Tennessee Researchers Find Buyers Pay More for Local Wine Labels

Researchers at the University of Tennessee are studying what makes consumers choose one Tennessee wine over another, as the state’s wineries look for ways to strengthen sales in a market that has grown into a $610 million annual economic force.

The team, based in the university’s Institute of Agriculture, is examining how buyers respond to price, quality labels, alcohol content and whether grapes come from a recognized Tennessee wine region. The work is aimed at helping wineries better understand what matters to residents and visitors when they shop for bottles made in the state.

The project began in 2024 with a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service to study how wineries use social media to promote wines and vineyards. In 2026, the researchers received an additional $189,000 to extend the study for two more years and add new questions about consumer preferences. The expanded work will look closely at the Tennessee Quality Assurance Program logo, known as QAP, as well as wines made from grapes grown in an American Viticultural Area, or AVA, in Tennessee.

The researchers are also using eye-tracking technology from the department’s REM Lab to measure which labels and promotions draw attention first. That data is meant to show not only what consumers say they value, but what they actually notice when faced with wine choices.

Tennessee created the QAP in 2023 through its Wine and Grape Board as part of an effort to improve wine quality and raise the profile of the state’s industry. Tennessee now has four AVAs, including the Nine Lakes of East Tennessee, which was established in March 2026.

Early findings suggest that certification and place matter. Karen DeLong, a professor of agricultural and resource economics and the project leader, said a survey of 825 potential wine buyers found that consumers were willing to pay more for bottles carrying the Tennessee QAP label. The survey also found premiums for wines made from grapes sourced in one of Tennessee’s AVAs.

The results on alcohol content were less expected. Survey participants said they preferred wines with higher alcohol content over lower-alcohol options. DeLong said that may reflect the fact that the survey was limited to wine drinkers, even as low- and no-alcohol beverages have become more popular in the broader market.

“Overall, preliminary findings show that quality certification, AVAs and alcohol content definitely influence consumers’ valuation of wines,” DeLong said in a statement. “Our research shows that the new QAP logo and sourcing grapes from a Tennessee AVA will help increase consumer willingness to pay for Tennessee wines.”

The findings could matter especially for rural wineries. More than 70 wineries operate across Tennessee, and about 60% are in rural counties, where marketing can be harder than in metro areas. Many of those businesses depend heavily on tourists, meaning stronger local sales could also support nearby restaurants, hotels and other businesses.

The research team includes DeLong, David Hughes and Alicia Rihn from the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, along with Mackenzie Gill, an assistant professor who also has an appointment in nutrition. Olusola Adegbuyiro, a graduate student who worked on the original grant, completed her master’s thesis on the project.

Industry groups including the Tennessee Farm Wine Growers Alliance, the Tennessee Wine and Grape Board and the Appalachian Region Wine Producers Association supported the original work and its extension. The researchers say their findings should apply not only to Tennessee wineries but also to producers in other emerging wine regions across the United States.