The data for direct sales show that higher prices are strongly correlated with winery size. Boutique and cult wineries making less than 1,000 cases per year averaged $56 per bottle, according to our model, which weighs millions of direct-to-consumer transactions against exhaustive winery size numbers in WinesVinesDATA. The biggest wineries were not exactly the same as those with the lowest bottle price, but they were close. Also interesting is how quickly the average price drops from the smallest wineries to the next-largest size, 1,000-4,999 cases.
Winery Jobs, Shipments and Retail Sales Grew in March All three of Wines & Vines' indicators of wine industry economic health pointed up in March. Winery hiring activity showed the most positive movement as it spiked 18% higher than a year ago. Direct-to-consumer shipments beat March 2010 by a hair in what may be the year's second-most active month. Retail sales grew faster than in recent months, hitting 8% higher than a year ago for domestic table wines.
Off-premise sales of table wine from March 2011 grew 8% over the previous year as measured at major food and drug stores.
Direct-to-consumer shipments through March 31 stayed slightly ahead of last year's results in dollars.
Winery job activity in March made up for a loss in February to begin the 2011 growing season with a bang.