The trend of Dry January seemingly failed to smother Briton’s love affair with prosecco.
Sales of the Italian sparkling wine at discount supermarket Lidl surged a whopping 79 per cent in January compared to the same month last year, despite many people choosing to skip booze for the month in a traditional January detox.
Commenting on the latest sales stats, Paul Gibson, buying director for the UK at Lidl said: “Champagne and Prosecco might have once been saved for celebrations, but with our range starting at under £5 they’ve become a very affordable luxury."
A bottle of Prosecco currently retails for as little as £4.99 per bottle at Lidl.
Britain's growing thirst for prosecco and cava, its Spanish counterpart, has led to an 80 per cent rise in sparkling wine sales in the past five years, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) figures.
About 17.6 million gallons of sparkling wines were sold in the UK in the year to 2012, a figure that shot up to an estimated 31.6 million gallons last year, according to accountancy group UHY Hacker Young.
In May, London is set to host its first-ever prosecco festival.
From Friday 12 May to Sunday 14 May, prosecco producers from northern Italy will head to the capital for tasting masterclasses and other prosecco-themed activities.
