U.S. CONSUMERS’ A BIT FUZZY ON WINE
Our Aussie friends at McWilliam’s Wine provided us with a host of information relative to consumers and the wine industry. Quick synopsis? Most people in the U.S. still don’t know anything about wine, but boy do they love to drink it. Here’s a quick glimpse at the results of a 600-respondent telephone survey conducted in February 2007 by Dr. Dennis Tootelian, a marketing professor at the California State University.
An impressive 74% of this year’s respondents say they drink wine on an occasional or frequent basis as compared to the 60% that reported doing so in last year’s survey. Moreover, a significant number of survey respondents (65% in 2007 vs. 52% in 2006) said they are choosing wine over beer more often as compared to a year ago.
But here is where some of the uncertainty comes in. A whopping 83% of the respondents either have no idea or are incorrect about the fact that Shiraz and Syrah are made from the same grape, although different regions. In fact, when it comes to grapes at all, most U.S. consumers are a little fuzzy. The majority of respondents (57%) do not realize that most wines, regardless of their origins, are actually made from a blend of grapes or those grown from different regions.
Screw caps also pose a bit of a problem. When asked about the emerging trend towards screw caps on quality bottles of wine, 52% said they were somewhat or very comfortable with the practice, while 17% are still undecided or uncertain.
One thing that impresses American consumers? Heritage. A large chunk (82%) of respondents who drink wine frequently say they would be more likely to purchase a wine if they knew it was “hand-crafted” from a family-owned winery with a long history of winemaking, whereas only 33% of respondents who seldom drink wine would do so.
And when it comes to Australia, most consumers are interested in the country itself, but are not necessarily familiar with the country’s winemaking. While a solid 72% of respondents first think of kangaroos or The Outback when asked about Australia, only 11% think of winemaking expertise, although 87% reported they are interested in trying Australia’s wine.
An impressive 74% of this year’s respondents say they drink wine on an occasional or frequent basis as compared to the 60% that reported doing so in last year’s survey. Moreover, a significant number of survey respondents (65% in 2007 vs. 52% in 2006) said they are choosing wine over beer more often as compared to a year ago.
But here is where some of the uncertainty comes in. A whopping 83% of the respondents either have no idea or are incorrect about the fact that Shiraz and Syrah are made from the same grape, although different regions. In fact, when it comes to grapes at all, most U.S. consumers are a little fuzzy. The majority of respondents (57%) do not realize that most wines, regardless of their origins, are actually made from a blend of grapes or those grown from different regions.
Screw caps also pose a bit of a problem. When asked about the emerging trend towards screw caps on quality bottles of wine, 52% said they were somewhat or very comfortable with the practice, while 17% are still undecided or uncertain.
One thing that impresses American consumers? Heritage. A large chunk (82%) of respondents who drink wine frequently say they would be more likely to purchase a wine if they knew it was “hand-crafted” from a family-owned winery with a long history of winemaking, whereas only 33% of respondents who seldom drink wine would do so.
And when it comes to Australia, most consumers are interested in the country itself, but are not necessarily familiar with the country’s winemaking. While a solid 72% of respondents first think of kangaroos or The Outback when asked about Australia, only 11% think of winemaking expertise, although 87% reported they are interested in trying Australia’s wine.
posted at 2:01 PM
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