Data Mining of Chemical Analysis for White Wine Quality

The winery industry can be categorized into red and white wine segments. The red wine segment, measured by tonnage of varietals crushed, has grown at a compounded annual rate of 4.7% for 10 years from 1989 to 1998, and a year over year growth rate of 8.2% from 1998 to 1999. Judging by the strong growth rate experienced in the red wine segment, it is reasonable to conclude that the red wine segment is in the growth phase of the life cycle model. In addition, production of red wine varietals which are relatively unknown such as syrah and sangiovese nearly doubled in a year from 1998 to 1999. The white wine segment, however, is at the mature phase of its life cycle as the segment shrunk slightly by 0.42% from 1998 to 1999. Overall, the industry is still at the growth stage lead by growth in the red wine segment.

The dynamics of the global wine industry are better understood through a brief history of wine as well as an overview of the wine making process. Some countries have longer historical and cultural ties with wine then others and that can affect the quality and perception of the product in the eyes of the consumer. Also, the conditions in which the wine grapes are raised and the processes used to make the wine can create a superior wine and therefore a competitive advantage.

Wine has been a popular beverage for many years amongst different societies. The process of winemaking is one of the most complex and detailed processes, where every step is meticulous towards ensuring the best quality wine is produced. However, different phenomena are able to affect the wine even after it is bottled and stored.

Wine production involves two parts of economic activity – viticulture and wine making in the winery. In the global context, wine production is dynamic due to the influence of globalization, technological advancements and extensive research. These have essentially influenced the nature, spatial patterns and the ecological dimensions of the wine industry.

The buyer’s power within the wine industry varies between different places in the world. There are for example strategic differences between Europe and the “New World”. The “New World” includes countries like the US, Australia, Chile and South Africa. In Europe there is a big competition

The whole world of winemaking, and the first step to determine the taste and quality of a wine, stems from the grape and vine. With a deep root system and gnarled trunk, grape vines are a standout feature of any winery. These vines have three main categories of

What confuses most people in the selection of wines is that they don’t draw a line between these two categories:

Vincor does market wine alternatives itself, as a way of dealing with substitute demand. Vincor makes cider and has a wine kit business division (Spagnols) that gives Vincor some product diversification. Partly because of the ease of competition and as part of the differentiation and protection of the Canadian wine industry, Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA), a quality assurance program that identifies Canadian premium grape content, assists in making start-up more difficult for those wishing to emulate Canadian wine brands. The dollars spent on marketing and brand loyalty play a large part in protecting market share and there are certain absolute cost advantages that contribute to establishing some barriers to new competition. Ultimately, there is little cost to the consumer when considering switching brands. Experimentation in wine drinking is often a characteristic of the wine drinking market and thus can contribute to promoting new substitute entry into the market.

Now that we have exposed our assumptions, we can start going into more detail on the case itself. First, as this is an inventory management case study, we are going to determine the optimal order quantity of each type of wine, so that afterwards we can make include a more financial view of the problem and make some recommendations.

The United States wine industry is a 12 billion dollar industry and is composed of 7,000 wineries and around 1,800 different companies. The three major companies within the industry are Constellation brands, E&J Gallo, and The Wine Group Inc. The industry has made its way through the economic crisis at a better rate than some of the other U.S industries however in order for them to continue to see any type of growth it is important that they acknowledge their issues and find ways in which they can rectify them. The majority of the issues among the industry are problems that cannot be directly controlled by individual wine companies. Therefore it is imperative that wineries find away to use these issues to their

For the purposes of this case analysis of E. & J. Gallo Winery, the wine industry is composed of all alcoholic beverages that contain between eight and twenty percent alcohol by volume. This distinction is based on the assumption that beer and the typical malt liquor contain less than eight percent alcohol by volume. The twenty percent limit is a result of state and federal tax and licensing laws. The three top competitors that are identified in this case study are E. & J. Gallo, Canandaigua and Mogen David.

Chateau Margaux is one of the five first-growth Bordeaux wine producer; it and has one of the finest names of Bordeaux and the number of drinkers worldwide is growing through the years. Chateau Margaux’s wines are used by the connoisseurs and luxury consumers. They are facing an uncertain future, because of losing market to New World producers (such as California, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand) which have lower prices and more accessible flavours. Nowadays wine drinkers are changing tastes, which could cause a big problem.

In the most recent years, domestic sales of wine has declined constantly. The wine consumption is becoming more occasional. This is partially due to an aggressive anti-alcohol campaign and driving restrictions set by the local government, but also facilitated by a lack of marketing strategy: the wine market is loosing touch with the youth (the average age of wine drinker is gone up from 35 to 55) and young people are getting more keen to beer or alcohol pops.

Bieler, Kristen Wolfe (2006), “Behind the [ yellow tail ]® Phenomenon: How It Happened and What’s Next?” Beverage Media Group, February, pdf download.

Nowadays, in the “Old World” countries of Europe, where the bulk of the volume is still produced, this is of great concern. However, consumers, especially younger drinkers, prefer the high quality wine from famous brands which are imported into Europe by the “New World” player, and the growth rate is at average10% per