Alcohol Industry: Wine

The Wineries industry consists of companies engaged in at least one component of the winemaking process. This process includes growing and harvesting grapes, crushing and pressing grapes into unfermented wine and fermenting the wine. The industry also produces wine blends, brandies and wines made from other fruit sources.

This dossier provides statistical information about the U.S. wine market. It offers key information on wine regarding production, retail, consumption, trade, and shopping behavior.

Wine, one of the oldest products enjoyed by humankind, has been a part of civilization dating back to before the Bronze Age. In the United States, however, the passage of the Prohibition Act of 1919, also known as the Volstead Act, nearly destroyed the industry. While a few wineries survived by making medicinal and sacramental wines, production dropped 94 percent between 1919 and 1925. Even after the repeal of Prohibition, recovery of the industry was slow. Before 1920 there were more than 2,500 commercial wineries in the United States. Fewer than 100 survived Prohibition, and by 1960, the number of commercial wineries had grown to only 271.

This category includes establishments primarily engaged in the wholesale distribution of distilled spirits, including neutral spirits and ethyl alcohol used in blended wines and distilled liquor. The product range includes bottled wines and spirits, brandy and brandy spirits, cocktails, liquors, wine coolers, and wines.