The impact of climate change and new technologies (like the ability to check wine prices on smartphones) are on my vinous radar for 2016. Sparkling wine, especially ubiquitous prosecco, is still going strong, but “premiumization” is coming. Ditto for rosé.
The future for wine looks bright, though craft beer and craft cider are siphoning off plenty of attention. Still, more people than ever (in the U.S. and UK especially) are drinking more expensive bottles—although you can get by quite splendidly under $50, too. The fact that “wine red” is the new fashion color for shoes can’t hurt either.
Here’s what else I see in my crystal (glass) for the coming year:
English Sparkling Wine Will Take Off
Global consciousness of the quality of English bubbly got a huge boost when French champagne house Taittinger announced in early December that they’d purchased vineyard land in Kent and plan to make top sparkling wines under the Domaine Evremondlabel. I predict other champagne houses will follow suit.
The famously cold Champagne region is now warmer than it was a generation ago while even chillier southern England, which has the same chalky soil, has been heating up in a beneficial way. Producers like Ridgeview, Nyetimber, andCoates & Seely make fine fizz, but little has been exported. With this French vote of confidence that’s sure to change.
“Natural” Wines Join The Mainstream
Once embraced solely by a tiny purist fringe, “natural” wine is poised to attract a much wider audience, especially in small, trendy (as well as high-end) restaurants with curious sommeliers. New York, for example, added three new natural wine bars in 2015, including industry-favorite Wildairand The Four Horsemen, the two-star-rated Brooklyn project of LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy.
This is happening not just in the biggest metropolitan areas, but in places like Austin, Texas and Nashville, Tennesee, too.
Partly it's an inevitable consumer move toward artisanal products, coupled with the fact natural wine quality has improved. (Look at pétillant-naturel bubblies, a fun entry point with a half-dozen or so American winemakers experimenting today.) And partly it’s because many restaurateurs are taking a more inclusive view of wine, where hard-core no-sulfur examples, top organic and biodynamic bottles from Domaine Michel Lafarge, and Chateau Lafite can co-exist on the same list.