USA still work in progress for European sparkling wine

Published: 06 September, 2010

The sparkling wine market in the USA is still a "work in progress" for European producers, according to a report by Wine Intelligence.

Cava and Prosecco may be growing in popularity in the UK and Europe, but Wine Intelligence's US sparkling report shows that Champagne still leads the category, despite consumers becoming more frugal.

Awareness among US sparkling wine drinkers is near-universal; penetration (usage within the past 6 months) is over 75%. Dom Perignon is the best-known Marque while LVMH stable-mate Moët & Chandon is the most-consumed brand.

Beyond Champagne, US consumers drink a mix of domestic and imported sparklers, with brands such as Korbel and Yellow Tail sparkling prominent, while Freixenet leads the Cava charge.

The preferred sparkling brand for US consumers is Martini Asti.

Brian Howard, Wine Intelligence's business development director, said: "More involved American consumers have clearly demonstrated over the past few years their desire to broaden their knowledge and seek out distinctive tastes and styles that go beyond the established norms.

"We believe this will cause a significant expansion of the sparkling category in the US in the next few years, so long as producers play their cards right."

Wine Intelligence said research showed that sparkling brands need to push buyers to drink Champagne outside of celebrations, create more reasons for retailers to broaden their sparkling range and clarify the features of each source country or region.

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