Vin-demic: How Wine went Online

By Richard Hemming, MW Head of Wine, Asia 67 Pall Mall Singapore

The wine industry is built on socialising – how did it not only survive but thrive during the lockdown?

Two types of alcohol experienced high demand throughout the pandemic - both of which are lifesavers, in their own way. The first was hand sanitiser, the second was wine.

For millions of people around the world, a glass of wine became one of the few remaining pleasures in a year of lockdowns and interminable virtual meetings. You could even have a sneaky glass off-camera during those late afternoon calls. In fact, that’s practically mandatory in my industry.

As the resident Master of Wine at 67 Pall Mall Singapore, I’ve seen first-hand how the world of wine kept its glass half-full during the COVID-19 era. While there have been many hardships, there have also been many opportunities – several of which are taking wine into a new era.

Fine wine online

Until 2020, wine’s natural habitat was at the table, surrounded by groups of people. Sharing a glass via remote connections seemed completely abnormal. Yet within weeks of the first lockdowns, wine tastings became a fixture of our new online realities.

A key innovation was the provision of tasting packs: individual servings of wine, usually a tasting sample of around 50 ml, that could be reliably shipped long distances. Wine lovers were now able to taste several different wines from the comfort of their own homes, with a video feed coming directly from the winemaker. Ensuring the quality of these wine samples, especially at scale, required specialist techniques. Argon is used to protect the wine from oxidation - it’s an inert gas that is heavier than air, so it forms a protective layer on the surface of the liquid. Insulated packaging helps to mitigate extremes of temperature in transit.

Soon enough, wine was connecting people all ar ound the world in virtual form. And what felt like a novelty at first soon became a serious business model.

Pouring out profits

In London, 67 Pall Mall was one of the first to offer a comprehensive programme of online tastings during the lockdown. With 5,000 bottles on the wine list and the capital’s largest team of sommeliers, it wasn’t long before five or six tastings were being run every day, with sample bottles prepared in house and delivered across Europe in bespoke packaging.

With a fixed cash margin applied to each pack, regardless of the cost price, the Club was able to offer some of the world’s finest wines at great value prices. The tastings were streamed live online, hosted by acclaimed experts and winemakers from all corners of the vine-growing world, with the Singapore team covering an entirely different time zone.

Many other companies around the world were following suit, of course, as it became apparent that wine webinars offered a vital source of revenue while restaurants and bars remained closed. Zoom was an affordable and efficient platform through which to deliver the content, and the thirsty public soon became accustomed to clinking their wine glass against a laptop screen.

Uncorking new platforms

However, it wasn’t long before virtual event fatigue started setting in. With everyone offering essentially the same format of webinar, and with occasionally glitchy audio and video performance, there was a golden opportunity to upgrade the experience. For us, this led to the creation of the world’s first wine TV channel in 4K resolution. With studios in London, Singapore and more planned around the world, the ambition was to create a comprehensive programme of wine content, available to stream for free.

This opens up three revenue streams: wine kit sales, advertisements and memberships. The wine kits are key, allowing wine lovers to taste wines as they watch, either live or on-demand. For many advertisers, engaged wine drinkers are the perfect demographic for their brands. And memberships are a fundamental part of how clubs operate.

Joining wine lovers together

Paying a regular fee for goods and services has become routine in today’s subscription economy. Wine lovers can subscribe to dozens of websites offering news and reviews, retailers offer regular deliveries of mixed cases at various monthly prices, and Clubs offer an entire community – the ultimate experience for the devoted wine drinker.

Here in Singapore, the new flagship Club of 67 Pall Mall is opening in the Penthouse of Shaw Centre in February. Originally slated to open in October 2020, construction was suspended throughout Covid and as anticipation grew, memberships continued to sell and are now reaching capacity. Over in London, the original Club – which opened in 2015 – retained consistent membership numbers, despite the premises being closed for much of the year. This is a testament to the dedication that wine inspires among its devotees. Around the world, pandemic measures continue to restrict travel and social gatherings – yet the appreciation of wine, in all its glorious diversity, has found a way to bring people together, whether online or in person.

Just don’t forget your hand sanitiser.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Writer, educator, Master of Wine and occasional pianist, Richard has worked in wine since 2001, first in London and since 2019 in Singapore. He is one of fewer than 500 Masters of Wine worldwide and is currently Head of Wine, Asia at 67 Pall Mall Singapore, the private Club for wine lovers. Richard also writes regularly for JancisRobinson.com, as well as judging, presenting, tweeting, and sometimes singing about all things vinous.

ABOUT THE COMPANY

67 Pall Mall is a private Members’ Club for wine lovers, by wine lovers. Founded in London in 2015, the Singapore branch opens in February 2022, occupying the entire Penthouse of the Shaw Centre. Serving 5,000 wines by the bottle and 1,000 by the glass, plus a wine-friendly menu all day, the Club is the ultimate destination for all wine lovers. Find out more at 67pallmall.sg.