Episode 87 - Are Wine Bottles Too Big for the Modern Drinker?

Episode 87 - Are Wine Bottles Too Big for the Modern Drinker?

From This Week Uncorked by Brett Martin

March 16, 2026 · 13 min · Episode 87

About this episode

This episode discusses the challenges facing the wine industry, including declining shipments and the relevance of traditional wine bottle sizes.

In today's episode, we discuss how wineries are piling up for sale with few buyers stepping in, U.S. direct-to-consumer wine shipments suffer their worst decline on record, and a growing number of solo drinkers say the traditional 750ml bottle simply no longer fits modern drinking habits. We also feature Cordon of Santa Barbara in Solvang, the 2022 Bouches-du-Rhône Blanc "Baume Noire," and Bar Le Côte in Los Olivos where corkage is $25 per bottle with no limit. Get 10% off your first purchase at The Caubleist using the code CORK10 at checkout! https://thecaubleist.com/ Wine News Round-Up: ♦️ Wineries for Sale, but Buyers Scarce ♦️ Direct Wine Shipments Suffer Their Worst Decline ♦️ The 750ml Wine Bottle Is Outdated ♦️ The Rise of Water Menus Wine & Winery of the Week: ♦️ Cordon of Santa Barbara in Solvang, CA ♦️ 2022 Bouches-du-Rhône Blanc "Baume Noire" Restaurant & Corkage of the Week: ♦️ Bar Le Côte in Los Olivos, CA ♦️ Corkage is $25 Per Bottle / No Limit 📄 SHOW NOTES 📄 Read all the stories discussed on the show ♦️ 👇 SUBSCRIBE 👇 ️ ♦️ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIe5rOLf18ZllnhaZWWQt9A?sub_confirmation=1 ️ ♦️ Instagram…

People in this episode

Host: Brett Martin

Topics covered

  • wine industry
  • direct-to-consumer shipments
  • modern drinking habits
  • wine bottles
  • corkage fees

Keywords

  • wine bottles
  • direct-to-consumer
  • corkage fees
  • wine sales
  • solo drinkers

Sponsors

The Caubleist

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Cordon of Santa Barbara, Bar Le Côte

Products: 2022 Bouches-du-Rhône Blanc "Baume Noire"

Places: Solvang, Los Olivos

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