Meet the American Association of Wine Economists (Not a Joke)

What’s that, you say? A strong nose of utility, a nice sharp yield curve, and a racy finish with just a touch of … is it, is it — yes: understated liquidity.

The newly founded American Association of Wine Economists has a 5-member board of directors (I’m disappointed and surprised to not find Richard Thaler among them) and an academic journal, The Journal of Wine Economics.

The AAWE’s mission statement, as expressed in the journal’s lead editorial: “The JWE is meant to provide a focused outlet for high-quality, peer-reviwed 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.”

Among the articles in the first issue: “Measurement and Inference in Wine Tasting,” by Richard E. Quandt, and “Assessing the Effect of Information on the Reservation Price for Champagne: What Are Consumers Actually Paying For?” by Pierre Combris, Christine Lange, and Sylvie Issanchou.

Sounds good, but I think I will wait for the Beer Journal.