According to the 2023 Silicon Valley State of the US Wine Industry report, wine has a younger drinker problem. American millennials and gen Z’ers are drinking much less of the stuff, which would seem to be true in the UK, too. I imagine that’s down to a combination of factors, including competition from cheaper, more nattily packaged drinks that target young people explicitly, as well as the increased preference for low- and no-alcohol drinks (as many as 28% of young adults in the UK, for example, do not drink).
Step in celebrity wines. Or, rather, a growing branch of them. Unlike Jay-Z, who bought a whole wine estate and now makes preposterously priced champagne under the Armand de Brignac name, an increasing number of other celebrities are endorsing wines at the lower end of the market. In many ways, it’s a no-brainer – Kylie Minogue’s portfolio, for example, had consumers doing the Loco-Motion by its second year, having cornered all of one-sixth of the UK sparkling wine market, and includes glossily presented examples of popular pours, including a couple of proseccos and French rosés of varying qualities. I did enjoy her Côtes de Provence Rosé – gently fruity, creamy and saline in equal measure, it will please fans of Whispering Angel, or indeed of Miraval, the wine estate co-owned by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.
