A couple of weeks back I was contacted by a reporter from the Wall Street Journal who found my blog and was doing a piece on consumers who were paring back in our current economic conditions.
The reporter found a post I wrote about $5 wines.
Now, mind you, normally, I do not get very excited about these sorts of things, but this was the Wall Street Journal.
The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal are the beacons of print journalism. I think most everybody wants to be quoted in the WSJ. Then, when interviewing with the reporter, I made a critical goof – as I am wont to do, I started giving my wife credit in the interview about how we recycle, we conserve energy, we watch our pennies, she does the Martha Stewart canning thing, etc., etc.
Like any good husband, I acknowledge that my life would come to a quick, grinding halt were it not for my wife. Before I knew it, the reporter wanted to talk to my wife and not me.
Alas, my wife was quoted in an article in the Wall Street Journal. My kernels of wisdom did not make it past the editor’s red pen. You can see the Wall Street Journal article here.
This humorous episode does bring up an interesting point, as does a post that Deb from Good Wine Under $20 wrote at Serious Eats – people are retreating from the luxury consumer economy – in droves.
The Wall Street Journal article ties together the economic climate with the green movement, while underscoring frugality.
The same thing is true for the U.S. wine industry that has spent the last couple of years going upmarket in pricing while emphasizing organic and natural winemaking. The only problem is there is not the underlying frugality in regards to pricing.
About a month ago, I was at a Notre Dame Football game. My friends and I gather at least once per season in my hometown, South Bend, to tailgate (i.e. drink too much beer on a Saturday afternoon) and watch the Fighting Irish (hopefully win).
One of my good friends, in town from Denver, CO happened to be dressed somewhat trendily, or at least a cut above the post-preppy suburban Midwestern garb the rest of us were decked out in. A female student from Notre Dame, who was tailgating next to us, asked my friend, “Excuse me, I don’t mean to be rude, but we were wondering if you were from New York, or California?”
“I’m from Denver,” my friend said.
Flummoxed, the one girl said, “Oh. Okay. We couldn’t tell if the clothes you are wearing are Kohl’s or couture.”
The implication was they could not tell if his t-shirt was $125 from a boutique or $11 from Kohl’s department store. Ditto for his coat and jeans.
The answer is, as a family man with three kids, the clothes were from Kohl’s, Target or another value department store.
The point here, translated to wine, is clear. In this economy, buying a $125 bottle of wine seems completely absurd. Buying an $11 bottle of wine seems like a simple, affordable luxury.
I fear for the financial ramifications that our current economy may have for the CA wine industry. Oregon and Washington, less engendered to national distribution, should be fine. However, California wines – those in the $25 + category might be in for some real and tangible pain.
Upmarket pricing and the green movement? From a wine consumer perspective, is it Kohl’s or Couture? Kohl’s for sure. I hope that wineries will figure out a sales strategy that allows me to feel green while I am forsaking conspicuous consumption because the shelves at the wine shop do not seem to indicate that to me these days.