Bulk Wine Sales Rebound in the Pacific Northwest

Bulk wine sales are picking up again in the Pacific Northwest after several years of weak demand, a sign that some buyers are returning to the market as prices for unfinished wine remain unusually low.

Adam Schulz, owner of Incredible Bulk Wine Company in Pasco, Washington, said he has seen what he called “a mini rally” since the start of 2026, with more contracts signed in the first week of the year than in much of the previous two winters. He said business had been so slow in 2024 that his office felt empty.

The rebound is being driven by bargain pricing across key wine categories. Schulz cited Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at $15 a gallon, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir at $11 a gallon and Washington Cabernet at $5 a gallon. At those levels, he said, buyers that can move wine quickly see an opportunity to lower costs and improve cash flow.

The buyers returning so far are still a limited group, Schulz said, but they include both large companies and smaller operators. He said he has recently seen more small and mid-sized purchases, often in the range of 600 to 1,000 gallons, after a period when most deals were large-volume, low-dollar transactions. He also said some customers who bought Washington wines earlier this year have come back to buy again at a faster pace than they did in 2022 and 2023.

Even with the pickup in sales, the market remains under pressure from excess supply. Bulk wine producers are still carrying inventory that costs money to store, and low prices continue to weigh on production decisions and grape demand. Schulz said the current price environment makes it hard for wineries with steady programs to justify making their own wine when they can buy bulk wine for less than the cost of producing it themselves.

He said part of the backlog will have to clear through sales and part through lower production. Large bulk wine producers in Washington and Oregon are expected to make significantly less wine in 2026, which could eventually help tighten supply. If that happens, Schulz said, grape buyers could begin returning in 2027, a development he described as a sign of a healthier market across the region’s wine industry.

For now, he said, the recent increase in buying has brought a measure of optimism to a sector that has spent much of the past few years waiting for demand to recover.