How do Americans perceive Italian wines today?

One of my best friends in the Italian wine business — a Tuscanophile Paduan a few years older than me, a veteran of the industry and one of the wisest wine professionals I know — sent me the following query: “when it comes to the average American customer, which Italian wines are the most popular?”

His inquiry led to copious notes about my own thoughts on how Americans perceive Italian wines today. Of course, my reflections are based mostly on my experiences on the ground and anecdotal reporting from what I read online and hear from the street. I plan to share our dialog at some point here.

But I thought I would preface that by taking my Italian readers on a tour of the wine shop at my local HEB supermarket, where I shop on a nearly daily basis.

I believe that the Italian wine industry needs to be recast. And I strongly feel industry actors need to rethink their approach not by reading Eric Asimov (no offense, Eric!) and blogger/influencers (much to say about that down the road). Instead, they need to look at the way the majority of Americans shop for wine.

My go-to HEB has a high-end wine department, including high-priced wines from France, California, and Oregon. I buy a lot of wine there (mostly Jadot and California whites). Although I also buy a lot of wine from Houston Wine Merchant (my favorite shop), HEB is the kind of place where a lot of my (non-wine industry) peers will shop for wine.

Let’s start with the image above: France has its own wall while Italy and South America share a wall. That says a lot.

If they aren’t aware already, Italians should now that Americans still cognitively classify their wines as grape varieties. My European counterparts might be surprised to learn that Pinot Grigio (here listed as “Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris”) has its own section.

Note the magnums of Italian Pinot Grigio above. But “Pinot Grigio” in America isn’t limited (in terms consumer awareness) to Italy. Feast your eyes on the Sutter Home Magnum of Californian Pinot Grigio (labeled as such) for less than $10.

I have much more to report and opine. But I hope this point will serve as a starting point for useful dialog. Please stay tuned.

Check out my Instagram today for more photos from my visit to my HEB yesterday.