological standpoint, the prank exposed several powerful forces that shape how we assign value: 1) Authority bias: When an “expert” or respected institution confers approval, our brains shortcut independent judgment. 2) Framing and narrative: A compelling story, elegant label, and prestigious context literally change how something tastes to us. The stories we tell ourselves shape our realities. 3) Social proof: Medals, endorsements, and consensus signals reduce uncertainty—so we trust the crowd instead of our senses. 4) Price–quality illusion: We often experience higher-priced (or “award-winning”) products as better, even when they are objectively identical. What’s unsettling—and important—is that trained judges were not immune. This underscores a key truth: expertise reduces bias; it does not eliminate it. The broader implication goes far beyond wine. In leadership, branding, politics, hiring, and even healthcare, we routinely confuse signals of value with actual value. Credentials, awards, titles, and polished presentations can overwhelm evidence and outcomes. The lesson isn’t “nothing has value.” The lesson is to ask better questions: 1) Who benefits from this signal? 2) What is being measured—and what isn’t? 3) Would my judgment change if the label were removed? In a world saturated with symbols of excellence, the real competitive advantage may be the ability to slow down perception and interrogate it. Another great question: What else might be true here? Because value, more often than we like to admit, is something we��believe before it is something we verify, and our emotions shape our thoughts which influence our behaviors.

The Northeast wine market plays by its own rules — and that’s what makes it exciting. Unlike most parts of the country, this is one of the few regions where fruit wines (think peaches, plums, and local berries) often outshine traditional grape wines. So the strategy is simple: don’t fight the market, understand it. Step one: bring a fruit wine into the portfolio — which we’ve done with our Mosso Peach Wine 🍑 Step two: train staff to confidently recommend fruit-forward, easy-drinking grape wines ( Fratelli's Noi,Shiraz rose and Master selection Red)that gently bridge the gap for the larger consumer base. When you respect local preferences and educate smartly, the market responds. Wine, after all, is about meeting people where they are — and then taking them one glass further. 🍷

Wine is different than ALL other beverages. At least that is when it is in its most natural form. I don't mean "natural wine" per se, I mean that the value of an "honest" glass of wine is the voyage the consumer goes on when relishing a glass. Wine is the only beverage that is to convey a sense of time and a sense of place or as is said on Wine Talks with Paul K...."this is who we are and when we were." Jason Haas has an incredible story and incredible history of this very thought. His father, ahead of his time, was one of the original Rhone Rangers and Jason has followed suit. What is interesting to me is that in many industries, being a legacy President or owner and taking over the family business, it is often just that...business. Not in wine and not with the Haas family. Wine requires legacy owners to build on the "honesty" of the wine. To build on what the land gives them to create the best of that vintage that can be. And unlike most other industries, legacy owners understand that they are just passing through; that their job is to leave behind something better that what was given. Here are my top 3 takeaways: Collaboration Builds Stronger Communities: Paso Robles stands out for its cohesiveness among wineries, with nearly 100% participation in regional initiatives. Family-run and locally-invested, their culture of mutual support is rare among California wine regions. Innovation Isn’t Just About the Grape: Jason shared how Tablas Creek continues to push boundaries: introducing rare Rhône varietals (some that increased the world’s total acreage by 40%!), leading on organic and regenerative vineyard practices, and even eco-friendly packaging like lightweight bottles and premium box wines. Adapting to Industry Challenges: While the wine industry is feeling headwinds, the answer isn’t panic—it's dynamic strategy. By shifting focus between direct-to-consumer, wholesale, and export, Tablas Creek has been able to weather tighter markets and stay ahead. If you care about where the industry is headed, or what it takes to balance authenticity with market realities, this episode is a must-listen. What do you think—is regional collaboration the secret sauce, or does every winery need their own path? Let me know in the comments! 🍷 Apple: https://lnkd.in/g2JZAGxV Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gqVT6V-C YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gT-BbYsx #WineIndustry #PasoRobles #Innovation #Sustainability #WineBusiness #TablasCreek #jasonhaas

🍷 The U.S. Wine Market Isn’t Dividing by Taste — It’s Dividing by Price Discipline Many discussions still frame wine performance around taste, style, or trends. But the clearer divide in today’s U.S. wine market is price discipline. Wines that sit in unclear price tiers — neither clearly accessible nor convincingly premium — are feeling the most pressure. Meanwhile, brands that are firmly positioned, either as everyday value or as justified premium, are holding ground far better. 📉 The middle is getting squeezed 📈 Clear price tiers are gaining resilience This isn’t about consumers becoming more price-sensitive. It’s about consumers becoming more price-aware. When every purchase is more intentional, unclear value propositions are quickly exposed. In past wine cycles, this kind of price-tier separation was often mistaken for changing taste. In reality, it was the market demanding coherence between price, promise, and experience. The next phase of the U.S. wine market won’t reward being “somewhere in between.” It will reward brands that know exactly where they belong — and price accordingly. Clarity at the shelf is becoming as important as quality in the bottle. #USWine #WineMarket #FineWine #MarketCycles #WineIndustry #PriceDiscipline #PremiumWine #MarketSegmentation #ConsumerBehavior #BrandPositioning #WineBusiness #IndustryEvolution #LongTermValue #LuxuryGoods #ValueVsPrice

🍀Gen Z wine professionals are not walking away from wine. They are redefining how it is experienced, shared, and understood. This feature highlights 🍷 a new generation of wine professionals who lead with curiosity instead of convention, and clarity instead of complexity. ✨Featured: Hay Wines | Tia Polite | Taylor Clark | Ting Ting Shi They focus on real conversations, honest storytelling, and wines that make sense in today’s dining culture, which is connecting, fun, and more in favor of new drinkers. By stripping away intimidation and tradition for tradition’s sake, these voices are helping wine feel more inclusive, more relevant, and more human. Now we learn that the future of wine is not about changing the product, but changing the way we connect with it. . . . Cover feature: Vogue | IG - @cokiesworldofwine To read more: https://lnkd.in/ei-5QpxK

🍷 Recent article: "#Wine in a #can: A consumer study in a traditional wine-producing region. Effect of the level of consumer involvement" 👉 It is imperative that the wine industry embraces innovation, given the sector’s traditionally conservative nature. To succeed, innovators must address consumer expectations, which are pivotal in shaping preferences and perceptions of quality. 🔎 The present study investigated the effect of consumer involvement on wine perception, using packaging innovation as a starting point. One hundred and twenty-five non-professional wine consumers from the traditional Rioja wine-producing region in Spain took part in a tasting of two wines (one red and one white) under two different conditions. Participants were informed that under one experimental condition, the wine was bottled, whereas in the other the wine was canned. The samples were drawn from the same bottle to ensure only the provided information was modified, without altering the intrinsic properties, thus allowing a focus on consumers’ cognitive responses. The two containers, a 200 mL can and a 125 mL bottle, were designed with the same label and packaging colour. The participants were first asked to evaluate each sample’s quality and liking on a 10-point scale. They described each sample using the Rate-All-That-Apply (RATA) methodology. The participants then completed a validated questionnaire designed to measure their level of involvement with wine, which was used to segment consumers into four groups. Finally, the participants were asked to provide demographic information. 🖋️ Authors: María-Pilar Sáenz Navajas, Cristian Martinez Rodríguez, Purificación Fernández Zurbano, Dominique Valentin 🔗 To find out the results of the study, read the article here: https://lnkd.in/d-PS3q-s ____________ 🔓 OENO One is our peer-reviewed #OpenAccess research journal dedicated to vine and wine research. It is freely available online.

There's bad news and good news in the wine industry. The bad news is that global wine consumption fell 3.3% in 2024. The good news is that the worldwide wine market last year still amounted to more than $515 billion, per Grand View research. That's larger than the GDP of countries like Denmark, South Africa, and Portugal. So clearly there's opportunity for massive growth in this dynamic sector. One company poised to cultivate green shoots in the viniculture sphere is Next World Wines. Join us for a free virtual event on December 23 where Next World Wine leaders will discuss their strategy for jumpstarting the wine space by getting ahead of changing consumer wants and expanding options for personalization. The company starts with premium grape wines and uses a breakthrough infusion process to craft wines that are optimized to pair perfectly with the most in-demand cuisines. The end result is high-quality, culturally relevant wines that are improved by science to match ever-evolving tastes. Register today: https://hubs.la/Q03YDK1Q0