English wine sales climb 3%

WineGB’s latest industry report highlights the sector’s resilience, with sales of still wine ticking up by 10%, and sparkling wine maintaining last year’s volumes.

English wine sales jumped 3% in 2024 despite tough economic conditions, according to new data from WineGB.

In its latest industry report, the national association for the English and Welsh wine industry published updated figures on hectarage, production, sales and employment. 

Sales by volume climbed by 3% overall in 2024, and sales of sparkling wine maintained last year’s volumes, even given the reduction in sales within other premium sparkling wine categories last year, the research revealed.

Commenting on the data, WineGB CEO Nicola Bates said: “Our industry shows resilience and remains in a growth phase with planting and employment continuing to show an upward trend. 

“A 3% growth in sales is a notable achievement given the current economic climate, recent regulatory changes, and the fact that our producers continue to face considerable economic barriers not seen in mature markets.”

Call for government support

This also follows a swathe of challenging regulatory changes including increases in alcohol duty and National Insurance contributions, changes to Inheritance Tax, and the roll out of Extended Producer Responsibility fees. 

Meanwhile, sales of still wine increased by 10% in part due to higher production volumes achieved in 2023 resulting in more wine available for sale.  

It comes after the drinks business investigated England’s emerging status as a source of fine white wine, with vineyards like Jackson Family Wines paving the path for English Chardonnay.

In terms of sales channels, off-trade national accounts and the on-trade made up the largest share at just 26% apiece. 

Bates continued: “It is time that the government puts the necessary support into the most on-trend wine region so we can take advantage and really build the category, or we risk missing our chance.” 

74 new vineyards

The government could help grow the UK domestic wine sector through introducing Wine Tourism Relief, improving grants for kit, education, R&D and marketing; and protecting terminology, urged WineGB.

Cellar door sales saw a small decline for the second consecutive year, but overall direct-to-consumer sales, including producer’s online sales, accounted for 30% of the total. 

There was an increase in wine sold through independent retail (9% in 2024 vs. 6% in 2023) and also through exports (9% in 2024 vs. 8% in 2023). 

The report also revealed that vineyard numbers have increased by 74 to hit 1,104 with 25 newly registered wineries bringing the total to 238.

The area under vine has also expanded from 4,209 hectares to 4,841 hectares – shooting up by a growth rate of 510% since 2005.

Kent takes the crown

Kent still shines as the most planted county, accounting for almost double the area of the next vine-dense county of West Sussex.

Recent plantings have lifted Essex to third, leapfrogging both East Sussex and Hampshire. Dorset has also climbed to seventh, behind Surrey, with Gloucestershire, Devon and Suffolk making up the top 10.

This comes after prestigious Burgundy wine estate, Domaine Duroché, formed a joint venture with Danbury Ridge Wine Estate in Essex earlier this month.

The partnership emerged after Pierre Duroché, fifth-generation winemaker of the family-run Domaine tasted Danbury’s 2021 Pinot Noir. It left such an impression that he decided to collaborate on a “small batch cuvée”.

The top six grape varieties in England and Wales remain unchanged. Pinot Gris has risen to become the seventh most planted variety followed by Reichensteiner, Rondo and Pinot Blanc.

Chardonnay has increased its dominance, now constituting 33% of plantings (up from 31%), with Pinot Noir also increasing its share to 30%.

There are now 99 different grape varieties planted in the UK, including 37ha of Sauvignon Blanc, 8ha of Gamay, 4.5ha of Albariño, 3ha of Merlot and 2ha of Riesling. 

Low average yield

The last two years have seen the first plantings of Grenache, Nebbiolo, Marsanne, Savagnin, Tempranillo and Viognier in the UK, while varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Chenin Blanc, Gewürztraminer, Pinotage and Syrah can also be found growing in the UK, albeit in small volumes.  

With challenging conditions experienced across much of northern Europe, 2024 saw a reduction in total production. 

According to the Food Standards Agency Wine Team, there were more than 10.6 million bottles produced last year, higher than originally estimated due to more up-to-date active hectarage figures being used. 

While the average yield was the lowest since 2016 (21.3hl/ha), the uptick in overall vineyard area means that 2024 achieved the fourth highest production volume overall. 

The split between sparkling and still wine production (69% vs. 31%) was more in line with the long-term average. There was also a higher proportion of still rosé wine made in 2024, rising to 25% compared with 20% in 2023. 

Sales insight

WineGB analysis of sales channels split by producer size shows that larger producers continue to be less reliant on direct-to-consumer sales and are increasing the percentage of sales sold through trade and export. 

Conversely, medium and small producers rely more heavily on direct sales together with local on-trade and independent retail accounts.  

Finally, in 2024, full-time equivalent (FTE) positions within the industry now stand at 3,300, with roles in hospitality seeing the biggest rise due to continued investment in cellar door operations. 

According to the WineGB Industry Survey, 90% of respondents expect to increase their staffing by 2028 resulting in an overall 21% increase in FTE roles. 

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