Pinot Noir is rapidly increasing its share of the global vineyard bearing area and being grown in an increasing number of regions and wider range of climates. This article seeks to better understand why. Recently updated data on winegrape bearing area in the world's winegrape regions reveal the extent of those trends, and basic economic data on gross revenue per vineyard hectare are compiled to help understand them in Australia and California. In both jurisdictions, Pinot Noir enjoys prices above the average for other varieties in each region, and proportionately more so within hot inland regions than within cooler regions. Moreover, in some key cooler regions with more-appropriate terroir, gross revenue per vineyard hectare is nonetheless below that in hot regions because of much lower yields. If the cost of production per hectare is higher in the smaller vineyards in cool regions, then it would further weaken their comparative advantage. Should the retail prices of Pinot Noir-based wines reflect the winegrape prices in the various regions reviewed, the very wide range of the latter suggests that younger/less-affluent wine consumers are able to enjoy the variety earlier than they would have in the absence of Pinot Noir plantings in warm regions.

In a previous article in this journal, we described the mixes of winegrape varieties across countries in terms of both similarities and concentrations. We showed that countries are becoming more similar in their mixes of winegrape varieties between them and with respect to the world as a whole, and that they are becoming more concentrated. The aim of this article is to discuss the implications of these recent changes in similarities and concentrations. These insights are based on those of a recent scientific journal article (Puga and Anderson 2023), as well as those from other work – part of which is first published here.

The aim of this article is to describe the mixes of winegrape varieties in the world’s main wine-producing countries. In doing so, we summarise a recent scientific journal article (Puga and Anderson 2023), in which we used data on area by variety for virtually all wine-producing countries and did some statistical analyses based on two indexes that we computed with those data. One of these indexes measures varietal similarities between countries, and the other measures varietal concentration within countries.

Wine grape production is very susceptible to weather conditions, with climate change presenting significant risks to the industry. Econometric analyses can offer valuable insights into the effects of past weather and climates, and of potential future climate changes. While econometrics is not the only method for deriving such insights, there is considerable potential for its application, especially given the rich (often underutilized) data sets available to the wine industry. Our article offers recommendations on how to effectively use econometrics to assess climate impacts on the wine industry. These recommendations are tailored to the specific characteristics of grape and wine production. We first discuss how to apply econometrics to assess the influence of weather or climate on wine-related outcomes. We provide insights into how to model weather and climate, avoid omitted variable bias, and address other modeling challenges. Finally, we explain how estimates of weather or climate impacts can be used to assess the potential effects of future climate change on the wine industry, providing valuable insights for the development of wine grape growers' adaptation strategies. This pub is available from https://hdsr.mitpress.mit.edu/pub/lu3jcolh

Studies analysing the impact that climate change could have on the wine sector are important for determining appropriate adaptation strategies. Statistical methods provide a useful approach for estimating future climate impacts. Yet they are underused despite the availability of data and the low costs of using statistical models when compared to some other approaches. This review aims to explain how some statistical methods can be used to quantify the impact of climate change in grape and wine research. It first focuses on how to estimate appropriate models of the impact of climate or weather on wine-related outputs. It then explains the challenges of using those statistical estimates to predict the impact of climate change. Last, the review compares statistical methods with other approaches and justifies combining different methods as a way of devising more insights for the wine sector.

This article summarizes and updates an article originally published as Anderson and Puga (2023a). The aim of this note is to summarise key insights from a recently compiled and updated annual database on Australia’s winegrape and wine production (Anderson and Puga, 2023b). This database, with its 189 tables, is freely available from the website of the University of Adelaide’s Wine Economics Research Centre (for a lengthier analysis and a detailed description of the assumptions behind this database, see Anderson and Puga, 2023a).

This summarizes and updates an article originally published as Anderson and Nelgen (2021) which is based on a freely available revised global database and ebook (Anderson and Nelgen, 2020a; Anderson and Nelgen, 2020b).

AbstractIn recent decades, vignerons have focused more on the world's mainstream varieties than on differentiating their varietal mix. This has led countries to become more similar to each other in their mix of winegrape varieties and more varietally concentrated. What are the drivers of those changes? In this study, we focus on one of those drivers, that is, climate similarities. We estimate statistical models to quantify the potential influence of 16 climate variables on varietal similarities across countries, as well as on how their varietal mixes have become more or less similar since 2000. The results indicate not only that countries with more similar climates have more similar varietal mixes but also that in recent years countries with more similar climates have become even more similar in their mixes. This, however, does not necessarily mean that vignerons have been planting the varieties that are better adapted to their climates.Core Ideas Wine‐producing countries have become more similar and concentrated in their mix of winegrape varieties. This similarity extends particularly among countries sharing similar climatic conditions. In recent years, countries with similar climates have continued to converge in their winegrape varietal mixes. Nevertheless, vignerons have not necessarily been planting varieties that are better suited to their climates.

The aim of this article is to describe the climates of the world’s wine regions and discuss implications of climate change for those regions. In doing so, we summarise a recent scientific journal article: Puga et al. (2022). We also incorporate insights from other work – part of which is first published here.

In an ever-more-competitive global beverage market, vignerons compete for the attention of consumers by trying to differentiate their wine from others while also responding to technological advances, climate change and evolving demand patterns. In doing so, they highlight their regional and varietal distinctiveness while keeping an eye on changes in consumer preferences for different varieties. This paper examines and seeks to explain the extent to which winegrape varietal mixes vary across regions and over time within Australia and relative to the rest of the world. It reports changes in indices of similarity across regions and indices of concentration in the winegrape varietal mix within regions. Nationally, the varietal mix has become less differentiated and closer to that of France and the world as a whole. However, individual regions within Australia are becoming more concentrated in their mix of varieties and more differentiated from other Australian regions. We estimate supply response models based on a Nerlovian adaptive profit expectations and partial acreage adjustment framework. These models do not provide insights into many of the variables influencing vignerons' planting decisions, but they help explain recent changes in varietal mixes. The results suggest that changes in varietal mixes are more motivated by expected revenues than by what may work best based on the climate of each region. In the wake of climate change and global wine demand premiumising, some Australian vignerons may find their region is too warm for producing high-quality wine with the winegrape varieties planted there.

While winegrowers usually want to achieve consistent yield targets, there is a high degree of yield and price (and hence gross revenue) variability in winegrape production. The aim of this study was to determine whether there are differences in yield and revenue variability across climates, varieties, and regions in Australia. This was performed by estimating statistical models of the impact of these three variables on the coefficient of variation of yield and gross revenue per hectare. The results suggest that hotter and drier regions exhibit lower interannual yield variability, something that in the past may have been largely explained by the use of irrigation, but which may change in the future with climate change and higher water prices. The results also showed that there are sometimes differences in yield and revenue variability, not only across regions, but also between varieties.

Precipitation patterns are projected to change in different directions across wine regions in Australia, but temperatures are projected to increase in all wine regions, making them less prone to frosts but more prone to heatwaves and more arid. This research aims to estimate how climate change could affect grape yields in Australia. This is, to our knowledge, the first study using a panel data framework to estimate the potential impact of climate change on grape yields. This framework involves a two-step approach in which the first step consists of estimating the impact of weather on grape yields using a fixed effects panel data model, and the second step involves estimating the potential impact of climate change projections using the estimates from the first step. We also estimate a novel hybrid model that interacts weather with climate, potentially accounting for long-run adaptation. The results suggest that climate change by 2050 may lead to higher yields in most regions but lower yields in some of the country’s largest regions. Put differently, an increase in yields may be expected in the coolest regions, while a decrease may be expected in the hottest regions. Consequently, the average yield in Australia may change very little.

Background and goals This study empirically summarizes the extent of the similarities and concentrations in the mix of wine grape cultivars across countries. It also seeks to determine by how much these mixes are becoming more or less similar, and more or less concentrated, in terms of growing area by winegrape cultivar. Methods and key findings Using a database of growing area by cultivar that accounts for 99% of the world's winegrape growing area, we analyze similarities and concentrations in the mixes of winegrape cultivars using two indices (including a new cultivar concentration index) in innovative ways. The results show a great diversity across countries in terms of both similarities and concentrations, while providing robust evidence that the mixes of winegrape cultivars are becoming more similar across countries, and between countries and the world as a whole, and that these mixes are also becoming more concentrated within countries and globally. Conclusions and significance The results point to the increasing scope for grapegrowers to diversify and differentiate their product by choosing less-frequently planted cultivars, but they also suggest most grapegrowers have found it more profitable to move toward mainstream cultivars.

Using a dataset with 16 climate variables for locations representing 813 wine regions that cover 99 % of the world’s winegrape area, we employ principal component analysis (PCA) for data reduction and cluster analysis for grouping similar regions. The PCA resulted in three components explaining 89 % of the variation in the data, with loadings that differentiate between locations that are warm/dry from cool/wet, low from high diurnal temperature ranges, low from high nighttime temperatures during ripening, and low from high vapour pressure deficits. The cluster analysis, based on these three principal components, resulted in three clusters defining wine regions globally, with the results showing that premium wine regions can be found across each of the climate types. This is, to our knowledge, the first such classification of virtually all of the world’s wine regions. However, with both climate change and an increasing preference for premium relative to non-premium wines, many of the world’s winegrowers may need to change their mixes of varieties, or source more of their grapes from more appropriate climates.

AbstractThis study uses gravity models to explain bilateral patterns of global wine trade since 1962. This is, to our knowledge, the first study on global wine trade covering the second wave of globalization as a whole. The results suggest that the impact of distance, common language, and common colonizer post-1945 on wine trade was lower in the 1991–2019 period than in the 1962–1990 period. We also use gravity models to explain the impact on bilateral wine trade patterns of similarities across countries in the mix of winegrape varieties in their vineyards. Although our models do not allow us to identify causality, the results suggest that countries trade more wine with each other the closer their mix of winegrape varieties.

Mendoza is the main province of Argentina in terms of both wine production and wine tourism. While more than one million wine tourists visit Mendoza every year, little is known about the characteristics of these tourists. The aims of this study are to describe the profiles of wine tourists in Mendoza and to analyse the variables influencing their spending. This is, to our knowledge, the first study addressing any of these aims in Argentina. We conducted 427 surveys to wine tourists in the main wine regions of Mendoza. The descriptive analysis of the survey results allows us to derive recommendations for both the private and the public sector. We also used this survey to perform a statistical analysis of the variables influencing spending in wine tourism, which allows us to recommend promotional strategies and marketing efforts that may have a higher return.

Abstract The European grapevine moth is one of the most pertinent viticulture pests. In recent years, the moth extended to New World countries, some of which started eradication programs. We used a dataset for Mendoza and a county-fixed effects regression model to estimate the impact of the moth on grape production across the province's counties. Our results suggest that the moth led to a decrease of up to 8% of Mendoza's grape production; however, this may have been worse without strong eradication efforts. We conclude that moth eradication programs may be economically justified in Argentina, and perhaps in other countries. (JEL Classifications: Q10, Q18, C23)

Mendoza is the main wine-producing province of Argentina, and the government is currently implementing a range of policies that seek to improve grape grower profitability, including a vineyard replanting program. This study uses a dataset of all grape sales recorded in Mendoza from 2007 to 2018, totaling 90,910 observations, to investigate the determinants of grape prices. Key findings include: smaller volume transactions receive lower-average prices per kilogram sold; the discount for cash payments is higher in less-profitable regions; and the effect of wine stock levels on prices is substantial for all varieties. Long-run predicted prices are also estimated for each variety, and region; and these results suggest that policymakers should review some of the varieties currently used in the vineyard replanting program. (JEL Classifications: Q12, Q13, Q18)