When people think of wineries and vineyards in South America, Chile and Argentina usually come to mind. In fact, according to statistics released by the Wine Institute in California, out of 63 wine-producing countries, Argentina and Chile were #5 and #6, respectively. While Argentina made 4.72% of the world’s wine in 2015, Chile made 4.54%.
Historically, Peru has not been a top producer or exporter of wine. In the same study by the Wine Institute of California, Peru was #33 of 63 wine-producing countries, making only .25% of the world’s wine. However, since this study was completed in 2015, wine consumption, production and exportation have increased drastically. According to ADEX, the office that oversees exports in Peru, between January and October of 2017, the exportation of Peruvian wine increased by 48%, reaching almost 1,000,000 USD. More than half of those exports were sent to the USA. The UK was second on the list, followed by Germany, Chile, Costa Rica, Japan, Canada, France and Switzerland. Peru’s largest wineries were responsible for this increase, among them being: Tacama (Tacama), Tabernero (Tabernero & Vittoria), Queirolo (Intipalka & Queirolo), Ocucaje (Ocucaje), Vista Alegre (Vista Alegre & Picasso).
Even more exciting, not only is production increasing, but so is the consumption of wine in Peru. A separate study conducted by the Wine Institute showed that demand for wine in Peru surged more than 17% from 2013 to 2015, one of the highest rates of all the countries on the list.
The parallel between both studies is positive for the entire wine industry here. Now that Peruvians are drinking more wine, they can look to the internal market to satisfy their needs. We hope to see more high-altitude, craft wineries like Apu throughout the Andes to help fulfill consumers' needs in Peru.
While we experience this rapid growth of demand and supply, both producers and discerning consumers should apply uncompromising criteria to protect the quality of all the wine produced in Peru. We believe that by investing the necessary time and resources, exports and demand will increase even more and Peruvian wine can become among the best in the world.
Sources:
Wine Institute https://www.wineinstitute.org/resources/statistics