Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.
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Sparkling Wine www.beveragedynamics.com ity is fully sparkling, or spumante, and is dry or slightly sweet. The bubbles are most often produced using the charmat method. One reason for Prosecco's immense popularity is price. Although there are expensive Proseccos, mainly from the hilly areas, most are in the $12-$14 range. Consumers, says Joanna Breslin, wine consultant for Binny's Beverage Depot in Glencoe, Ill., a Chicago suburb, "are buying tons of Prosecco." She adds that "$10-$14 is probably the sweet spot," and she singled out La Marca and Mionetto as brands that sell well in her store. La Marca, imported by Gallo, has experienced huge gains in the U.S. market; it's now the No. 1 Prosecco brand in the U.S., with sales up nearly 28 percent from 2013 to 2014, according to The Beverage Information & Insights Group. Richard Kranzmann, vice president and general manager of Gallo's Premium Business Unit, points to the introduction in 2014 of the 187ml "La Marca Minis" as being an important piece of the brand's success, because the small format encourages consumers to give the wine a try. "I think it is the quality-to-value ratio that Prosecco has to offer," says Melissa Devore, vice president of wine buying for national chain Total Wine & More. "Customers have come to know that in Prosecco, they can get a consistent prod- uct at affordable prices." She adds that volume is in the $10-$15 range. CAVA It's easy to fi nd a bottle of Cava for less than $15, even though this Spanish bub- bly is produced by the same traditional method as Champagne. That's one thing that all wine labeled as Cava has in com- mon. Beyond that, the rules can get con- fusing. Although Cava has denominacion de origen (D.O.) status, which usually LEADING BRANDS OF SPARKLING WINE, (9-LITER CASES) '13/'14 BRAND SUPPLIER 2013 2014 % CHANGE Andre/Wycliff E & J Gallo Winery 2,915 2,820 -3.3% Cook's Constellation Brands 1,755 1,855 5.7% Korbel Brown-Forman Beverages 1,284 1,323 3.0% Barefoot Bubbly E & J Gallo Winery 940 1,150 22.3% Verdi Spumante Carriage House Imports 1,135 1,122 -1.1% J. Roget Constellation Brands 706 777 10.1% Freixenet Freixenet USA 519 541 4.2% Martini & Rossi Asti Bacardi USA 505 518 2.6% Domaine Chandon Moet Hennessy USA 395 430 8.9% Cristalino Cava CIV USA 440 430 -2.3% Total Leading Brands 10,594 10,966 3.5% Others 6,886 7,214 4.8% Total Sparkling Wine 17,480 18,180 4.0% Source: Wine Handbook 2015. For more information, visit www.bevinfostore.com. Sparkling Wine the No. 1 Prosecco brand in the U.S., with sales up nearly 28 percent from 2013 to 2014, OTHER SPARKLERS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE Although Champagne, domestic bubbly, Prosecco and Cava are the major categories, sparkling wines are produced in many parts of the world. Italy, for one, has numerous sparkling appellations, in addition to Prosecco. Near Milan, Franciacorta produces sparkling wine in the tra- ditional method, known in Italian as metodo classico, using the classic Champagne grapes of chardonnay and pinot nero (noir). Metodo classico wines are also produced in Trento, north of Verona. Lambrusco, from near Modena, is a juicy pink bubbly that pairs well with rich foods. Although Lambrusco was made famous by the sweet Riunite, there are a number of dry, high-quality examples. Moscato – sweet and either lightly or fully sparkling – is produced in a lot of places in Italy, but the best versions are labeled Moscato d'Asti. The wines are generally low in alcohol, too, and can be very refreshing after a heavy holiday meal. France has a number of sparkling wines besides Champagne. Cremant d'Alsace (from Alsace) and Cremant de Bourgogne (Burgundy) can both offer tremendous value. The Loire Valley produces several types of bub- blies, most notably Saumur. Blanquette de Limoux hails from Languedoc, in southern France. English sparkling wine has seen a boom in recent years, although it's virtually non-existent in U.S. stores. Georgia, the former Soviet republic, has a fledgling sparkling wine industry, and the wines have started to appear in the U.S. Australia has developed a good reputation for sparkling wine. The Yarra Valley outside Melbourne is the Austra- lian outpost of Moet Hennessy. Bubbly from Tasmania is particularly good, and sparkling shiraz is gaining popularity in some quarters. 56 Beverage Dynamics • November/December 2015