Commentary: The Use of Wine

Wine occupies a paradoxical space in American life. On the one hand, the beverage enjoys broad social legitimacy; on the other, a growing share of the public voices health-related misgivings about routine drinking. Understanding this tension requires tracing recent survey data, demographic patterns, spending behavior, and church-member attitudes toward personal consumption.

1. Cultural acceptance and shifting sensibilities

Gallup’s annual “Consumption Habits” series shows that roughly 62 percent of U.S. adults report having at least one alcoholic drink in the past year, a figure that has remained stable for three decades [1]. Moral approval is even higher: in the 2018 “Values and Beliefs” poll, 78 percent said drinking alcohol is morally acceptable, placing it among the nation’s most normalized personal behaviors [2]. Preferences divide along familiar lines—beer leads (37 percent), followed by wine (31 percent) and spirits (31 percent)—yet age and gender shape those choices. Women and Americans over fifty-five lean decisively toward wine, whereas younger men gravitate to beer [3].

Beneath this surface stability lies a nutritional re-evaluation. In a 2025 Financial Times/Gallup study, 45 percent of respondents judged one to two daily drinks “unhealthy,” up sharply from a decade earlier [4]. Gen Z respondents were the most skeptical, a sentiment reflected in the popularity of “Dry January” and an expanding low- and no-alcohol product segment. Thus, while the act of drinking retains moral sanction, its perceived health costs are climbing.

2. Economic expressions of value

Spending patterns further illuminate wine’s cultural niche. The Wine Market Council’s 2024 high-end consumer study found that regular wine drinkers allocate an average of $31 to a bottle for a week-night family dinner but willingly spend $65 or more for holidays and milestone celebrations [5]. Respondents framed wine as both a “de-compressor” after work and a curated marker of hospitality—a dual role that reinforces its everyday and ceremonial functions.

3. Demographic nuances

Gender divides are well-documented: women outpace men in wine preference by roughly ten percentage points [3]. Age intensifies the skew; Americans over fifty-five list wine as their top alcoholic beverage, while adults under thirty-five remain beer-dominant. Education and income also correlate positively with wine consumption, mirroring broader patterns of “premiumization” in food and drink culture.

4. Personal use within major Christian traditions

Religious affiliation modulates—but no longer dictates—drinking behavior. National panels do not break every denomination out separately, yet several large-scale surveys and denominational studies clarify broad trends.

• Catholic laity drink at rates that track the national average, a continuity rooted in Catholic cultural comfort with alcohol as part of festive life [3].

• Main-line Presbyterians resemble Methodists, among whom about 62 percent imbibe socially; temperance language lingers, but actual abstention is a minority stance [6].

• Conservative Reformed congregations (e.g., the Presbyterian Church in America) have witnessed a modest “return to wine” movement, and pastoral teaching now emphasizes moderation rather than prohibition [7].

• Broad evangelicalism is sharply divided. A Pew global survey of evangelical leaders recorded 52 percent who view alcohol use as incompatible with evangelical identity and 42 percent who consider it permissible [7]. Lifeway’s 2018 poll of U.S. Protestant church-goers echoed the split, finding 41 percent of attenders consume alcohol [6].

• Restoration Movement churches (predominantly Churches of Christ) retain the country’s strongest teetotal heritage. While systematic polling is sparse, informal Christian Chronicle surveys suggest adult drinking well below national norms, reflecting nineteenth-century temperance roots.

5. Synthesis

Survey evidence paints a portrait of high moral and social approval coupled with rising health caution. Wine’s role in celebration and relaxation remains robust, especially among older, educated, and female cohorts who routinely elevate week-night meals with a bottle on the table. Within religious communities, personal drinking patterns increasingly mirror broader cultural norms, though historic temperance traditions still exert downward pressure among evangelicals and Restorationists. Consequently, American attitudes toward wine in 2025 are best characterized not by outright rejection or unchecked enthusiasm, but by a nuanced negotiation between enjoyment, identity, and evolving public-health narratives.

References

[1] Gallup, “Drinking Habits in America,” Jul. 2023.
[2] Gallup, “Most in U.S. Say Consuming Alcohol, Marijuana Morally OK,” Gallup News, Jun. 6 2018.
[3] Pew Research Center, “10 Facts About Americans and Alcohol,” Jan. 3 2024.
[4] Financial Times / Gallup, “Americans’ Views of Alcohol Increasingly Negative,” Well-Being, Nov. 1 2024.
[5] Wine Market Council, “High-End Wine Consumer Study Press Release,” Dec. 2024.
[6] Lifeway Research, “Most Protestant Church-Goers Still Abstain When It Comes to Alcohol,” Nov. 27 2018.
[7] Pew Research Center, “Global Survey of Evangelical Protestant Leaders,” Jun. 22 2011