Diverse Erie的动态

In our previous Veteran Wisdom post, Felton Jones, Chief Roastmaster at Ballard Brands, offered his expert insights on the coffee landscape. Now, in part two of this Q&A series, Felton takes us deeper into changes over the past decade and their impact on the future of coffee. Q: What’s the biggest change you’ve seen in coffee over the past decade, and do you see this continuing? A: I think that growth in consumption is creating a wider spectrum of what is deemed as quality. While consumers enjoy the benefits of quality and stories to be told about their coffee selections, they will never ignore cost. Today's economy makes that even more of a priority and challenges roasters to do what we are trained to do and that is make the magic happen in the drum. Q: Is there anything you would like to shine a light on with the Next Generation of coffee professionals? A: The industry has a tremendous challenge that needs to be conquered, and that is exposure. I have felt for some time now that we are lacking in the area of recruitment. I am amazed by my 30-year tenure but also concerned about our ability to attract interest from our youth in all areas of the industry. We are more than roasters and coffee shops. Thanks again Felton, for sharing your guidance and experience with us! Stayed tuned for more insights from other veterans and professionals in the coffee industry! #NationalCoffeeAssociation #NCA #NextGen #coffee #VeteranWisdom #CoffeeWisdom # #CoffeeEducation #FarmToCup #Trends

Here is the video of our latest webinar with USA's wine buyers: How to Pitch Wine Brands Effectively to USA Wine Buyers. This session features industry leaders Bob Paulinski, MW, Michael Mighetto Hoefling, Dejah S. Overby CS, CSWS, WSET ll and Paul Baldi. The call is a Q and A format call where we answer more than 15 questions directly from winemakers and brand owners. Watch the video on USA Ratings website here.

Despite recent pessimism, a new report reveals a positive trend in the U.S. wine industry: total wine sales soared in 2023, reaching $107 billion, a 46% increase since 2018. Despite a decrease in volume, this surge is attributed to consumers' moderate wine consumption and a preference for higher-priced bottles, with wines priced over $10 expected to continue growing. ?? #WineIndustry #Sovos #ShipCompliant #SovosShipCompliant

In 2018 the idea of El Velorio, a beer dedicated to Puerto Rico and the resilience of my people came to my mind. The first and only of its kind. The concept of developing a product wasn’t just about the quality, it was about the story, the art, the ingredients. Ensuring that ingredients from Puerto Rico were used. Why? To elevate its local economic impact. A product made in the states. Yet, leaving an ample economic and social impact locally and on the island. This beer, was chef to table. The development of the product was a beautiful collaboration and it’s humbling to say my sister was involved in every step. In 2020 in the middle of the pandemic, the beer was launched. In September of 2020 the beer started to be in distribution in Puerto Rico, as well as the south east. This is a story for another day, because I traveled with a suitcase filled with beer to pitch the product around the island. Never had I really been part of any industry in the island as I left when I was 8. Yet, I knew this product needed to be in shelves. Sold for over 3 year becoming a household name, too seller, and picked up by Sams, Walmart, and all local markets. Taking risk in your life is essential, at times the question has been. Why so many changes in your career. Because that’s how you learn, that’s how you because the artist of your own path and life. #Recipe Development, #Distribution #Partnerships, #Creative, #Marketing and #Media #Strategy, #Video #Production, #innovation and #Expansion, all key parts that were learned. Video/ Commercial produced by Kamil Lee Directed by Kamil Lee and Luis Martinez

Hmmm…..so why is business so tough out there in the Post-COVID market? Overstocked distributors, a resurgence in the popularity of spirits, continued weakness in the restaurant sector as well as legal marijuana in some markets and neo-prohibitionism are ALL weighing on sales. I speak to producers, importers and retailers all day long and few (if any) are experiencing any growth in sales at all. Staying even is considered a hard won success. Those BMO numbers show solid increases….sorry to say that I’m not seeing them.

Good news is more important than ever in the doldrum recesses of the naysayer mind.... ?? But the issue is that this news really isn't new, as you can see in the graph. So why the disconnect? Why is everything so disjointed & overwhelming in the wine supply chain? As we know, there's a LOT of moving parts in this picture & the one that we still haven't reconciled (think an imbalanced checkbook) is the temporary pain of: "US Wine Oversupply generated by a single year flood of 50,000,000 more gallons than the U.S. wine market could handle after the 'smoke' rejection of 325,000 tons of grapes in 2020 (simultaneous to the 27% price drop of international wines when the world shut down). It really is quite simple in one sense. Math matters. Consider first, the 700,000+/- tons on unharvested grapes in 2023. Thank GOODNESS those grapes didn't hit the market!! The simple math is 50,000,000 gallons of oversupply from imports shipped in one year ('21-'22) divided by 170 gallons per ton divided by 6+ tons to the acre and........well, there you have it! Have what!??? 50,000 acres of California grapes being recommended to pull out to rebalance. That # has now increased to a 70,000 acre recommendation but it is more like 100,000 acres in reality. Why? Because there's no slowing the additional importation of wines. Don't get me wrong. I'm not here to say good or bad or right or wrong. We're just trying to get to accuracy of reporting, accuracy of the mechanisms causing supply strains, & accuracy of reporting whether or not current policies for wine trade are either healthy or unhealthy for the U.S. wine trade overall. We know that reduced cost imported products are supplying better value to U.S. wine consumers. 'But'....who really wins when 90+% of the supplier side loses? Can a weak domestic U.S. supplier wine industry make for strong international wine trade partnerships? Who is actually out there counting the costs. "But the good new Nick!!!" YES! We have so much good news but the negativity is causing a national nausea, in-turn stifling the creative wine mind from creating great strategic wine plans. Australia has 20x the strategic thinking than the U.S. wine trade...& they're fighting to do better. (yes Dan Eggleton and Emanuel Skorpos?) So am I for the importation of excellent wine at great pricing? Absolutely! In fact, I'm importing!! The U.S. wine trade is in much better condition than the downtrodden media & low-grade data pundits are portraying. While we clean up the mediocre grape quality & equally mediocre wine branding, we should simultaneously leverage the facts of these numbers & prepare for the largest increase in wine consumption that the U.S. has ever witnessed. Mark my words. Buy me a drink if I'm right.....& we'll smile all the way to the bank BECAUSE we responded to our market challenges with purpose & imagination. #winevision #winefuture #internationaltrade #tradepolicy #wheretradematters #techtalk4wine

Celebrating Leadership and Preference in the Evolving Wine Market In a rapidly changing market, the preferences of South African wine consumers are clear. While economic pressures reshape purchase patterns, big brands continue to dominate, with the top 4% generating 80% of sales. This trend highlights the consumer preference for reliability and quality. Celebrating these leading brands and understanding their success can provide valuable lessons for the entire industry. How does your brand build and maintain trust with consumers? #WineSales #BrandTrust #MarketLeadership

My second article is now posted on WineBusiness.com. I had a great time talking with Adam Schulz of Incredible Wine Co. about Washington's response to current oversupply and Glenn Proctor of Ciatti Company about the state of the California market. Make sure to give it a read!

There are a few extra nuances in the U.S. market, but this is an excellent distillation of the trends at work in the major wine markets, globally.

Dive into the spirited world of the wine industry with our friendly debate featuring Connie Oehmler, the CFO of Zachy’s Fine Wine and Paul Zuber, the Executive Vice President of The Business Council of New York State, and moderated by Jaci Flug, partner at Greenspoon Marder LLP. Explore the nuances of states prohibiting wine sales in grocery stores and the ongoing legislative efforts to change this landscape. Join the conversation as we discuss the reasons behind the buzz, evaluate whether this shift is a positive or negative change, and gain insights into the future of wine retail. https://lnkd.in/ggYPjr6A