Wine Listings Slashed by Double Digits in Leading Casual Restaurant Chains
Fairfield, CT (PRWEB) May 19, 2014 -- Winemetrics LLC, the market research company specializing in on-premise wine and spirits distribution revealed today a notable trend among leading casual dining restaurant chains. Eight of the ten largest casual dining chains surveyed have slashed their wine selections by a combined -17% in an 8-month period ending in March, 2014. The chains surveyed account for over 3500 restaurants nationwide and include Olive Garden, Outback Steakhouse, Red Lobster, Ruby Tuesday among others. All of these chains reduced their wine selections from -6% to -28% during a period from August, 2013 to March, 2014.
According to Winemetrics LLC Founder and CEO, Charles Gill, this pared-down selection of wine offerings is unprecedented and may indicate a shift of beverage focus from wine to craft beer and cocktails in casual chains. “Since Winemetrics began monitoring and publishing wine distribution data in 2007, we have never witnessed such a dramatic drop in wine selections across so many major national restaurant chains,” states Gill. “The real challenge for wine suppliers on-premise may not be expanding distribution but holding on to the placements they currently have.” According to industry sources, key spirits categories grew at three times the rate of domestic table wines on-premise, while craft beer has grown annually by double digits and now accounts for 14% of the entire U.S. beer market.
Winemetrics publishes annual on-premise wine and spirits distribution reports by brand and supplier based on a survey of over 180 restaurant groups and chains, representing over 15,000 restaurants nationwide. It has recently released two inaugural reports from its 2013 survey, Winemetrics 2013 Cocktail Report, revealing brand and supplier share in drink listings in leading restaurant chains and Winemetrics 2013 Luxury Wine On-Premise Report, analyzing on-premise distribution of wine priced over $50/bottle.
Winemetrics is the leading source of on-premise wine distribution information and analytics, and offers competitive wine and spirit rankings by variety/type, region, supplier, brand and price. The founder and CEO of Winemetrics, Charles Gill, has over 30 years of experience at all levels of the wine industry and has been providing actionable, on-premise distribution analysis to wine and spirits suppliers and distributors since 2001.
Media Contact:
Charles Gill, Founder & CEO
203-243-7397
http://www.winemetrics.com
Charles Gill, Winemetrics LLC, http://www.winemetrics.com, +1 (203) 243-7397, [email protected]
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