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Drinking in America

August 21, 2012 No Comments

Gallup just released their annual survey of US drinking patterns. Earlier this summer, NPR published the results of a study on where and how Americans spent money on booze. Let’s put the pieces together.

Who drinks?

Pretty much unchanged from the past, Gallup reports that two-thirds (66%) of Americans drink alcohol, consuming just over 4 drinks a week.

Last year the number was 64%; the same in 1992 and 1982. The earliest measure reported was in 1939 with 58% alcohol drinkers. For decades, then, two thirds say they drink alcohol. With roughly 200 million Americans of legal drinking age, that means there are 132 million drinkers.

Tomato or Tomahto – it’s now a wine

August 6, 2012 1 Comment

Buffalo Trace Newsletter reprinted a story about a tomato wine made in Quebec. So, I decided to check it out.
The vintner (tomatoes grow on vines, right?) is named Pascal Miche and he has sold 34,000 bottles a year for the past 3 years. In North America, he can legally call his product “wine.”
He produces a dry wine and a mellow wine that supposedly is close in taste to Pineau des Charentes from a family recipe that’s been a secret for four generations. It’s called Omerto and sells for about $25 for a 375 ml.
He’s looking for distribution in the US and some countries in Western Europe like France. Good luck with that, especially since only alcohol beverages made from fermented grapes can be called wine in France.
Here’s a short video on the wine. (You’ll have to click on the link to watch it on YouTube. The video is from AFP, Agence France-Presse.)

New Jersey Wine

July 10, 2012 No Comments

The American Association of Wine Economists (AAWE) conducted a wine tasting last month and, in case you missed the results, they may make you want to rethink your views of wines from the Garden State.

Back in 1976, a British wine merchant organized a blind wine tasting with 9 French judges called, Judgment of Paris. The tasting included wines from Bordeaux and wines from Napa. The wines from Napa were declared the winners and helped put Napa wines on the map.

Fast forward to June 8, 2012. A group spearheaded by George Taber (who had been in Paris for the original tasting and wrote a book on it) as well as a number of economists from the AAWE and others, organized a tasting called The Judgment of Princeton. The 9 judges this time were from France, Belgium and the US. The wines tasted were from France and, you guessed it, New Jersey.