Oil…Rodeos…Brisket…Wine(?)
June 6, 2025 — When we think of major wine states beyond California, the usual suspects are Washington, Oregon, and New York—but Texas has passed them all in terms of wine’s economic impact on the state ($24.39 billion) and moved ahead of New York for number of wine producers (617 vs. 507).
“Big” is the image of the Lone Star State, both in terms of geographical scope and how they do things, and wine is no exception. Not long ago, Texas was a minor player but has moved up to the big leagues.
Much of Texas’s #2 rank in wine’s impact has to do with population (it’s #2), and the resulting consumption which supports the wholesale and retail sectors in terms of jobs, wages, taxes, and total output. Florida (#3 in both population and wine’s economic impact at $20.09 billion), has relatively little wine production but lots of consumption, especially at mega-resorts like the Disney complex. The Sunshine State’s 90 wine producers (vs. 617 in TX) provide less than a fifth of the jobs compared with Texas, but have 1,741 more retail jobs (on and off premise).
The point is that wine’s value-added nature spans far more than production. In fact, look at the Data below to understand this better. For reference, “Direct Impact” involves production through consumption, i.e. from vine to glass; “Supplier Impact” refers to goods and services involved; and “Induced Impact” includes benefits to local communities from spending by workers in the other categories.
Some Key Takeaways
1: Direct Impact Total Output is $9.35 billion (38.3%), Supplier $7.27 billion (29.7%), and Induced $7.77 billion (32%). Those proportions (roughly 40-30-30) are pretty typical across states and nationally. They also show how broadly the wine industry dispenses its economic benefits.
2: In the Direct category, Winery jobs (including estate vineyard workers) total 2,704 (4%) of all jobs in the category, slightly exceeded by Wholesale (4,394, 6%) and Tourism (5,338, 7%), while Retail (60,101) accounts for 83%. In other words, actual production (from vine to bottle) is truly a tiny portion of wine’s total economic impact.
3: Within the Supplier and Induced categories there are the same group of economic sectors which benefit in various ways from the wine industry. All you need to do to grasp the magnitude of the Supplier category is attend the annual Unified Wine & Grape Symposium in Sacramento, with its massive trade show floor touting everything from barrels, boxes, and bottles to insurance and legal services.
Evidence of the Induced benefits is less obvious because it essentially involves employees in the other two categories spending their money on homes, cars, gas, groceries, and recreation.
4. Taxes…ah yes, taxes. Don’t legislators just love those? In the wine industry there are two basic types: Business (licenses, employment, etc.) and Consumption (excise and sales at both federal and state levels). Taxes from wine in Texas total $1,71 billion federal (which TX Senators and Representatives should all know), and $1,74 billion at the state and local levels (which Governors, state legislators, country executives,chambers of commerce, media, and others should know). Total taxes generated by wine in Texas: $3,443,576,800.
All this data has been simplified into a simple infographic with 10 topline numbers in various categories for quick, easy reference. Texas wineries and associations are also welcome to use the ready made press release below that puts everything in a different form.
The same detailed information is available for every state, and nationally, at this link (WineAmerica 2025 Economic Study). The 2025 National Economic Study of the Wine Industry was commissioned by WineAmerica and conducted by John Dunham & Associates, a leading economics research firm specializing in public policy areas. In addition to the 153 individual documents, the link includes a detailed Methodology and Frequently Asked Questions section for full transparency.
The most effective thing every winery and association can do is make sure policy makers know the value of wine to their state so they can factor that into their decisions..
Bravo, Texas!
Growth doesn’t happen by chance. It takes people working together toward a common goal, driven by passion, commitment, and collaboration. Grape growers, winemakers, winery owners, researchers, and others form the foundation of success. The Texas Department of Agriculture (Texas Wines) has been very supportive of the industry, along with other effective organizations like the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, Texas Wine Growers, Texas Hill Country Wineries, and Texas A&M University. Congratulations to all.
About Jim Trezise, WineAmerica
Jim Trezise became President of WineAmerica in 2017 after serving more than 20 years on the organization’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee.
Jim has been involved with the grape and wine industry since 1982. He was President of the New York Wine & Grape Foundation, which he co-created in 1985.
Jim has served on the boards of national and international organizations involved with public policy, research, marketing, and trade. He has received several national awards or accolades for his contributions to the American wine industry. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and judges in many wine competitions around the world.
