Wine Sales Symposium 2025’s roundtable of writers and PR experts explores
how storytelling and publicity can shift the narrative.

By Laurie Wachter

Carl GiavantiDoes media coverage really help sell wine? 

That’s the question the roundtable of top wine journalists and PR experts will set out to answer in Mastering Modern Media: How to Secure & Leverage Media Coverage That Drives Sales, one of the first sessions at the May 14th Wine Sales Symposium in Santa Rosa, CA.

Moderator Carl Giavanti, a winery publicist and author of Wine Industry Advisor’s interview series, Turning the Tables, will lead the panel discussion by asking six questions about the benefits and pitfalls of media coverage.  

What role does media coverage play in helping drive awareness and, ultimately, sales?

“It’s always been about storytelling,” says Giavanti, “and even more so today when there’s so much competition, variety and options for adult beverages. You can’t be successful if you’re trying to sell ‘the product,’ whether it’s your vineyard, winery, process, innovations, sustainability or whatever unique, cool things you’re doing. The product is important, and the wines have to be great — but honestly, it’s really all about storytelling. People buy from people they connect with and relate to. And every brand owner, winery owner and winemaker has a story to tell.”

How important are a winery’s unique brand stories?

 Alder Yarrow“I like to say that stories are really what make wine meaningful and memorable,” agrees wine writer Alder Yarrow, a brand experience strategy consultant who is the author of the celebrated Vinography blog. 

“If you want to get geeky about it, the more we learn about how the human memory works, the more it seems like the very structure of memory is narrative in its construction. Our brains are hardwired for stories: to seek them out, to understand the world through them and to remember through them. Storytelling is as essential as you get when it comes to building a relationship with a customer.”

What’s the one thing wineries could do better in relation to getting visibility with the media?

Deborah Parker WongDeborah Parker Wong, DWSET, national editor for SOMM Journal and Slow Wine Guide USA, suggests, “Treat the media landscape strategically and with the best use of your resources.”

“In the short term, develop print/digital paid media that serves as longer-lived/evergreen content that can be used to educate [other media]. It can also be repurposed in many ways, including as a source of content for videos, podcasts and presentations.” At the same time, she adds, “Build relationships with media and become a resource.“

More questions

Liz Thach, a wine writer and Wine Market Council president, and Brianne Cohen, a certified sommelier and wine educator, will also join the panel to explore why winery PR can fail, how wine media can help change today’s negative narrative, and whether paid content from influencers will replace traditional media.

Experience this knowledgeable panel at the Wine Sales Symposium on May 14 at the Hyatt Regency Sonoma Wine Country in Santa Rosa, and also plan to join Adam Bird, partner and director of strategy at Highway 29 Creative, for his How Archetypes Make Unforgettable Wine Brands session, for insights on how to craft your brand’s story.