America’s wine drinkers becoming more numerous, but more distracted by other categories

A really interesting bulletin from Wine Intelligence, the foremost analyst of worldwide wine trends - JH

America’s monthly wine drinking population has grown by approximately 10 million people over the past 2 years, according to market analysts at Wine Intelligence.

In the new edition of the Wine Intelligence USA Wine Market Landscape 2014 report, the company estimates that the number of American adults drinking wine at least once a month has risen to 91 million, an increase of 40% in the past five years.

The growth in population has also been accompanied by a growth in sales volumes, though these have increased at a less spectacular rate – volumes grew 17% in the US market between 2009 and 2013, according to the International Wine & Spirits Record.

Increasing numbers of under 35s – the “Millennial” generation - are becoming regular wine drinkers, while wine drinking is also on the increase among key minority groups such as Hispanic Americans.

The report points to some evidence of the disparity between population growth and volume growth, showing that newer consumers tend to regard wine as just one of a number of drinks they enjoy, among cocktails, standard beer, craft beer and hard cider. The craft beer revolution also seems to be loosening some of wine’s hold over existing drinkers: according to the report, 36% of America’s regular wine drinkers also drink craft beer.

Lulie Halstead, Chief Executive of Wine Intelligence, said: “The fortunes of the global wine industry are now closely linked to the US market, which remains the world’s largest, most active and showing robust growth in terms of wine drinking population.

"However the warning signs are there that other categories are not going to stand by and let wine steal the show. The consumer’s mind space is finite – as are their drinking occasions and budgets – and craft beers, ciders and cocktails are currently doing an excellent job. America remains the land of opportunity for the wine category, but there’s no room for complacency".

Report details:

Wine Intelligence USA Wine Market Landscape 2014 report is published by Wine Intelligence and available from the Wine Intelligence Reports Shop, priced at GBP 2,500 / USD 4,125 / EUR 3,000 / AUD 4,625 or 5 report credits. Further details about the report can be found here.