Following is the latest news on the Spanish wine front (data from Wines From Spain):
Exports up in early 2010
Spain began the year (through January 2010) with a 10.7% increase in volume and a 4.1% increase in value over the same time last year (January 2009). This increase was primarily due to a significant increase in non-DO bottled wines which realized an increase 38% by volume and 31% by value (DO and sparkling wines actually saw an overall decrease of around 10% in both volume and value). The top three importing countries showing increases were Germany (8.9%), the UK (14.9%), and the US (18.8%). A solution? Drink more Spanish wine!
Cava finally beats Champagne!
Cava was the #1 exported sparkling wine in 2009, beating Champagne for the first time ever! Last year 219 million bottles were sold (88 million in the Spanish market). Although this was a drop from the previous year (of 5.5%) it was more than enough to surpass Champagne which saw a 20.45% decrease to 112 million bottles. In overall production, Champagne is still number one with 293.3 bottles produced (181 million sold domestically) with Cava holding an overall production of 219 million bottles (88 million sold domestically). A solution? Drink more Cava!
Rias Baixas exports up in 2009
Although a small increase (1%) Rias Baixas posted gains in 2009 even though they realized a decrease in sales in 2008. The primary importing countries were again the US, the UK, and Germany. The US is the number one destination for DO Rias Baixas wines tallying a staggering 53.45% of total sales (up 3.4% from 2008). Other noteworthy markets included Switzerland, Mexico, Holland, Sweden, Belgium, Norway, and Canada. A solution? Drink more Albariño!
Bierzo realizes gain in 2009
DO Bierzo realized its first million-bottle export year in 2009 which showed an impressive 16.58% increase from 2008. More than 25% of the wines shipped from this region are sent to the US market. 95% of the exported wines from Bierzo are red wines made from the local varietal, Mencía, with the remaining sales coming from white wines (Godello varietal) and rosé wines. A solution? Drink more Mencía!
As you can tell, I am an advocate of drinking more Spanish wine. Enjoy!
PDF 
good read, thanks for posting