According to 알바사이트 Payscale, the median salary of an American wine writer would be $54,869 per year until Oct. 12, 2022. The median salary of $60,042 for Wine Writers is $5,173 (9%) higher than the nationwide median salary of $54,869.
According to PayScale, Wine Writers earn salaries in New York City, the third-best in the U.S. Based on data from Wine Business Monthlys Wine Industry Compensation Survey for October 2019 — the latest such survey that they have completed — Winemakers who are also CEOs of their businesses have the highest compensation in the industry, at $373,754 a year.
If you are willing to take on a moderate salary, then there is an enormous selection of jobs within the wine industry, from brewers to sommeliers, from wine buyers to sales managers, from auctioneers at fine wines to professional wine tasters. The wine industry is a large place, with career options that cater for a lot of people, from making wine to selling wine. Whether you have a way to convince people to buy wine, or you have the skills to judge wines, there are endless opportunities waiting for you in the wine industry.
The good news is, although there has been some recent consolidation in the wine industry through corporate mergers, there are still about 500,000 jobs related to wine in the UK. This is partly down to the huge increase in popularity of wine tasting, vineyard tours, and wine culture more generally.
During your time in this field, you will likely be conducting interviews with winery owners, attending wine tasting events, visiting restaurants that offer both wine and food, and researching new products. Sponsored partnerships, beyond the winery, may help a winemaker reach out to wine industry influencers.
In some cases, others seek out wine-industry-savvy communications professionals; in others, they seek out content created by those involved in the industry, or the winery itself; or from passionate amateurs. Winemakers are going to have to have an excellent understanding of what grows well in their region, and where grapes can be obtained from other regions to make specialty wines, if necessary.
Most wineries will require a masters degree in viticulture and prior experience with winemaking, though some winemakers start off with far less. Gareth Laurence, Course Director for the WSET, says that the best way to land a wine job is by transferring skills that you have already gained in another area. This could come from studying wine, working in the industry, or just drinking lots of wine and paying attention to flavours and aromas.
Wine needs people who can communicate it, because it is such a complicated field, but it is also an area of deep interest. There are not as many people writing full-time about wine anymore, but there are plenty of wine communicators using various tools to do the things that in the past people did with words on a printed page. Full-time wine communicators (probably a better term than writers, these days) are needed because they have time to know a large part of the wine world, which allows them to have context and knowledge to aid in their communications.
The fact that there are wine writers, and a number of them are making their livings from their craft full-time, suggests there are some who really need them. We may well be headed toward a situation in which there is a demand for wine writers, but they are going away because they have no way of making a living. The traditional wine writer — specialized columnists in newspapers — is a dying breed, though a few have managed to hold on to jobs because they are cheap and trustworthy.
One way of making money writing about wine and spirits is by creating content for websites and blogs focusing on the subject. If you have a passion for wine and spirits, and want to share your knowledge with others, writing about wine and spirits could be a good way to earn a little extra cash. You should not expect to be working in the wine industry aiming to make lots of money — as the old adage goes, the best way to make a small fortune in wine is to start out as a big one.
A job like a wine store manager is a lot like any retail management job, with the added bonus of alcohol. Good wine knowledge is usually required for the role — along with being able to think on your feet, handle complaints effectively, and manage employees.
Fiona Barlow MW works with supermarket buyers, selecting wines and making blends, as well as planning winemaking projects. Phil Readman MW spends about 20 weeks per year travelling Australia visiting wine producers, usually tasting 100 wines per week. Kate Reall previously worked at a national distributor of wines and spirits, but set up The Academy four years ago.
Martyn Walshe gets lots of calls from people working in The City who are paid between PS60,000 and PS70,000–they know their wines, but when I tell them that an equivalent starting wage job in wine retail is around PS30,000, they do not get any more calls.
The staffing numbers are based on information from individuals who have self-reported their past or current employment to Wine Access. Zippia provides a detailed breakdown of details at Wine Access, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in an effort to educate jobseekers about Wine Access.