Sparkling Wine Poised For Much-Needed Boost From Holiday Spending
December 28, 2020Facing fierce competition from spirits, seltzer and a struggling on-premise environment, the U.S. wine market is projected to advance at a modest pace this year, after being severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The projected gain will mark the wine category’s 27th consecutive annual volume increase, according to the 2020 edition of The U.S. Wine Market: Shanken’s Impact Databank Review & Forecast. Sparkling wine is expected to be the only major segment to increase the next five years, as the total wine industry’s 2025 volume is projected to be markedly lower than current levels, according to Impact Databank.
This year will mark the 12th consecutive annual gain for sparkling wines, which had suffered a temporary blow during the global financial crisis of 2008. As the U.S. economy remains sluggish, sparklers appear to still have considerable upside as they evolve from occasion-driven consumption into much broader usage. For the year-to-date period ending November 29th in IRI channels, sparkling wine dollars rose 28%, more than double those of table wine (+12.6%). Sparkling wines are expected to continue gaining favor with drinkers during the holidays, and remain one of the few bright spots driving wine industry growth.
Imports have been fueling sparkling wine’s growth for the better part of the past decade, driven by solid advances from Prosecco and Champagne. Last year, imported sparkling depletions rose 4.5% to nearly double their volume of just 10 years prior. In fact, import volumes overtook domestic sparkling wine last year for the first time ever, according to Impact Databank. Prosecco volumes in the U.S. have doubled the past five years, led by the La Marca and Mionetto brands. Gallo’s La Marca is expected to reach the 2-million-case mark by year-end, and become the largest-selling sparkling wine brand overall in the U.S. by volume.
Meanwhile, Champagne brands Veuve Clicquot and Moët & Chandon continue to lead all sparkling wines—import and domestic—in terms of retail value. Those two luxury-priced brands account for over 60% of the Champagne market’s volume in the U.S., according to Impact Databank. Among brands priced above $25 a 750-ml, Veuve Clicquot is the top overall wine brand in retail dollar terms. On the domestic side, the two largest-selling méthode champenoise brands—Korbel and Domaine Chandon—both increased share last year. To purchase The 2020 U.S. Wine Market: Impact Databank Review & Forecast, click here. —Juan Banaag
| Top 10 Sparkling Wine Brands In The U.S. Off-Premise, Year-to-Date (millions of dollars) |
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| Rank | Brand | Company | Origin | YTD Ending 12/1/19 | YTD Ending 11/29/20 | Percent Change2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | La Marca | E.&J. Gallo | Italy | $129.4 | $176.4 | 36.3% |
| 2 | Korbel | Brown-Forman | California | $95.7 | $113.3 | 18.4% |
| 3 | Cook’s | Constellation | California | $85.7 | $100.4 | 17.1% |
| 4 | Andre | E.&J. Gallo | California | $82.3 | $97.3 | 18.1% |
| 5 | Barefoot Bubbly | E.&J. Gallo | California | $77.0 | $86.1 | 11.8% |
| 6 | Stella Rosa | Riboli Family | Italy | $41.6 | $81.0 | 94.7% |
| 7 | Veuve Clicquot | Moët Hennessy | France | $43.3 | $57.5 | 32.9% |
| 8 | Cupcake | The Wine Group | Italy | $41.5 | $48.7 | 17.5% |
| 9 | Ruffino | Constellation | Italy | $43.0 | $48.2 | 12.0% |
| 10 | Domaine Chandon | Moët Hennessy | California | $36.0 | $45.2 | 25.6% |
| Total Top 10 | $675.5 | $854.1 | 26.4% | |||
| Other Brands | $451.9 | $588.9 | 30.3% | |||
| Total Sparkling Wine1 | $1,127.3 | $1,443.0 | 28.0% | |||
| 1 Addition of columns may not agree due to rounding 2 Based on unrounded data Source: IRI and IMPACT DATABANK © 2020 |
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Tagged : Impact Databank, sparkling wine, U.S. wine market
