09/06/2026
About a month ago, I wrote about something I had been noticing: wine seems to be gaining more presence again in TV shows, movies, games, and popular culture.
This weekend I started watching Your Friends & Neighbors, and once again, wine has a significant presence. Honestly, I love seeing it. 🍷
Then this morning, I was reading an article about the marketing disconnect in the wine industry; how, in many cases, wineries and the industry as a whole have become disconnected from today’s consumer.
It made me think: wine showing up again in popular culture is a great start. But is it enough?
Five years ago, U.S. wine consumption was around 1.1 billion gallons. Today, estimates are closer to 800 million gallons. That’s roughly a 30% decline.
Those numbers should get everyone’s attention.
We can talk about changing generations, health trends, pricing, competition from other beverages, or the economy. All of those things matter. But at some point, we also need to look at ourselves as an industry.
Are we doing enough to make wine relevant, approachable, exciting, and part of people’s lives again?
Producers, wineries, growers, distributors, cooperages, retailers, restaurants, associations, we are all in the same boat. When wine consumption declines, eventually it touches every one of us.
So maybe it’s time to stop thinking only about our individual piece of the business and start putting more of our efforts together.
I am genuinely happy to see wine appearing more often on TV, in movies, and at social events. Visibility matters. Culture matters. And I believe it’s a positive sign.
But we need to step it up.
The boat is not sinking.
We just need to figure out how to get everyone rowing in the same direction. 🍷
