WASHINGTON — America is in love with rosé wine, and apparently in no place is that more true than in Washington, D.C.
Online wine marketplace Wine Access reports that D.C. consumers drink more rosé per capita than anywhere else in the country, consuming eight times more rosé than the state of California.
Martin Vigderhouse, whose Martin’s Wine and Spirits has been a Dupont Circle staple for almost 25 years, said he’s definitely seen an increase in rosé sales.
“The younger people seem to grab it first because everybody is bringing it to parties,” Vigderhouse told WTOP.
“I think it looks refreshing in the glass, and it’s a wonderful stand-alone thing. It’s not something you have to have with food because it is so light and crisp and clean and refreshing,” he said.
Price points for rosé run the gamut, but Vigderhouse said that younger buyers tend to gravitate to the lower-priced bottles, and older buyers to the higher-priced vintages.
Rosé is the fastest growing wine varietal in the United States, according to Wine Access. In 2015, one out of every 510 bottles sold on Wine Access was rosé. In 2017, it is now one out of every 36 bottles.
The Wine Access report also found that Americans are now drinking six times as much Pinot Noir and red blends as they were four years ago. And wine sales from what it calls “discovery regions” — Greece, South Africa, Chile, and Peru — have nearly doubled since 2015.
A preference for domestic versus imported wines varies widely by state.
Wine Access said 91 percent of the wine purchased in Alaska is domestically produced. In Delaware, 85 percent of wine purchased is imported.
