Shanken's Impact Newsletter July 1, 2022

AFTER DECLINING IN 2020—WHEN THE pandemic shuttered many of its key occasions—Champagne roared back in the U.S. last year, achieving a new all-time high of 1.89 million case depletions on 25% growth, according to Impact Databank. In addition to the pandemic, the Champagne business was hurt in 2020 due to stockpiling by U.S. importers the previous year amid threatened tariffs on the category. But 2021’s performance showed that while challenges remain in terms of the supply chain and allocation issues in various markets, consumer demand for bubbly is riding as high as ever. Last year, Champagne’s export value to the U.S. soared 58% to €794 million ($838m) on shipments up 64% to 2.9 million cases, as the category far outperformed fellow European sparklers Prosecco and Cava. On a per-case basis,…

DESPITE SLOWING GROWTH IN RECENT YEARS, VODKA REMAINS THE LARGEST SPIRITS category in the U.S. Many legacy brands continue to face challenging conditions, both from new competition within the category and the widespread disruption to life and hospitality stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic, more recently coupled with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which cast a pall on a product long associated with Russia. Nonetheless, total volume in the U.S. advanced again in 2021. U.S. volumes reached 81 million 9-liter cases for the first time last year, up from 80.6 million cases in 2021, according to Impact Databank. The category grew only 0.5% overall, less than its average five-year rate of 1.2%, with growth concentrated in only a handful of brands, primarily in the top 20. Within the 20 million-case brands in…

THERE’S BEEN NO SHORTAGE OF CHALLENGES FOR marketers of Champagne and other sparkling wines the past few years, from the threat of tariffs to the pandemic to inflation and supply chain struggles. But beneath it all, consumer demand for bubbly has never been higher. The overall sparkling wine market in the U.S. could surpass 25 million cases this year, up from 15 million cases in 2010. Champagne depletions in the U.S. reached a new record-high last year, according to Impact Databank, nearing 1.9 million cases on a 25% increase. Shipment value fared even better, leaping 58% to €794 million ($838m). Underlying those robust numbers were a host of buoyant performances for key brands—almost all of the top 20 Champagne labels in the U.S. grew by double-digits in 2021. Non-Champagne sparkling…

E.&J. GALLO WINERY HAS STRUCK A deal to become the official wine sponsor of the National Football League. The partnership, which covers a variety of brands and will last multiple years, will feature team-specific activations, including individual athletes. Gallo’s brands will be featured at NFL events, and there will be broadcast, digital, and social materials showcased throughout the season. “As an industry leader our role is to welcome new consumers to the wine category in unique and relevant ways,” said Gallo CMO Stephanie Gallo. “This partnership will do just that by bringing our avid fan bases together.” The new initiatives will feature Barefoot at launch, with further details coming in August as the NFL begins its preseason. Gallo is the largest wine marketer both in the U.S. and worldwide, with…

WILSON DANIELS IS BOLSTERING ITS Italian import range with the wines of Gaja, effective September 1, including the namesake winery in Piedmont as well as Pieve Santa Restituta in Montalcino, Ca’Marcanda in Bolgheri, and Idda in Sicily. Known as one of the top producers in Piedmont with vineyards in both the Barbaresco and Barolo districts, the company has branched out over the past three decades under the leadership of fourth-generation Angelo Gaja, and now the fifth generation, including Gaia, Rossana, and Giovanni Gaja. The brand was with Terlato for two decades, a period of marked growth.…

CALIFORNIA VINTNER BILL FOLEY IS bolstering his company’s presence in Napa Valley with a deal to purchase Silverado Vineyards from the Disney Miller family, Wine Spectator reported. The purchase price is estimated to be north of $150 million. Founded by Ron Miller and his wife, Diane Disney Miller, Silverado last year marked its 40th anniversary. Its holdings include 300 acres of vineyards, including 100 acres in Napa’s Stags Leap District AVA (where the winery is located), 100 acres in Coombsville and 100 acres in Yountville. Silverado’s current annual production is about 68,000 cases, sold primarily through the wholesale market, but it holds a permit to make up to 140,000 cases. Its offerings range from Miller Ranch Sauvignon Blanc, at around $25 a bottle, up through single-vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon expressions like…