Question:
Discuss about the Critical Environmental Concerns in Wine Production.
Winemaking is the process of manufacturing wine. It commences from choosing the grapes or other product and culminates in packing the refined and finalized wine in bottles. Grape is utilized as the sole ingredient in making wine in most of the cases, but sometimes other products like honey and other fruits are also used as wine ingredients. A person who is proficient in making wine is known professionally as a winemaker and sometimes as a vintner. The field of study consisting wine and wine production is termed as oenology (Boulton et al., 2013).
This report outlines the fact that in order to pull through from the acute competition about wine making, it is essential to explore the contributing factors in regulating the price point of wine.
An in depth discussion about the various input cost factors of wine production, the essential components of marketing force in wine production and lastly a case study of the winery and the winemaker has been discussed in this report to highlight the wine production competition scenario.
The market scenario of wine manufacturing and production has witnessed massive changes in the last few years and is expected to transform further in the coming years. Globalization can be considered as an important factor in bringing massive changes in the wine production market. The influence from globalization on wine production can be evidently studied from the topographical, consumer utilization behavior and operational outlooks (Overton, Murray & Banks, 2012).
The independent winemaking company of Strenua is based in Chum Creek, Yama valley in the country of Australia. The two friends- Dale Wheeler and Rheon Dodd started the company. The owners were both fresh college graduates and utilized their university knowledge in managing the company. The first assignment of Strenua wine when they were placed in the market, sold out rapidly. The quality and flavor of the Strenua produce was very much appreciated by the public. The owners strictly practice organic farming and natural based fertilizers in the vineyard, which makes them environmentally sustainable and helps to enrich the biodiversity. It can be said that Strenua wine is a bright example of a successful wine producer. Overall, Strenua wine has received an overwhelming response and is continuing to be a hit with the public. In fact, Australian wine industry is considered one of the best in the world (Chong, 2014).
The fierce competition in worldwide wine production and the increasing failure in gaining a wide consumer reach have led to a drastic fall in the profitability ratio. Winemakers in all the continents are believed to have fallen victims to this situation. As a result, in order to curb this disparaging effect of the losses, Strenua has called for the implementation of strategic changes in the cost management. This is because the calculation of the manufacturing cost of a single bottle of wine is considered to be a key portion in a wine making business. Strenua winemakers also use the manufacturing cost of a single bottle of wine as a benchmark in inspecting the cost effectiveness of the other production stages. Therefore, the determination of the right input cost is very important in a wine production business. The input cost in Strenua wine production business depends on various factors such as the practice of viticulture, the infrastructure of wine, disease and pest control methods, the process of growing and purchasing grapes and the practices of making wine (Corsi & Strøm, 2013).
The practice of viticulture in Strenua comprises preparing the soil, cultivating or tilling the soil, planting a different mix of vines, trellising the vines and finally having the suitable machinery and products to fight pests and other wine related diseases. Primarily after a suitable Strenua vineyard has been chosen, the material of the soil and the pertaining climate conditions are researched so that the right method of cultivation for the soil is chosen. There are many cultivation methods available, which can be applied in winemaking. The selection of the most fitting cultivation method is necessary for maximizing the vine yields of Strenua (Robinson & Harding, 2015). Along with the cultivation of the soil, there are other important factors of Strenua, which are equally important. They are having abundant amounts of air and moisture, which must be in the correct percentage to the available solid material and ample nutrition, must be provided to the plants so that they do not suffer from malnutrition. The superior production and cultivation of the finalized wine of Strenua depends much upon the initial process of soil preparation. An occurrence of negligence in the initial stage would hamper the bottled product of wine at the final stage. Each soil has certain specific qualities, which makes some cultivation methods more suitable than the others do. Generally, in Strenua the selection of the cultivation method depends upon the make-up of the soil, the conditions of the weather, the location of the chosen vineyard and the type of the wine which is to be cultivated. Wine makers who desire to amplify their vine harvests usually plant in places where there is copious water supply. In Strenua, the quality of the wine is supposed to depend upon the stabilizing between the leaf particles. The leaves produce better when they are exposed to good nutrition and air. The amount of grapes chosen to cultivate a crop also decides the wine quality, because if there are less productive leaves to sustain a huge harvest, then automatically, the quality of the wine diminishes. Strenua winemakers make use of the method of trellising in their wine production phases. In horticulture, trellising is the process of providing a structure or a design of latticework to sustain the climbing plants. This is the reason why trellising is used in wine production because vines are considered to be climbing plants. Usually, plants, which apparently show the characteristic of growing stronger, are trellised. Some vines require trellising and others do not. The requirement of trellising usually depends upon the strength of the vines, the climactic conditions, the type and the capacity of the soil. Snowier areas where there is high prevalence of frost injury, trellising is extremely required. On the contrast, in areas where there is less precipitation, vines do not show the tendency to grow much. As a result, trellising is not required in the drier areas (Smart, 2014). The efficiency and profitability of the Strenua vineyard depends upon the robustness and vigor of the vines. Therefore, it is extremely important to oversee and inspect the operating pest and disease control methods of a vineyard. Organic pest control methods are now popularly used in Strenua vineyards. Organic pest control methods supports, enriches the biodiversity, and makes the vines to develop strong endurance against harmful weeds. Chemicals are used rarely and must be duly approved before their application. Other disinfectants are also used to maintain the required safety and health standards of the vines. It can be said that the disease and pest control methods are indispensable to the successful functioning of the Strenua vineyard (Vine, Harkness & Linton, 2012).
The expertise of a proficient winemaker can influence the taste of the wine. Nevertheless, there are many geographical differences in grapes and other wine producing ingredients, some useful techniques if applied in the cellar can bring a magical flavor in the wine. Hence, in Strenua innovative wine making practices hold great relevance in the wine production business. Some of the major winemaking practices in Strenua include: – Harvest date, Maceration Time, Fermentation Temperature, Punchdowns vs Pumpovers, Oak vs Steel Tank, Corks vs Screwcaps and others. The flavor of Strenua wine differs as in two types- Single flavor and complex flavor (Goodstein et al., 2014). The recipe of making single flavor wine is not very intricate and is quite simple. Though manufacturing of single flavor wine is much uncomplicated, they tend to be savory. Complex flavor wines require more time and care. The Strenua winemakers, in order to refine the taste of the complex flavor wines, use Split fermentation, the mixture of different kinds of oaks and the most interesting of all, the procedure of blending distinct materials (Hall, 2013).
Growing and buying of wines effectively is very crucial for the Strenua vineyard to prosper. Strenua winemakers prefer to grow their own grapes in their backyard instead of buying from the grape suppliers. Growing healthy grapes in Strenua requires many detailed works such as spending ample time and effort on training, weeding, netting and pruning the leaves (Bokulich et al., 2014). In addition to that, proper combating techniques against the pests, harmful diseases and the insects are also substantial. In some cases, due to the isolation of the location of the grape producing areas in Strenua, extra care has to be taken to manage any threat from wild animals and havocs caused by nature (Christ & Burritt, 2013). Sometimes, Strenua winemakers favor to purchase superior quality grapes from reputed suppliers. Nowadays, grapes can be transported from the suppliers to the buyers in many ways. All over the world, varieties of grapes can be bought from the suppliers, ranging from the South American grapes to the polished Italian originated grapes. Strenua winemakers have free choice in buying grapes in accordance to their choices, needs and preferences. Another important fact, which must be noted while getting involved in buying grapes, is to have a durable transportation facility. Strenua has a good transportation set up which ensures that when the grapes reach to the winemakers, they are at their best condition (Wakeland, Colette & Venal, 2012).
Marketing is an important segment in the business of wine production. Every business requires an effective marketing program to increase the profitability by enlarging the sales ratio. Strenua winemaking sector is no exception. Strenua winemakers in order to create a profitable marketing approach utilize many important factors such as strategic pricing and segmentation of the market (Overton & Murray, 2013).
Pricing is an important factor in winemaking business. Generally, the selling price of the Strenua wine is correlated with the quantity of production. The fixed costs of the utilized grapes cannot be lessened. These costs are also not dependable on the product quantities. The techniques, which are applied in the production of Strenua wines also sets a benchmark for the setting of the prices. Complicated techniques demand setting huge prices while the simple technique wines do not suffer from over expenditure. Packaging is an important art, which cannot be ignored in the Strenua winemaking business. Packaging also influences the setting of prices of Strenua wines. Elaborate packaging, such as a fashionable design of the bottle with an attractive label increases the overall manufacturing cost of the product and thereby increases the finalized price. Henceforth, pricing of a Strenua wine bottle inadvertently depends upon many important production factors (Piqueras-Fiszman, & Spence, 2012).
Conclusion
In the light of the above discussion, it can be said wine making is a very lucrative business and continues to be so in the coming years. Organic farming and natural fertilizers are the new rage in winemaking. Winemakers all over the world including Strenua are implementing these techniques in order to maintain and sustain the biodiversity at the ecological level. In addition, proper pricing and marketing policies has to be followed by the winemakers to cut through the current competition prevailing in the wine market which Strenua had already done so. Intense competition leads to drastic losses in the profit ratio of the winemaking businesses. Thereby, it is evident that innovation and modernization is the key to success in winemaking.
References
Ashenfelter, O., & Storchmann, K. (2014). Wine and climate change (No. 164854).
Bokulich, N. A., Thorngate, J. H., Richardson, P. M., & Mills, D. A. (2014). Microbial biogeography of wine grapes is conditioned by cultivar, vintage, and climate. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(1), E139-E148.
Boulton, R. B., Singleton, V. L., Bisson, L. F., & Kunkee, R. E. (2013). Principles and practices of winemaking. Springer Science & Business Media.
Cho, M., Bonn, M. A., & Brymer, R. A. (2017). A constraint-based approach to wine tourism market segmentation. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 41(4), 415-444.
Chong, S. (2014). Business process management for SMEs: an exploratory study of implementation factors for the Australian wine industry. Journal of Information Systems and Small Business, 1(1-2), 41-58.
Christ, K. L., & Burritt, R. L. (2013). Critical environmental concerns in wine production: an integrative review. Journal of Cleaner Production, 53, 232-242.
Corsi, A., & Strøm, S. (2013). The price premium for organic wines: estimating a hedonic farm-gate price equation. Journal of Wine Economics, 8(1), 29-48.
Goodstein, E. S., Bohlscheid, J. C., Evans, M., & Ross, C. F. (2014). Perception of flavor finish in model white wine: A time-intensity study. Food Quality and Preference, 36, 50-60.
Hall, C. M. (2013). Wine, food, and tourism marketing. Routledge.
Overton, J., & Murray, W. E. (2013). Class in a glass: capital, neoliberalism and social space in the global wine industry. Antipode, 45(3), 702-718.
Overton, J., Murray, W. E., & Banks, G. (2012). The race to the bottom of the glass? Wine, geography, and globalization. Globalizations, 9(2), 273-287.
Piqueras-Fiszman, B., & Spence, C. (2012). The weight of the bottle as a possible extrinsic cue with which to estimate the price (and quality) of the wine? Observed correlations. Food Quality and Preference, 25(1), 41-45.
Robinson, J., & Harding, J. (Eds.). (2015). The Oxford companion to wine. American Chemical Society.
Smart, R. (2014). Improved trellis systems-is Australia keeping up?. Wine & Viticulture Journal, 29(3), 55.
Vine, R., Harkness, E. M., & Linton, S. J. (Eds.). (2012). Winemaking: From grape growing to marketplace. Springer Science & Business Media.
Wakeland, W., Cholette, S., & Venkat, K. (2012). Food transportation issues and reducing carbon footprint. In Green technologies in food production and processing (pp. 211-236). Springer US.
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