{"id":35422,"date":"2016-03-09T10:25:01","date_gmt":"2016-03-09T16:25:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=35422"},"modified":"2016-03-09T10:25:01","modified_gmt":"2016-03-09T16:25:01","slug":"why-millennials-are-drinking-more-wine-than-their-parents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/why-millennials-are-drinking-more-wine-than-their-parents\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Millennials Are Drinking More Wine Than Their Parents"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Katie Murar<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wine is enjoying a surge in popularity among millennials, bolstered by an increase in availability and variety, though it has not yet overtaken beer in popularity or consumption.<\/p>\n

According to a recent report by the Wine Market Council, 42 percent of all wine drunk in the U.S. in 2015 was by millennials, 13 percentage points more than 2014.<\/p>\n

Millennials, born between 1980 and the late 1990s, drank around 159.6 million cases of wine last year, downing an average of 3.1 glasses in a sitting.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Glasses\u00a0Consumed in One Sitting<\/h2>\n

[field name=”chart1″]<\/p>\n

In 2015 millennials overtook baby boomers in percentage of wine drinkers. Millennials also drank the most wine in one sitting, averaging at 3.1 glasses. (Katie Murar\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n

Madison Harris, a 27-year-old Chicago resident, said her mother was the person who introduced her to wine, and she has become a fanatic.<\/p>\n

\u201cI first started drinking wine after I graduated college, and I feel like I love it more and more each year. It\u2019s not really something you get sick of,\u201d Harris said. \u201cI drink beer and cocktails too, but wine, especially red, is the one type of alcohol I\u2019m always in the mood for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although wine drinking is increasing in popularity, it’s not yet more popular than beer, according to Joseph Ward, former wine editor for Conde Nast Traveler Ward. Wine may be gaining on cocktails, too,\u00a0Ward adds, due to their higher prices.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the explosion and interest in wine is big across all ages, but there is something else happening with millennials that is new, which is an interest in other drinks as well as wine, like the massive interest in craft beers, and the interest in cocktails which goes back a couple of generations,\u201d Ward said. \u201cBeer is certainly hugely popular because it cuts across a lot of age groups and income levels.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Wine Market Council study, which surveyed 1,200 “high-frequency” drinkers, or individuals who consume wine several times a week, also found that millennials have the most varied tastes in wines, with varieties such as Malbec, Moscato, Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc proving very popular among the younger generation.<\/p>\n

\u201cOlder generations didn\u2019t have access to good wine in America, and now good wine is everywhere. There isn\u2019t one place that sells alcohol where you can\u2019t get a bottle of wine,\u201d Rob Shouse, wine specialist for Chicago store wineHouse, said. \u201cSo now it\u2019s available, and there\u2019s a greater variety available, and with greater variety comes greater consumption.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shouse said this may be because younger wine drinkers are more engaged in trying new wines, and are more open to drinking a variety of wines.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe gen x\u2019s will come in and take whatever we recommend, where the younger generation seems to ask more questions. It\u2019s a conversation to try to discover what they like. They seem to be more engaged,\u201d Shouse said. \u201cAnother big factor is you can now try wine before you buy it, whereas before it was hit or miss. Many shops will offer tastings so people can try wines ahead of time, encouraging them to buy more of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ward said the increase in millennial wine drinkers\u00a0reflects wine’s becoming more popular as a whole in America.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom when I started writing about wine 32 years ago, wine drinking is so much more prevalent in America,\u201d Ward said. \u201cAt that time, it was a small minority of people who drank wine regularly, and it was an even smaller group who drank good wine. And that has changed\u201d<\/p>\n

Wine is now produced at a higher quality in higher quantities, Ward said, with younger drinkers emerging into the wine scene at a very vibrant time.<\/p>\n

According to statistics from the Wine Institute, in 2010 the United States was ranked fourth for production of wine, behind Italy, France and Spain. In 2010 the United States had increased the amount wine produced by 6 percent since 2007, while France, Italy and Spain had cumulatively increased production by 25 percent.<\/p>\n

Percent of World Wine Production<\/h2>\n

[field name=”chart2″]<\/p>\n

According to a 2010 report by the Wine Institute, America is fourth in wine production, trailing Italy, France and Spain. (Katie Murar\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n

Greg Peterson, a 26-year-old law student at Northwestern, says wine is his drink of choice, even though he is \u201csupposed to be drinking cheap beer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMe and my friends love wine, and wine was the first alcohol that I first properly got into,\u201d Peterson said. \u201cThere\u2019s so much going on with wine, there\u2019s always something new, there\u2019s always something exciting, and I think that\u2019s why there are a lot of twenty-somethings drinking wine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joshua Betson, an employee for Vino et Spiritus, a small Chicago wine distributor, definitely sees the surge in millennial wine-drinkers, and thinks it is extremely beneficial to the wine industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank God,\u201d Betson said. \u201cMillennials are great with the way they embrace new styles and new regions, and they don\u2019t have any stigmas. Very few of my friends will turn down a wine because it\u2019s a screw cap, or because they can\u2019t pronounce it. The older generations drink stuff that they have had their entire lives, whereas millennials are embracing new trends and trying whatever is out there. I\u2019m all for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

At Binny\u2019s Beverage Depot, wine has been the biggest mover of all beverages sold since its opening in 1940.<\/p>\n

\u201cHistorically, wine has seen the most sales in Binny\u2019s,\u201d Greg Versch, director of communications for Binny\u2019s, said. \u201cEveryone drinks wine, from 21 to infinity, and it\u2019s exciting to see younger generations getting into wine, and to try new types as they get older.\u201d<\/p>\n

Versch said younger wine drinkers typically start out with a sweeter wine, such as a Moscato, before progressing into heavier wines. The evidence of millennials drinking wine speaks for itself, as Versch said Binny\u2019s has seen explosive sales of Moscato in the past few years.<\/p>\n

Shouse noted that beer is still\u00a0more prevalent than wine, bolstered by\u00a0a dominance in advertising and marketing. Wine has thus taken to non-traditional forms of advertising, Shouse notes.<\/p>\n

\u201cTraditional advertising isn\u2019t as big for wines as it is for beer or spirits, so now the way you\u2019re going to find out about it is through alternative media, such as blogs, social media and apps which are largely embraced by younger generations,\u201d Shouse said.<\/p>\n

Despite the discrepancy of media attention, wine is increasingly becoming a conventional drinking option, Shouse said, claiming wine is just as common as beer at parties.<\/p>\n

\u201cWine is now sort of like beer, because wine used to be for special occasions only but now it\u2019s more commonplace and it\u2019s something that you can have everyday, while expensive bottles of wine and champagne are reserved for special occasions,\u201d Shouse said.<\/p>\n

Photo at top: According to a study by the Wine Council, Millennials now make up almost half of the wine-drinking population, and have the most varied tastes. (Katie Murar\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Katie Murar Wine is enjoying a surge in popularity among millennials, bolstered by an increase in availability and variety, though it has not yet overtaken beer in popularity or consumption. 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