Suntory Wine International Ltd. will release a sour lemon sparkling wine on Tuesday. The company is expanding its lineup of summer wines amid an uptick of consumers drinking more alcohol at home as people have been refraining from going out.
According to Suntory, sales of over-the-counter wine for home consumption increased by 7% last year from the year before.
While Suntory usually releases two or three types of limited-release wine every summer, this year the company will release five summer flavors in order to target more consumers.
Mercian Corp. will be offering a limited-release lemon flavored sangria starting on June 29.
Sangria, which is made by putting fresh fruits in wine, is said to be popular with people in their 20s and 30s across the country who are newcomers to wine. Lemon, which is also popular in chuhai shochu highballs, is slated to be used more frequently in the wine market.
Wine consumption nationwide has been increasing steadily since 2012 when low-priced wines from Chile and other countries began garnering more market share.
Suntory's sales strategist said, "We would like to propose ways to drink wine for a variety of occasions."
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