Wine becoming a "more infrequent beverage" according to market analysts
Wine is becoming a “more infrequent beverage” according to market analysts Wine Intelligence, resulting in falling consumption in the US and an oversupply in the market.
The number of US consumers drinking wine at least once a month had fallen by 11 million in four years.
Around one in three American adults (77 million) consumed wine at least once a month in 2019, down from 88 million in 2015. This reduction was particularly notable among consumers aged between 21 and 34. These so-called millennials accounted for 29 million regular wine drinkers in 2015, compared to 21.5 million in 2019.
Younger consumers, are, however, spending more on wine, with Wine Intelligence reporting that are "more highly involved, adventurous and higher spending wine drinkers than more mature consumers". They spend more than older consumers across "the majority of both on- and off-trade premise occasions", the report noted.
Another trend noted by Wine Intelligence was the fact that more peoplewere drinking wine, they just weren't doing it as often, with the total number of wine drinkers hitting a record high of 118 million last year, up by 8 million on 2015.The proportion of those drinking wine at least twice per week has fallen consistently since 2015, but until 2019, the number of consumers drinking wine monthly had stayed fairly static.
"US wine consumer has fuelled an unprecedented growth story for wine in the 21st century,” said Wine Intelligence’s CEO Lulie Halstead. “The data we are seeing now suggests that this picture is starting to change for the next generation of wine drinkers. Success in the US wine market in the coming decade will be measured by how well wine adapts to the new reality of growing health consciousness and a more proliferated beverage choice."