SVB on Wine

  I'm betting nobody knows who Thorstein Veblen is. Like this picture, you have to be a little cockeyed to know him; be a Jeopardy ...

Buying More or Less Tonnage in 2015? Self-Imposed Marooning   I know the above chart is a little hard to read. When I start w...

Each year I get to write a State of the Industry report that's pretty well received in the wine business. Its even used as part of...

Pig in a Python Here's a late edit to this post: If there are 6 pigs in a 7 pig python and the python doesn't ....er ... pass on...

Total Wine Sales Continue to Move Higher About six weeks ago I was asked to speak about the economy, the environment for the US wine co...

The Best View of the Housing Bubble Pre-Crash I recall giving a speech in August of 2008 to about 125 growers and winery owners. The sp...

Everyone likes Fridays. This Friday is a little more special so I decided to post a non-Sunday blog for the first time. Why the deviation? ...

   ABC. It's Easy As 1-2-3   The vines flowering this time of year remind me of seventh grade. Maybe its the Aqua-Net hairspr...

Many in business view another competitor moving into your territory as an affront to all that is fair and decent. Its the moral equivalen...

Price and Returns of CA Grape Crop Total Value of CA Grape Crop Mario Draghi was in the news this past week concurrent with th...

Have you ever found yourself disbelieving your own eyes or being flabbergasted at a decision that defies logic? For instance, what would h...

When life is confusing, we all have to have a moral compass. For me, I look to the immortal Yogi Berra to make some sense out of things. L...

Talking to a US producer the other day about his Chinese exports, I asked what I should tell others about selling in China. He said tell t...

There's no substitute for visiting a wine region to get a true sense for the business. Tasting doesn't tell you strategy. Reading w...

Changing Patterns: You're Mad if you Don't React. The wine industry is made of family owned companies. Family owned companies s...

Don Draper, the Middle Class, and the Mad US Wine Consumer Economically speaking, a luxury good is one with a demand curve that'...

There is a lot of talk around the concept of 'sustainability' so much so that it loses its meaning. What makes a business - any bu...

Middle Class Mashed Middle Class Wealth Back to 1983 Levels That is a question all wineries are asking: When will they be abl...

You are a with-it kind of person so you probably recognize the acronyms in the title stand for Social Media and Customer Relationship M...

What is the long-term outlook for the US wine business? Having been around the business for more than 30 years now, I can remember differ...