Study Finds Young People Avoiding Wine For Every Reason Except Price

Concluding an 18-month, $340,000 research initiative into falling wine consumption among adults under 35, an industry trade group identified 41 contributing factors Tuesday, none of which is what the wine costs, sources reported.

The factors include cannabis, screen time, seltzer, pickleball, a decline in tablecloth ownership, the erosion of the shared evening meal, and an unspecified failure of storytelling.

“We did look at affordability, and what we found is that this same consumer will happily spend $19 on a cocktail with an egg white in it, so this is not a money problem. It’s an engagement problem,” said research director Colleen Fahey, adding that the group would launch a $2 million campaign next spring to teach young adults about soil. “They don’t know what a vineyard is. Most of them have never met a farmer. Our job is to close that gap, and once we close it, the rest of this takes care of itself.”

The study surveyed 2,100 people. Price was not among the response options.

At press time, the trade group had raised its recommended entry-level price point to $32 in order to protect category perception.