2021 estimates on country-by-country wine consumption from the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) reveal which nations enjoy a tipple the most. Despite the Western European reputation for a glass with lunch and a glass with dinner, it would appear that the US (with its population of approximately 258 million adults) consumes the most wine per annum.
The estimated 2021 total consumption of 236 million hectolitres marks a 0.7% increase on the 2020 level, disrupting a trend of otherwise continuous decline from 2018 to 2020. This spike can be partially attributed to the reopening of the on-trade.
Note: this data is not per capita, but estimates overall consumption for each country as a whole.
1. USA - 33.1 mhl
The United States likes to be number one, and it can claim gold when it comes to the volume of wine consumed each year. To put the number into perspective, that 33.1 mhl equates to about 4.4 billion standard 75 cl bottles. Not a bad effort for a nation which still has dry municipalities and where alcohol cannot legally be purchased by anyone under the age of 21. When it comes to what is being drunk, Californian wines dominate – however, there are suggestions that younger Americans might forego wine altogether in favour of newer alternatives, such as hard seltzer. That being noted, the OIV data indicates that wine consumption has still risen by around 5% since 2016, with older, affluent consumers driving the market.
2. France - 25.2 mhl
Though we might know it as the country which made the rules when it comes to wine, consumption has actually slightly decreased in France in recent years, falling from an estimated 28.3 mhl in 2016, though this figure is actually 2% above the pre-pandemic volume. There are still those who enjoy their two glasses a day, including President Emmanuel Macron, but attitudes have shifted to favour less frequent consumption. Health consciousness may be part of it, though attempts to place the Nutri-Score system on bottles and label wines as “unhealthy” were met with outrage from the industry and consumers alike. Just because they may be drinking less doesn’t mean that the French love affair with wine is any less intense.
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