US winery woes

US wineries are struggling with a big fall in Direct To Consumer (DTC) sales and winery visits.

According the Silicon Valley Bank, the rising cost of wine tasting is seeing consumers drift to more affordable regions.

In the bank's annual DTC wine survey, DTC sales from wineries to consumers are down with Americans are ordering a lower percentage of wine on the internet from wineries than they did before the pandemic.

The number of visitors to wineries is up in some regions, notably Virginia, Oregon and non-West Coast states, but the number of visitors to Napa County wineries is down a dramatic 37 percent from 2016 numbers, and 32 percent in Sonoma County over the same period.

Tasting-room fees are a key source for the decline. In 2016 the average tasting room fee, across all of the US, was $16 for a regular tasting and $34 for a reserve tasting. Last year, the average nationwide was $38 regular and $72 reserve. But in Napa County, the average fee is now $75 for a regular tasting and $138 for reserve. For Sonoma County, the numbers are $43 regular, $81 reserve. No other region comes close; the next-most-expensive region is Oregon ($33 regular, $61 reserve.)

And its not just tasting room fees. The average hotel room in Napa County cost $470 a night in 2022, up from $327 in 2019, according to the Napa Valley Register. Also, tipping is now suggested at two thirds of wineries; only 21 percent allowed it 10 years ago and a 20 percent tip is not insignificant. The average winery in the US sells $209 worth of wine to the average visitor, but likely to be higher in Napa Valley.