ARENI Global: In Conversation

What happens when the economics of selling fine wine in restaurants stop adding up? And what does this mean when these changes happen in the world’s largest wine market?

Locked into the middle of a perfect storms of rising operating costs, price-conscious consumers and a disrupted distribution landscape, US restaurants are rethinking the economics of their wine lists.

For fine wine, this is reshaping not only what makes it onto those lists and at what price, but the entire route through which producers reach restaurants and, ultimately, consumers.

In this episode of Areni Global in Conversation, Pauline Vicard sits down with Master Sommelier Emily Wines, Vice President of Wine and Beverage Experience at Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants, to look at what these changes mean in practice.

With around 85 restaurants and a wine club numbering hundreds of thousands of members, Cooper’s Hawk gives Emily an unusual vantage point from which to observe how American consumers are drinking and spending. The conversation moves from Sauvignon Blanc and wine cocktails to fine Burgundy, restaurant margins, distribution and the changing role of the sommelier.

In this episode, we explore:

 

·      How restaurants are changing the way they make money from their wine lists

·      The biggest mistakes sommeliers are still making when building a wine list

·      How consumer price sensitivity is changing the way people trade up

·      How distributor consolidation and changing sales incentives are affecting smaller producers’ ability to get attention and placements

·      Why fewer markets and greater focus might make more sense for producers trying to build a presence in the US

 

About the guest

Emily Wines is a Master Sommelier and leader in wine, hospitality, and education. At Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants, she leads wine innovation and experiences for more than 850,000 Wine Club members. She is one of only two women to receive the Remi Krug Cup for passing all three sections of the Master Sommelier exam on her first attempt and previously served as Chair of the Board of the Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas.

Emily is also the founder of the Women’s Sommelier Symposium, created to provide mentorship, education, and community for women in the profession. A frequent speaker and media contributor, she was selected by MasterClass to teach its wine appreciation class, which launched on the platform in 2024 and brought her approachable style of wine education to a global audience.

 

To learn more about the Camille Series mentioned in the episode: https://shop.coopershawkwinery.com/Wine/super-premium-wine/

 

To learn more about Somm Biz, the Court of Master Sommeliers America Online Wine Business Course for the Sommelier and Service Professional: https://www.mastersommeliers.org/sommbiz/

 

About Areni Global

Areni Global is an independent think tank dedicated to the future of fine wine. Headquartered in London, its mission is to help the fine wine sector understand and respond to the profound economic, cultural and societal changes reshaping the world around it.

Through independent research, strategic reports, podcasts and industry events, Areni brings together producers, merchants, distributors, collectors and experts from across disciplines to explore the questions that will define the next generation of fine wine.

To learn more about Areni's work, subscribe to the newsletter or become a member, visit www.areni.global.

What can a private members' club teach us about the future of fine wine?

The origins of private members' clubs in the UK are deeply tied to the emergence of modern urban elite culture in 19th-century London. Britain's political and commercial elite wanted somewhere to build trust, exchange ideas and strengthen relationships away from public view. Informal circles gradually became formal memberships.

Today, private members' clubs continue to evolve. While politics has largely given way to business, culture and leisure, they still perform the same fundamental role: creating trusted communities around shared interests. Few illustrate that evolution more clearly than 67 Pall Mall.

In this episode, Pauline Vicard speaks with Grant Ashton, founder and CEO of 67 Pall Mall, about how a club that began almost by accident grew into one of the world's largest international fine wine communities, with locations across Europe and Asia.

Together, they explore what private members' clubs reveal about changing patterns of work, community and consumption; why fine wine has become increasingly inaccessible; how younger consumers engage with the category; and what happens when a distinctly British institution is transplanted into cities such as Singapore, Shanghai and Bordeaux.

The result is a conversation that uses the private members' club not simply as a business model, but as a lens through which to examine some of the structural challenges—and opportunities—shaping the future of fine wine.

In this episode

Why 67 Pall Mall exists — and why it was never supposed to be a members' club.
What private members' clubs actually do
How the concept adapts across different cultures and cities.
Why pricing has become one of fine wine's greatest structural challenges.
What membership organisations understand about customer relationships that much of the wine trade still does not.

About the guest

Grant Ashton is the founder and CEO of 67 Pall Mall, a private members' club dedicated to fine wine. A former investment banker, he established the first club in London in 2015 before expanding the concept internationally, with locations in Singapore, Hong Kong, Verbier, Bordeaux, Shanghai and Melbourne, alongside further developments in progress. Today, 67 Pall Mall has more than 11,000 members worldwide and has become one of the largest communities of fine wine enthusiasts globally.

About Areni Global

Areni Global is an independent think tank dedicated to the future of fine wine. Headquartered in London, its mission is to help the fine wine sector understand and respond to the profound economic, cultural and societal changes reshaping the world around it.

Through independent research, strategic reports, podcasts and industry events, Areni brings together producers, merchants, distributors, collectors and experts from across disciplines to explore the questions that will define the next generation of fine wine.

To learn more about Areni's work, subscribe to the newsletter or become a member, visit www.areni.global.

What does a luxury boutique know about customer loyalty that most wineries, merchants, and retailers don't? Unsurprisingly, quite a lot.

In this episode, Pauline sits down in Hong Kong with Charles de la Portbarré, a mathematician who has spent 15 years building customer data models and loyalty programs for major luxury houses.

Together they unpack "clienteling" — the practice of segmenting your customers, analyzing their purchase history, and tailoring how you engage with them depending on where they sit in their journey with your brand. They dig into customer loyalty strategies, allocation systems, and the practical steps wine businesses — whether they sell direct-to-consumer or through distributors — can take to grow not just sales performance, but long-term customer engagement and retention.

The result is a practical, step-by-step guide to building a customer segmentation strategy for wine, even if all you have to start with is an Excel spreadsheet of sales transactions.

Topics discussed include:

• What luxury brands measure today — and why engagement matters more than sales alone

• The principles of clienteling and how to apply them in wine

• The four essential customer buckets: new, loyal, re-engaged, and dropped clients

• Why re-engaging former customers is often more valuable than acquiring new ones

• How to identify future ambassadors for your brand

• Allocation systems, fairness, and the challenge of developing future customers

About the Guest:

Charles de La Portbarre is a data scientist and client analytics specialist with over 15 years of experience, including nearly a decade working for major international luxury Maisons in Hong Kong and Asia. His work focuses on translating complex customer behaviour data into actionable commercial strategy, with a particular expertise in clienteling, customer segmentation, and loyalty programme design.

About Areni Global:

In Conversation is the podcast of Areni Global, an independent think tank dedicated to the future of fine wine. Hosted by Pauline Vicard, each episode features in-depth conversations with experts from wine, luxury, retail, finance, and beyond — exploring the ideas and strategies shaping the future of fine wine.

Subscribe / Follow:

Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major podcast platforms. Search Areni Global In Conversation.

Subscribe to Areni newsletter: https://bit.ly/AreniNewsletter

What makes a wine event memorable? And why do some experiences succeed in turning people into long-term wine drinkers, while others leave no lasting impression at all?

In this final episode of New Consumers, New Narratives, Pauline Vicard speaks with Loïc Lamy and Milena Berman, founders of Hautes Côtes and creators of the now cult Vin & Hip Hop events in Burgundy.

Drawing on their experience organising events in Burgundy, Champagne, and Los Angeles, they discuss what younger consumers actually look for when they engage with wine: not status or technical knowledge alone, but hospitality, emotion, community, and a sense of belonging.

For anyone organising events, hosting clients, or building wine tourism experiences, this conversation offers a timely reminder: people do not remember how much information they received. They remember how they felt, who they met, and whether they felt genuinely welcomed into the world of wine.

 

More on Hautes Cotes: https://www.hautescotes.com/en

And to take part in their upcoming wine and music events:

·      Montrachet Jazz festival in Puligny Montrachet, 30-31 May 2026

·      Pop and Hip Hop in Champagne, 23 June 2026

·      Vin and Hip Hop in Vougeot, October 2026

Why - and how- did wine become collectible?

Pauline Vicard speaks with Amayés Aouli, Global Head of Wine & Spirits at Bonhams, one of the world’s oldest auction houses. Together, they explore the often-misunderstood world of wine auctions, beyond the spectacle of paddles and hammer prices. The discussion reveals how auctions translate desire into value, navigating scarcity, logistics, trust, and global demand. A conversation that offers a deeper lens on the fine wine ecosystem—and where it is heading.

In this conversation:

• What auctions actually do—and why they exist

• How wine became a collectible asset (only recently)

• The role of knowledge in shaping demand and price

• What auctions reveal about the future of fine wine

To know more about Bonhams Wine: https://www.bonhams.com/department/WIN/wine/

To know more about Areni's latest research: The New Fine Wine Consumer: How Under 40 Find Their Way Into Fine Wine: https://areni.global/report/the-new-fine-wine-customer/