Michael David Winery is owned by Dave and Michael Phillips , fifthgeneration farmers . Haily Cortez pours wine at the Lodi winery .
But sales of Michael David brands off-site instead increased in 2020 , which mirrored a larger trend , according to a report commissioned by the Wine Institute , an advocacy group for California ’ s wine industry based in Sacramento .
Jon Moramarco of bw166 , which provides research and advisory services for alcoholic beverage companies , found that the overall volume of U . S . wine purchased in 2020 increased slightly . However , consumer spending fell almost 10 percent due to a decrease in restaurant sales and on-site consumption . Last summer , Moramarco estimated the pandemic would cost the U . S . wine industry $ 5.94 billion .
“ Some of the wineries that have more of their distribution at grocery stores are doing OK because the consumers are doing a lot of channel shifting ,” says Gladys Horiuchi , director of media relations at the Wine Institute . “ They can ’ t go to restaurants anymore , so they ’ re buying their wine at grocery stores instead .”
Ready for the recovery
A similar dynamic emerged at Ironstone in Murphys , a town with more than two dozen tasting rooms , despite a population of about 2,000 people .
“ A lot of people are out of jobs , so it doesn ’ t feel great saying it , but the truth is that our wine sales , at least in terms of online and delivery and shipping , has exponentially grown ,” Kushnir says . He credits the uptick in sales in part to the area ’ s large retirement community discovering modern ways to buy wine . “ They weren ’ t so accustomed to getting on their phone and downloading our app and ordering food for pickup or ordering wine for delivery ,” he says .
It doesn ’ t hurt that the weather and atmospheric conditions of the Murphys area make it ideal for top-notch wine grapes . “ We have something that Napa doesn ’ t have , which is a natural air conditioner that is the Sierra foothills ,” Kushnir says . “ We can have warm days , real cool nights and no humidity . We ’ re not fighting against the mildew , mold , rot , things like that .”
Wineries have suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic like most businesses , but wineries like Ironstone are potentially poised to lead the recovery . When the Ironstone Amphitheatre starts booking concerts again , thousands of tourists will flock to the area to spend money . “ When we bring 6,500 people to a concert , everybody in town reaps the benefits of that ,” Kushnir says . “ They ’ re going to want to go eat before , maybe do a little shopping , a little tasting before the concert .”
One can almost hear the hum of energy and activity again .
Daniel Barnes is a freelance writer , film critic and beer enthusiast . His work has appeared in The Sacramento Bee , Sacramento News & Review , East Bay Express , Philadelphia Weekly , San Antonio Current , and elsewhere .
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