Baijiu, the distilled spirit produced and almost entirely consumed in China, is a major component of world distilled spirit production, but little is known about fundamental economic considerations such as production, consumption, and market structure. This paper brings together widely used production and consumption data, with the limited number of field surveys examining consumption, all of which were conducted to address public health questions rather than economic analysis. The paper provides a brief description of baijiu’s unique production process, and also of the different categories of baijiu by price point. The paper finds that the time series often used to describe China’s baijiu production and consumption has clear inconsistencies when compared to independent survey findings, and that a major portion of baijiu in China is consumed regularly with meals and in rural areas, much of which is unrecorded. This is counter to the popular belief that baijiu is predominantly consumed at banquets. We assess the claim that baijiu is the world’s largest distilled spirit by volume, and conclude this is likely true, but inconsistencies in the data make it impossible to say for certain.
Changes in consumer behaviour are driving structural transformation in the global wine industry, with slowing demand in mature markets, increasing sustainability pressures, and shifting preferences among younger consumers reshaping wine consumption and value creation. This study examines how South African wineries are responding to these demand-side changes and whether their strategies enhance resilience. Using a systems thinking approach, we conducted in-depth interviews with 17 wineries and industry stakeholders and applied causal loop diagramming to identify feedback mechanisms shaping strategic decisions. The findings show that wineries do not respond uniformly; instead, business model differences influence adaptation strategies. Some wineries become trapped in discounting cycles that erode margins, while others protect profitability through premium branding, tourism and experiential offerings, market diversification, and pricing discipline. The study concludes that wineries’ capacity to maintain profitability, as an important economic dimension of resilience, depends less on reacting to declining consumption and more on a winery’s structural position within reinforcing and balancing feedback loops that shape strategic responses.
This paper examines how trade policy uncertainty (TPU) affects the extensive margin of international trade (new product entry decisions) using a novel dataset of wine Certificate of Label Approval (COLA) applications submitted to the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Because TTB regulations do not require new applications for routine vintage updates or minor format changes, each COLA application represents a genuine, forward-looking business decision to introduce a new product or refresh an existing product in the U.S. market. Exploiting the November 2024 U.S. presidential election as a regime change in trade policy uncertainty (TPU), accompanied by various threatened and implemented tariffs in 2025, I estimate difference-in-differences (DiD) models comparing EU wine producers (treated) against domestic U.S. producers (control) using a weekly panel of application counts. While some tariff-related events in 2025 appeared to have more intense negative impacts on weekly EU applications, the coefficient for the post-election treatment implies a 21.7% reduction in EU wine product applications in the 61-week post-election window to the end of 2025. When the TPU index is included as a control, the post-election coefficient is attenuated by approximately 72%, consistent with the sustained post-election rise uncertainty being the primary driver of the decline. To complement the DiD analysis, a counterfactual model that exploits the close pre-2025 relationship between US and EU applications estimates a reduction of 14,899 foregone applications over the post-election period, equivalent to a 23.5% reduction as compared to pre-election figures. These results document an upstream disruption to wine producers that are not directly captured in traditional trade flow statistics: uncertainty deters new product introductions before any tariff is imposed or shipment is made.
The steady decline in traditional wine consumption, together with the growing demand for alcohol-free alternatives, is driving significant changes across wine value chains—particularly in Mediterranean countries, where wine holds deep cultural significance. This study examines Cretan consumers’ willingness to try alcohol-free wines when such willingness is shaped by current market trends. It identifies combinations of personal characteristics, health-related motivations, price sensitivity, and prior experience with alcohol-free products. Using fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA), the findings reveal multiple sufficient configurations that account for both high and low willingness to try alcohol-free wines, demonstrating equifinality and causal asymmetry. Health emerges as a universal factor present in all configurations associated with higher willingness, while prior experience plays a central role in the configurations with the greatest coverage, suggesting that familiarity with alcohol-free products further encourages adoption. The results also highlight several consumer archetypes: rational, health-oriented profiles; younger, price-sensitive consumers; and a group of highly educated senior women for whom prior experience outweighs price considerations. These insights offer valuable guidance for wine value chain stakeholders seeking to adapt their strategies to evolving consumption patterns amid shifting drinking habits. These findings also offer policy‑relevant insights, highlighting the need for public support in technological innovation, consumer education, and value‑chain diversification to facilitate the adoption of alcohol‑free wines in Mediterranean markets.
This study examines how Geographical Indications (GIs) contribute to territorial development and social legitimacy in emerging wine regions, focusing on residents’ perceptions of the economic, social, and environmental impacts of the GI for high-altitude fine wines in São Joaquim, Brazil. Drawing on a survey with 181 residents, the study employs Structural Equation Modeling using the Robust Diagonally Weighted Least Squares estimator to test a model linking perceived impacts, benefits, pride, and support for the GI. The results indicate that social and economic factors are positively associated with perceived benefits, while environmental factors do not show a significant effect. Perceived benefits significantly increase residents’ pride, which, in turn, strongly predicts support for the GI, suggesting that pride may operate as an affective mechanism linking perceived benefits to support. These findings suggest that the consolidation of GIs in emerging wine regions depends not only on economic performance, but also on residents’ perceived benefits, pride, and support. The study contributes to the literature on wine tourism and Geographical Indications by highlighting the role of residents’ perceptions in shaping the sustainability and long-term support of territorial valorization strategies.
The global wine industry is shifting from high-volume production to quality-focused "premiumization," creating tension between efficiency (volume per unit of input) and resource-intensive technologies (using inputs to increase quality). This paper provides an evidence-based framework to assess how value chain choices, from viticulture to bottling, influence performance across market segments. Using data from 10 countries, we apply a two-stage approach: first, we measure relative efficiency scores for Value- and Premium-specializing wineries via Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA); second, we use Simar-Wilson regression to assess the impact of several technological factors on these scores. Results show that Value wineries have 41–44% efficiency, while Premium wineries reach 50–53%, indicating more efficient resource use in higher-end firms. For Value wineries, modernization and automation boost efficiency. In Premium wineries, practices such as manual irrigation and stainless-steel aging are key. Manual harvesting decreases efficiency by up to 10.6%, confirming that a focus on quality reduces productive volume. We identified a consistent set of significant variables, with the same signs and similar absolute values, influencing efficiency across both wine types under different hypotheses about returns to scale. This study links detailed technologies to global efficiency, showing that quality investments can be managed for performance.
The rapid expansion of the no- and low-alcohol (NoLo) segment is reshaping dynamics in mature wine markets. Within this context, dealcoholised wines might represent an emerging strategic opportunity for traditional wine-producing countries. This study examines how Italian wineries respond to the development of the dealcoholised segment, focusing on the interaction between technological constraints, regulatory design, and market positioning. The analysis is based on semi-structured interviews with three geographically diverse wineries operating in Northern, Central, and Southern Italy. Using a qualitative multiple case-study approach, the study identifies convergent patterns in technological adoption, strategic diversification, and perceived regulatory barriers. This study pursues two analytical levels: general objectives integrate regulatory, technological, and sustainability analyses to assess NoLo development amid health-driven demand; specific case-study objectives are: a) firm motivations, perceptions, and expectations; b) regional strategy/technology variations (North-Centre-South); c) producer-identified barriers/prospects. Key questions address Italy-EU regulatory gaps, preferred techniques/satisfaction, communication to overcome cultural resistance, regional differences, and sector evolution drivers. The findings indicate that membrane-based dealcoholisation technologies have reached operational feasibility, yet high capital intensity limits widespread internal adoption. Firms frame entry into the segment as a proactive diversification strategy, targeting moderation-oriented consumers, particularly younger cohorts. Regulatory constraints, especially the prohibition of dealcoholisation for Protected Designation of Origin (PDO)/Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) wines, emerge as a critical factor shaping competitive positioning. Sustainability considerations introduce additional trade-offs, given the higher energy and water intensity of current processes. The study contributes to the economic analysis of innovation in mature wine sectors and highlights the role of institutional design in influencing competitive dynamics within emerging product categories.
Effective adoption of blockchain technology in supply networks depends significantly on inter-organizational knowledge transfer, particularly in the pre-adoption phase when stakeholders must be convinced of its perceived benefits. This conceptual study introduces the Evolutionary Knowledge Transfer Model (EKTM), a novel framework which explains how explicit and tacit knowledge about blockchain dynamically evolve across vertically coordinated multi-tier wine supply networks. Different to previous models, it integrates dyadic, firm, and network perspectives while highlighting the essential role of tacit knowledge transfer, two aspects often overlooked in existing frameworks. Methodologically, the study adopts the design approach of Jaakkola for conceptual research combining knowledge management, complex network, and strategic management theories. The study contributes to supply chain management literature, demonstrating the crucial role of tacit knowledge transfer in blockchain adoption. It provides managers with a conceptual tool to assess knowledge flow and balance explicit and tacit knowledge transfer with the objective to accelerate technology adoption across the supply network. This study closes a critical gap in understanding how knowledge about disruptive digital technologies evolves in vertically coordinated supply networks.
This study examines how differences in logistics performance between trading partners may shape bilateral wine exports. Using a panel of bilateral trade flows for 152 countries over the period 1996 to 2021, we construct a Euclidean measure of logistics performance distance based on the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index, capturing gaps in customs efficiency, infrastructure quality, shipment arrangements, logistics service competence, tracking and tracing, and delivery timeliness, with wine export data drawn from the BACI–CEPII database at the six digit Harmonized System level. The empirical analysis follows a gravity framework and is estimated using Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood, allowing for zero trade flows and heteroskedasticity. The results suggest that larger differences in logistics performance are associated with lower bilateral wine exports, indicating that logistics asymmetries likely act as an important source of trade costs. When the analysis is disaggregated by logistics components, gaps in customs efficiency, infrastructure quality, logistics service competence, and delivery timeliness appear to drive most of the negative effect, while differences in shipment arrangement and tracking capabilities play a more limited role. Subsample results further show that the adverse impact of logistics performance distance becomes stronger during periods of global economic stress, such as the global financial crisis, when supply chains are under greater strain. From a policy perspective, these findings suggest that coordinated improvements in logistics systems, particularly in customs procedures, infrastructure, and delivery reliability, may help countries strengthen export performance and enhance trade resilience in times of economic uncertainty.
Climate variability is reshaping the global wine sector by altering the sensory profiles that underpin regional reputation and price at a time when producers, distributors, and retailers also face structural headwinds from shifting demand and digital disruption along the value chain. While the agronomic effects of warming are well documented, the downstream consequences for how wines are described, signaled, and sold across increasingly digital channels remain under-analyzed. This article introduces “metaphor drift”: the systematic misalignment between climate-shifted sensory reality and the entrenched metaphors and descriptors (e.g., “body”, “balance”, “elegant”, “minerality”) that consumers and intermediaries use to anticipate it. Drawing on Conceptual Metaphor Theory and the economics of information and signaling, the article develops a Language-as-Signal framework in which wine descriptors are treated as seasonally sensitive economic signals that reduce search costs, coordinate expectations, and sustain hedonic premiums along the value chain. A conceptual, toolkit-oriented design combines a synthesis of climate and wine evidence, analysis of six descriptor families, and two qualitative vignettes of a warm-vintage Pinot Noir and a smoke-affected Shiraz, with targeted applications to the low- and no-alcohol (NOLO) category. The resulting practitioner toolkit comprises a Swap-and-Scaffold lexicon and a human-in-the-loop large language model (LLM) protocol for auditing and updating high-volume digital copy and is used to formulate four propositions about how value-chain actors can govern sensory language as part of climate adaptation. The analysis suggests that transparent, linguistics-led recalibration of descriptors offers a low-cost, high-impact strategy for preserving trust, maintaining expectation fit, and supporting the economic resilience of wine value chains under climate pressure.
Purpose: This study investigates how cluster dynamics influence firms’ strategic choices and perceived performance during cluster renewal, focusing on the Douro wine cluster and the growing strategic role of the wine tourism ecosystem in regional transformation. Design/methodology/approach: The study adopts an exploratory case study design based on twelve in-depth interviews with managers of wine firms varying in size, age, and internationalisation profiles. Data were analysed thematically to examine how firms interpret cluster evolution and translate it into corporate- and business-level strategies, with particular attention to ecosystem complementarities linked to wine tourism and regional offerings. Findings: Diversification emerges as the dominant corporate strategy, particularly into wine tourism, DOC Douro wines, and complementary regional products, often complemented by internationalisation and selective vertical integration. At the business level, firms prioritise differentiation through quality, branding, innovation, and sustainability, while smaller firms frequently deploy hybrid strategies that balance efficiency and differentiation. The evolving cluster environment—reinforced by institutions and EU funding—enables performance by strengthening collaborative networks and coopetition, supporting both market development and resilience. Originality/value: The study shows how dynamic cluster environments simultaneously constrain and enable firm strategies, highlighting the mutual shaping of firm action and cluster evolution. It advances research on path dependency, strategic renewal, and ecosystem embeddedness by clarifying which strategic orientations are most salient during renewal phases and by illustrating how wine tourism-related complementarities operate as a mechanism of cluster reconfiguration. Practical implications: The findings suggest that diversification and internationalisation are particularly suitable during renewal, while differentiation and hybridisation support resilience at the business level. For managers and policymakers, the results provide guidance on leveraging wine tourism ecosystem complementarities, regional branding, and collaborative governance to strengthen competitiveness during periods of cluster transition. Keywords: Cluster dynamics; Wine tourism ecosystem; Strategic renewal; Diversification; Differentiation; Coopetition; Wine industry
Younger consumers are frequently portrayed as inherently digital and online-oriented buyers. However, empirical evidence suggests that digital engagement does not necessarily translate into online purchasing behavior, particularly in multichannel and food-related contexts. This study investigates purchasing channel choices among gin consumers in Italy, a market characterized by gradual development, strong social connotations, and increasing digital visibility. Using data from a nationwide online survey (n = 606 gin drinkers), we examine how sociodemographic characteristics, consumption habits, and social media engagement relate to channel selection. Results show that younger consumers, despite higher levels of social media use, are significantly less likely to purchase gin online and predominantly rely on supermarkets. In contrast, middle-aged consumers display stronger interest in premium products and a greater propensity toward online purchasing. Moreover, time spent on social media is negatively associated with online channel choice, challenging the assumption that digital natives are systematically online buyers.
This study examines regional variation in the returns to quality signals in the German wine industry. Utilizing signaling theory, we investigate whether the price premiums associated with producer reputation and sustainable production methods vary across regional quality contexts. Using 51,069 wine observations from the Gault Millau guide from 2010 to 2017), covering 1,396 wineries, we classify Germany's major wine regions into high-, medium-, and low-quality clusters based on yield per hectare and the density of elite association memberships. Hedonic price regressions reveal that individual reputation commands significant premiums across all contexts. However, sustainability signals, such as organic and biodynamic production, yield meaningful price premiums only in low-quality regions. In high-quality regions where collective reputation is strong, sustainability certifications provide limited incremental value. These findings suggest that optimal signaling strategies are context-dependent: in established high-quality environments, producers benefit most from individual reputation building and elite association membership, whereas in regions with weaker collective reputation, sustainability certification offers an effective differentiation mechanism. Our results extend signaling theory by demonstrating that signal effectiveness depends on both production costs and the information environment in which signals are deployed. We acknowledge that our sample comprises guide-selected wines, representing a quality-filtered subset, and our findings should be interpreted accordingly.
The growing relevance of No- and Low-alcohol (NoLo) wines, largely produced through post-fermentation dealcoholization techniques, is reshaping the wine sector, driven by evolving consumer preferences and climate-related increases in grape sugar content. Although European Union (EU) legislation permits partial dealcoholization for Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) wines, national approaches differ, with Italy maintaining a cautious stance. This study explores wine experts’ perspectives on introducing partial dealcoholization into Italian PDO and PGI specifications through a two-round Delphi survey. It examines levels of acceptance, key conditions, and perceived barriers to its inclusion in official production regulations. Results show broad acceptance for PGI wines, while PDO wines, especially higher-tier categories, face strong resistance due to concerns about authenticity, sensory identity, and cultural heritage. Experts favor naturally low-alcohol wines achieved through viticultural and oenological practices, but recognize the limits imposed by climate change and grape composition. A flexible, integrated approach is therefore suggested, using partial dealcoholization as a complementary tool when necessary. Findings underline the importance of governance, protection Consortia, and transparent labeling, framing partial dealcoholization as a “bounded innovation” whose legitimacy depends on preserving territorial identity, regulatory coherence, and consumer trust. This exploratory study maps stakeholder positions and offers insights for future research and policy development on integrating NoLo wines into geographical indication systems.
This paper presents an in-depth case study of a packaging development process carried out with local winemakers in Lower Silesia, an emerging wine region in Poland. The study examines packaging not only as a branding or communication tool, but as an integral component of local wine value chains, shaping how value is created, communicated, and captured under conditions of structural change in the wine sector. Using a design-led and participatory research approach [1,2], the paper documents a collaborative process involving designers and small-scale wine producers, including workshops, interviews, and iterative prototyping. The analysis focuses on how packaging choices are shaped by producers’ economic constraints, sustainability considerations, market positioning, and attachment to place. The findings show that packaging development supports the transformation of local wine value chains by strengthening place-based differentiation [3,4], facilitating direct-to-consumer communication, and enabling adaptive strategies oriented toward local markets rather than scale-driven competition. By integrating design processes into wine value chain analysis, the paper contributes to wine economics and policy debates by highlighting packaging as an underexplored, yet policy-relevant, mechanism for supporting resilient and locally embedded wine sectors.
This paper explores visitor perceptions of wine and food tourism in the Petrich–Sandanski region of Southwestern Bulgaria, an emblematic but underexplored area within the Struma Valley wine region. The aim is to identify key strengths and weaknesses of the regional offer and derive insights to support sustainable destination development and policy design. The study applies a combination of classic and diagonal Importance–Performance Analysis (IPA) to survey data from domestic tourists in Bulgaria (n = 202), comparing the importance assigned to specific attributes with their perceived performance. Findings indicate consistently high evaluations across most attributes, with wine and food quality, authenticity, and atmosphere emerging as core strengths. Value for money and interpretive quality (e.g., commentary and presentation), on the other hand, perform below expectations, suggesting areas for managerial intervention. Less central attributes, such as special diet options and culinary demonstrations, were rated lower in both importance and performance, confirming their peripheral role. The high importance of GI foods, coupled with absence of certified products in the region, points to untapped potential for linking gastronomy with food heritage. The study advances the literature by integrating an innovative dual-IPA framework with a focus on domestic tourist perspectives in an emerging wine tourism destination, offering actionable insights for policy and regional development strategies.
Organizations are increasingly challenged to achieve sustainable performance in environments characterized by growing environmental pressures, technological change, and heightened stakeholder expectations, so that understanding how digital and environmental strategies interact to support long-term value creation has become a critical issue, particularly in traditional and resource-dependent industries. The main objective of this study is to examine the influence of digital transformation strategy and green supply chain management on sustainable corporate performance, as well as the mediating role of supply chain performance in these relationships. Drawing on primary data collected from 203 firms operating in the Spanish wine industry, the study employs the PLS-SEM technique to test the proposed relationships. The results show that digital transformation strategy and green supply chain management both exert positive and significant effects on sustainable corporate performance, and that supply chain performance partially mediates these relationships. This investigation contributes to theory by offering an integrated, capability-based explanation of how digital and environmental orientations are operationalized through supply chain functioning to generate sustainability outcomes while from a practical perspective, it provides insights for managers and policymakers into the importance of aligning digitalization and sustainability initiatives within supply chains and fostering collaboration between governmental and economic agents. The novelty of this research lies in its focus on a traditional agri-food industry and its emphasis on supply chain performance as a key organizational mechanism linking strategy and sustainability.
In this study, we aim to understand how coopetition can create barriers to tourism through a focus on the collective interests that seek to preserve the identity of a geographical indication (GI). A qualitative longitudinal study that analyses a Brazilian wine industry, specifically the Vale dos Vinhedos (a GI region), because it provides examples of coopetition leveraged to develop the region. The study was conducted over ten years (2012-2022), collecting primary data from representatives of the Brazilian wine industry in 36 semi-structured interviews. The study found that wineries and formal institution agents established a coopetition strategy to stop uncontrolled expansion in the form of real-estate development, blocking the entry of new ventures such as hotels and timeshares that could distort the region’s character. Our study highlights the relevance of exploring the relationship between environmental, social, and governance performance in coopetition studies to understand how coopetition can support sustainable development. However, we found evidence that contrasts the perspective of coopetition as a strategy for developing a wine destination.
Wine quality is a multidimensional and contested concept that generates persistent information asymmetries among producers, consumers, experts, and regulators. This review synthesizes multidisciplinary evidence from economics, marketing, sensory science, and digital innovation to examine how wine quality’s intrinsic, extrinsic, institutional, and cultural dimensions interact with mechanisms of signalling and screening. Using a structured conceptual review and systematic evidence mapping of 76 peer-reviewed studies, the paper identifies where traditional mechanisms - such as price, reputation, expert ratings, geographical indications, and certification schemes - mitigate uncertainty and where they merely relocate it along the value chain. The analysis introduces the notion of layered systems of trust, showing that each corrective instrument reduces one type of asymmetry while generating dependencies elsewhere. Emerging digital tools, particularly blockchain and related traceability technologies, offer complementary ways to enhance transparency and governance but also create new informational challenges around data input and interoperability. The paper concludes that wine markets will continue to rely on hybrid constellations of traditional and technological signals, underscoring the need for governance frameworks that integrate digital innovation with the preservation of wine’s sensory, cultural, and institutional complexity.
The wine industry plays a vital role in many national economies, combining agricultural production with cultural heritage and global trade. It contributes significantly to economic value, regional identity, and rural sustainability in Portugal. As international wine markets become increasingly complex, financial and production data reliability is essential for informed regulation, policymaking, and economic analysis. Despite the growing emphasis on viticulture and market dynamics, little research has examined data reliability in the wine sector. This study introduces Benford's Law—a statistical method used to detect anomalies in naturally occurring datasets—as a tool for assessing data integrity. Applying first- and second-digit Benford's Law tests to Portuguese wine industry data from 2014 to 2023, including company-level financial statements and wine production figures, the analysis shows a strong conformity to expected distributions. These results suggest a high level of data reliability, reinforcing confidence in the datasets for future economic and policy use. The study offers a novel application of Benford’s Law in agribusiness, contributing to improved transparency and data quality in the wine sector.
