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Forbes
17-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Burgers, Bacon, Brunch: How A Napa Valley Winery Courts Younger Drinkers
Chocolate tasting at Priest Ranch in Yountville. The U.S. wine industry is confronting a generational slowdown. For the third consecutive year, volume sales declined, and early 2025 numbers suggest the trend is continuing. According to Silicon Valley Bank's annual State of the U.S. Wine Industry report, younger consumers are not replacing the Baby Boomers who once drove premium wine sales, especially in the Napa Valley wine market. Instead, many are shifting to spirits, low-alcohol alternatives, cannabis, or abstaining altogether. According to Sovos ShipCompliant and WineBusiness Analytics, direct-to-consumer (DTC) wine shipments across the U.S. fell by 10% in volume and 5% in value in 2024 — the sharpest drop since 2010. In Napa and Sonoma, the declines have been more severe. DTC shipments from the two counties fell by 12% in 2024, and off-premise wine sales across the broader North Coast region remain roughly 12% below pre-pandemic levels, asserts North Bay Business Journal reporting from the North Coast Wine Industry Conference. Rising tasting fees, luxury positioning, and by-appointment-only formats have pushed the winery experience out of reach for many younger consumers. As visits become shorter and less spontaneous, and as walk-in discovery has largely disappeared from the Napa Valley wine trail, producers who once relied on steady tourism are discovering that the old model no longer provides consistent results. Amid this market shift, Priest Ranch, a small producer based in Yountville, has taken a different approach. Rather than scaling back, the winery is expanding how it engages with visitors, particularly those under 45. CEO Judd Wallenbrock and his team have a strategy that centers on creating low-pressure entry points for guests who may not identify as traditional wine consumers. Food, music, and humor are part of the toolkit. The casual rooftop space at Priest Ranch in Yountville has a fire pit. Priest Ranch produces a range of wines, from whites like Sauvignon Blanc and Grenache Blanc starting around $30 to full-bodied reds that stand up to smoked and grilled meats. While not exceptionally expensive for the Napa zip code, reds start in the $60 range, like the 2022 Priest Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon, and run upwards of $150 for the 2021 Snake Oil made from 100% Cabernet. The economics of Napa drive this pricing, which, for many younger Americans, remains out of reach or a special occasion luxury. Faced with shifting consumer behavior, Priest Ranch began exploring how to engage guests differently, starting not with wine, but with how people experience it. That shift took shape in 2020, when the restaurant space next to its Yountville tasting room became available. Rather than lease it out, the team opened The Kitchen at Priest Ranch, a casual daytime café that also serves as an event space and culinary lab. 'We launched with an approachable breakfast and lunch menu,' says Wallenbrock, 'which also opened the door to private catering opportunities and cultural marketing events in the evening, always rooted in our philosophy of bringing together wine, food, and the arts.' From the start, the concept was shaped by the makeup of Priest Ranch's customer base. 'The market told us what we needed to know,' Wallenbrock says. 'Our customer base already skews younger and more diverse, just like our team, so making that connection came naturally.' The space itself — functioning as a tasting room and gathering space rather than a full-scale winery — encouraged a more casual approach. Guests can opt for a creative bacon-and-wine pairing with the brand's big, bold reds or just stop in for a sandwich and a glass. That flexibility has allowed Priest Ranch to foster a different kind of relationship with visitors, one that's less tourism-focused and more community-driven. The Kitchen now anchors a full slate of programming that ranges from Thursday night concerts and guest chef pop-ups to seasonal speaker events and informal competitions like the annual Smashburger Smackdown. These events serve as both a local draw and an extension of the brand's hospitality philosophy. 'Our goal is for people to discover the excellence of our wines, share them, and become advocates,' Wallenbrock says. 'But to do that, we have to speak to consumers through their lens, not just our own.' That perspective also informs Priest Ranch on the Road, which brings their bacon pairings and terroir tastings to homes, offices, and country clubs around the country. It's another way to lower the barrier to entry and reach people in more familiar environments. 'We're not a hard-sell kind of winery,' Wallenbrock says. 'Once guests engage with our team, our wines, and our food, we let the quality speak for itself.' A family-style dinner is part of Priest Ranch's "meet the consumer where they're at" philosophy. Priest Ranch has broadened its perspective on the concept of hospitality in Napa. That includes events that reflect the diversity of its team and guests, from drag brunches during Pride Month to global tasting menus with visiting chefs and music nights spotlighting emerging local artists. 'Events like the one we host during Pride Month are designed to celebrate and support a broad community,' Wallenbrock says. 'They're one of the many ways we show up for all communities, creating a welcoming, inclusive, and joyful space.' Inside the tasting room, that same spirit carries through. Instead of formal education or technical lectures, staff often prompt guests to think about wine in personal terms, like what music they'd pair with Cabernet Sauvignon or who they'd want to share a bottle with. The approach invites curiosity and creates a more playful attitude toward an overly serious beverage. Somerston Estate invites guests on ATV tours to see vineyards firsthand. At the 1,682-acre Somerston Estate, where Priest Ranch grows its fruit, sustainability is deeply embedded in how the property is farmed and maintained. Director of Vineyard Operations Jame Knoblock oversees a range of long-term practices, including solar-powered irrigation pumps, compost and biochar applications, limited tilling, and rotational grazing with sheep and goats. 'A truly sustainable operation involves many interconnected efforts — replenishing aquifers, maintaining healthy soils, and actively working to reduce our carbon footprint,' Knoblock says. The winery is Napa Green certified, and the vineyard is working toward certification through the LandSmart program. Some of the estate's irrigation and water pumps already run on solar power, with more infrastructure planned. These efforts aren't front and center in the tasting room, but they often come up when guests ask about the environment. Visitors to the estate can tour the vineyards in open-air ATVs for a firsthand look at how the land is managed. For younger guests especially, who are more likely to ask about farming practices, it's a meaningful point of connection. 'It's easier to talk about these things when you can show people,' Knoblock says. Bacon pairings are a big hit at the Yountville tasting room. While Priest Ranch doesn't position itself as a disruptor, the adjustments the team has made reflect an understanding of where the market is heading and how to tackle it. As wine competes with other beverages, the brand has invested in experiences that feel less performative and more relaxed and participatory. 'We're starting to see regulars,' Wallenbrock notes. 'People who bring friends. People who treat this as their neighborhood spot.' As Wallenbrock explains, Priest Ranch wants wine to fit into daily life without requiring reverence or ritual. Becoming a place to grab a glass on a weeknight— akin to a neighborhood wine bar or a brewery tasting room serving as a local gathering space — is one tactic the Napa Valley wine industry needs more of.
Forbes
18-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Better Bred Sauvignon Blancs Now Veer Away From The Cloying New Zealand Model
An illustration of the different blocks of Sauvignon Blanc at Larkmead Vineyards in Napa Valley The world of wine lovers may be split into those who love certain aspects of Sauvignon Blanc and those who find the wines too floral and herbaceous to enjoy the way one might drier Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio or Riesling. In France Sauvignon Blanc––let's call it 'SB'––has a heralded place in its viticulture as the basis for Bordeaux wines like Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé and, most notably, Sauternes and Barsac. What alerted many international consumers to SB, while turning many others off the varietal, was the immensely popular Cloudy Bay version from New Zealand, which appealed to those who like their wine to taste like pungent, grassy fruit punch. In fact, it really put New Zealand on the map as a wine producing nation, and its success caused a tsunami of mediocre SBs to flood the market as a predominant style that for the past two decades has been much copied in California and internationally. According to Wine Business Monthly, SB Blanc was the only varietal of the top 10 wines sold by retailers to show growth in both sales value and volume last year. Fortunately smaller, more focused vineyards in California and other countries have diverged from that cloying style, and I'm finding much better, more refreshing SBs than ever. Surprisingly, some of them are now priced above $50, which had never before been the case. Arkenstone Estate Blanc 2022 was priced at $125, and it's already sold out. Here are some I've enjoyed this year from the 2023 and 2024 vintages. A Sauvignon Blanc from the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa Southern Right South Africa 2024 ($16). Founded in 1994, Southern Right is a small winery that specializes in Pinotage and SB made . just behind the old fishing village of Hermanus. in the cool, maritime Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, within the Walker Bay appellation. Founder and winemaker Hamilton Russell aims to bring out unique South African flavors, and it is very well-priced for this clean, fresh style. The Sattlerhof Winery 2023 ($25). This Austrian winery has existed since the late 1880s in the village of Gamlitz, and was given its current name by Wilhelm Sattler Senior and his wife Aloisia and his two brothers Willi and Hanes in the 1960s. The vineyard covers 99 acres of organically farmed vines, including 'grand crus' Kranachberg and Pfarrweingarten. Known for its longevity, this is a Sauvignon Blanc with 13% alcohol that ages well to develop more character. Priest Ranch's Sauvignon Blanc iz made at an unusually high alcohol level for the varietal. Priest Ranch 2023 ($28). Priest Ranch in Napa Valley dates to 1869, established by Gold Rush prospector James Joshua Priest. This SB comes from the Somerson Estate in Napa Valley, and shows a considerable hike in alcohol at 14.3%, and it thereby gains body. It was sulfured to prevent Malolactic fermentation, then aged on the lees and stirred twice a week before being bottled. The winery's 244 acres allow for multiple block blending that adds nuance. Stewart Napa Valley 2023 ($36). The grapes come 100% from the Money Lane Vineyard in the Oakville AVA. The vintage was a cool one, allowing the grapes to mature slowly in autumn to balance sweet and acid components. It is well fruited and at 12.9% alcohol easy to drink as an aperitif and cheeses. Brassfield Estate 2023 ($22). While there is definite fruit on the palate, there is also a crisp acidity that keeps it from being overripe. The vineyard, owned by Jerry Brassfield, is in Lake County, California, on the High Valley AVA known as 'High Serenity Ranch,' where temperature swings of 40 degrees are common. The wine is aged six months and lightly fined and filtered. Appass Appassionata is made by its German owner in a more restrained European style. ionata Über Estate 2022 ($40). ($40). German winemaker Ernst 'Erni' Loosen's has made this SB his 'passion project,' from Oregon's Chehalem Mountains in the Willamette Valley. Given his heritage, Loosens aimed for a more refined European style of SB. He and head winemaker Tim Malone craft the wine to be long-lived, and I think this will be considerably more interesting and balanced in a year or two. Still, now it is one of my favorites. Larkmead Lillie 2022 ($75). With 115 contiguous acres of vineyard, spread across the Napa Valley, Larkmead had been devoted to Bordeaux varietals, floor, redeveloped since 1995 with a single exception. Mornings enjoy a cool, rolling fog that comes from the Chalk Hill Gap in Knights Valley, and evenings cool down drastically. According to vineyard manager Nabor Camerina, he compares Lillie to a Chardonnay: 'The nose may be aromatically in tune with its variety, but the palate possesses the weight and gravitas of a Chardonnay.' J. de Villebois 2023 ($23). Typical of the restraint the better French SBs show, this example comes from a family winery owned by Joost and Miguela de Willebois, located in the Loire Valley with a Touraine appellation. The alcohol is a sensible 12.5% for a SB, and the acidity is very refreshing and the minerality delicious throughout a citrus-dominated palate. They began making SB in 2004 and it is now their flagship wine, along with making Pouilly-Fumé and Sancerre of high quality. Andica 2024 ($13). A very well priced Chilean SB made by the major winery Miguel Torres in the Curicó Valley. It's got pleasing heft in its 13.5% alcohol, and was aged in stainless steel until bottle last June. Its pale green-gold color is like polished brass, and the herbs are in tandem with the aromas and acids to make it an excellent wine with shellfish. Double Diamond 2023 ($55). Napa's Double Diamond is well known for its red wines, but this is their first white, in its second year of release. The grapes come from the To Kalon Vineyard in Oakville and Wappo Hill (Stags Leap District), which gives them intensity and concentration of flavor and aromas. Winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown blends 80% SB with 20% Semillon (as is often the case in France), spending ten months in both steel and oak barrels, to emerge at a big 14.5% alcohol. This Sauvignon Blanc was made to age for a few years to meld flavors. Ink Grade 2022 ($75). Produced by Matt Taylor from older vines, this is a very expensive example made from grapes in Napa's Howell Mountain that are pressed longer than usual 'to build structure and expose a minor note of bitterness in the finish.' He also recommends a double or triple decanting right now to sew together its virtues, but that he believes 'it will open on its own in 2026.' As such it is a fine SB that will go especially well with poultry as well as seafood in rich sauces.
