Georgian wine sales rocket in US market
Georgian wines have experienced dramatic growth in the US market, with sales surging by an average of 54% over the past three years.
The US is now the 10th largest export market for Georgian wines, an 88% year on year increase. This growth can be largely attributed to three key factors, according to Julie Peterson, Managing Partner of Washington DC-based Marq Wine Group, which has been leading strategy for the region over the last four years.
“Wine professionals have discovered Georgia’s indigenous varietals, which reflect a deep sense of place,” she told Wine Business. “There is also a growing interest in low-intervention wines, and as Georgians have continually produced wines using natural, ancient methods for 8,000 years, they stand at the epicentre of this practice. Finally, the ‘amber’ or skin contact wine category, which emerged a few years ago, continues to build exponentially.”
Today, there are more than 100,000 registered wineries in Georgia, as well as 500 registered wine companies. There are 525 grape varieties currently recorded, with 45 in current commercial production. Fifty-thousand hectares are planted to vine across ten official wine regions.