This week's roundup explores connecting with wine consumers in the digital age, Washington's smaller yet high-quality harvest, Alabama's latest opportunity to pass a bill for winery DTC, wineries using big data to increase DTC potential, and how rich, "lifestyle vintners" are affecting the industry.

How to Connect with Wine Consumers

At Wine2Wine, Paul Mabray gave an inspiring presentation on connecting with wine consumers in the digital age. We may be separated by oceans, but we are all connected by a common digital culture. Mabray discusses how the subscription economy is evolving and how wine producers can connect with consumers through multiple digital channels.

Washington Reports Lighter Wine Grape Harvest, Excellent Quality

It's hard to compete with Washington's 2016 record-breaking harvest, but 2017 saw near perfect conditions for grapes. The result is a high-quality, light harvest for Washington which is gaining some excitement.

l'll Toast to That - Let's Pass Direct-to-Consumer Wine Legislation this Session

Alabama has proposed legislation that would allow licensed wine manufacturers to ship wine directly to Alabama consumers. Will Alabama roll back these prohibition-era laws or will they continue to be one of the few states holding strong?

Data Consortium Demonstrates Power of Big Data for Unlocking DTC Potential, Boosting Sales

As competition grows, it's apparent that the wine industry needs to get better at using data to help connect with customers and reach to new ones. By analyzing winery customer lists and large data, wineries can see patterns, trends, and associations about human behavior that can help guide future marketing decisions.

Rich People Are Ruining Wine… and Napa Valley is forever changing as a result.

There are plenty of hobbyist investors who make money elsewhere and then buy into the wine industry for the social recognition. Are these lifestyle vintners ruining wine and changing Napa with their lack of industry and product knowledge?