The Bourbon Reflex: Why American Men Won't Order the Wine They Actually Want

Four guys at a steakhouse order bourbon, an old fashioned, and a beer — and the guy who actually wants the Barolo orders bourbon anyway.This week's essay is about that hesitation. Wine is five thousand years old and was never gendered anywhere — until, in about forty years, American culture quietly stamped it pink. Jon walks through the numbers (only ~16% of American men who drink prefer wine; in France and Italy men out-drink women on it), the three forces that did it — marketing, media, and the culture of expertise — and what it's costing everyone, including the women it supposedly belongs to. The fix isn't camo labels and rugged fonts. It's de-gendering wine entirely, and giving everyone permission to not know yet.New episodes Tuesday mornings.