Experts predict: this is what the 2021 wine year will look like
We taste wine at home, order bottles online and only see sommeliers on social media: these are strange times. What does 2021 have in store for the wine world? Economic magazine Bloomberg predicts: wine robots, virtual wine trips and miraculous wine cans from Gordon Ramsay on store shelves.
Where we drink is different, what we drink is the same
Rosé remains popular in summer, hard seltzer is the trend for the coming year and sparkling wine is growing like crazy – especially sparkling wine from new wine countries such as Brazil. All the statistics show that everything around wine has changed, except what is in our glass.
Climate change, shit
In Burgundy, the harvest has never started so early; in California, wildfires reduced hectares of vineyards to ashes. Coincidence? No, climate change. And that will have an even greater impact in the future. A dark cloud with a silver lining, because countries that were previously unsuitable for growing grapes are now exactly right. Dutch wine is no longer strange at all!
Healthy drinking
Not drinking anything during Dry January, the ‘Dranquilo’ campaign: it is becoming increasingly clear that alcohol is bad for your health. And the drinks industry is responding to that. Alcohol-free wine is becoming more popular, as are other alcohol-free alternatives with food.
Pink bubbles are going to be huge
Rosé prosecco, just you wait. An absurd amount of rosé is being sold. Most of it in summer, but other months deserve a pink touch too. Elin McCoy, wine journalist at Bloomberg, is betting her money on pink prosecco. Bubbles, a lovely colour, what’s not to love?
Go on, place your order
The liquor store turned out to be an essential shop, so it was allowed to remain open. But ordering wine online has gradually become completely normal due to all those lockdown situations. Prediction: better online shops for ordering wine, better delivery options and a better selection. Other online initiatives that bring wine lovers and producers together also have a bright future, according to Bloomberg.
Keep an eye on Portugal
In America, the wine country Portugal has suddenly become hot. Well, we in Europe realised that ages ago: exciting wines, grape varieties you have never ever heard of and special ways of making wine: bring on those Portuguese bottles. And we haven’t even mentioned port yet, a golden oldie.
Hard seltzer? Wine seltzer!
Hard seltzer, you either love it or hate it. Perhaps that trend is already almost over, because those chemical drinks with deceptively high alcohol content do not exactly go hand in hand with culinary enjoyment. Next trend: wine seltzers. Apparently, Gordon Ramsay is bringing his own range of wine-soft-drink-like canned mixes to the market, with flavours such as passion fruit, pineapple and orange. It sounds like Breezers in a new outfit, but we are happy to be surprised.
Sustainability is the way forward
You can hardly call it a trend anymore, because in recent years everything has become increasingly eco-friendly and circular. And that will continue. The more sustainable, the better! Even major wineries have jumped on the bandwagon, and you need not fear wine with the aroma of goat droppings and the taste of rosehip syrup, but oh so sustainable; the flavour is simply fantastic.
Wine trips are going online too
Those trips to the most beautiful wine regions are temporarily out of the question. But don’t panic, because wineries have found a solution: they offer online virtual tours of the vineyard and wine region.
Sommelier becomes robot
A robot that opens the bottle for you in a restaurant: is that the future? According to Bloomberg, it is. In America, quite a stir arose when various #metoo situations were also reported in the wine world, so such a sexless robot is an alternative. Apparently, a wine bar in London has already invested in a champagne robot, and at Hotel Trio in California, a robot brings your rosé to your hotel room. Hmm, we still prefer the passionate advice from our favourite sommeliers, but perhaps such a robot could be a fun assistant for them?
Read also:
- Yes, please! 19 food trends that can come with us into 2021
- Start training, the Dutch wine marathon is coming
- What a dream hotel, having breakfast among the giraffes
Source: Bloomberg.com
