Sparkling wine producers should be pleased: the increased willingness to spend among sparkling wine drinkers and the development of new markets will both increase future sales opportunities for sparkling wine without it needing to compete with other alcoholic drinks. This is the result of a worldwide survey on the sparkling wine sector in 17 markets – the data from which was published by the London market research institute TNS in August 2012.
This revealed that if demand from all champagne and sparkling wine fans were fully met, the proportion of sparkling wine on the alcohol market would rise from 5.1% to 7.8%. The most significant growth – a quadrupling of market share for sparkling wine – could be seen in India and China. However, from this perspective more mature markets like Great Britain and the USA could also double their market share to 9.1% or 6.5% respectively.
Cava Producers looks to Exports
Jan Hofmeyr, chief researcher in Behaviour Change at TNS, says: “Globally there is increasing wish to enjoy sparkling wine and champagne, although many people are still put off by the prices. The drink is also seen as a luxury for special occasions. The good news for sparkling wine producers is that consumers feel that sparkling wine tastes better and is more enjoyable than other alcoholic drinks. Thus, the study does not reveal that consumers will increase their alcohol consumption overall but that they will wish to drink sparkling wine more often.”
Spain's sparkling wine share (8.7%) is expected to decline – by 0.4%. However, experts believe this slight drop is unlikely to harm the export-oriented cava market in view of its worldwide growth. Dr Hans-Joachim Momm, managing director of Freixenet, will be presenting the cavas and wines of this Spanish company at ProWein 2013 in Düsseledorf. He says: “The increasing internationalisation of ProWein offers an attractive platform for the Freixenet group of companies to present their strength and variety to a wide international audience."
Germans’ predilection for ‘bubbly’ is no secret. Their per capita consumption in 2011 stood at 4.1 litres or five and a half bottles of sparkling wine per year – as reported by the German Wine Institute (Deutsche Weininstitut – DWI) on the basis of data from Germany’s Federal Statistical Office. With an estimated global sparkling wine market of a good two billion bottles a year, almost one bottle of sparkling wine in five is uncorked in Germany (22%). This puts Germany in pole position on the international stakes. TNS calculates the proportion of sparkling wine in Germany compared to related alcoholic drinks at 9.9% and the country’s growth forecast here stands at +1.9%.
Preference for rosé crosses Borders
Providing an even more comprehensive impression of the international sparkling wine market than the survey is a visit to ProWein 2013 itself. “ProWein in Düsseldorf is the most important trade fair for wine, sparkling wine and spirits. As a wine and sparkling wine producer with a 170-year tradition we use ProWein to present our range and innovations to the interested trade audience,” says Benedikt Zacherl, Press Spokesman of Austrian wine and sparkling wine producer Schlumberger. Showcasing themselves at ProWein in the sparkling wine segment will be a total of 330 exhibitors from 26 countries, including “exotic” nations of origin such as New Zealand and Chile. “While our focus does lie on non-sparkling wine,” says Manager Mauricio Garrido in charge of sparkling wine production at the Chilean winery Vina San Pedro Tarapaca, “we would also like to prove we can hold our own in the sparkling wine segment with reasonable value for money.”
