Friday, 22 May, 2026
The Drinks Business, James Bayley
Beer has nudged ahead of wine in France for the first time in modern history, according to figures from Brasseurs de France and the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV). The change arrives as global wine consumption keeps sliding under the weight of economic pressure and climate disruption.
For a country whose cultural identity has long been bound up with wine, the latest consumption figures carry unusual resonance. According to the French brewery association Brasseurs de France, French consumers drank 22.1 million hectolitres of beer last year, narrowly pipping wine consumption, which the OIV put at 22.0 million hectolitres.
France remains the world’s second-largest wine market after the United States, although consumption has now fallen 3.2% year on year and sits 7.2% below the five-year average, according to the OIV’s State of the World Wine Sector in 2025 report.
The milestone may be more psychological than dramatic in volume terms, but it marks another stage in the slow reshaping of French drinking habits. Beer has steadily moved beyond its traditional northern strongholds, helped along by the rapid expansion of craft brewing, lower average pricing and a more casual image among younger drinkers.
Click HERE to read the full article.