How have major events like the pandemic and the wildfires affected the way we buy wine online? Do younger generations, such as Gen Y, Gen Z and Millenials, have different criteria for buying wine? What impact does storytelling have on wine sales?   In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with Cathy Huyghe and Andrea Smalling, authors of the WineDirect x Enolytics 2021 Direct-To-Consumer Impact Report: What Wineries Need to Do Now.   You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks   Highlights What did Andrea’s previous career with Proctor & Gamble involve? Why did Andrea decide to move into a career in the wine industry? What was the realization Andrea had about wine being an agricultural business? How did Cathy fall in love with wine and wine writing? Why does Cathy consider herself primarily an issues writer? What’s the mission behind A Balanced Glass? Which key advice does Cathy wish she could tell her younger self, early on in her wine career? What do we mean by DTC (Direct-To-Consumer) wine sales? How does WineDirect serve wineries? Why was the WineDirect x Enolytics 2021 Direct-To-Consumer Impact Report created? What was the founding mission of Enolytics? What type of data was analyzed for the DTC Impact Report? How did the report track the impact of the California wildfires on the wine industry? What did the DTC Impact Report show about the impact of those wildfires? Why is the story behind the wine important to younger drinkers? Did the report reveal any insights about wine and gender?   Key Takeaways I found it fascinating to learn how the pandemic, the wildfires and other major events have changed the way we buy wine online. It’s interesting that younger generations, such as Gen Y, Gen Z and Millenials, really want that in-person experience when buying wine. I would have assumed they’d be all about online only. We’re back to storytelling, whether it’s wine or books, it has a profound impact on sales and connection.   Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video or YouTube Live Video. I’ll be jumping into the comments as we watch it together so that I can answer your questions in real-time. I want to hear from you! What’s your opinion of what we’re discussing? What takeaways or tips do you love most from this chat? What questions do you have that we didn’t answer? Want to know when we go live? Add this to your calendar: https://www.addevent.com/calendar/CB262621   About Andrea Smalling & Cathy Huyghe Andrea Smalling & Cathy Huyghe have recently co-authored a ground-breaking report on the wine industry that will be of interest to those who make, sell and buy wine, from wineries to consumers.  Andrea Smalling is Chief Marketing Officer and Head of E-Commerce Sales of WineDirect, a U.S.-based company that helps wineries sell directly to consumers. Cathy Huyghe is an award-winning journalist with a regular column in Forbes and co-founder and CEO of Enolytics, a data-driven business intelligence company for the $970 billion wine and spirits industry.     To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/177.