About Me & The Study
Join the Napa Valley Wine Study – Help Shape the Future of High-End Wine in Napa Valley
Hi, I'm Adrienne D.A. Smith - a proud New Jersey girl who fell in love with Napa Valley's wine and lifestyle when I moved to CA in 2007. I left a 20 year career in nonprofit fundraising to pursue a degree in culinary arts from the Culinary Institute of America—Greystone where I quickly learned my passion was wine! Soon after graduation, I was fortunate to be introduced to the Founding Partners at Parallel Napa Valley—whose 25+ year history making highly rated, small production wines with famed winemaker, Philippe Melka and dedication to philanthropy quickly led me from Director of Hospitality & Marketing to General Manager to Partner in the span of 3 1/2 years.
Since entering the wine industry in 2015, I’ve noticed three critical gaps in the luxury/high-end wine industry. First, while much progress has been made over the past 10 years in data analytics, these studies tend to track basic details like monthly sales and tasting room visitation. They often lack deeper insights into why people buy luxury Napa Valley wines. Secondly, many studies define "premium," "luxury," or "high-end" wines as those priced above $20 per bottle. While this may apply in retail or grocery settings, it generally doesn’t reflect the reality for the roughly 80% of Napa Valley wineries that produce fewer than 10,000 cases annually—many of which do little or no wholesaling. For these small producers, average bottle prices often exceed $100. Using $20+ as a blanket category oversimplifies the high-end market and fails to capture the distinct buyer profiles for micro-wineries like Parallel Napa Valley, which produces under 1,000 cases annually, sells direct-to-consumer only, and averages $130 per bottle, with Reserve Cabernets reaching $270.
This study aims to change that. The Napa Valley Wine Study is a qualitative research project designed to uncover the motivations, values, and behaviors of high-end wine buyers. It’s inspired by successful donor segmentation strategies I used in my fundraising career and shaped by the book, The Seven Faces of Philanthropy. Just as that research revolutionized fundraising, I believe this study can do the same for the luxury wine industry - first for Napa Valley, and then nationally and perhaps even globally. My goal is to create a luxury wine consumer segmentation - to identify common profiles among buyers—shared values, behaviors, emotional drivers—and complement the industry's current quantitative data with rich, human-centered insights.
Why it matters:
> For wineries: This research will help luxury producers understand their prospects and buyers on a deeper level—from improved vetting new/unknown potential buyers to helping facilitate closer relationships with known buyers—both leading to more targeted, authentic and personalized communication, stronger loyalty, and smarter growth. > For consumers: This research seeks to amplify a buyer's voice and better align the wine industry with their preferences, values and experiences, which will lead to higher satisfaction and more meaningful purchases and a more rewarding and personalized buying experience. It will give the buyer a direct line of influence in shaping the future strategies and innovations of high-end Napa Valley wineries. > For the industry: This study attempts to address a crucial knowledge gap—helping to differentiate the diverse motivations and behaviors of luxury wine buyers. My goal is for this research (and the forthcoming book based on it) to become a valuable resource not only for Napa Valley, but also for other leading wine regions like Sonoma, Paso Robles, Oregon, Washington, New York, and beyond. How you can help: If you're a buyer of high-end Napa Valley wines, I invite you to answer a few brief questions on the "Join the Study" page to see if you’re eligible. Qualified participants will be interviewed via Zoom, and as a thank-you, will receive a complimentary copy of the final published book.
Even if you don’t participate, please sign up for updates on the homepage—this is just the beginning, and I’d love for you to be part of this journey with me.
Since entering the wine industry in 2015, I’ve noticed three critical gaps in the luxury/high-end wine industry. First, while much progress has been made over the past 10 years in data analytics, these studies tend to track basic details like monthly sales and tasting room visitation. They often lack deeper insights into why people buy luxury Napa Valley wines. Secondly, many studies define "premium," "luxury," or "high-end" wines as those priced above $20 per bottle. While this may apply in retail or grocery settings, it generally doesn’t reflect the reality for the roughly 80% of Napa Valley wineries that produce fewer than 10,000 cases annually—many of which do little or no wholesaling. For these small producers, average bottle prices often exceed $100. Using $20+ as a blanket category oversimplifies the high-end market and fails to capture the distinct buyer profiles for micro-wineries like Parallel Napa Valley, which produces under 1,000 cases annually, sells direct-to-consumer only, and averages $130 per bottle, with Reserve Cabernets reaching $270.
This study aims to change that. The Napa Valley Wine Study is a qualitative research project designed to uncover the motivations, values, and behaviors of high-end wine buyers. It’s inspired by successful donor segmentation strategies I used in my fundraising career and shaped by the book, The Seven Faces of Philanthropy. Just as that research revolutionized fundraising, I believe this study can do the same for the luxury wine industry - first for Napa Valley, and then nationally and perhaps even globally. My goal is to create a luxury wine consumer segmentation - to identify common profiles among buyers—shared values, behaviors, emotional drivers—and complement the industry's current quantitative data with rich, human-centered insights.
Why it matters:
> For wineries: This research will help luxury producers understand their prospects and buyers on a deeper level—from improved vetting new/unknown potential buyers to helping facilitate closer relationships with known buyers—both leading to more targeted, authentic and personalized communication, stronger loyalty, and smarter growth. > For consumers: This research seeks to amplify a buyer's voice and better align the wine industry with their preferences, values and experiences, which will lead to higher satisfaction and more meaningful purchases and a more rewarding and personalized buying experience. It will give the buyer a direct line of influence in shaping the future strategies and innovations of high-end Napa Valley wineries. > For the industry: This study attempts to address a crucial knowledge gap—helping to differentiate the diverse motivations and behaviors of luxury wine buyers. My goal is for this research (and the forthcoming book based on it) to become a valuable resource not only for Napa Valley, but also for other leading wine regions like Sonoma, Paso Robles, Oregon, Washington, New York, and beyond. How you can help: If you're a buyer of high-end Napa Valley wines, I invite you to answer a few brief questions on the "Join the Study" page to see if you’re eligible. Qualified participants will be interviewed via Zoom, and as a thank-you, will receive a complimentary copy of the final published book.
Even if you don’t participate, please sign up for updates on the homepage—this is just the beginning, and I’d love for you to be part of this journey with me.
Photography Credit www.upliftedphoto.com