Has Bourbon Impacted Your Wine Spending?

In another thread the topic of an impending slowdown in the U.S wine industry mentioned one reason as the interest in craft spirits. I thought the mention of the interest in craft spirits as a factor in declining interest in wine was on target. I for one am a new convert to bourbon and it has definitely put a damper on my wine purchases. Probably a good thing for me anyway as I was buying way too much wine. I am now looking everywhere for certain bottles of bourbon. I can’t help but believe I am not the only one with this diversion away from spending on wine.

No. I buy and drink Bourbon, but it has not affected my wine buying.

Bourbon’s been great for my wine spending. Instead of buying grower Champagnes or gambling on cheaper wines, I just allocate that capital towards rarer bourbon. Win!

Also, it helped me focus my wine budget on much more serious bottles. Another win!

Bingo. Why would a life essential impact my wine purchases?

But in my case the answer is a definite no. Bourbon holds no interest for me at all. I don’t drink or have any particular interest in liquor of any kind. With very rare exceptions the only alcohol I consume is wine. Last time I had beer was about three or four years ago and last time I had anything stronger was in Jalisco last year visiting a friend’s tequila distillery.

A lot of retailers have told me that they’re seeing a big shift from wine to craft liquors though.

Why purchase a bottle of $75 wine that will last me through one meal when I can purchase a nice bottle of bourbon/scotch/whiskey that will last me weeks/months? I’m sure that this is a question some consumers are asking - and even more so on the cheaper end.

Are craft liquors affecting the wine business? Yes, definitely. Is it affecting my wine purchases? No . . .

Cheers

+1

I buy and drink more Scotch than Bourbon, but neither affects my wine buying.

Age, a full cellar, and spousal intervention OTOH…

No.

+1 haha

Scotch never did but Bourbon is.

I had no idea how hot the bourbon business is right now. I had no interest in bourbon until I attended a forestry convention in Louisville last year. One of the speakers was with Brown-Forman who said that about ten years ago they were using 300,000 new white oak barrels annually. In 2018 they used over 1,000,000 barrels. The impact on white oak forests is substantial and they are predicting a severe shortage of suitable white oak trees in another ten years. A fact that has not been lost on the bourbon industry. There is a big push within the industry and forestry profession to encourage private landowners to assist in regenerating white oak. Doing distillery tours and tastings got me hooked.

Yes absolutely. I spent 4+ years pretty focused on American whiskey amassing a bunker of 250+ btls (plus 50 or so open). I have now significantly reduced the whiskey side of purchasing which has allowed me to reallocate a bit back to wine.

I go through phases, but neither liquor nor wine scratches the exact same itch for me. I’m either in the mood for one or the other. Also, although not backed by science, I feel healthier drinking wine than liquor more often than not.

Related but not directly answering the OP, it often amazes me that I’ll choke on spending $100 on great Bourbon, but not on great wine, when one lasts a LONG time and the other is gone in one meal. I’ll buy as many bottles of Monte Bello that I’m offered, but I can’t spend that much on a single bottle of Bourbon unless it is a really special occasion.

An indirect answer to the question in my case, but the main impact is indirect too. I don’t drink much in the way of spirits. However, my eldest, in his mid-20s, is much more drawn to collectible bourbons than he (and the vast majority of his cohorts) is to collectible wine. The result is modest tapering of my buying for the fear he won’t want that inheritance (though I have two younger heirs still to groom away from the dark Side!).

Jonathan

They are Venn diagrams I enjoy, but with no intersection for me.

its so true though.

Most definitely. I don’t buy bourbon so can spend it on wine.

The question they should be asking is why spend $75 on liquor that is alcoholic and nasty tasting when I could have a nice Madeira that is complex and can last for months or years?

Have you started playing golf yet? It can be as expensive as any of these.