Lotte Mart and Super said on the 13th that they have newly introduced TASTY Premium, the upper line of their private-label wine series TASTY.
TASTY is a wine popularization project that Lotte Mart and Super began in December 2023. It features representative varieties from major wine regions around the world at relatively affordable prices, while listing product information such as taste and characteristics in Korean on the label so that wine beginners can easily choose a product.
Since launch, it has continually broadened regions and price ranges. Starting in California in the United States, it expanded to Marlborough in New Zealand and Burgundy in France, and added TASTY Simple, an ultra-low-price product under 5,000 won, as well as large-format items. There are currently 18 TASTY products on sale.
The product expansion also led to higher sales. As of June this year, cumulative sales of the TASTY series topped 400,000 bottles. First-half sales this year rose about 175% from the same period last year.
Based on this growth, Lotte Mart and Super decided to expand their existing value-for-money product strategy to renowned wine regions. Launched in early this month, TASTY Premium was planned with the goal of selling wines from relatively higher-priced regions at reasonable prices.
They chose Napa Valley in the United States as the first region. TASTY Premium Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (750ml) is 34,900 won, and TASTY Premium Napa Valley Chardonnay (750ml) is 32,900 won. It is sold at all Lotte Mart and Bottle Bunker stores and at Lotte Super Grand Grocery Dogok.
Lotte Mart and Super said they lowered prices by integrating procurement of alcoholic beverages for the mart and the super. They combined purchasing volumes to achieve economies of scale, while a liquor merchandise manager (MD) directly coordinated with local wineries from the product development stage to reduce expense incurred in the import and distribution process.
The Cabernet Sauvignon emphasizes fruit flavors and a full body, and the Chardonnay highlights a smooth texture and balanced acidity. Ahead of Chuseok, Lotte Mart and Super will also offer the two products as gift sets. They will also roll out gift sets featuring existing TASTY products such as Burgundy and Mont-Perat.
Park Hye-jin, Head of Team at Bottle Bunker, said, "TASTY Premium is a line planned to go beyond popular daily wines and let people experience wines from renowned regions—previously with a high price barrier—in everyday life without burden," adding, "Under TASTY's direction of wine popularization, we will continue to introduce a variety of products to make wine a more familiar everyday beverage."