Fortified 'hipsters’ kick-start sherry revival

Recently Majestic have seen a rise in sherry sales driven by younger audiences, particularly in urban areas, according Joe Aylmer, sherry buyer at Majestic Wines

Joe Aylmer Majestic Wines

Move over craft gin, craft ale and Negroni: a new drink of choice for Britain’s ‘hipsters’ has started a turnaround in the fortunes of one of UK’s overlooked tipples of recent years - Sherry.

Sales of Sherry in the UK halved between 2002 and 2010 but new figures from Majestic Wines now reveal that drier, premium styles are enticing new hipper audiences to the world of fortified wine that was once the preserve of Britain’s grandmas.

Majestic Wine has seen an astonishing sales increase of 46% in the category year to date, with premium sherries in the £10 - £15 range up a whopping 71%. And the most welcome revelation for fortified wine brands is that it’s a younger generation of aficionados that’s making the difference.

Premium sales of Sherry have been tipped to grow over 18% in the coming years, according to the IWSR, as the market catches up with the resurgence, but Majestic is keeping ahead of the curve by boosting its online range of fortified wines for next day delivery.

Good sherries are high quality, food-friendly wines that are tapping into the changing preferences of the generation that light the fuse under craft ales and craft gins. It’s no longer a social faux pas for hipsters for Sherry in tapas bars, as ingredients in cocktails or simply served ice-cold on a hot summer day or with tonic as a low ABV alternative to G&T. It’s a complete reinvention of the style.

Our best sellers include ultra-dry Manzanilla styles, Tio Pepe which, when mixed with mint, ice and soda water, makes a refreshing summer cocktail, and Amontillado served with tapas, manchego cheese or paella.

16 August 2017