Circle Chair Meg Maker reached out to members and others for insights about how wine and spirits communicators should address the current moment.
What is the role and future of wine writing given this moment of global economic uncertainty? At the extreme, the flow of wine will slow, prices will rise, wine consumption will drop, and wine consumer demographics will shift. Wine communication will shift, too.
The sudden market tectonics are eerily reminiscent of those brought about by the pandemic, so perhaps we can take some lessons from that long, painful episode. But the new chaos feels different in many ways.
I reached out to Circle members and other experts for advice. I wanted to know what wine communicators should be thinking about in the short and long term, and how we might adjust our strategies and tactics to address a changing industry. Some themes emerged.
First, don’t panic. The situation is evolving daily, whipsawing between tariffs and retaliatory counter measures. Nothing’s settled. “I’m not sure the Trump theatre will have a long run,” said Michael Fridjhon, a Circle member from South Africa. “therefore the dramas of the past few days may not presage a new reality.”
Communicators should remain open and nimble so they can respond quickly to new developments. “Stay calm!” advised Rosemary George MW, president of the Circle. “Seize the moment and do the best you can, in whatever circumstances you find yourself.”
Circle member Sunny Hodge concurred. “Be reactive and reflective of the market. Things will be changing fast, and quite dramatically; speed to audience will be key.”
Don’t assume; report. We think we know what will happen if tariffs and retaliatory measures persist for months or years. Wine economists have published on the impact of Trump’s first-term trade war, but the new tariffs are structured differently, so there will be other impacts we can’t anticipate, at all scales.
“First of all, you can go out and ask all of the guys in the wine trade — the small stores, the large stores,” said Karl Storchmann PhD, a researcher at NYU who is focused on wine economics. “Do they profit? Will they bring up the prices of wine they bought cheap? And will that be in wholesale or in retail? I think the tax is not a boon for them, but I just suspect that — I don’t know that. There’s no way other than going out there to ask them.”
Circle member and wine economist Neal Hulkower PhD also recommended doing the work. “The impact on the US wine industry will make a particularly good story to follow, as will retaliation from the countries affected by the tariffs,” he said. “Since it is our beat, wine communicators are uniquely positioned to convey the severe impact on the wine industry worldwide in the broadest sense and should use every medium available to get the word out.”
“There’s a lot of research that can be done,” concluded Storchmann. “Journalistic research.”
All wine is “local.” Writers may experience reduced access to wines from abroad, but that might suggest focusing on wines from here — wherever “here” happens to be.
“If US wine communicators need to look stateside for material, there are plenty of smaller vinifera growing areas to consider,” said Hulkower, an American. “I’ve had some good bottles from Colorado, as well as Michigan. Even Massachusetts makes some decent bubbles. Heck, I even had some good wine from New Jersey! The point is, necessity should inspire curiosity and challenge preconceived notions of where good juice can be found.”
“Producers from more marginal appellations will have less margin to play with,” said Fridjhon. “This will force innovation on them and make the role of wine communicators more important.”
“The silver lining here may just be the boost that the British wine scene needs,” said Hodge, who lives and works in London. “There will of course be a lot of positive attention to domestically grown and produced wine.”
Become a specialist. Given the potential breadth of the economic impacts, it may seem counter-intuitive to focus on a specific wine topic or region right now. But such specialization can bolster a writer’s reputation and cement their role in the global conversation about wine.
“Be authentic and find your own voice,” said longtime Circle member Jancis Robinson MW. “Maybe become the specialist source of information on a specific aspect of wine, thereby acquiring some status and distinction.”
Tim Atkin MW, another Circle member, also leaned into this idea. “My main bit of advice would be to specialize,” he said. “The era of generalists is pretty much over. Make yourself the expert in a region or country. I think that gives you a degree of competitive advantage.”
There’s plenty of material. A wine trade war is a big story with an outsized impact. Price-sensitive consumers may make other choices as they see wine prices float northward. But apart from price, customers are already exploring other categories, and this may add energy to that pursuit.
“Wine communicators need to emphasize value,” said Åsa Johannson, a Circle member who lives and works in Italy. “Not just price, but the story, the quality for the cost, and the experience offered. Highlighting affordable yet interesting wine options and exploring alternative formats (smaller bottles, bag-in-box for certain styles) might gain traction in communication.”
The price effects slot into a larger story (one we’ve already been telling) about changes in wine production and consumption. “I think we need to be aware of changes in consumer demographics,” said George, like “the younger generation not drinking much wine and paying more attention to issues like sustainability, low alcohol, climate change.”
“If I were younger, with more of my career in front of me,” said Robinson, “I would take much more interest in low and no alcohol drinks of all sorts. And I probably wouldn’t focus so narrowly on wine.”
Finally: Be yourself. “In times of uncertainty, trust is paramount,” said Johannson. “Communicating honestly and authentically about the challenges and opportunities within the wine world will build credibility. Embrace change, and be willing to experiment with new approaches without losing ethical values.”
Read the full member interviews here.Members’ insights: Navigating the trade war
Photo: Wine shop in St. Émilion
Credit: Meg Maker