(PD) - Wine sales increased in the United States last year as California premium wineries continued to display strength even though everyday wine struggled amid growing competition from craft beer, cider and distilled spirits, a key analyst said Tuesday.

Overall, wine shipments into the United States, including imports, rose 1 percent to 375 million cases in 2014, said Jon Fredrikson, president of the Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates, which conducted the survey. But California wineries outperformed the market, increasing shipments 4 percent to 224 million cases, he said.

Fredrickson said the industry is facing “a tale of two markets.” While sales of wines priced at $10 a bottle and above are continuing to grow, wines priced at $9 a bottle or less have been declining since late 2011.

“We have lost some pizzazz relative to some of the other beverages,” said Fredrickson, who noted he was somewhat gloomy after previous years of robust sales growth.

But all the news was not bad. Premium wines saw big volume gains, especially at the $10 to $14 per bottle range, which jumped 12 percent, according to his survey. Super-premium ($14 to $20) volume increased by 10 percent.

That is welcome news in California — which makes more than 90 percent of U.S. wine — and particularly on the North Coast, where Sonoma and Napa vintners are the main producers of more expensive American wines.

“The outlook is fantastic,” Fredrickson said of the North Coast industry.

Among the reasons for continued optimism for the local wine industry: the 2012 vintage, a large yield with a reputation for good quality, is coming onto retail shelves. The 2011 vintage was uneven with a lower yield.

In addition, California premium wineries have more wine available to sell than their counterparts in Europe. Italy and France are the largest importers, making up 59 percent of the overall foreign market into the United States.

“The relative quality levels that we have in inventory now are far better than relative quality levels in Europe for those same vintages,” Fredrickson said.