Spike in online searches for English wine

By Lisa Riley

Published: 10 June, 2020

Online searches for English wine boomed as the UK headed into lockdown, according to new research.

A significant spike in searches for homegrown wine was recorded in March, both on the night it was announced that pubs and bars must close, and a week later into the lockdown, according to an industry insights report by London digital marketing agency, Semetrical.

With many feeling a restored sense of patriotism, the report suggests that Brits may be turning to English wine to get the through the pandemic.

“It’s too early to say whether this will be a consistent trend throughout, but it might be a good idea for supermarkets to stock up just in case,” said Benjamin Beckwith, head of SEO, Semetrical.

The report also analysed keyword search volume for origin-specific wine terms to determine which country’s wine is most sought after by Brits, with Italian and French wines coming out as the most searched for countries respectively.

Notably, searches for English sparkling wine are on par with Spanish wine, highlighting the surge in the category’s popularity.

In terms of varieties, the most searched for are Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio although lesser-known grapes, including Viognier and Tempranillo, also generate “thousands of average searched per month”.

The report also noted an increase in searches for specific wine features, such as vegan wine and vegetarian wine, with a steady increase in searches for vegan wine over the past five years, suggesting this is a trend that is here to stay.

In terms of retailers, the largest number of keywords searched are Majestic, followed by Waitrose Cellar and Virgin Wines.

Out of the major supermarkets, the two top contenders in the wine category are Aldi and Tesco, while the main Waitrose domain also performs well, highlighting the retailers overall dominance in this space.

At the end of May, Semetrical revealed ‘wine online’ searches had jumped by over 1000%.

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