Consumption of wine in Sweden, Norway and Finland is up, the market research agency has found in its Nordics Landscape report, but particularly for Italian wine, sales of which are partly driven by a trend towards Prosecco.
In Sweden Italian wines have leapfrogged Spanish and French wines to become the most popular choices with regular wine drinkers, while in Norway and Finland Italian wine was already consumers’ first choice, the report said.
Wine Intelligence said that Italy is the only top-five country of origin to increase in popularity over the last two years in the region.
Prosecco has had a major impact, with the proportion of people drinking the sparkling wine rising 45% in Finland, 70% in Norway and 54% in Sweden since 2011.
Meanwhile Sauvignon Blanc is becoming increasingly popular with consumers and in all three markets is closing the gap on Chardonnay, “which has experienced a decline in its fortunes in Norway and Sweden”, said Wine Intelligence.
In more general terms, a downturn in wine sales in the Nordic region is not anticipated but the company warns that growth should not be taken for granted by the wine industry.
Richard Halstead, chief operating officer of Wine Intelligence said: “Norwegians may be drinking more wine, but they seem less adventurous in their choices and more unsure of their wine knowledge than they used to be."
“The Swedes are also less confident about their wine know-how, and in many cases are also finding wine more expensive".
