Why does every wine article I read think Millennials are so great?
Get used to it my friend: the hipster set has discovered wine and they’re making it a part of their culture. And you won’t get any complaints from me. I’m thrilled that the three Millennials in my life see wine as an option, rather than some highfalutin’ drink you need a title and a lapel pin to appreciate.
I think that’s the real problem many older wine drinkers have with Millennials. While they can be as pretentious as any generation, they don’t take things that seriously. When it comes to wine, they’re more interested in the story behind the label than the soil content or three-centuries-old history of the vineyard. They also have zero loyalty, which really irks producers of classic wine brands that are seeing their domination of liquor store shelves deteriorate because this younger audience doesn’t give them the respect they think they deserve.
For the majority of my generation, wine was a thing our mothers bought to have with Christmas dinner. We were beer and spirit drinkers. We didn’t know one end of a wine bottle from the other — and many of us still don’t. That’s why you should get ready for Generation Jones to become the next darlings of wine marketers. Referring to those born from the mid-’50s to mid-’60s, the population of Generation Jones is in a similar boat but it’s sailing far ahead of the one the Millennials are in. They also know very little about wine, but as they prepare to retire (and ipso facto drink less but better), they will become the target every winery will set its sights on.
Like Millennials, the GenJos love a fun label and a simple story. That’s where their paths cross. While the kids are all right, we middle-agers are where the real money is. You read it here first.