I believe without a shadow of a doubt that wine is as trendy as music, clothing and the teenage vernacular. What is in today is out tomorrow. Like many teenagers say, "Oh that is so last year." I’m sorry to say, even that saying may be outdated. The trends in wine can have a positive side but more often then not tend to lead wine drinkers into a steady diet of the same wines over and over again. Being the wine nerd that I am, I find great satisfaction in trying new and interesting wines on a weekly basis. I rarely if ever avoid buying a wine because it has received a bum rap from HOLLYWOOD or some fashionable magazine. I think you may know where I am going with this, but I will say it anyway... Merlot is the classic example. The movie Sideways hit the big screen and as many of you know, there was a derogatory statement made about Merlot. No big deal? That one scene in the movie caused sales of merlot to spiral into near non-existence. Thus began a trend that is still nagging the wine industry to this day. What is funny about this is that prior to the movie, merlot was a hot ticket and consumers could not get enough. How can a wine be so enjoyable one day and disdained the next? Trends! The same movie extolled the virtues of a wine that up to this point had achieved little success in the mass market.... pinot noir. After the movie there was an explosion (literally) in the sales of pinot noir throughout the United States. Wineries in Oregon that once sat on two to three years of vintages were now finding themselves out of wine. This is the positive side of a trend. Pinot noir is wonderful juice and was certainly under appreciated prior to the SideWays movie. Now, everyone seems to want to drink pinot and they have discovered just how delicious and complex it is. This trend has opened the eyes of many wine drinkers and has helped them expand their horizons when it comes to trying new wines. The flip side to this is that many have also stopped there, believing that pinot noir is the only red wine worth drinking. You may ask yourself , how do I know this? Being on the floor selling wine in a very popular wine shop has given me a lot of insight into the buying habits and opinions of my customers.

Here a just a few of the trends that I have observed in the wine world today.

*Chardonnay is still on most peoples black list. I love chardonnay and I am happy to report that there seems to be hope on the horizon that chardonnay is making a comeback.

*Pinot grigio and pinot gris are still a hot ticket in the wine world. This trend has had unbelievable stamina lasting a lot longer then I would have ever anticipated. I have asked many folks their take on this trend and have found no satisfying answers. Perhaps it is the versatility this white has with food that makes it a popular choice, who knows. All I can say is... For heaven’s sake, TRY SOMETHING NEW!! Vermentino anyone?

*Malbec, malbec, and more malbec! OMG people are clamoring for this stuff. This has to be one of the hottest categories in wine right now. The price is right and the quality of juice coming out of Argentina is stellar. The only thing I fear is that Argentina will pigeonhole themselves into this category and when it becomes stale or out of fashion they will suffer the same fate that Australia is now experiencing with shiraz.

*Speaking of Shiraz, it was four years ago what malbec is today. Not anymore. I have seen close to a sixty percent drop in sales of shiraz from Australia. Unfortunately, this has affected the entire Australian market since they hung their hat on this varietal. Australia is the home of some outstanding wines including cabernet sauvignon, sauvignon blanc and riesling. Sad to say but Australia has become synonymous with YellowTail shiraz and chardonnay. A residual effect of this is a drop in the sales of domestic syrah. As wine stewards, we have successfully done our job in helping people understand that shiraz and syrah are one and the same. As a result, folks have turned their attention elsewhere and away from syrah/shiraz. This trend is most disturbing to me since I adore syrah especially from Washington State and hate to see folks miss out on some of the terrific wines being produced there.

*The trend that I absolutely love to see and hope sticks around longer then pinot grigio ever will is the interest in red blends. The French have been blending reds since the beginning of time. Bordeaux is in fact all about blending the five grapes of Bordeaux into some of the best wine in the world. Cab, Merlot, Cab Franc, Malbec and petite Verdot are all the varieties grown in this region and blended together to produce Bordeaux reds. However, the blends that are exploding in popularity in the wine world are from California and Washington. Many times we refer to these blends as "Kitchen Sink" reds, because they throw every variety in the blend except the kitchen sink. Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Verdot, Petite Sirah, Merlot, Mouvedre, Cabernet Sauvignon and the list goes on and on. The result is an outstanding variety of great values that go from excellent everyday reds to stellar productions that can be drunk now or cellared for some years. Marietta Old Vine Red, Menage a Trois, Big House Red, Fly-Over Red, Duck Pond Red, Sinister Hand, Abott’s Table Red, Isosceles, Napa Nook, Paraduxx, Long Haul Red, The Prisoner to name just a few, are some of the examples of red blends that have hit the market with great success. I have a good feeling about this trend.... It will be here for awhile.

I believe that there are also constants in the wine world; varietals that will always hold their own despite the trends. Cabernet Sauvignon, Italian wines as a whole, Spanish wines, and Champagne or sparkling wine. These wines show consistent sales year in and year out. Some varietals that have shown promise to be on the trend wagon in the near future are Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. Cab Franc sputters and coughs, and I am not sure if it will take off although I would readily endorse it. I have watched Sauvignon Blanc start to catch on fire and I believe that New Zealand has a lot to do with it. I will keep you posted.

As a wine guy, I am always happy to see folks try something new and if it takes a trend to get them there... Hooray! However, we must always be careful not to let trends hinder or adventuresome spirit when it comes to expanding our horizons in the wine world and all it has to offer. Cheers! Stan