U.S. Wine Market Growth Continues, But Not Fueled by Biggest Brands

Consumers are drinking more wine yet shifting their preferences, reaching for brands that produce less than 1 million cases

Posted: September 12, 2006

Americans are drinking more wine than ever these days, and they seem to be altering their preferences. Brands selling fewer than 1 million 9-liter cases led U.S. market growth last year, according to the upcoming 2006 edition of The U.S. Wine Market: Impact Databank Review and Forecast, to be released later this month. This breaks a streak of three straight years in which the largest, mass-market wines have led U.S. market growth. In addition, total wine consumption set another all-time high in 2005, after a 3.3 percent rise, to 279 million cases.

Brands selling fewer than 1 million cases grew at twice that rate, gaining 6.7 percent last year to a combined 110 million cases. Smaller production wines are again expected to drive industry growth in 2006, as the top 50 brands, all selling more than 1 million cases, are projected to inch ahead less than .5 percent, while the total market is forecast to advance another 3 percent to 288 million cases. Brands beyond the top 50 are expected to combine for a more impressive 8 percent gain.

Twenty-eight brands sold more than 2 million cases each in 2005, combining for a modest 1 percent increase, and accounting for nearly half of total wine consumption. Excluding three fast-growing brands (Yellow Tail, Cavit and Foxhorn Vineyards), however, the 25 other labels combined for a .5 percent loss in volume last year, according to Impact Databank, which is owned by M. Shanken Communications, the parent company of Wine Spectator.

While overall market growth has slowed down somewhat since the beginning of the decade, wine has, on average, outperformed its beer and distilled-spirit counterparts for more than 50 years. In 2005, Americans consumed nearly 17 billion servings of wine, a five-fold increase since 1950. Wine accounted for 14 percent of U.S. alcoholic beverage servings last year, disproportionately higher than its 9 percent share of total case sales, according to the 600-page report.

The annual U.S. Wine Market analyzes the latest trends in the wine industry. Containing more than 400 tables, graphs and maps, this expanded edition consists of results through 2005, the first look at brand forecasts for 2006, projections by origin and category through 2015, and comprehensive charts of varietal and generic wine trends by color and type. The study also provides volume data for 500 brands since 1980, rankings of the top 100 wine brands, the top 25 marketers and much, much more.

For more information about The U.S. Wine Market, priced at $895, and other Impact Databank reports on beer, distilled spirits and the global drinks market, contact Elisa Trapani at M. Shanken Communications, 387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016; by phone at (212) 684-4224, ext. 339; by fax at (212) 779-3366; or by e-mail at etrapani@mshanken.com. For a comprehensive table of contents and a detailed listing of tables and charts, or to print an order form, click here.