Does singer Taylor Swift influence wine sales trends?

Taylor Swift enjoys drinking wine occasionally, with Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio being among her favorites. Interestingly, recent NielsenIQ scan data on US wine sales shows that “Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris (Grigio) were the only two varieties to show growth over the past 52 weeks,” according to the Wine analysis reportJuly 2024.

“White wines – especially Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris/Grigio and white wine blends – are performing relatively better than red wines,” said Danny Brager, a wine industry analyst and senior vice president of Nielsen’s Beverage Alcohol business for more than 20 years, in an email interview.

This leads to the question, could Taylor Swift, who in October 2023 became the first musician to make the Forbes billionaires list based primarily on her songs and performances, have an impact on wine sales trends?

Taylor Swift mentions “wine” 19 times in her songs

An interesting analysis by author David Morrow for Bottle robbershowed that Swift mentions “wine” 19 times in her various songs. For this reason, he concludes, “…it’s safe to assume that Swift is more of a wine drinker than anything else.”

Taylor first mentioned her favorite wines in 2019 at a Ellen DeGeneres Burning questions Show. Ellen asked: “Your friend is inviting you to dinner, what are you bringing?”

“White wine,” Taylor replies.

“What kind?” Ellen asks.

“Sancerre, Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc,” Taylor replies.

Sancerre is actually a region in France known for producing light, fresh and aromatic white wines made from Sauvignon Blanc. Wine from Sancerre has also sparked a lot of interest among Taylor’s fans, known as “Swifties.” A quick search on TikTok reveals hundreds of videos of fans tasting “Sancerre” wine because Taylor likes it, and many of them have thousands of views, like the one below.

But it turns out Taylor also likes champagne, which some fans have illustrated in charts they created to show how often she mentions different types of alcohol in her song lyrics. Most recently, a photo of a bottle appeared Gaslighter Rose from the Sonoma Coast, sitting on a countertop in Taylor’s kitchen, has prompted many fans to purchase this wine and post about it on TikTok and other social media platforms. See example here.

Statistics and possible reasons for the popularity of white wine

Although there is no scientific evidence that Taylor Swift influences wine sales trends, white wine sales in the U.S. began to rise within just over a year since she first mentioned on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that she likes white wine, whereas previously red wine dominated.

The graph below shows NielsenIQ scan data and shows that white wine’s sales share has increased from 41.6% in 2021 to 43.8% today. Over the same period, red wine’s sales value share has decreased from 52.3% to 50.7%. Rosé wine’s sales value share has also decreased from 6.1% in 2021 to 5.5% now.

But there may be other elements at play than just the fact that Taylor Swift loves white wine.

“White wines generally appeal more to those looking for fewer calories and/or lower alcohol content,” explained Danny Brager. “Additionally, many innovations in wine appeal to consumers who are looking for more health and wellness in their lifestyle, and that tends to gravitate toward white wines.”

Jon Moramarco, CEO and founder of bw166a global alcoholic beverage research firm, cites other reasons. “As cuisine in the United States has changed to include more Asian and Latin American foods, wine selection is also evolving toward varieties that pair better with those foods, which is the case with many white wines,” he explained in an email interview.

In fact, recent reports show that Latin American and Tex-Mex cuisine is quickly overtaking Italian as the most popular cuisine in the United States. “And what kind of wine pairs best with Mexican food?” asked Dalia Ceja, vice president of marketing at Ceja Vineyards in Napa Valley, at a recent wine conference. “The answer is Sauvignon Blanc.”

Taylor Swift looks elegant while drinking white wine

While Taylor Swift may not have any influence on wine trends, there is plenty of speculation on the subject, including articles in Wine Spectator and The Drinks Business.

There have also been other cases where musicians have influenced wine trends, such as Jay-Z, who Cristal Champagne and later boycotted the brand. Rappers like Drake, Kanye West and Lil’ Kim sang about Moscato in their songs, getting many fans to try the delicious sweet wine.

Ultimately, there are probably many small family wineries around the world that would be happy to have Taylor mention wine in her songs, as this type of advertising can help keep their business afloat.

But there are also Taylor’s many fans – the Swifties – who continue to closely monitor her every move, not just the wines she drinks, but the food she eats, the cars she drives, the clothes she wears… and so on. And as one fan commented on a recent video (see below) of Taylor drinking wine after a concert, “She drinks it so elegantly.”