Record California and United States wine sales reported

Wine sales in the United States, including California vintages, reached a record high last year, jumping 2% compared with 2011.

Sales totaled 360.1 million cases with an estimated retail value of $34.6 billion, according to the Wine Institute, a San Francisco trade group.

Sales of California wines accounted for 58% of the U.S. business. The Golden State shipped 250.2 million 9-liter cases, worth $22 billion, to U.S. and foreign customers.

“The U.S. is the largest wine market in the world, with 19 consecutive years of volume growth,” Wine Institute President Robert P. Koch said.

U.S. wine exports in 2012 hit $1.43 billion, up 2.6% from the previous year. Ninety percent of U.S. exports came from California. The top destinations were the European Union, Canada and Hong Kong.

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