Market Access Challenges for Wineries

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲 — 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗞𝗻𝗲𝘄 Today’s hot topic? Wine Grapes in Italy, 2024 (Source: BMTI) BMTI (based on ISTAT data) reports rising volumes at Vinitaly, but steep drops in grape value. Key figures to keep in mind: ▪️Total wine grape production in 2024: over 6.5 million tonnes ▪️+12.7% compared to 2023 ▪️Still below the 70+ million tonne average of the 2020–2022 triennium ▪️DOC/DOCG grape prices: widespread drops ▪️Veneto Amarone and Recioto: -13% Valpolicella: -8% Prosecco Conegliano Valdobbiadene: -9% ➡️ Not even the most prestigious appellations are immune. Overproduction? Market fatigue? Too many players at the table? ▪️Piedmont Barolo: -25% Barbera d’Asti: -7% Moscato DOCG: stable ➡️ The message is loud and clear: myth alone is no longer enough. Or am I wrong? ▪️Tuscany Overall production up: +35% Brunello di Montalcino: -20% Chianti Classico: -20% Morellino di Scansano: -44% Umbria & Abruzzo Sagrantino DOCG: -22% Pecorino d’Abruzzo: -9% Montepulciano d’Abruzzo: -2% ▪️The only exception? Lombardy Franciacorta: +5% Lugana: +7% Seasonal fluctuations? Structural crisis? We’ve told ourselves for years that “Made in Italy sells itself.” But markets don’t feed on romance. They feed on demand, margins, and positioning. I'm a consultant, and helping wineries build exports is more challenging than ever. “Made in Italy” once sold like hell—now it just sparks interest, not orders. Small and mid-sized producers with quality wines still struggle to break through abroad. A Few Thoughts After Seeing These Numbers: 📌We’ve turned DOCGs into commodities. When a wine with a designation of origin costs less than a soft drink, the problem isn’t the market — it’s us. DOCGs were meant to be shields of quality. Today, they’re too often just administrative labels, adding zero value. 📌No supply chain vision. Too many small producers, scattered cooperatives, and Consortia clinging to the status quo. What’s missing? A clear strategy to position Italian wine as premium, not just shelf stock. 📌Is the sector addicted to public subsidies? OCM wine funds, regional incentives… they’re all legitimate. But the truth is, many business models collapse without them. That’s not development — it’s dependency. A healthy sector should stand on demand, value, and margins. 📌The people who produce don’t control the value. Producers sit upstream in the value chain, often unaware of the mechanisms behind selling their wines. But here’s the thing: you can’t be unaware of market logic. It’s YOUR product. YOUR brand. YOUR positioning. That’s YOUR job. 📌Does Italy have too many useless appellations? DOC/DOCG chaos? Some are gems, others barely visible. Protecting uniqueness is fine, but is it time to clean house? Maybe it’s time for a Darwinian reform: only those with identity, reputation, and market value survive. I’d say YES. #wine #wineindustry

During my recent market expedition, I was confronted with a stark reality: in the minds of many of Taiwan's elite collectors, fine wine is exclusively European or American. The historic ties between Taiwan and the US—forged through government, business, and education—have created a wine culture where Napa, Burgundy and Bordeaux reign supreme. Even icons like Grange are often outliers in a conversation dominated by the Old World and the US. The drink of choice for the masses remains beer and whisky. But look closer, and you find a vibrant, serious undercurrent of high-net-worth collectors who are internationally minded, deeply knowledgeable, and hungry for quality. While overall global consumption softens, Taiwan remains a high-value growth market. Taiwan consistently ranks among the top Asian markets for average value per litre imported. The volume may be lower than mainland China, but the spend per bottle is serious. Many of Taiwan’s influential business owners hold significant investments in Australia. There is a latent affinity for our country that has not yet been translated into our wine. The market is driven by astute collectors who view wine as an asset class, alongside a rising demographic of younger, urban consumers eager to look past the "traditional" labels. Our challenge isn’t just selling E. J. McDougall; it is building the reputation of Australian fine wine as a legitimate luxury category. We are not just competing for shelf space; we are competing for mindshare against centuries of Euro-centric conditioning. This is a decades-long mission. It requires patience, education, and, most importantly, the right partners on the ground. We are incredibly proud to have launched into this market with Affinatto and Lunetta. Finding a stable, proactive, and visionary importer in such a complex market is rare. They see what we see: that Australian wine belongs on the top tables of Taipei, not as a value alternative, but as a peer to the world’s best. E. J. McDougall is not here for a quick win. We are here to tell the Australian fine wine story—market by market, bottle by bottle. We are here to prove that "Australian Fine Wine" is not an oxymoron in Taiwan, but an untapped frontier. To our partners Affinatto and Lunetta: thank you for believing in the vision. Let’s get to work. #FineWine #AustralianWine #Export #TaiwanMarket #EJMcDougall #WineBusiness #MarketEntry #LuxuryWine

The wine industry is at a crossroads. I've talked to over 20 winery owners and I can tell you with 100% certainty: Wineries are facing a perfect storm right now: * Wine sales are down nationwide. * People are drinking less overall. * Cannabis and other alternatives are stealing attention. * The Ozempic craze is cutting into food and alcohol consumption. * Competition is fierce—from both inside and outside the industry. * Wineries are scared, so they pull back on growth strategies because they are worried about surviving. * And younger consumers? Many don’t feel emotionally connected to wine the way previous generations did. Let’s be honest: what worked in 2015 won’t work in 2025. Relying solely on wine club sales, tasting rooms, or hoping for distributor love is no longer a viable growth strategy. If wineries want to survive—and thrive—they need to evolve. The brands that win will be the ones that are bold enough to challenge the status quo. As someone who's helped scale e-commerce brands, lead growth marketing campaigns, and build AI-powered lead systems across industries, I believe wineries have a massive untapped opportunity if they shift their mindset and spend money on growth tactics. Here are 6 things wineries should be doing NOW to future-proof their growth: * Own your traffic: Use AI-powered SEO to attract thousands of in-market visitors every month organically, not just rely on foot traffic or paid media. * Reveal your website visitors: Most wineries have no idea who’s been browsing their site. With Website Reveal tech, you can identify anonymous traffic and turn it into full contact info for hyper-targeted follow-up. * Leverage AI for content: From Instagram captions to blog posts, email marketing, video scripts, and wine descriptions—AI tools now allow you to produce consistent, engaging content that drives discovery and conversion. * Automate smartly: Free up your staff from repetitive tasks. AI-driven tools can help with email campaigns, follow-ups, order confirmations, chatbot responses, and more—saving you time and money. * Precision outreach with AI: Don’t spray and pray. Use tools that test hundreds of messages and find the right language for the right person at the right time, driving higher conversion and wine sales. * Rethink your brand story: Many wineries are telling the same story they've told for decades. Reposition around why you matter now. Align your mission with what younger drinkers care about—sustainability, experience, identity, and adventure. Wineries that stay stuck in the past will fall behind. However, those that embrace innovation will not only survive but also capture market share from their competitors.

I am inspired by a recent post from Matthew Deller MW regarding actionable steps to improve the wine world. My own thoughts below, focused mainly on wholesale sales; 1) Relationships come first. Value the people who buy and resell your wine. Realise that they are facing the same challenges as you. Find the best way to work with them for mutual success. Their sales may be down but they are not the enemy. 2) Ask your customers what they actually want. Understand their business and their customers and what drives them. You may be surprised by the answers they give. 3) Stop making wine you can't sell. This should be obvious, but..... 🙈 4) Stop making more wine than you have a channel for. Oversupply will only lead to discounting and long term brand damage. 5) Consider private labels, exclusive labels, second or trading labels. Now is the time for survival not perfection. 6) Negotiate trading terms realistically. The economy is tough. Everyone down the line is grappling with cashflow challenges. 7) Accept that the market is oversupplied and pricing may be lower than your expectation. It's simply economic supply and demand. No one is screwing you. It's not personal. 8) Work the patch. Leave no stone unturned. There are still a lot of wine bottles purchased every day. There are new channels, new customers and buyers who still haven't tried your wines. 9) Be prepared to cut a deal. Most buyers are reasonable people. Everything is negotiable. Concede something they want and ask for something you want. It's called win-win. If you try to win at the customer's expense they will just go elsewhere. There's another 1000 wineries lined up behind you prepared to do the deal. 10) Deal with integrity and honesty. Your reputation is everything. It will keep you in the game longer than any other factor. It's more important than the "quality" of your wine. 11) Realise this is a service industry. Fix your problems fast. Own them. Your customers will come back. 12) Invest in sales. It's just as important as your vineyard and your winemaking and it may even help you to survive. 13) Make it fun. That's hard to do when the odds are stacked against you, but your customers will remember the soft touch. Be a real human.

Despite being the 49th state, getting American-made wine and spirits into Alaska feels like you’re exporting to a foreign country. From Seattle to Anchorage, every bottle faces a gauntlet of barges, bush planes, cold chain gaps, and fragmented RTM support. Most national distributors treat Alaska like an afterthought, and when it comes to fresh food and groceries the story’s even tougher. The Alaska Highway runs through Canada, meaning that every truckload of groceries, wine, or bourbon is subject to foreign border crossings, weather delays, and political risk. If relations between the U.S. and Canada sour, Alaska’s shelves go empty or cost even more than they do now. A $20 bottle of bourbon becomes a $40 shelf item as freight surcharges, municipal excise taxes, and federal alcohol duties stack up. For wine and spirits brands, Alaska is underserved in a variety of ways–no significant marketing support and most of the business is managed from the Pacific Northwest or California. What about local farms distilling their own alcohol or contributing to food production? It’s unfortunately not enough. More than 95% of Alaska’s food is imported. The same goes for beverage alcohol. The weather is difficult and logistical challenges make it very hard. Fighting with Canada won’t fix this, it will only make it worse. Alaska’s supply chain is already stretched. Disrupting the only viable land route north is a dangerous game. These are just a few of the challenges the wine and spirits industry faces in the geographically diverse U.S. market. Which state or territory should I cover next? #WineAndSpirits #AlaskaLogistics #spiritindustry #wineandspiritsindustry #RTM #gotomarket #DistributionStrategy #CraftSpirits #BeverageIndustry