January 25, 2014

             Taste NY at the Super Bowl, direct sales boom, wine/beer drinkers, weather extremes, and more from wine counry

             Cheers!          

             Jim Trezise

                 Super Bowl fans will have many chances to "Taste NY" as the popular program moves to various events and venues leading up to the big game, and those flying into LaGuardia or JFK will have additional chances to buy New York wines and other products on their way in or out at the "Taste NY" stores in the Delta terminals.

                  Governor Andrew Cuomo created the Taste NY program last year and with the legislature allocated $5 million to the Super Bowl Host Committee.  About 100 New York vendors, including wineries, will be featured at various events, starting with the Media Party on Tuesday at Chelsea Piers.  More than 3,500 members of the media will attend and be introduced to great New York products like wines from Wolffer Estate Vineyard on Long Island and Standing Stone Vineyards in the Finger Lakes, along with spirits from Prohibition Distillery and great McCadam cheese.  Celebrity chef Marc Murphy of Landmarc will prepare dishes using only ingredients grown, raised, or made in New York.

                   From Tuesday through Saturday, a 13-block section of Broadway in Times Square will become Super Bowl Boulevard, which is expected to attract over 1,000,000 visitors and will feature the "I Love NY" tourism program, with an emphasis on Upstate regions like the Finger Lakes, Niagara, and Thousand Islands. The "Taste of the NFL--Party with a Purpose" on Saturday will feature chefs and NFL players representing all 32 NFL teams, with proceeds benefiting hunger relief organizations.  An on game day there will be a Pre-Game Party for 2,500 people at the Meadowlands Racetrack near MetLife Stadium.  Other New York wines featured during the festivities include Salmon Run and Bully Hill.

                    Now if only the weather will cooperate...

               Direct-to-Consumer (DtC) wine shipments grew strongly in 2013, far exceeding growth through traditional retail channels, according to a report just released by ShipCompliant and Wines & Vines.  The volume of shipments increased by 9.3% over 2012 levels to 3.47 million cases, and the value grew by 7.5% to $1.57 billion, though for the first time ever the average bottle price fell slightly (1.7%) to $37.78.

                Small wineries (producing between 5,000 and 49,999 cases annually), like the vast majority in New York, produce only 5% of all American wine but accounted for 48% of all wines shipped, though the average price per bottle decreased by 7.5% to $37.33.  The average price for Riesling wines, which comprise much of the volume in the Finger Lakes, is $15.40 (down less than 1%).  Due largely to its population, New York State is the third largest state for consumers receiving DtC wines after California and Texas.

                 Happily, the number of states allowing DtC continues to increase, with Montana and Arkansas becoming the two most recent additions and increasing the number to 45 states (90%); still missing are Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.

                  For years, wine wholesalers did everything they could to preserve their monopoly and prevent consumer choice, but a landmark Supreme Court decision in 2005 was a key turning point in the road to freedom.

                  Dr. Konstantin Frank Wines received a nice review from the International Wine Review blog, as well as scores of 90 each for its 2012 Dry Riesling, and the Chateau Frank 2007 Blanc de Noirs.

                   Bloomer Creek 2008 White Horse Red was included among "20 Winter Wines for $20" recommended by Eric Asimov in the New York Times.

                   The Wine Market Council, headed by John Gillespie, recently did a study of high frequency ("core") wine drinkers, including whether they were drinking the same (68%), more (21%) or less (11%) beer compared with year ago.  Of those drinking more, 55% are drinking more craft beer, reflecting the explosion of craft beers around the country (including New York).  While some in the wine industry view beer, spirits and cider as competitors for market share, I (and many others) see them as partners to encourage consumers to enjoy local farm-based craft beverages.

                     Incidentally, the WMC is holding its annual research conferences on January 28 in New York City, and the 31st in Santa Rosa.  These are great marketing conferences which I highly recommend.

                     Keuka Lake where I live is frozen for the first time in several years, due to the "polar vortex" which on one day earlier this week caused freezing temperatures in all 50 states (yes, even including Hawaii).  Years ago we always expected the lake to freeze, but now it's a special event, bringing out ice skaters, ice boaters, and ice fishermen in their little tents.

                      Meanwhile, in California where I'm headed tomorrow for the Unified Symposium, they're having the most severe draught in over a century, causing great concern among grape growers, other farmers, municipalities, and others.  I was pleasantly surprised this week when the PBS News Hour had a segment on this featuring our wonderful friend Karen Ross, now the Director of the California Department of Food and Agriculture after 10 years as president of the California Association of Winegrape Growers.  What a nice surprise.