Prosecco taking off with NZ drinkers
AUCKLAND: Sparkling white wine is fast becoming the drink of choice for New Zealanders.
Sales of prosecco, a longtime favourite with Brits and Europeans alike, have increased by more than 40% in this country over the past year, according to Nielsen.
It is believed New Zealand is still 12 to 24 months away from consumption levels reaching the heights of those in the United Kingdom.
Philip Gregan, chief executive of New Zealand Winegrowers, said New Zealand was following suit in strong international consumption trends and more local winemakers were looking to develop their own version of prosecco.
The style of wine was attractive to consumers as it was light and fresh, and an alternative to more expensive champagne, Mr Gregan said.
‘‘Internationally prosecco has taken off very strongly, it’s a very big part of the sparkling wine market now in a number of countries, and it’s a significant component to the market.’’
Nielsen figures show sales of sparkling wines have grown more than 10% over the corresponding period last year, and prosecco sales have skyrocketed by more than 40%.
Tim Lightbourne, cofounder and director of Waikatobased Invivo Wines, which produces its own prosecco in collaboration with Irish television personality Graham Norton, said the local awareness and consumption of prosecco had increased significantly in the past year.
Invivo started working on its prosecco with Norton about three years ago and trialled about 10 different styles of sparkling white wine, before settling on a ‘‘dry style’’.
The drink first hit local shelves in 2018.
But in the past 12 months, sales of the Invivo Graham Norton’s Own Prosecco have increased by more than 200% in New Zealand alone. It is the topselling prosecco in Ireland and is also sold in the UK, Japan and some parts of Europe.
Overall sales in the past six months since Covid19 forced much of the world into lockdown have increased by 80%, Mr Lightbourne said.
Its prosecco has just won a gold medal at the New World Wine Awards.
Mr Lightbourne said this style of wine was having a bit of a moment.
‘‘In terms of consumption and people’s perception of prosecco, there’s still a way to go to see what we’re seeing in the UK and Ireland, but it’s getting there really fast.
‘‘Prosecco as a style is easy to drink, it’s affordable quality and the alcohol [quantity] is slightly lower.’’
This is the third time Invivo has won a gold medal at the New World Wine Awards since its inception in 2008. Last year its Invivo x Sarah Jessica Parker sauvignon blanc won gold.
The Graham Nortonbranded prosecco is the only prosecco Invivo makes, but Mr Lightbourne said it would be looking at the possibility of developing another.
This year is the first year a prosecco has won a Top 50 gold award at the New World Wine
Awards, the 18th year the blindtaste test competition has been conducted.
Entries into the sparkling category were up more than 30% to more than 100 wines this year — a good indicator of growing consumer demand, Jim Harre, New World Wine Awards chair of judges, said.
‘‘[This year] was a stunning year for overall quality, but the judges were delighted over the range and excellence in the sparkling class in particular,’’ Mr Harre said.
This year’’s Top 50 includes six sparkling winners, four New
Zealandmade wines and two Italian Prosecco: Lindauer Vintage Series Brut Cuvee 2017 (Champion sparkling wine), Lindauer Vintage Series Rose 2017, Morton Estate Brut, Verde Brut, Cinzano Prosecco D.O.C. and Graham Norton’s Own Prosecco.
Mr Harre said the fact that prosecco had made the top 50 list this year signalled that the wine was about to sweep New Zealand.
He put the shift towards sparkling down to a change in the way consumers chose to pair wines and occasions.
‘‘A few decades ago, we may have only had a sparkling wine during a wedding toast, and it would have been from overseas. Today however, it is no longer reserved only for those big events.’’
Foodstuffs South Island senior category manager Jeni Harper said the sparkling wine category had significantly evolved in New Zealand over the past three to four decades.
‘‘It’s really the last decade or so that we’ve noticed this steady rise in sparkling wine sales, but 2020 is shaping up to be a particularly big year for prosecco,’’ she said. —The New Zealand Herald