Much has been made in the wine industry about the World Health Organization’s decree that no amount of alcohol is healthy for us. I believe it is time for wine to go on the offensive in this discussion. While it is true that wine contains alcohol, it is easy to make the argument that wine is a healthy alternative to many of America’s legal forms of addiction.

Calories/Serving Sugar g/L Sugar/Cal Fat g/L Alcohol kCal

Beverage A 159 1 3 0 7.1

Beverage B 368 49 147 9 0

If I were to tell you that one of these beverages is a glass of wine and the other is one of the top 5 most consumed drinks at Starbucks which would you guess is which?

Beverage A is a 6 oz glass of Cabernet Sauvignon and Beverage B is a 20 oz. Starbucks Caramel Macchiato. These are frequently consumed serving sizes for both of these beverages, respectively.

We reach for our vices for numerous reasons including stress/anxiety, mood alteration, habit patterns, and cravings, to name some. Alcohol and the caffeine/sugar addictions are foremost in American cultural patterns.

This is a single example of a beverage choice. There are thousands of lifestyle choices that we make every week. Can the argument be made that a glass of red wine as a substitution for a caramel macchiato would be a quantifiably healthier decision? It’s safe to say that the answer is yes.

There’s a simple tactic taught in sales training, and that is to attack the low hanging fruit. If wine is competing in the beverage industry, why not make the argument against some of the most abundantly consumed beverages in the United States to which wine is a healthier alternative?

It’s time for the wine industry to go on the offensive.