(Wines&Vines) - In 2014, California wine producers shipped out 225 million cases worth nearly $25 billion, yet could the state’s wine industry actually need a little marketing help?

California wine sales are growing in the $10 and higher price segments, but the picture is not so rosy for manufacturers of lower priced bottles.

A strengthening dollar, young consumers who are constantly on the lookout for something new and exotic, and foreign wineries with ambitious plans to expand sales in the United States are some of the exterior challenges for the state’s wine industry.

For decades, affordable California appellation wine has been the entry point for millions of consumers across the nation. Recently, however, sales for wines priced less than $10 per bottle have not grown as fast as higher priced wines. Prices for grapes in the San Joaquin Valley have fallen in the wake of record harvests and diminished winery demand.

Earlier this year, a Wines Vines Analytics report about the off-premise market found that the wines priced higher than $20 per bottle grew more than 15%, while those priced $8 to $10.99 grew by around 6%, and sales for wines less than $8 all declined, according to data provided by the market-research firm IRI. Wines priced $5 to $10.99 still account for more than half of the nearly $8 billion off-premise market, but the trend of slowing sales is clear.

The notable exception to this trend is E. & J. Gallo Winery’s Barefoot brand, which is number one in U.S. off-premise sales, according to IRI. Barefoot’s sales totaled $622 million in 52-weeks through June and enjoyed a 7% sales volume increase during that period despite its $5.64 average price per 750ml bottle decreasing by almost a dime.

Growers seek answers

It’s a challenging—or perhaps transformative—time for the interior grapegrowing regions of the state, where farmers are pulling vines in favor of planting highly profitable nut trees (provided they have the water to support them).

At the recent summer conference of the California Association of Winegrape Growers, the challenges posed by changing international market and domestic demand were discussed in detail.

“Right now there’s a lack of leadership in the wine industry. I think it’s that simple,” said Rob McMillan, executive vice president and founder of Silicon Valley Bank’s wine division and one of the speakers on a panel about building the market for California wines. “There’s local, regional focus, but the California brand needs to be built up.…No one is jumping up to say they can do that.”