2018 wine trends: Cans, kegs, etc

This is half prediction, half wishful thinking. Here’s my take on what we can expect in 2018:

PACKAGING

We can expect more wines in kegs, boxes and cans rather than the traditional bottles. Not that bottles will be tossed away, by any means. The alternatives are a small percentage of the market, but that percentage will continue to grow as better wines become available in these formats.

Cans also have a convenience advantage. They’re great for picnics, beach or park outings, or just when you want a little bit of wine but not a whole bottle. They’re also easier on the environment, with less of a carbon footprint than a glass bottle, and easier to recycle or dispose of. And they are casual, which will fit in with the marketing of wine as an everyday tipple, rather than a stuffy drink for the elite.

UNEXPECTED WINES

We know wine regions for certain wines. Argentina for malbec, Oregon for pinot noir and New Zealand for sauvignon blanc and pinot noir. But these three regions also produce exceptional chardonnay.

We know Chile for cabernet sauvignon, merlot and perhaps carmenere, but it also produces some great sauvignon blanc and carignan. Australia means shiraz, but Riesling and pinot noir are also exciting. And South Africa is sending the world some wonderful old-vine chenin blanc and shiraz. I want to see more of these.

NATURAL WINES

These unconventional, minimalist wines are becoming increasingly mainstream; they are arguably as much political statement as viticulture. And there will be more petillant-naturel, or pet-nat, wines before this fad fades.

These wines are the darlings of millennials, sommeliers and winemakers, and they are tasty.

URBAN WINERIES

Wineries have moved off the farm and into the city. This started perhaps in 2008 with City Winery in New York City, the brainchild of music impresario Michael Dorf.

The concept has since spread to Chicago, Atlanta, Boston and Nashville, Tennessee. The urban winery concept embodies wine as experience.

Wine is not an agricultural product, but something to be enjoyed during a wedding, a concert or a night on the town.

A winery is not a farm, but an event venue. That idea will upset purists. – The Washington Post

PICTURE: DEB LINDSEY /THE WASHINGTON POST. SIMPLE SIPS: Canned wines are easier on the environment.