Wine Consumer Studies: Current Status and Future Agendas

2.1 Data source

The Scopus database was the data source for this study. Scopus indexes content from over 25,000 active titles and 7,000 publishers—all rigorously vetted and selected by an independent review board. It is the largest database of peer-reviewed literature and is widely used for similar studies (Donthu et al., 2021).

2.2 Search criteria

The keywords “wine” and “consum*” were searched in the article title head of the Scopus database. After restricting to the “Business, Management, and Accounting” subject area, 317 articles were obtained. After excluding editorials, book chapters, and non-English articles, the final dataset extracted was 262 articles (Mallya, Jyothi, et al., 2024). The final query string is as follows: ((TITLE (consum*) AND TITLE (wine)) AND (LIMIT-TO (SUBJAREA, “BUSI”)) AND (LIMIT-TO (DOCTYPE, “ar”)) AND (LIMIT-TO (LANGUAGE, “English”)) AND (LIMIT-TO (SRCTYPE, “j”)).

2.3 Software used for the analysis

VoSviewer, a free software available is used to conduct various analyses. It is a popular and frequently used software by researchers for constructing and visualizing bibliometric networks. These networks may include journals, contributors, or individual publications, and they can be built based on citation, bibliographic coupling, cocitation, or coauthorship relations. This software also offers text mining functionality that can be used to construct and visualize co-occurrence networks of important terms extracted from a body of scientific literature (van Eck and Waltman, 2010).

2.4 Types of analyses

Bibliometrics analyses, a branch of library science, have been used in various disciplines, including consumer behavior research (Baber et al., 2023; Haba et al., 2023). Utilizing quantitative methods, it analyses bibliographic information to derive insightful conclusions (Mukherjee et al., 2022b). This approach is more advantageous (Mukherjee et al., 2022a), making it more appropriate for the current study. It supports a huge corpus of data and involves a variety of bibliographic metrics. Its quantitative character of analyses yields impartial results. Additionally, the networks and graphs produced by this program allow users higher visibility of the data points (Donthu et al., 2021).

However, bibliometric approaches have certain limitations, such as making qualitative claims about research based on quantitative data (Wallin, 2005). Quantitative metrics such as citation counts, h-indexes, and journal impact factors are typically utilized in bibliometric analyses. Although these metrics provide a quantitative evaluation of research output, they may not capture the complexity and quality of scientific work. Advancing theory and methodology frequently requires a deeper understanding of research content, context, and impact, which bibliometric indicators may not adequately reflect. This dependency may hinder the study’s findings. Therefore, to fill this gap, the current study also systematically reviews selected articles to support a few qualitative assumptions.

2.4.1 Bibliometric analyses

2.4.1.1 Descriptive analysis

The descriptive analysis includes the number of publications in a given dataset over a specific period. It provides an overview of the volume of research output in a particular field or topic. The annual and last four decades of publication growth were analyzed.

2.4.1.2 Performance analyses

In bibliometric studies, performance analysis refers to assessing the research output of people (for example, authors), organizations (institutions and funding agencies), nations, sources, and documents using bibliometric data. It includes information about the quantity and quality of research constituents, such as the number of publications, citations, impact factor of journals, and H-index. Thus, the pattern in the research constituents (journals, articles, and authors) was also explored as recommended (Donthu et al., 2021). The performance of the various research constituents, such as journals, authors, articles, and countries, was assessed regarding productivity, influence, and authorship structure. The multiple matrices used are total publications (TP), total citations (TC), number of cited publications (NCP), total citations per publication (TC/TP), number of active years (NAY), productivity per active year (PAY), number of contributing authors (NCA) and h and g indexes (Ali et al., 2022). These analyses were conducted using MS Excel software.

2.4.1.3 Science mapping

Science mapping is a bibliometric technique that uses patterns of citation, cocitation, and coauthorship in the scientific literature to visually demonstrate subjects’ structure and evolution. It provides a thorough overview of the research landscape within a specific field by enabling researchers to spot clusters of linked research, notable authors, and important research subjects. This analysis includes cocitation mapping, bibliographic coupling analysis, and keyword co-occurrence. The current study uses keyword-cooccurrence and bibliographic coupling analysis to uncover the domains and themes of the wine consumption literature landscape. While keyword co-occurrence analysis examines the frequency of keywords or terms within a set of documents and identifies co-occurrence patterns, bibliographic coupling analysis identifies relationships between documents based on shared references. Both of these methods help identify clusters of related documents, identify central or influential documents, and analyze the relationships between studies in a given field.

2.4.2 Systematic review

Despite the clear advantages of bibliometric analyses, it is important to remember that bibliometric techniques alone are insufficient for advancing theory and practice (Ali et al., 2022). Each review method contributes to the overall body of knowledge and comprehension, provided that they form knowledge theoretically (Donthu et al., 2021; Fan et al., 2022). Content analysis has been successfully used in wine research as a research method (Bonn et al., 2018; Carollo et al., 2022; Nave et al., 2021; Weatherbee et al., 2019). The primary purpose of the content analysis was to synthesize the extant wine consumer literature to gain a comprehensive understanding of it. Furthermore, the content analysis aims to understand the wine consumption literature’s theoretical and methodological advancement and propose research frameworks for future studies.

3.1 Descriptive statistics

The first research question was to understand the research publication trends. To this effect, descriptive analysis was conducted (Figures 1 and 2). While Figure 1 presents the direction of wine consumption literature for the last four decades, Figure 2 reveals the annual growth of publications and citations. According to Moed et al. (2004), the count of publications’ productivity and the citation counts represent academic influence and impacts (Meyer et al., 2018).

Figure 1. Number of documents and citations for four different periods.

Source: Authors own.

Figure 2. Yearwise number of documents and citations.

Source: Authors own.

The data presented in Figure 1 highlight a significant increase in research activity over approximately four decades within this subject area. Specifically, the number of documents produced has notably increased, from only six in the earliest period (1985-1994) to 149 in the most recent period (2015-2023). These data suggest a growing interest and investment in this field, potentially due to the wine consumer study’s increasing importance and relevance for the hospitality industry. However, there have been fluctuations between different periods regarding citation trends. For example, the average number of citations in the third period was significantly more (51 citations per document) than in the fourth period (13 citations per document). It is also worth noting that the most recent period (2015-2023) shows a high volume of document production (149) but a relatively low citation count (1986), which may be attributed to the recency of the research and its ongoing evaluation by the wine consumers’ research community.

Figure 2, the year wise distribution of the publications, shows somewhat inconsistent growth regarding the number of articles. For example, 2020 witnessed the highest number of publications (31 articles), followed by 2019 and 2012, with 21 articles each. However, the articles published in 2009 received the highest number of citations, nearly 15% of the total citations across 15 documents. Thus, it can be inferred that 2020 and 2009 are the most productive and impactful years in wine consumers’ literature.

3.2 Performance analysis

The second research objective was to analyze the performance of various research constituents, such as authors, journals, articles, and countries. For this, citation analysis was used.

3.2.1 Most productive authors

The top ten most productive authors were identified based on the number of publications (at least five articles) and citations (a minimum of 75 citations). Table 1 demonstrates that Johan Bruwer, with 27 papers and 1417 citations, is the most prolific author, followed by Nelson Barber and Tim H. Dodd, who have eight articles. Tim H. Dodd and Nelson Barber received 492 and 314 citations, respectively. Bruwer Johan has been active in the wine consumer subject domain for 12 years (NAY=12) and has the highest h-index of 19. At the same time, Anthony Saliba J. emerged as one of the most prolific authors, receiving 320 citations across five documents. Steve Goodman has the highest TC/CP ratio, indicating that the four cited publications contributed by the author carry an average of 73.50 citations.

3.2.2 Most influential articles

An analysis of the top 15 most cited articles in wine consumer studies based on the number of citations was conducted. Table 2 provides the total number of citations and average citations per year of the top 15 articles in the domain of wine consumption literature. As evident, the article “The Hedonic Nature Of Wine Tourism Consumption: An Experiential View” (Bruwer and Alant, 2009) was an influential publication with 252 citations. Bruwer and Alant used the experiential view of consumption to better understand wine tourists’ motivation. The other most cited works include articles titled “Consumer Attitudes Regarding Environmentally Sustainable Wine: An Exploratory Study of The New Zealand Marketplace” (Forbes et al., 2009). and “Differential Effects of Experience, Subjective Knowledge, And Objective Knowledge on Sources of Information Used in Consumer Wine Purchasing” (Dodd et al., 2005). However, the articles titled “Millennial Generation Attitudes toward Sustainable Wine: An Exploratory Study on Italian Consumers” (Pomarici and Vecchio, 2014) and “Exploring Environmental Consciousness and Consumer Preferences for Organic Wines Without Sulfites” (D’Amico et al., 2016) are the fastest growing articles in terms of influence, with an average of 21 and 19 citations per year, respectively.

3.2.3 Journal impact

The most influential journal was identified based on a number of publications and citations. The journals published at least five articles, and 100 citations were included in the analysis. The source impact (productivity and influence) analysis helps understand the distribution of core journals in the research area. Table 4 shows the top seven journals in the research area sorted by the number of publications and citations. The h-index 26 for the International Journal of Wine Business Research (IJWBR) indicates that IJWBR has at least 26 documents, each receiving at least 26 citations. IJWBR is the only journal that comprehensively covers business disciplines, continents, and countries on all topics connected to wine consumer literature, such as perspectives on alcoholic beverages such as beer, craft beer, and spirits. Thus, it can be concluded that wine consumption is widely acknowledged in wine business research literature. Following IJWBR, the British Food Journal (BFJ), the Journal of Food Products Marketing (JFPM), and the Journal of Cleaner Production (JCP) are positioned as the second and the third most impactful journals in this domain (Tables 3 and 4). These results also indicate that wine consumption is well documented in food science, food product marketing, and environmental/sustainability research literature.

3.2.4 Top contributing countries

The following is a list of the top ten countries according to the nationality of the corresponding author. Table 5 presents the total publications, total cited publications, total citations (TC), average citations per publication, average citations per cited publication, number of active years, productivity per active year, and H-index for the ten leading countries in the wine consumption literature. According to this table, the most influential country is the United States of America, with 21 active years, 67 publications, and 2376 citations. However, in terms of the H-index, Australia topped the list with an H-index of 27. Additionally, the highest number of publications are also from the United States of America. Interestingly, despite having eight active years and an H-index, Canada topped the list regarding average citations per publication and cited publications, followed by New Zealand.

3.3 Science mapping

The third objective of this study was to identify the critical areas and distinct clusters of wine consumption literature. The study uses keyword co-occurrence analysis and bibliometric coupling analysis to achieve this.

3.3.1 Keyword co-occurrence analysis

Keyword co-occurrence analysis refers to examining the co-occurrence of keywords in scientific publications and constructing a network of keywords based on their relationships. Identifying the frequency of keywords could uncover potential future research opportunities. Therefore, the current study conducts keyword co-occurrence analysis using VoSviewer software. The minimum number of occurrences was set to five. VOSviewer provides various visualization techniques to represent coword networks, such as network and overlay visualization (Figure 3). The keyword co-occurrence analysis resulted in six clusters. The keyword co-occurrence analysis resulted in five critical areas of wine consumer literature: decision making, consumer preferences, consumer behavior, segmentation, and consumer involvement. The clusters and items are presented in Table 6.

Figure 3. Overlay visualization of the most frequent keywords where the score of the item is the time since publication.

Source: Generated by the authors using VOS-viewer software.

The size of the nodes in Figure 3 reflects the occurrence of using the terms. Overlay visualization, a feature in VOSviewer that allows the classification of keywords based on a time scale, is conducted. It is evident that the word “wine/wines” is the most used keyword (145 occurrences), followed by consumer behavior/behavior (96 occurrences). The other keywords are market segmentation (23 occurrences), human (21 occurrences), wine consumption (21 occurrences), and marketing (16 occurrences). Keywords that appeared more than 10 times are consumers, segmentation, United States of America, China, consumer attitude, consumption, gender, and Italy. The items are colored differently according to publishing year (average for the cluster). This study highlights phrases that debuted recently (the average publication year was 2020) in a brighter yellow. A color bar displayed at the corner has the same explanation; the scores of the items are decided by the publishing date (Figure 3). According to Figure 3, the most recent topics studied were sustainable development, sustainability, willingness to pay, organic wine, and price.

3.3.2 Bibliographic coupling analysis

Bibliographic coupling is a measure of similarity that employs citation analysis to build a relationship of similarity between documents. It occurs when two works’ bibliographies reference the same third work. This indicates that there is a possibility that the two works address a similar topic (Weinberg, 1974). It is helpful in various fields since it helps researchers find related past research. Bibliographic coupling uniquely contributes to the measurement of centeredness, with increasing coupling between the precenter and postcenter periods (Youtie et al., 2013). Bibliographic coupling analysis is also helpful in identifying clusters of related articles. Therefore, this study embraces bibliographic coupling analysis to identify the different clusters of wine consumption literature based on a minimum of 50 citations per document. This analysis resulted in four clusters of 41 documents, represented in four colors (Figure 4). The total number of citations across these 41 articles is 4422 (approximately 56%).

Figure 4. Clusters of wine consumer literature.

Source: Generated by the authors using VOS-viewer software.

Cluster one, represented in red, has 13 articles named Sustainability and Wine, published between 2009 and 2016. The most cited article in this cluster was “Consumer attitudes regarding environmentally sustainable wine: an exploratory study of the New Zealand market place.” (Forbes et al., 2009), followed by “Millennial generation attitudes to sustainable wine: an exploratory study on Italian consumers” (Pomarici and Vecchio, 2014). The other articles in this cluster discuss environmental impacts (Amienyo et al., 2015; Point et al., 2012), the carbon intensity of wine distribution (Cholette and Venkat, 2009), wine labeling and packaging (Barber, 2010; Galati et al., 2019) and environmental consciousness (D’Amico et al., 2016). Interestingly, a majority of studies have explored consumers’ attitudes toward sustainable/green/organic wines (Forbes et al., 2009; Mann et al., 2012; Pomarici and Vecchio, 2014; Sogari et al., 2015; Tait et al., 2019; Wiedmann et al., 2014).

Cluster two, represented in green has 11 “Wine Preferences and Choice” articles. The articles in this cluster were published between 2007 and 2012. The most cited article in this cluster is “A regional brand image and perceived wine quality: the consumer perspective (Johnson and Bruwer, 2007). This cluster’s second most cited article compares international wine consumer choice (Goodman, 2009). Few studies have investigated the reasons (Charters and Pettigrew, 2008; Ritchie, 2007), perception (Liu and Murphy, 2007), motivation (Somogyi et al., 2011), preferences (Casini et al., 2009), and determinants (Camillo, 2012; Hussain et al., 2007; Yu et al., 2009) of wine consumption. Studies have also investigated the role of brand image (Johnson and Bruwer, 2007) and country of origin (McCutcheon et al., 2009) in wine choice.

The third cluster, represented in blue, is named “Wine Consumer Behavior” and has nine articles. The articles in this cluster were published between 1997 and 2012. The most cited in this cluster is “The use of quality and reputation indicators by consumers: the case of Bordeaux wine” (Landon and Smith, 1997). Studies in this cluster have investigated wine consumer behavior using different factors, such as country of origin (Balestrini and Gamble, 2006; Bruwer and Buller, 2012; Dimara and Skuras, 2005; Orth et al., 2005), information search (Atkin et al., 2007), wine involvement (Barber et al., 2007), grape vintage year (Gil and Sánchez, 1997), and functional and production aspects (Vrontis et al., 2011).

The fourth cluster, represented in yellow is “Wine Consumer Insights: Tourism, Generations, and Preferences.” This cluster has eight articles on diverse aspects, such as wine tourists’ consumption behavior (Bruwer et al., 2013; Bruwer and Alant, 2009; Carlsen and Boksberger, 2015), sensory preferences (Bruwer et al., 2011), general differences (Agnoli et al., 2011; Mueller et al., 2011), the role of demographics (Bruwer et al., 2012) and product involvement (Bruwer and Huang, 2012). The most cited article in this cluster is “the hedonic nature of wine tourism consumption: an experiential view” (Bruwer and Alant, 2009), followed by the article “consumer behavior and sensory preference differences: implications for wine product marketing” (Bruwer et al., 2011). The articles published in this cluster were published between 2009 and 2015.

3.4 Systematic review

The fourth objective of the study was to develop a conceptual framework based on the antecedents, mediators, and outcomes reported in the wine consumer literature. As mentioned in the methodology section, the documents forming bibliographical coupling were systematically reviewed to gain comprehensive insight into wine consumers’ literature. Three articles were excluded from this review because they did not pertain to wine consumer behavior. Figure 5 illustrates the framework developed by integrating the antecedents, mediators, and outcomes reported in the wine consumer literature.

Figure 5. Antecedent outcome framework.

Source: Author’s own.

3.4.1 Antecedents of wine consumer research

All the antecedents that predominantly influence wine consumer behavior are further categorized into five subcategories: Personal, Social, Extrinsic, Intrinsic, and Environmental.

Personal factors comprised variables related to the individual, such as wine knowledge, environmental orientation, experience, enjoyment, cognitive dimensions, involvement, habits, preferences, brand familiarity, consumption frequency, and purchase frequency. These factors can vary from person to person and can influence their preferences, choices, and decision-making processes when purchasing and consuming wine. For example, consumers with higher levels of objective wine knowledge are likelier to use intrinsic cues during wine purchase than extrinsic cues, such as country of origin (Bruwer and Buller, 2012). Similarly, it is found that wine-tasting experience significantly correlated with attitude toward brand loyalty. Consumers having an enjoyable and memorable experience are more likely to repurchase and promote the wine brand to others (Bruwer et al., 2013).

Additionally, enjoyment, situational and lifestyle-related factors are found to be crucial (Charters and Pettigrew, 2008). Specifically, enjoyment was critical across groups, irrespective of age and gender (Charters and Pettigrew, 2008). Other personal factors that impact consumers’ consumption or purchase behaviors are consumption frequency, curiosity, purchase frequency, habits, and brand familiarity (Balestrini and Gamble, 2006; D’Amico et al., 2016; McCutcheon et al., 2009).

A systematic review revealed that social factors, such as consumers’ living environment, situational factors, social image, social acceptance, and social context, were also found to be antecedents to wine consumption and purchase (Agnoli et al., 2011; Charters and Pettigrew, 2008; Iazzi et al., 2019; Liu and Murphy, 2007; Orth et al., 2005). For example, a study conducted among millennials revealed that consumers living in urban areas, being female and older, are likely to buy sustainable wine (Iazzi et al., 2019). The literature shows that wine consumption’s second most important factor is the situational factor (Charters and Pettigrew, 2008). While social image impacted wine consumption (Liu and Murphy, 2007), social context and acceptance were found to have an impact on wine preference (Agnoli et al., 2011; Orth et al., 2005).

The third antecedent identified through the systematic review was extrinsic factors comprising variables such as country of origin, price, labeling, brand, vintage year, certification, food pairing, bottle design, wine types, medal won, advertising, purchasing channels, and packaging. Price is the most studied extrinsic variable by researchers (Agnoli et al., 2011; Atkin and Sutanonpaiboon, 2007; Balestrini and Gamble, 2006; Bonn et al., 2016; Bruwer and Buller, 2012; Forbes et al., 2009; Galati et al., 2019; Gil and Sánchez, 1997; Johnson and Bruwer, 2007; Liu and Murphy, 2007; McCutcheon et al., 2009; Orth et al., 2005; Somogyi et al., 2011; Tait et al., 2019), followed by labeling (Barber et al., 2007; Bruwer et al., 2011; Bruwer & Buller, 2012; Casini et al., 2009; D’Amico et al., 2016; Forbes et al., 2009, p. 200; McCutcheon et al., 2009; Sogari et al., 2015; Somogyi et al., 2011; Yu et al., 2009) and country of origin (Atkin and Sutanonpaiboon, 2007; Bruwer and Buller, 2012; Gil and Sánchez, 1997; Johnson and Bruwer, 2007; Liu and Murphy, 2007; McCutcheon et al., 2009, 2009). The other popular extrinsic variables studied were wine brands (Casini et al., 2009; D’Amico et al., 2016; Johnson and Bruwer, 2007; Liu and Murphy, 2007; McCutcheon et al., 2009; Yu et al., 2009), bottle design, including packaging and wine stopper design (Atkin and Sutanonpaiboon, 2007; Barber et al., 2007; Bruwer and Buller, 2012; D’Amico et al., 2016), wine types (Atkin and Sutanonpaiboon, 2007; Bruwer and Li, 2007; Johnson and Bruwer, 2007; Somogyi et al., 2011), and recommendation by peers and sales assistance (Bruwer et al., 2011; Bruwer and Buller, 2012; Casini et al., 2009; McCutcheon et al., 2009; Somogyi et al., 2011; Yu et al., 2009). Researchers have also explored the role of food pairing (Casini et al., 2009; Somogyi et al., 2011; Yu et al., 2009) and wine consumption in a few instances. The impact of medals won (Casini et al., 2009; Yu et al., 2009), certification (Sogari et al., 2015), aesthetics (Charters and Pettigrew, 2008), and purchasing channels (Johnson and Bruwer, 2007) were also studied by researchers.

The fourth antecedent is identified as an intrinsic factor. It included characteristics that are inherent to the wine itself. Examples include quality (McCutcheon et al., 2009; Sogari et al., 2015, p. 201; Tait et al., 2019), taste (Bruwer and Buller, 2012; D’Amico et al., 2016), naturalness (D’Amico et al., 2016; Galati et al., 2019), sensory attributes (Bonn et al., 2016; Galati et al., 2019), color (Bruwer and Buller, 2012; Mann et al., 2012), vintage year (Bruwer and Buller, 2012; Gil and Sánchez, 1997; McCutcheon et al., 2009), alcohol level (McCutcheon et al., 2009; yu et al., 2009), and grape variety (Casini et al., 2009; Goodman, 2009; McCutcheon et al., 2009; yu et al., 2009). Additionally, studies have also investigated the impact of environmental factors as the fifth antecedent comprising sustainability (Tait et al., 2019), organic supply (Bonn et al., 2016; D’Amico et al., 2016; Galati et al., 2019; Mann et al., 2012; Wiedmann et al., 2014), environmental protection, benefits, and values.

3.4.2 Mediators

The systematic review suggests that wine consumer researchers have rarely used any mediators. For example, the only study that used an exploratory approach to investigate wine consumers’ attitudes toward sustainable-labeled wine adopts an attitude that mediates the relationship between consumers’ beliefs about the wine and their wine consumption (Sogari et al., 2015). Furthermore, the findings of this study revealed that attitude toward sustainable-labeled wine is shaped by both environmental and quality beliefs about sustainable wine.

3.4.3 Moderators

Similar to mediators, wine consumer research studies have rarely adopted any moderators. Trust was the only moderator used in the study (Bonn et al., 2016). It is suggested that consumer perceptions of suppliers are the basis for deciding whether to believe a winemaker’s claim that their products and operations are sustainable (Bonn et al., 2016).

3.4.4.Demographic moderating variables

In addition to the moderating variable mentioned above, studies have examined the moderating role of demographic variables, such as age (Sogari et al., 2015), income, education (Barber, 2010), and gender (Atkin and Sutanonpaiboon, 2007; Barber, 2010).

3.4.5 Outcomes

The systematic review identifies several outcome variables discussed in the extant literature, namely, willingness to pay (Barber, 2010; D’Amico et al., 2016; Forbes et al., 2009; Galati et al., 2019; Pomarici and Vecchio, 2014; Skuras and Vakrou, 2002; Tait et al., 2019), purchase intention, behavioral intention, wine selection (Agnoli et al., 2011; Bonn et al., 2016; Bruwer et al., 2011; Bruwer and Buller, 2012; Camillo, 2012; Casini et al., 2009; Gil and Sánchez, 1997; Goodman, 2009; Liu et al., 2017; McCutcheon et al., 2009; Ritchie, 2007; Sogari et al., 2015), wine consumption (Balestrini and Gamble, 2006; Bruwer et al., 2012; Charters and Pettigrew, 2008; Hussain et al., 2007; Mann et al., 2012; Mueller et al., 2011; Somogyi et al., 2011; Yu et al., 2009), consumer wine quality perception (Johnson and Bruwer, 2007), tasting experience (Bruwer et al., 2013), and wine tourists’ motivation (Bruwer and Alant, 2009a).

3.4.6 Theoretical and methodological advancement

The fifth objective of the study was to explore the theoretical and methodological advancement in a wine consumer study. All 39 articles were subjected to systematic review, and the findings are discussed in the following section. Wine consumer scholars have used many theories, such as McFaden’s random utility theory (Tait et al., 2019), Lancasters’ characteristics theory (Mann et al., 2012; Tait et al., 2019), and the theory of consumer behavior (Camillo, 2012). Ego-involvement and Persuasion theory (Bruwer and Huang, 2012), Age-Generational Cohort theory (Bruwer et al., 2011; Bruwer and Alant, 2009), VBA theory (Sogari et al., 2015), Brand loyalty (Bruwer et al., 2013), and Reputation model (Landon and Smith, 1997). However, a majority of studies remain atheoretical.

The systematic review suggests that the majority of the researchers contributed to the wine consumer literature through quantitative studies (N=30), followed by mixed methods (N=5) and qualitative methods (N=4). Only one case study was found.

3.5 Future research directions

This study’s sixth and final objective is to recommend future research directions in wine consumer research. Although the previous wine literature sheds light on some of the critical areas related to consumers, it is found that there is a scope for future research related to environmental, economic, and sociocultural issues. Some crucial areas within these issues are identified (Figure 6), and future directions are discussed in the following section.

Figure 6. Proposed theoretical framework.

Source: Author’s own.

3.5.1 Antecedents

Environmental aspects

By addressing environmental issues related to wine consumption, producers can contribute to the industry’s overall sustainability, minimize ecological impacts, and meet the growing demand for environmentally friendly products. Additionally, taking proactive measures to address these issues helps ensure wine-producing regions’ long-term viability and resilience in the face of climate change and environmental challenges. Therefore, future studies should focus on some environmental aspects, such as wine consumers’ environmental knowledge, education, consciousness, and impact on their purchase intention, preference, and willingness to pay for sustainable wine. Researchers can also focus on the role of sustainability attributes on wine consumption preferences, choices, and consumption. Another potential area of research is the role of certification and its impact on wine-purchasing behavior. Future studies can also measure the role of environmental attributes on actual wine consumption.

Economic aspects

The economic attributes of wine consumer behavior refer to the factors and considerations influencing consumers’ choices and behaviors about purchasing and consuming wine. Future researchers can consider key economic attributes: price, brand image, brand communication, advertising, brand promotion, and sales channels. For example, a recent study conducted to understand the impact of brand communication and brand image on brand preference revealed that both variables positively affected brand preferences (Gómez-Rico et al., 2023). Wine sales channels are another critical variable to consider in future studies. There is a correlation between the usage of sales channels and per capita consumption and wine preferences (Szolnoki and Hoffmann, 2014).

Sociocultural aspects

Sociocultural aspects play a significant role in wine consumption. For example, wine is often deeply rooted in cultural traditions and heritage (Black and Ulin, 2013). It is associated with specific regions, countries, and communities, reflecting their history, customs, and social identity (Trivellato et al., 2014). Wine consumption is also linked to social and emotional well-being (Bauer and Mills, 2021). It is also associated with special occasions, rituals, and ceremonies, adding to its sociocultural significance. Therefore, future research can focus on the sociocultural aspects of wine, such as cultural diversity, rituals, consumption practice, cultural value, consumption traditions, social norms, social gathering, celebrations, status, lifestyle choices, ceremonial practice and cultural symbolism, and its impact on consumer preference and choices. Future research can also focus on the impact of sociocultural aspects on the emotional and social well-being of wine consumers.

3.5.2 Mediators

Future studies can also focus on mediating variables such as attitude, motivation, trust, and satisfaction. For example, attitudes can mediate the relationship between wine-related stimuli (e.g., marketing messages, product attributes) and consumer behavior (e.g., purchase intentions, consumption, willingness to pay, wine preferences, and brand loyalty). Similarly, wine consumers’ motivation can also be important in determining wine consumption behavior. It can influence wine consumption occasions, preferences for certain types of lifestyles, and engagement in wine activities, such as wine tourism. Trust is another important factor in consumer behavior. behavior Trust in wine brands, producers, or retailers can mediate the relationship between wine-related stimuli and consumers. Trustworthy wine-related information and certifications can enhance purchase intentions. Future studies can also examine the mediating role of consumer satisfaction. Consumer satisfaction can mediate the relationship between brand image and brand loyalty. Satisfied consumers are likelier to exhibit repeat purchases, positive word-of-mouth, and brand loyalty.

3.5.3 Moderators

Moderator variables play a crucial role in understanding the nuances of wine consumption and how it varies across different individuals and contexts. Some moderators that can be considered in future studies are age, income, gender, generation, culture, personality traits, and country.

Age can moderate wine consumption patterns, preferences, and behaviors. For example, younger consumers may be more experimental and open to trying different wine styles, while older consumers might have more established choices and seek specific wine characteristics. Furthermore, age can also influence the context in which wine is consumed, such as social occasions or personal relaxation. Another significant moderator is income. Higher-income individuals may be more likely to purchase premium/luxury/sustainable wines. Income can also impact the frequency and occasions of wine consumption. Gender is another critical moderator that can be considered in future studies. Research suggests that gender differences exist in wine choice, with variations in the preference for specific wine styles, labeling aesthetics, or marketing messages (Alpeza et al., 2023).

Additionally, gender can influence the social context of wine consumption and the roles individuals play in wine-related activities. Future research can also focus on the generational differences in values, wine knowledge, consumption preferences, habits, and frequency by their respective social and historical contexts. The moderating role of personality traits can also be investigated in future studies. For example, individuals with higher innovativeness may be more inclined to try different wine varieties. The cultural context of the country can moderate wine consumption practices. For example, a comparative study between new and old wine countries can be considered. Each country has its unique wine culture and consumption norms. Factors such as wine availability, legal regulations, and historical wine traditions can shape consumer behavior within a country.

3.5.4 Outcomes

Despite the extensive focus of researchers on various outcomes, including willingness to pay, behavioral intention, wine consumption, quality perception, and tourists’ experience, this research suggests that there remains ample opportunity for further investigation. Examples include wine choice, preferences, sustainable wine consumption, brand loyalty, and emotional/social well-being. Furthermore, future studies can also focus on actual wine consumption. For example, research on well-being can include the role of wine consumption across different social occasions/gatherings. Understanding wine consumption’s emotional and social dimensions can provide insights into its broader impact on individuals’ well-being.

3.5.5 Theoretical directions

It is recommended that future studies use the consumer decision-making process (CDMP) model, which provides an understanding of wine consumers’ various decision-making stages, such as problem recognition, information search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase, and postpurchase evaluation. These models can also be applied to investigate consumers’ choice of wine products, considering price, brand, taste, labeling, and recommendations. In addition, this research explores several theories that can be adopted in the future and are discussed below.

Experiential consumption theory (Holbrook and Hirschman, 1982) emphasizes the significance of experiential aspects, such as sensory pleasure, emotions, and fantasies, in consumer behavior and can also be considered by wine consumer scholars. This theory argues that experiential or hedonic dimensions shape consumer preferences and satisfaction. Since its inception, experiential consumption theory has been widely adopted and expanded upon by scholars in consumer behavior. However, this theory is sparingly adopted in wine consumer studies (Bruwer and Alant, 2009).

Another theory that can be considered in wine consumer studies is the diffusion of innovation theory (Rogers, 2010). This theory describes how new products, ideas, and behaviors gradually spread among the population. It contends that adoption starts with innovators and early adopters and then spreads through the people to the early and late majority. In wine consumer studies, this theory can be adopted to examine the adoption of new wine products, profiling wine consumers based on the adoption of new wine products and the acceptance of new wine products, practices, or technologies among consumers. This theory can also be adopted to investigate the role of opinion leaders in adopting new wine products.

This review identifies the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a valuable framework for assessing the behavioral antecedents of wine consumption. It is found that TPB better predicts wine consumption in restaurants than Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) (Agnoli et al., 2016; Agnoli and Outreville, 2023). The TPB (Ajzen, 1987) is a psychological theory that explains and predicts human behavior in various social contexts. This theory suggests that attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control influence people’s actions.

Cognitive dissonance theory (Festinger, 1957) is a social psychology theory that seeks to explain the psychological discomfort (cognitive dissonance) that arises when individuals hold conflicting beliefs, attitudes, or values. This theory has been used in the consumer behavior literature to measure the cognitive dissonance of medical tourists (Majeed et al., 2022) and travel behavior (Kah and Lee, 2016). In a wine consumer study, this theory is used to understand how tensions may arise for individuals approaching each experience and where to avert perceived risks (d’Ament et al., 2022). However, this theory can be used in other areas of wine consumption, such as dissonance between price and quality, brand loyalty and consumer preference, wine recommendations and consumption experience.

According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Maslow, 1943), individuals are motivated to fulfill their needs sequentially, from the most basic to higher-order psychological needs. This theory was used to segment wine consumers (Divine and Lepisto, 2005) and understand wine tourists’ motivation (Park et al., 2008). Future studies can use this theory to understand the relationship between psychological needs, safety, emotional experience, social status, and wine consumption behavior.

Self-determination theory (SDT) (Deci and Ryan, 1985) is one of the psychological theories of motivation that can be considered in future wine consumption studies. The theory focuses on the innate psychological needs that drive human behavior and the conditions that foster personal growth and well-being. This theory is used to understand the relationship between motivation and wine club attributes (White and Thompson, 2009) and attitude toward domestic wine (Ye et al., 2017). However, future wine consumer studies can further explore this theory to understand the role of intrinsic/extrinsic factors on consumer behavior. For example, how can social interactions, such as wine festivals or wine-tasting events, enhance wine consumers’ experience? How can wine education contribute to wine consumers’ competence and overall experience?

Expectancy-value theory (EVT) (Atkinson, 1957) is another motivational theory that wine researchers can use to understand how expectancies and values about different antecedents, such as environmental, economic, and sociocultural attributes. For example, how consumers’ expectations and values regarding the health benefits of wine shape their purchase and consumption frequency. Wine consumer scholars have adopted this theory to explore the relationship between experience and current consumption behavior (Melo et al., 2010, p. 202) and to predict wine consumption (Cox, 2009).

3.5.6 Methodological directions

Longitudinal studies play a crucial role in enhancing the wine consumer literature by providing valuable insights into consumer behavior and its evolution. It helps in pursuing consumers’ preferences and consumption trends and changes in the decision-making process. Therefore, future studies can adopt a longitudinal study approach to investigate how consumers’ preferences for different types of wines evolve. Studies can also explore the long-term impact of wine education on consumers’ knowledge and competence in wine selection. Other research approaches recommended are experimental (for example, wine label information and purchase intention), cross-cultural (between new world wine and old wine countries), mixed method, case studies, such as the impact of wine tourism on local wineries’ business, and ethnographical studies.