Does the future belong to screw caps?

32,3%. That is the percentage of screw capped wine sold worldwide, up 2 points compared to 2019 according to the Aluminium Closures Group. If the group’s report mainly focuses on traditional European Market, Wine Business Monthly findings are similar for the U.S. market: today, 52% of US wineries use screw caps, an unprecedented number. In comparison, only 30 to 40% of them made this choice in the previous year.

Frédéric Catteau, a French expatriate in the US, Sales director for North America and former Plant Manager of Amcor American Canyon factory also noticed this trend: "When I arrived at Amcor Capsules in 2005, we barely produced 1 million units for the West Coast. Today, for the same market, we produce about 300 million closures each year."

In total, in 2021, nearly 7 billion bottles of still wines capped with screw caps were sold worldwide. (Euromonitor.) How can we explain this growth ? Let’s find out!

Aluminium Closures Group report on consumer preference

Screw caps: towards a change in perception?

This won’t come as a surprise for anyone: since its beginnings, screw cap has suffered from a negative image.

While it’s still there, this negative bias is not as present as it uses to. In fact, if you believe the last IPSOS poll on the subject, nearly 39% of wine consumers questioned in 5 European countries would even prefer screw caps to its cork counterpart! The preference is slight (39% for screw caps versus 37% for cork) yet historical, despite the disparities remaining between some markets.

The factors involved in this change are numerous.

First, the easing of the specifications of certain appellation explains some of these developments. Example? Since 2012, the Ministry of Agriculture of Italy authorizes some of the most prestigious DOC to use screw caps. Such changes help fighting against the persistent idea that screw cap wines are necessarily of poor quality.

Furthermore, and especially in the US, some brands played a pioneering role. According to Frédéric Catteau: "brands such as Sutter Home represents nearly 150 millions bottles, including 80 millions using screw caps." This growing visibility, coupled with the considerable amount of wine imported from New Zealand led to a certain normalization.

Additionally, as stated in the Aluminium Closures Group’s latest report, the practicality, ease of opening and portability of screw capped wines are increasingly appreciated by consumers who want to be able to taste their wines wherever they please, without skimping on product quality. This appetence is even stronger amongst consumers aged between 18 to 34, and particularly in the younger generation, encouraging producers to choose this solution.

However, if they want to keep on seducing consumers, screw caps still need to prove themselves in other areas such as sustainability.

Sustainability: a real challenge for the screw cap industry.

Sustainability is a growing concern for consumers looking for products aligned with their values.

Over the past years, the demand for organic, biodynamic and natural wines has exploded. This demand is joined by new beliefs: a sustainably produced wine tastes better.

How is this related to screw caps? Well, only 28,5% of the respondents to the Aluminium Closures Group report consider them to be an environmentally responsible product. Even more alarming: 37.5% are completely unaware of their sustainable properties.

Here, you might ask yourself: if the screw caps suffer from such bad press, when the demand for sustainable products is exploding, shouldn’t a real communication effort be made in order to educate consumers?

This commitment towards a greener industry is even more important for the younger generation. As this generation is already more incline than their elders to opt for a wine capped with screw caps, there is a real opportunity for wine makers here!

The future looks promising for screw caps, and 40,5% of the Aluminium Closures’ group panel respondents go even further: for them, screw caps will soon prevail over cork. Without going so far as to draw these conclusions, we can nonetheless be pleased about the growing acceptance of consumers and winegrowers, who from now on are more likely to choose the type of cap they want without having to worry about negative repercussions.