Comments on: Generational sniping? I don’t think so

By: merlotman

merlotman — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 17:49:29 +0000

Changing habits? I think so, The new generation, spring breakers etc. Beer, Margaritas….Now wine, why not? Our future consumers, they may come for fun, buy one bottle…but will purchase cases in the future. Chill out. Big Smile I am 57 ………………

By: Dylan

Dylan — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 17:22:51 +0000

I’m pretty sure “sniping” was just an odd word choice for what was meant as “taking a jab.” At least that how I read it as a 22 year old from the respective group’s article topic.

By: Larry Stanton

Larry Stanton — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 01:43:08 +0000

Sniping…hmmm. At millenials…double hmmm. Like Fintan, who is just outside San Luis Obispo, we also have had a healthy influx of millenials for our Cerro Prieto Vineyard & Cellars eco vineyard tours. True, most wineries don’t promote their vineyards, but I can tell you that the folks we have entertained here have been not only interesting but interested in our eco tours. Most wineries in our Paso Robles area don’t promote their vineyards…but they should, in that vineyards are some of the most spectacularly scenic places we have here. And the millenials, God bless them, are wildly enthusiastic, not just about the inherent beauty of our vineyard (as well as the wine it produces), but they are also very eco-centric.

Am I surprised by this? Initially, absolutely. Now, milennials are good referrals for us, they are very pro eco issues, and are definitely a force for sustainable ag/ going green. If anything, it is possible millenials were not taken seriously enough, maybe because somebody thought “they hadn’t paid their dues”, or something like that. What we have seen is a very intelligent consumer group, who love fine wine, are very taken with vine/wine eco issues, and are delightful people to be around. In my very limited experience, it is people my own age who tend to be put-offish, not very interested, and in some cases, not very interesting.

Anybody out there who has some millenials they don’t want? Heck, send ‘em our way…we welcome them. I love Fintan’s close: “We prefer screwcaps to corks, and like unoaked rather than oaked.” It’s the new math, and I agree with Fintan that to ignore the millenials would be a very poor choice, indeed.

By: steve

steve — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 17:34:57 +0000

To misunder-quote Bush, I am the discounter!

By: Fintan du Fresne

Fintan du Fresne — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:19:47 +0000

As the winemaker at a winery staffed solely by the millenial generation (at 30 I am the oldest employee), we are very cogniscent of the role that millenials play in both future and current wine consumption. We also happen to be located just outside San Luis Obispo, a town where college kids make up a large part of the population. Yes, we do experience those millenials who are just out to consume (as per the sniping from the Boomers), but we get an increasing number who want to become educated. We feel it is our role to educate this tier of consumers, not berate or ignore them because they follow our wine drinking ethics.

However, I have experienced a lot of “old school” wineries that really miss the mark when it comes to the millenial generation. We are generally uninterested in tradition and convention. We prefer the screwcap to the cork, unoaked rather than oaked, Spanish Garnacha to Napa Cab. The wineries that don’t adapt to these younger generations will find themselves in the same boat as the auto industry.