This summer, I decided to take a 2 week wine marketing course at UC Davis. It was probably one of the most fun, educational courses I’ve ever taken! This is one of the few courses that primarily focuses on the business around the wine. I spent two weeks learning about such issues as branding, licensing and legal requirements, and distribution channels as they relate to the wine industry. We also got the opportunity to do a few tastings and speak to the winemakers themselves.
I learned a lot of fascinating things about the wine industry as its stands today. Some fun tidbits:
*Moscato sales have skyrocketed almost 100% over the past couple years. Its’ sudden popularity is partially attributed to shout outs by Drake, Kanye, and Lil’ Kim.
*Despite the troubled economy, demand for wine is still stable and growing, though much of the growth is in the lower dollar price points
*Prices of wine are on the rise due to the current grape supply shortage
*Chardonnay- Still the biggest varietal in the US from a sales perspective
Some of the highlights for me were actually outside of the classroom. There were 50 students in the course and I would guesstimate that about 60% were from other countries- the main ones being France, Portugal, and Italy. I also met some great people and contacts from within the California wine industry. On one of our last nights in town, a big group of us all made our way to Oxbow Public Market in downtown Napa and ordered a couple rounds of oysters from Hog Island, paired with a Sauvignon Blanc of which the name escapes me.
Another one of the highlights- we got a tour of UC Davis’ on campus winery and teaching vineyard.
Apparently it’s one the world’s greenest winery, and was the first winery to achieve LEED certification. There was also a cellar section where there were hundreds (maybe thousands!) of donated wine bottles, some of them extremely rare, vintage wines. Apparently several prominent wine collectors and personalities had willed parts of their collections to UC Davis. I asked the professor if his department ever “sampled” from the cellar. He laughed, and said “no”, but they did crack open bottles occasionally if there was a huge donor dinner.
All and all- this was an extremely valuable two weeks. I’m so excited about what my next steps in life have in store for me!
Leave a Reply