Οι 10 κορυφαίες χώρες κατανάλωσης οίνου

Η κατανάλωση οίνου σε ολόκληρο τον κόσμο αναμένεται να αυξηθεί αρκετά μέχρι το 2014, αλλά θα έχουν την πρωτοπορία οι  παραδοσιακοί ηγέτες;

Η Ιταλία ήταν στην κορυφή κατανάλωσης ελαφρών οίνων το 2010, όμως η ισορροπία μετατοπίζεται.
Στατιστικά στοιχεία για την κατανάλωση ελαφρών οίνων είναι μια σταθερή ένδειξη για τις μελλοντικές τάσεις, καθώς είναι το



κλειδί για το τμήμα της αγοράς.
Το 2009 τα ελαφρά κρασιά αντιπροσώπευαν το 92,6% της κατανάλωσης όλου του κρασιού, και μεταξύ 2010 και 2014 ο αριθμός αυτός θα αυξηθεί κατά 72,9 εκατομμύρια 9-λίτρα κιβώτια, ή 3,0%.
Όμως, σχεδόν τα τρία τέταρτα αυτής της αύξησης, 73,4%, θα προέρχονται από τρεις αγορές: τις ΗΠΑ,  Κίνα και Ρωσία.
Τα σύνολα που προβλέπονται για το 2014 από τη Vinexpo δείχνουν ότι η οποιαδήποτε μείωση θα είναι κατά κύριο λόγο στην Ευρώπη, με άλλες περιοχές να μένουν στα ίδια ή να αυξάνονται ελάχιστα.
Όσον αφορά τη συνολική κατανάλωση κρασιού οι ΗΠΑ πέρασαν μπροστά από την Ιταλία και τη Γαλλία για να γίνουν η μεγαλύτερη αγορά κρασιού στον κόσμο κατ' όγκο.
Η κατανάλωση χρόνου πέρυσι, έφτασε τα 311,3 εκατομμύρια 9-λίτρα κιβώτια, που ισοδυναμεί με 3,735 δισεκατομμύρια μπουκάλια.
Και εξακολουθεί να αυξάνεται - οι προβλέψεις της Vinexpo δείχνουν ότι η κατανάλωση κρασιού στις ΗΠΑ θα συνεχίσει να αυξάνεται κατά 10% μέσα στα επόμενα δύο χρόνια.
Η Κίνα είναι σήμερα η ταχύτερα αναπτυσσόμενη αγορά κατανάλωσης κρασιού στον κόσμο.


Σε ένα μόνο χρόνο μεταξύ 2009 και 2010, η κατανάλωση οίνου, συμπεριλαμβανομένων ακόμα, των ήσυχων ελαφρών και των αφρωδών οίνων αυξήθηκε κατά 33,4% στην Κίνα, συμπεριλαμβανομένου του Χονγκ Κονγκ. Η Κινεζική κατανάλωση έφθασε τα 156,19 εκατομμύρια 9-λίτρα κιβώτια το 2011, τοποθετώντας την Κίνα στην πέμπτη θέση στην πρώτη πεντάδα κρασιού που καταναλώνουν έθνη σε όλο τον κόσμο, μπροστά από το Ηνωμένο Βασίλειο.
Όσον αφορά τη κατανάλωση ήσυχων ελαφρών οίνων, όμως, δεν αναμένεται να πιάσει το Ηνωμένο Βασίλειο στην πέμπτη θέση μέχρι το 2014, παρόλο που η κατανάλωση τους θα εξακολουθεί να αυξάνεται κατά περίπου 20%.
Παρακάτω, χρησιμοποιώντας δεδομένα της Vinexpo, βλέπετε τις 10 κορυφαίες καταναλώτριες χώρες    ήσυχων ελαφρών οίνων (vol, σε εκατομμύρια 9L κιβώτια). Τα αποτελέσματα βασίζονται σε στοιχεία σε ποτά με περιεκτικότητα σε αλκοόλ κάτω από 15% και δεν περιλαμβάνουν αφρώδεις οίνους.
Η έκθεση κρασιών και αποσταγμάτων Vinexpo, σε συνεργασία με την ερευνητική ομάδα,  IWSR κυκλοφόρησε τη μελέτη (2009-2014), που συγκεντρώνει στοιχεία από 28 χώρες παραγωγής και 114 αγορές όπου καταναλώνονται τα κρασιά.

1. US

Lifted by its larger population and an interest in wine-and-cheese culture among young Americans, the US tops the 2014 leader board ahead of Italy.
The fastest-growing varieties last year were Pinot Noir, Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc, which all rose more than 9%. In terms of imports, wines from Argentina and New Zealand had the biggest gains, at more than 24%.
The Vinexpo five-year forecasts indicate that US wine consumption should continue to grow by nearly 10% between 2010 and 2014.
In terms of still light wine, by 2014 the US is expected to have reached 315 million 9-litre cases , a rise of 9.35%.

2. Italy

By 2014, Italy is expected to have dropped to second on the list of the world’s top stil light wine consuming country.

The yearly per capita rate of alcohol consumption has long been declining, but family expenditures on alcohol is still around 2% of the family budget.
Studies have shown that Italians under the age of 35 are drinking fewer bottles of vino than ever before.
While 69% of Italians over 65 drink wine every day, that number drops to a mere 13% for Italians under 35.
The cost of wine is a factor in their decision to drink less, but 50% of Italian consumers spend less than €3 on their table wine.
The Vinexpo statistics predict a drop of 0.84% change from 2010 to 2014, with a total wine consumption of 294 million 9-litre cases.

3. France

They are one of the three key traditional markets, but consumption of still light wines is falling in France and by 2014 Vinexpo expect it to have fallen by another 4%.
The downward trend can be traced back to 2008 when French adults on average each consumed 43l of wine, representing the equivalent of one glass per day, down by four litres from 2007.
Wine consumption has dropped across all social groups, most markedly among middle-income earners.
It’s been called France’s wine crisis: La crise viticole.
That maybe be a little overdramatic as France still top the most popular wine nation in 2011, according to a Berry Bros & Rudd end of year report.

4. Germany

The Germans are set to stay in fourth place on the still light wine consumption table for 2014, with a total projected to be 241 million. This is a 0.38% rise from their 2010 total, but they are still over 20,000 from third place.

Riesling is Germany’s signature grape, but they also make great Pinot Noir, Sylvaner, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc. But it is tough for winemakers in Germany as they are constantly battling the impression that the country does not produce fine wine.
Another misunderstanding is compounded by the complex, confusing system for designation and labelling of quality German wine – or Pradikatswein. German producers are trying to turn this around and the UK will host its first ever Riesling Summit this June, organised by Wines of Germany.
Similarly Germany’s Pinot Noir producers are increasingly focused on their potential to produce world-beating red wines

5. UK

In the UK, figures show a predicted 4.13% decline in consumption and a per capita drop from 26 litres per year to 24 litres in the next five years as consumers “drink better and less”.
The UK became the biggest importer of still and sparkling light wine by volume in 2007 when imports reached 135.8 million 9-litre cases, equivalent to more than 1.6 billion bottles. (One case = 12 x 75cl bottles).
White wine is most popular in the UK with rosé wine rising fast and red wine falling back.
In terms of improving their world position the UK needs to adopt a longer term buying approach if it is to retain a reliable supply of wine in the face of rising global consumption.

6. China

This could be a false position for the thirsty Chinese as their growth continues to rise and rise, as it is hard to predict when it will stop.
Within three years, greater China will spend more money on wines than the UK, and become the world’s second biggest wine consumer by value, after the US. In terms of still wine consumption, though, they are expected to be behind the UK in the list.
Between 2010 and 2014, the Vinexpo study expects Chinese still light wine consumption to grow by a further 19.6%, reaching 127 million 9-litre cases by the end of the period. At that point, China will be the 6th largest wine consuming country in the world.
Total Chinese wine consumption reached 96.33 million 9-litre cases, equivalent to 1.156 billion bottles, in 2009, an increase of 104% compared to 2005.
“When this level of consumption per inhabitant is compared with the per capita rates of the other top 10 large consumer countries, the extraordinary potential of the Chinese market becomes clear”, Robert Beynat, the Chief Executive of Vinexpo, has pointed out.

7. Argentina

With China expected to move up a place, Argentina falls to seventh on the top 10 chart of still light wine consuming countries.
Their declined is nearly 5.5%, which is a worrying amount if they ever want to catch the rampant Chinese.
Wine consumption is taking a hit in the country across the board as total bottled wine export volume (excluding bulk) fell 3.1% to 20.8 million nine-liter cases in 2011, while shipment volume to the US—the category’s leading export market—grew by only 2% to just over 7 million cases.
Advice from one of the country’s top producers is that Argentina needs to start focusing more on its white wines.

8. Spain

Spanish still light wine consumption is predicted to fall by 5% by 2012, but they will still hold onto eight place in the table. This is a continuation of a worrying trend for the country, as between 2005 and 2009 the levels have dropped by 14.81%.
Spain has struggled economically and has one of the highest unemployment rates in the European Union. Many consumers have switched to cheaper wines and staying home more, while a new generation finds that it can imagine eating without wine.
The decline has been occurring for a long time and in terms of overall wine consumption, Spain used to be as high as 70 liters per person per year, now it’s around 20 liters per person per year.
One piece of good news is that UK buyers are embracing wines from Ribeiro and Ribeira Sacra in the search for new Spanish whites from Galicia.

9. Russia

The Russians are set to increase their still light wine consumption by 2014, as Vinexpo are expecting it to rise by over 9%. It will mean they are bridging the gap to eight placed Spain, since between 2005 and 2009 they made nearly a 50% leap in consumption.

Historically, Russia has a culture of drinking spirits rather than wine and this may prevent them from ever moving up the table, but they are a region to keep an eye on. In terms of vineyard investment though, Russia didn’t make our top 10 regions.
Russia is an important wine country as it produces considerable amounts of wine but the domestic industry is just a shadow of what it was 30 years ago.
Gorbachev’s 1980s anti-alcohol campaign and the Russian legal and administrative systems make it difficult to bring wines into the country and to assure payment.

10. Romania

Stagnation is the most optimistic forecast for Romanian still light wine consumption ahead of 2014.
Vinexpo expect a 2.81% rise from 2010 to 2014 to match the 2.82% rise from 2005 to 2009.
The Wine Society has listed two wines from the Prince Stirbey winery – the first Romanian wines for 50 years.