Recent research undertaken by Constellation Wines US, (owners of brands such as Mondavi and Hardys), has found that one in four wine consumers find shopping for wine a daunting experience.

The Genome Project, named after the research that took scientists 13 years to identify the 250,000 genes which make up human DNA, surveyed 3500 premium wine consumers and found that there is no such thing as a typical wine shopper.

Instead wine drinkers fall into one of six categories – Enthusiast, Image Seeker, Savvy Shopper, Traditionalist, Satisfied Sipper and Overwhelmed (the category claiming the most members).

Constellation, reckons this “points to new opportunities, and can inspire creative approaches to everything from helpful instore displays to novice friendly wine lists in restaurants”.

To participate in the survey, consumers must have spent US$5.00 or more on a single bottle of wine in the previous 30 days.

The research makes interesting reading and the press release can be read here. Wouldn’t it be more interesting, though, to be able to read the full report?

It also raises the question as to what a small winery like ours has to do to make the selection of our wines an easy choice for the customer. There are many factors of course, but we firmly believe that “Stormhoek Ultimate Freshness” which clearly shows when our wines can be enjoyed at their very best is not only the most important piece of advice the consumer can receive but also an industry first.

Last weekend at the London Wine Show we introduced “Ultimate Freshness” to hundreds of visitors. These informed consumers loved the idea and their general reaction was that this would make shopping for wine much easier.

There is a common misconception that wine improves with age. This maybe the case for about 2% of the worlds production but most definately not for the rest! The massive majority of wine is at is most enjoyable when young.

We go to a huge amount of trouble to make our wines taste the best they can and it seems absurd to us not to tell the consumer when they will be in their prime.