(KoreaTimes) - The popularity of wine has gained momentum with sales growth at large retail stores dominating those of other alcoholic beverages, including beer and traditional drinks for the first four months of the year.

This indicates increasing demand for a diverse range of imported wines and decreasing preference for traditional Korean alcohol.

According to the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), imports of foreign wines totaled 11,152 tons between January and April, up 30.2 percent from 8,567 tons a year ago.

Emart said its wine sales grew 13.8 percent during the Jan-April period, compared with 8.5 percent for soju and 6.2 percent for beer. Sales of traditional makgeoli fell by 7.5 percent.

Lotte Mart also said that its total sales of imported wines increased 3.5 percent in May on a year-on-year basis.

 “The rising consumption of imported wine shows the consumers are becoming more sophisticated in selecting their alcohol beverages. Selecting and drinking wine indicates an upper-class culture; showing one’s knowledge of wines indicates one’s social status,” said Kim Na-kyung, an analyst at LG Economic Research Institute.