In the face of declining sales, winemakers are starting to market their product to a new group of consumers: men.
Theories as to why men don't drink wine are numerous, including the idea that they don't want to be told what to drink. It's also generally accepted that most men know nothing about wine.
Wineries have crafted labels and names like Kung Fu Girl, Red Truck and Maximus. Targeted marketing has also led to some unusual sponsorships, like the decision by Bennett Lane Winery (the producer of Maximus) to buy a NASCAR racing team.
Obviously it's an uphill battle as Portland, Oregon, resident Matt Maloney tells NPR:
I do like wine, but I drink beer. Wine, I think, has this maybe notstigma, but something attached to it that makes it more formal, instead
of social.
The stereotype of the beer-drinking man and wine-drinking woman finds some support in a recent Gallup poll,
which echoed the results of past years: 58 percent of men prefer beer
(21 percent of women) while 50 percent of women prefer wine (19 percent
of men).
Perhaps rather than trying to turn the
club-wielding male into one wielding a cork-opener, it would be best to
use empirical evidence to win over the gender. Earlier this year, a study
in the Netherlands found that men who drink
up to half a glass a day may live five years longer. Finally, a
way to help men enjoy more time with their trophy
wives.
[Image via Flickr: jason lengstorf]
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Bennett Lane Winery has sponsored a NASCAR team since 2004. Marketing to men was not something that was decided as a result of the current economy, but combining NASCAR and wine was something that was decided when the winery was first launched in 2003. Bennett Lane Winery owner Randy Lynch grew up working with racing and working on pit crews, so it is a combination of his two loves--NASCAR and wine. If you check NASCAR stats, you'll likely find that NASCAR is one of the fastest growing sports in America, and has a very large following of women as well. Bennett Lane keeps a car during the off-season at the winery--a treat to check out when having a nice taste of Maximus.
2-oz of wine, $9
12-oz of beer, $3-4
Pass the pork rinds and I'll chill the chardonay...
I usually drink wine with food. I'll drink beer by itself. Or with food. About the only time I drink wine by itself is tasting, other than the occasional glass of Madeira when I'm feeling under the weather.
I don't care for wine either,they only ones are like actually taste sweet. Since I don't get finer points,cheap stuff all the way for me.
If I'm just having a drink, I always choose (good) beer over wine. It's not that I don't like wine; I just don't care to drink wine on its own--only with a meal. My palate for wine isn't super-sophisticated. A cab tastes like a cab and a pinot tastes like a pinot. (The good news is that I've determined I never need to spend over $10 on a bottle of wine again.)
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