As we were about to launch I heard about the Yellow Tail brand. At the last moment, I positioned against them, putting boxing gloves on Rex-Goliath and creating shelf-talkers with Rex punching out a Wallaby. Rex was and is uniquely American — Red, White, and Blue. His personality is “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.” No matter what the wine pundits and writers say, California can make great wines for $10 per bottle. More on that later.

After the sale of the Rex Goliath brand to Constellation Wines in 2005, I launched the new Cycles Gladiator brand, with another beautiful whimsical label. It was another instant hit. Clearly it seemed to me that this Millennial thing had “legs.”

oday, wineries and growers need to constantly re-invent themselves to adapt to economic and demographic changes that have caused a fundamental shift in the wine industry. We have seen changes in our target consumers, their motivation to buy our wine, and their ability to afford to buy it.

Here, I am going to share my thoughts on current and future market trends, what grapes to plant and what not to plant; and how to use social media, the Internet, and smartphones to help build a brand that can succeed.

wine business. I did not know what it was called then, so I called it Director of New Media Marketing.

By 2005 I, like many of my colleagues, was convinced that the Millennials were now driving the train. The reports seemed to indicate that their buying habits mirrored those of the Boomers. They had spendable income (from somewhere), they regularly bought $10 bottles of wine; spent $25+ on special occasions, were interested in new and innovative ideas, liked innovative labeling and packaging, and, significantly, seemed to view wine the way my generation viewed cars — imported is better.

Rex-Goliath was perfect — the absolute right product at the right time. I knew I had a hit because all of my distributors universally hated it. The name was exotic-sounding, Latin based so we Texans could pronounce it, and the label sported a giant rooster. Once you saw it; you never forgot it. I created the package to look vaguely European so it was not readily apparent it was a California wine.