BACKGROUND INFORMATION
R. Pete Parcells is teaching the Wine Economics course at Whitman College. The course was first developed and taught at Whitman College (Spring 2007) by Karl Storchmann (picture on left) who is now at New York University. Karl Storchmann is the editor of the Journal of Wine Economics which was started (Volume 1 2006 No. 1) in 2006 at Whitman College.
JOURNAL OF WINE ECONOMICS
This is the original introduction to the Journal (Volume 2006 No 1)
It is a pleasure to introduce the first issue of The Journal of Wine Economics (JWE). The JWE is meant to provide a focused outlet for high-quality, peer-reviewed research on economic topics related to wine. Although wine economics papers have been, and will continue to be, published in leading general and agricultural economics journals, the number of high-quality papers has grown to such an extent that a specialized journal can provide a useful platform for the exchange of ideas and results.
The JWE is open to any area related to the economic aspects of wine, viticulture, and oenology. It covers a wide array of topics, including, but not limited to: production, winery activities, marketing, consumption, as well as macroeconomic and legal topics. The JWE will be published twice a year and it will contain main papers, short papers, notes and comments, reviews of books, films and wine events, as well as conference announcements.
In conjunction with the journal, we have formed a companion society – The American Association of Wine Economists (AAWE). The AAWE is a non-profit, educational organization dedicated to encouraging and communicating economic research and analyses and exchanging ideas in wine economics. Its principal activities include publishing The Journal of Wine Economics, which is fully owned and run by the AAWE. The non-profit character enables the Association to keep subscription prices low and, therefore, guarantees a wide distribution. Details of how to join are provided on the inside of the back cover and at www.wine-economics.org.
COURSE INFORMATION
This course usually consists of classroom lectures, wine market analysis, wine attribute analysis (taste, smell), educational tours of wineries, visits to local vineyards, and an overview class at the Center for Enology and Viticulture on the campus of Walla Walla Community College.
However, the class was going to be set up as a hybrid this semester but I recently received letters, emails, and notices, cancelling our tours and/or visits until further notice. Even the open houses the local wineries hold in May when wine orders are to be picked up have been cancelled due to the Pandemic. I just received a notice from Cayuse Vinyards this last week informing me visits would not take place until next year.
Modifications to the course will be made as the situation changes this Spring Semester. The beginning of the semester will consist of synchronus online class meetings and some asychronous weeks when material (videos) will be examined outside of class. I am still working on how the class can do wine tasting not at a vineyard or winery (without breaking my savings account). We will still have a productive semester as we examine the wine industry from an economic perspective.
The book we are using American Wine Economics is an exploration of the U.S. Wine Industry. It is written by Professor James Thornton and much of the material I am using for this course has come from him (with his full permission of course). I wanted to express my gratitude to him for his support, material provided, and for all his advice.
I wanted to particularly thank Karl Storcmann for started the AAWE (American Association of Wine Economists) at Whitman College and creating the JWE (Journal of Wine Economics) and the Wine Economics course.
"Anyone can know, the point is to understand."
-- Albert Einstein
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-- Woody Allen