Diversify Your Portfolio and Your Wine

We talk about diversification all the time when we discuss our investment portfolios, but I didn’t expect to hear it during my most recent wine conversation.

But it seems the recent recession has forced even the wine industry to diversify – and not just  with different varietals of wine.

Conway Family Wines, based the beautiful Santa Barbara County, Calif., has had to diversify its distribution.

Gillian Conway,  vice president of national sales at Conway Family Wines, explained that the vineyard's wines were mostly in restaurants pre-crash. But then people started buying wine and bringing it home to cook dinner, and the Conways realized they had to get their wines on the retail shelves.

So they diversified their distribution.

Now can you find their wines in both restaurants and retail stores.

And that’s certainly helping to get more people drinking their Deep Sea wines, which are made from grapes that grow 20 miles or less from the Pacific Ocean. And believe it or not, that coastal air can positively affect the grapes.

So let this be a reminder to diversify all things in life – including your next wine selection

Cent ‘Anni.

Questions for Our wine Pro 

What is your death row wine? 

Billecart Salmon. They make the most beautiful Champagnes. But, out of loyalty to my wines and my family I would request Deep Sea Pinot Noir.

What region produces the best wine?

Santa Barbara of course! I also love Rutherford Hills for Cabernet.

What is the best wine and food pairing you’ve ever had?

I had a very special experience while sharing Bollinger Grande Annee and caviar at Per Se in New York, but a regular basis, Deep Sea Chardonnay and oysters is an amazing pairing.

What will the U.S. wine industry look like in 10 years?

I believe the next generation of wine drinkers will change how the wine industry markets to consumers. With many wineries embracing social media as a way to connect with and listen to their customers, wine drinkers will be in a position to influence production style. It will be interesting to see how creative wineries can get with their marketing and outreach!