In the past couple of lectures, I was struck by how different speakers independently mentioned the movie Sideways. I’ll admit that while I have seen the film, I was a mere 15 at the time it was released and was thus unaware of any market trends the movie may have had on the wine industry. However, after hearing our guests speak on the film’s impact, I was compelled to dig in further.
I have been a fan of pinot noir for a number of years but had no idea that the current popularity can be attributed (at least in part) to Sideways. Indeed, pinot noir has increased by 170% in what some have called “The Sideways Effect”. [1] At the same time, Merlot sales have been depressed, possibly as a result of one character in Sideways’s aversion to the varietal. By some measures, in the years after the movie came out, Merlot dropped 2% in the same time that pinot noir increased by 16%. [2]
The good news here is that Merlot is making a comeback. Despite a likely saturation in the market preceding Sideways, production appears to be up as much as 5% in recent years. [3] While not at the highs it reached in the early 2000s, it is still the second most planted red varietal in the world behind cabernet. While Sideways certainly was reflective of the view of some oenophile circles of the time, the lasting negative effect is likely not as extreme as has been claimed. At the end of the day, there is still plenty of merlot and pinot noir to go around.
Sources:
[1] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/07/05/535038513/the-sideways-effect-how-a-wine-obsessed-film-reshaped-the-industry
[2] https://www.foodandwine.com/news/how-sideways-still-impacting-wine-industry
[3] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-29/the-sideways-curse-has-lifted-merlot-is-having-a-comeback
I have also been curious why so many speakers have referenced Sideways (even if I enjoy it as a movie). It is so fascinating how much of an impact Sideways had on the perception of Northern Californian wines. As another point of reference, I was up in Sonoma earlier this week (only for two short days), and different people referenced Sideways on three different occasions (and the movie came out more than 15 years ago!). Why is this?!
ReplyDeleteWhile the film might not be having the same reputational impact it once had on Merlot/Pinot Noir, it certainly still lives on in the zeitgeist of Sonoma/Napa - and there's a limited few movies that have had that long-lasting impact/association with a region. As I'm writing this, I've reminded myself that I need to rewatch it!
A parallel to this is the effect (or lack thereof) that the movie "Somm" had on the millennial generation's wine drinking habits. "Sideways" is referenced nonstop by Boomer and Gen Z consumers, wineries, and industry pundits alike and appears to have had a marked, measurable impact on the sales of Merlot. This stands in stark contrast with "Somm" which, though its referenced by Millennials when discussing wine, has had markedly little influence on the sale of any specific varietal or even the tasting preferences of our generation. Apart from giving us the often quoted tasting note of "freshly cut garden hose", this movie has seemingly done little for the industry itself.
ReplyDeleteReflecting on the movie, however, it becomes apparent that the focus is on the Sommeliers themselves, not the wine. Anecdotally, many fellow millennials that I know who are interested in wine profess a desire to become a sommelier of some classification. However, few seem to have a specific wine that they see as either superior or inferior. This has led me to the conclusion that there is an interesting opportunity sitting out there for the wine industry as a whole: make a movie that markets specific varietals by focusing the narrative on the winemaking and drinking lifestyle itself, not the intermediary Somm who only interacts with certain segments of the millennial population at elite restaurants. This opportunity could be to blunt the rise of hard seltzers by positioning it as the tasteless, inferior "Merlot" to be looked down on while wine, as a class itself, could be positioned as the superior, tasteful drink of choice.
Hi all,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your notes! I'd encourage you also take a look at my earlier post from February (https://rappwinter2020.blogspot.com/2020/02/the-sideways-effect.html) - it gives even more detail on studies that have been done into the market effects of the Sideways Effect (and includes fun video clips!).
I would argue that the impact is less trivial than some of you posit. From my experience working in the wine industry, this is something that industry pundits cite often, and there is conclusive research supporting it (see my post).
I do think that the larger impact here was the rise of Pinot Noir, rather than the fall of Merlot. I would argue that in the years following the movie, Americans shifted from believing that Cab & Merlot were the reds of choice to believing that Cab & Pinot had that honor. Duckhorn (renowned for its Merlot) even jokes that it's lucky they also have stellar Cab. Their only two acquisitions of portfolio brands have been Pinots (to fill a gap amidst rising popularity). Coincidence? I think not.