13 August, 2013

By VIVA Team

Roll out the barrell: Brits have fallen in love with Rioja

First it was the sunshine, then the beaches, then the fact that you could get a gut-busting all-day English breakfast at nearly every resort along the country’s Mediterranean coast.

Lately, it’s been the excellent infrastructure, property, healthcare and education that has attracted Brits to Spain in their droves. And finally, it seems that Brits are learning to appreciate some of the country’s more traditional and authentic attractions – not least its excellent wine.

Figures released by Rioja’s DOC’s wine quality regulation agency show that UK consumers bought 14.8 million litres of Spanish Rioja during the first half of 2013 – an increase of 4.58 per cent on 2012 and more than any other foreign nation…

Overall, exports of this excellent Spanish wine were up by 7.74 per cent for the first six months of the year, with 47.7 million litres of wine sold overseas. After the Brits, the Germans were the second-largest group of consumers, snaffling 8.6 million litres (down by 0.56 per cent on last year), followed by American consumers, whose five million litres represented a massive 20.23 per cent increase on 2012.

Unsurprisingly, French consumers continue to shun Spanish wine in favour of their own, but Rioja’s wine producers have nothing to fear: domestic demand remains robust despite the recession, with 91.8 million litres of Rioja consumed by Spaniards in the first half of the year – an encouraging 2.75 per cent increase on last year.

The best-selling wines were non-vintage or young wines (64.4 million litres sold), which suggests that a greater number of younger wine drinkers are now discovering the delights of this excellent produce. Young wines tend to be cheaper and have a less complex palate, making them a great introduction to the world of Spanish wine.

Prices, however, have increased slightly. The average price per litre for exported Spanish wine stands at €4.10 – up from €3.97 last year.