Americans are drinking more wine than ever before, reports John Mariani quoting a new study by the Wine Market Council on Bloomberg.com.

The growth has been dramatic, from 177 million nine-litre cases of wine in 1996 to 205 million in 2000 and 249 million last year. Add sparkling wines, sherries and ports, and the figure hits 300 million, with a retail value of $25 billion.

The Wine Market Council reports says that the recent gains have been as a result of: News stories about how moderate wine consumption can be a positive in terms of health; changes in consumer attitudes towards the issue of occasion appropriateness; a strong US economy; rising disposable incomes; and branded advertising.

The US consumed 233 million cases in 2003, more than Argentina (134 million), the UK (119 million) and Spain (112 million), and just behind Germany (240 million). But it has a lot of drinking to do to catch up with Italy (295 million) and France (323 million), even though those countries' total consumption has dropped for years.

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( Hyperlink: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000088&sid=aEIM17qbarV8&refer=culture