Sales of California wine increased approximately three percent in the American market, with an estimated retail value of $35.2 billion in 2017. Domestic shipments also increased by one percent as California wineries shipped 241 million nine-liter cases in 2017, representing 60 percent of the entire wine market in the U.S. In the overall global market, including the U.S., wine shipments totaled 278 million cases.
“Consumers in the U.S. and worldwide continue to trade up to higher-priced premium wines,” Wine Institute President and CEO Robert P. (Bobby) Koch said in press release. “The quality, selection, and commitment to sustainability make California wines well-positioned for growth.”
The overall U.S. market for wine grew by one percent, with 403.4 million cases being shipping in 2017. The estimated retail value of those shipments increased by two percent to $62.2 billion. Since 2010, America has been the largest wine market by volume. Sales of California wine to the U.S. market has grown by approximately 15 percent over the past ten years.
Shifting trends in demographics are a considerable factor in wine sales. As wine sales have grown in relation to the population of legal aged consumers, it has helped compensate for flat per capita consumption. For ten years individual consumption has not shown much movement, but the legal drinking age population has grown by ten percent which is one of the reasons sales of California wine increased.
Over 90 percent of all U.S. wine exports come from California and resulted in more than $1.5 bill in winery revenues in 2017, with over 42 million cases being exported. The European Union, which is comprised of 28 counties, was the biggest market for American wine exports which were valued at $533 million. Canada was the second largest export market valued at $444 million, followed by Hong Kong at $119 million and Japan at $94 million.