New data from the IWSR has highlighted a wave of innovation in the wine category as winemakers seek to recruit Gen Z consumers and counteract reliance on drinkers aged 55 and above.
In Australia, the drinks analyst firm found that the proportion of legal drinking age (LDA) consumers up to the age of 24 who consumed wine on a monthly basis halved between 2010 and 2023.
Being exposed to a broader range of alcoholic beverages than previous generations, and with a growing interest in moderation, IWSR data found Gen Z consumers to be less familiar with wine-specific regions and varietals. Research also found Gen Z to be less familiar with wine terminology, leading many winemakers to adopt more casual and accessible language and differentiate their branding.
One such example is American wine brand Whiny Baby, which has adopted a modern approach to its branding, naming its varietals after moods rather than grapes – such as Unwind, Obsessed and OMG.
Whiny Baby’s bottles are wrapped in bold, peelable stickers that appeal to younger consumers, with detachable strings of beads on each bottle that can be used as phone charms. Tapping into Gen Z’s interest in social media, each bottle features a phone number which consumers can send their own photos to, to appear on the brand’s social media.
On our own shores, South Australian family winery Taylors Wines has found success with the launch of The Aromantiques, taking cues from the beauty industry and packaging the range in perfume-like bottles, designed to appeal to younger, female drinkers.
With more and more winemakers adopting fun, modern branding as a means of breaking away from the traditional image of wine, innovation also extends to packaging formats, stemming from the evolution of wine-drinking occasions among Gen Z consumers. With many moving away from the mealtime occasion, brands are responding with different formats that are better suited to a wider array of consumption occasions.
Modernising the bag-in-box wine format, Australian sommelier-founded wine brand Gonzo Vino offers larger format wines, with each box of wine including the equivalent of four bottles. Sustainability is an important consideration for many Gen Z consumers, and this format reduces carbon footprint and glass bottles in landfill.
Leaning into the demand for convenience, and the preference among Gen Z drinkers for lighter, carbonated drinks, Gibson Wines unveiled a single-serve Riesling Seltzer earlier this year through its Discovery Road range.
Broader appeal
Not only are Gen Z consumers exploring non-traditional wine formats, but their consumption habits are also significantly different to earlier generations, with their moderation of alcohol consumption driving no- and low-alcohol (NoLo) growth.
One way of removing barriers to consumption for Gen Z drinkers is to ensure this cohort is catered to, and the Australian market for NoLo wines continues to grow. Fourth Wave Wine’s In The Middle wine range and Pepperjack’s Mid-Strength Shiraz respond to market demand for full-flavour wines with a lower ABV, while Squealing Pig’s Zero and Mid Pig wine ranges offer both no- and low-alcohol alternatives.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Millennial and Gen Z consumers are also attracted to bolder flavours and higher-ABV beverages. One Australian brand innovating in this segment of the wine category is Fourth Wave Wines, which launched its ‘hard’ wine brand Mullet Wines just last month with a range of seven Australian-made wines varying from 13.5 to 17 per cent ABV.
Ross Marshall, Managing Director of Fourth Wave Wines, said: “When you think of wine, you think of words like elegant, terroir, sophisticated – but as the wine industry tries to find new ways to attract and recruit modern consumers, you need to think differently and look at how other categories engage them, so we took inspiration from the rise of ‘hardy style’ as a feature in the seltzer and spirits category.”