I have always had tendency to collect bits of obscure knowledge. In fact, back in the 1980s, I reached a point where no one would play Trivial Pursuit with me anymore. Since I have been in the wine business, I have gradually collected some interesting numbers that relate to wine that I thought might make interesting reading. If trivia is not your thing, go read a recipe!
In 2005 wines sold by color in the United States were 41.7% Red, 41% White and 17.3% Rose.
The average value of an acre of ground in Napa Valley is about $100,000, up from about $11,000 in 1980.
The typical yield for Cabernet Sauvignon grapes is about 3 to 5 tons per acre in 2002, the average value of 1 ton of Napa Valley grown Cabernet grapes was around $4,000. The average price for all Napa grapes was $2,938 per ton. For comparison, the average price of all California grapes in 2002 was $462 a ton. Location, location, location….
A ton of grapes will yield approximately 720 bottles of wine
A 60 gallon French oak barrel that holds 300 bottles costs about $700.
Most high-end Cabernet producers replace 50 to 100% of their oak barrels every year and some Pinot Noir producers like Domaine Serene buy new barrels every year.
On the other hand a "Tea Bag" of 40 pounds of American oak chips for dipping in your stainless steel tank costs about $35... Wonder where all that under $6 Shiraz comes from? Welcome to Australia Mate! I think the guys who make the Two Buck Chuck must use the leftover sawdust….
France still leads the world in wine production with over 6 billion liters. However, the French are number 2 in wine consumption consuming only about 59% of their production, in spite of the fact that they drink 54 liters a year per capita.
Italy is number two in production with 5.8 billion liters. But they are number 1 in consumption, still only consuming 54% of it, in spite of managing to drink 62 liters per capita annually.
Wonder why there is so much cheap Aussie wine (I mean besides the wood chips)? That's because they produce 851 million liters, but only drink about 372 million, about 44%. That's about 21 liters per capita.
We, on the other hand, are a nation of teetotalers! The United States consumes only 7 liters per capita, with production of over 2 billion liters. Since there are so many of us, it still works out that we consume 3% more than we produce, so we are actually net importers. Those of us who do drink wine however, are really doing our part, since 10% of the population consumes 90% of the wine!
The least amount of wine in the world is consumed in Egypt where 1/20 of a bottle is consumed per capita — that's a little over an ounce.
August 8, 2007
