How to Bring Zoomers into Wine NOW
The COVID pandemic has been a boon for the alcoholic beverage industry. From rexamining our commercial laws to a forced push to improve online presence, these difficult adaptations will undoubtedly pay off in the coming years. Wine has long been a lagging industry when it comes to engagement, and being dragged (perhaps kicking and screaming) into cyberspace was an overdue step.
In spite of the increased online presence of wine, most of its presentation appeals to existing enthusiasts and the older generation. It does not fully exploit the opportunity for expanding the market, especially when it comes to the Zoomer generation. They have money, access, and the capacity to understand wine, but there are few doors which are explicity opened to them.
Two things need to happen in order to bring this demographic in:
They need a wine of their own
The rest of the wine world needs to be demystified in a way they find appealing
The Zoomer Wine
Over the last 4 months, every wine conversation I have had with a Zoomer (and sometimes my fellow millennials) has brought up GSM. Every time I bring a wine to a gathering where my younger colleagues will attend, I bring something Grenache based. When I ask about the GSM appeal, the answers are consistent. The Zoomers love fruit, they want an approachable wine that brings them into the wine world, and they tend to be affordable. They’re not looking to age wine for the long game (perhaps not yet). They find approachability not just on the palate, but in the name. And they have other debts to pay off even though they, deep down, want to share in the glamor of participating in the wine world because it makes for lovely Instagram posts.
GSM does this. They drink NOW. Zoomers do not have patience as a cohort. Red, juicy, ripe fruit is an easy taste that comes naturally with Grenache-based wines. (Zoomers want authenticity). And when the Zoomers visit a winery, the GSM-blend offered is rarely the most expensive option.
But I also want to put forth a possible goal for marketers across the wine world: the GSM can belong to the Zoomers. Actual Baby Boomers can own White Zinfandel, overoaked Chardonnay, and talk about their memories of days when First Growths were affordable. Wine moms own Zinfandel. Doctors, lawyers, and engineers can afford high-end everything.
GSM is, in a sense, unclaimed. It’s easy to remember and identifiable.
Further Down the Rabbit Hole
Most drinkers find their one drink and stick to it for the rest of their lives. That’s reality. I am relatively new to the wine world. I am not new to consumer behavior.
On the other hand, the Zoomer’s frenetic pace demands more exploration than their predecessors. There is greater potential for circulating them across different trends, especially with broad sets of choices at their fingertips that their parents could never have imagined.
My Zoomer wine conversations are almost templated at this point:
“Hey, how much did you pay for your GSM?” (It’s anywhere from $15-30)
“You ever heard of a Cotes du Rhone?” (Usually, no)
“It’s the OG GSM. French stuff. But it’s just $10-13.” (Word?)
And you or I can just point them to a really attractive daily drink.
I wonder what could happen next? Could importers actually bring different regions in to compete with the domestic (US) stuff? Spanish Garnacha, or Languedoc wines come to mind. And if the Zoomers get more comfortable, Gamay really can scoop up some due recognition.
This step isn’t happening yet. But boy, the marketers and retailers could win over a generation that deep down, wants to feel a bit fancy and have a glass.