NEW YORK — The wine market is struggling.
While sparkling wine and rose have contributed to category growth in the past year in the United States, it was not enough to stem a volume decline in the category for the first time in more than 25 years, according to Carolyn Lemoine, director of alcohol research for Beverage Marketing Corp., New York.
Wine was down 0.5% by volume in 2019 (with a total of 369 million 9-liter cases), Lemoine said during Troy, Mich.-based Beverage Industry’s State of the Beverage Industry 2020 webinar, held April 1.
Dollar sales, however, grew by 1.5% in 2019 (bringing in $51 billion in retail sales), indicating that premiumization continues in wine because those who are drinking wine are trading up, she said.
Sparkling wine is the fastest-growing segment, although it's a small segment, Lemoine said. An expansion of packaging options, especially single-serve cans, are fueling the recruitment of wine drinkers across more occasions.
The overall decline in wine is attributed to the aging boomer population and millennials consuming less wine, plus the rise of alternative adult beverages, such as hard seltzer, Lemoine said.
“So more options for them to choose from just means fewer occasions they’re choosing wine,” she said.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.