The canned wine category has gone from zero to hero in Australia – it’s predicted to hit $30million in sales in the next three years.
Canned wine sales are currently around $7million, with Treasury Wine Estates among those leading in the category.
“The combination of convenience, the smaller format, sustainability and ability to take can wine to events and areas where glass is prohibited has contributed to its growth,” TWE’s George Samios told the West Australian.
“And our research shows that it is not just the younger people who might have been in the RTD, cider or spirits sector, but older people who also seem to be attracted to the format and the styles of wines.”
He said the group was so confident about the future of the category that it had several other canned wines in the pipeline for release.
Meanwhile, BWS wine category manager Nitin Arora told Good Food that canned wine is one of its fastest-growing categories in Australia.
“Our customers tell us canned wine is perfect for barbecues, picnics and outdoor events because the products are lighter to carry.”
Meanwhile, the Sparkke Change Beverage Company has spent the past two years ago shaking up the brewing and wine scene with its socially conscious canned alcohol, which includes messages such as “Say I do” (in support of marriage equality) on its sparkling white wine, with 10% of the direct sales from each drink goes to a charity associated with the cause that beverage promotes.
Elton John was so impressed with the brand he made it the official bubbles for his last Aussie concert tour, snapping up 6500 cans for fans in Queensland.
US embraces wine in a can
Last year, canned wine sales jumped 69% to more than $69 million in the United States, totalling 739,000 cases in retail outlets tracked by Nielsen.
That’s up from $42 million in the previous year and less than $10 million three years earlier.
Wine in cans accounted for $70 million in retail sales in the United States over the year ending in March.
“Canned wines continue to grow at phenomenal levels, even accelerating into the most current periods,” Danny Brager, senior vice president at Nielsen, told the New York Times.
Sales of canned wine have also been increasing in the UK, rising by 263% during the past three years according to figures from Nielsen.
And the quality is going up too.
In recent official Wine Spectator blind tastings, more than a dozen wines scored very good, or 85-89 points on Wine Spectator’s 100-point scale.
