Bubble bursts for sparkling wine as sales fall for first time in decade
Sparkling wine sales have fallen for the first time in a decade as young people choose more "Instagrammable" rum and gin cocktails, official figures show.
While sparkling wine, particularly Prosecco, has enjoyed a boom over the last ten years, it is now facing a decline according to the Wine and Spirits Trade Association (WSTA) Market Report, which will be published next week.
Still wine has been in decline for a decade, but growers enjoyed rising profits from fizz, as sales rose year on year, until this year. Sparkling wine sales went down for the first time by 3 per cent in the last 12 months.
The price of wine has gone up by up to 7 per cent in the past year, and the WSTA said this could be partly to blame for the drop in sales.
From 2015 to 2019 , wine sales have seen a -24.5 per cent drop in volume, and an -8.0 per cent drop in value.
Spanish wine has become 7 per cent more expensive over the last 12 months, and the price of Italian wine has gone up by 6 per cent. Wine from France and the US has gone up in price by 3 per cent, while South African wine is 5 per cent more expensive.
A spokesperson from the WSTA said: "There’s definitely a thing around the price of wine.
"The ginaissance is also a factor. It has led to a resurgence in the spirits category.
"A greater number of younger people are enjoying gins, pink and flavoured gins and now moving on to exploring rums.
"We are seeing that drinks like this are more instagramable which is a factor that has helped growth."
The wine industry has blamed the government for refusing to cut duty on wine for 35 years, making it more costly and causing drinkers to choose other beverages.
Miles Beale, Chief Executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, said: “The UK market offers a wide variety of wines from across the globe as British consumers have shown they are more adventurous than consumers in many other European countries. Although Moreover, while UK consumers are drinking less, they are prepared to spend more on higher quality products.
"Another contributing factor for the decline in still wine sales is the rising cost of wine. Wine drinkers haven’t enjoyed a cut in duty for 35 years, since Nigel Lawson was Chancellor and only then because he was forced into it by the Courts. Wine was singled out for a duty rise at the last Budget which, on top of the weakening of the pound, has contributed to a further hike in wine prices.
"This is why the WSTA is calling for a cut to wine excise duty at the Budget to help revitalise the industry, encourage investment and bring a boost to the economy."
