Irish wine drinkers are changing their tastes, WineSpark research finds

Customer preference looks to be moving towards less common white wines, with Riesling up 56% and Albariño 33%

WineSpark, the premium Irish wine subscription service, has released its latest trends report and the results show that Irish tastes are expanding rapidly.

While the big five grapes – Tempranillo, Shiraz, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc – still have the biggest market share, they dropped by 21% (from 56% to 48%) in 2022 versus the year before.

Customer preference looks to be moving towards less common white wines, with Riesling up 56%, Albariño up 33%, and Verdejo up 29%. On the flip side, Chardonnay lost 36% of its market share over the last 12 months.

Fuller-bodied red wines including Cabernet Sauvignon (down 42%) and Malbec (down 28%) both saw a decrease in sales. Subscriber preferences now appear to be leaning towards lighter red wines such as Gamay and Mencía.

When it comes to countries, the big three still dominate with 66% of the market between them. France tops the list with 32% market share. Spain is at 25% and continues to grow. Italy is at 10%, with sales growing 33%. Other big movers included Germany (up 17%) and Chile which saw an increase of 21%.

Those opting to try something different were mainly positioned outside of Dublin. Longford, Leitrim and Monaghan were the most adventurous counties, as defined by the highest % of wines ordered outside of the top 5 grape varieties. Cavan is the Rosé Capital of Ireland, with subscribers drinking two and a half times more rosé than the rest of Ireland.

Connacht and Munster bought the most red wine, while Ulster bought the most white (43% of sales, versus 33% for the rest of Ireland).

Eamon FitzGerald, Founder at WineSpark said: “It’s really interesting to see how the Irish palate is evolving – it looks like people are continuing to embrace newer wine styles after two years of experimenting at home during the pandemic. We have a brilliant collection of talented winemakers making exciting wines outside of the traditional wine regions, so as this trend continues, I believe that WineSpark is well positioned to deliver what customers want over the next few years.”