The number of winery visits and the dollar volume of tasting room sales continue to decline in the Pacific Northwest, according to a mid-year review for the Oregon Wine Board.

“Visitation is slightly lagging this year versus last,” said Ben Lemoine, of Community Benchmark, a firm that analyzes direct-to-consumer wine sales.

More wine coverage

More wine coverage

Heat hammers Oregon blackberries, aids Washington grapes

Oregon wineries turn to refillable bottles with Revino

California wine grape acreage dips in 2023, could plummet in 2024

Virtual wineries: No vineyard, tanks or tasting room — no problem

Oregon wine jobs, tourist spending down, but economic impact grows

With huge wine inventory, direct sales become more important

Washington winery visits were down 13% for the first six months of 2024, while the Willamette Valley dropped 6.5%, Lemoine said during his July 17 presentation.

Rogue Valley visits, however, were up 4%.

Tasting room sales dipped 4.1% in Washington, 5.5% in the Willamette Valley and 0.3% overall in Southern Oregon.

West Coast trend

The wine industry is well aware that consumer patterns changed during the COVID pandemic, resulting in less foot traffic. During the Oregon Wine Symposium in February, businesses were urged to diversify and decrease their dependence on tasting rooms.

The trend is occurring on the West Coast, with the Lodi and Sonoma regions of California being the only exceptions for the first half of 2024, Lemoine said.

Lodi area wineries grew in both visitors and tasting room sales, while Sonoma had more visitors but fewer sales.

Clubs an opportunity

Direct-to-consumer sales overall are flat in the Pacific Northwest. Washington had a 0.3% increase, the Willamette Valley dropped 1.5% and the Rogue Valley dipped 0.1%, according to Lemoine.

However, another form of direct-to-consumer sales is modestly growing. Washington wine club sales had a 2.7% increase during the first half of 2023, while Willamette Valley club sales rose 1%. The Rogue Valley club sales dropped 0.9%.

Wine club membership is decreasing but member spending is increasing across the board.

Willamette Valley wine club members spent $534 each on average, a jump of 7.2%, while Washington members spent $401 each, up 6.9%, and Rogue Valley members spent $341, an increase of 2.7%.

Oregon still doing well

Industry consultant Danny Brager said Oregon wine is still doing better than its neighbors and the domestic and import segments.

Oregon’s market share is increasing, and its premium position stands out. The average retail price of a bottle is $18.30. That compares to $11.78 for Washington and $12.99 for California.

“We have a lot of brands doing exceptionally well in the marketplace and we should be proud of that,” Brager said.

He also urged the industry to support Oregon Wine Month in May, saying the promotional period resulted in a business boost nationwide and in the Beaver State.

While the number of wine drinkers has increased, the frequency has decreased.

Brager said 29% of U.S. consumers, or 72 million people, drink alcohol but not wine, and that represents a rich target group.