IN A STATE famous for its fault lines, no tectonic shift in California’s recent history had a greater impact on its wine industry than when the lights went dark in restaurants and retail shops around the world at the onset of the pandemic. The lockdown created huge shifts in the global economy and consumer behavior, which presented some unique opportunities as well as challenges.
Suddenly, wine professionals and consumers were connecting in online communities to learn and talk about wines that many had never tasted before. This exchange of information created a new demand for bottlings that previously couldn’t be found outside of the Golden State, and as importers and retailers responded by moving inventory and sales online, the California wine community directly benefited from the global discovery and appreciation of wines from its diverse regions and eclectic producers.
From Nebbiolo and Nero d’Avola to Vernaccia and Valdigué, California’s winemakers are leaning into the state’s complex terroir to explore the potential of a wide range of lesser-known grapes. “Wine drinkers are looking for something new,” says Joe Lange, international sales director for LangeTwins Family Winery and Vineyards in Lodi, “so we’re fortunate to farm in a region growing over 125 varieties of Vitis vinifera. Some of our bestselling wines are varieties that just a few years ago were relatively unfamiliar to people.”
Only a small percentage of California’s 4,800 wineries export their wines to global markets. Traditionally, buyers lean heavily on international wine exhibitions and big trade tastings abroad to engage with producers. Wine Institute wanted to replicate the scale and efficiencies of this established paradigm while leveraging the innovation and enthusiasm created by bringing buyers face-to-face with wineries—many of them new to the export market. So last year, it launched the Global Buyers Marketplace, bringing more than 80 buyers from markets across Europe, Asia, Mexico, and Canada to California to meet with producers. The buyers represented more than $10 billion in annual wine sales and were eager to add California wines to their portfolios. Over the course of five days, they tasted over 800 expressions, attended seminars led by educators Elaine Chukan Brown and Kelli White, met with over 200 vintners, and explored wine regions ranging from Santa Barbara to the Sierra Foothills.
As global professionals experience California wines on a deeper and more intimate level, their perceptions are being transformed, and as a result, export sales
continue to grow, fueled in part by interest in regions like Lodi, Paso Robles, and Anderson Valley as well as in emerging and eclectic varieties.
At a recent dinner, legendary Alexan- der Valley Cabernet Sauvignon producer Chris Hanna, president of Hanna Winery, shared with me her newly released Nero d’Avola: It was plush, juicy, and delicious. “This is the future” she said—and a bright one too, I might add.
Authored by Wine Institute contributors, The Inside Sip on California Wine provides an insider’s look at the latest developments in California’s wine community. Wine Institute is an advocacy group of over 1,000 California wineries and affiliated businesses that initiates and advocates for state, federal, and international public policy to encourage the responsible production, consumption, and enjoyment of wine.
28 {THE SOMM JOURNAL} OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2023