Pushed in part by a 70% increase in sales of merlot, red wine sales in Australia continue to grow faster than white wine sales, especially as far as premium wine is concerned. Furthermore, Australians are proving more willing than ever before to pay more for their red wine. However the big disappointment for areas such as Griffith and the Hunter Valley is that semillon sales declined slightly against growth of 10% in riesling sales and 20% growth in sales of verdelho, chardonnay and chardonnay blends. Sparkling sales are growing in most states except SA and WA, while sales of fortifieds continue to decline. These figures are taken from the 1999 Liquorland/Vintage Cellars Market Insight Report and relate to the year ended September 1999.
