Germans prefer sparkling wines, and home-grown sparklings win in the marketplace

German consumers prefer sparkling wine, which is hardly surprising. In fact, each year, domestic sparkling wine production (Sekt) is close to 350 million bottles: 352 million were drunk in 2021. To which must be added imports of 28 million bottles of Cava, 11.2 million bottles of Champagne, and more than 45 million bottles of Prosecco (with Italian sparkling wine imports worth a total of 95 million in the first 9 months 2022). The result is an average annual consumption of as much as 3.2 liters per capita of sparkling wines, making Germany the world’s leading consumer of sparkling wines, while wine consumption as a whole reaches an average per capita of 23.9 liters, for what is the world’s fourth-largest wine consumer, behind the U.S., France and Italy, as statistics from the Deutsches Weininstitut, the organization that promotes communication and marketing of the German wine industry, remind us.

On the German sparkling wine market, and consumer preferences in the category, the association of German sparkling wine producers, namely the Verband Deutscher Sektkellereien, together with the Hochschule Geisenheim University, has, on the other hand, investigated in depth, revealing how the percentage of Germans who consume sparkling wine is 74%, significantly higher than those who consume still wine, namely 63%. Very different is the frequency of consumption: 20% of Germans drink still wine at least once a week, compared to 11% of those who drink sparkling wine. Another figure that emerges is the clear preference for Sekt, the national sparkling, indicated by 53% of respondents, followed by sparkling wines from France (15%), Spain (14%) and Italy (13%).

Popularity, that of Sekt, built across every moment of the year and the day: from Festivities to birthdays, from aperitifs to the table, it is the favorite sparkling wine on any occasion. Ranking first among the motivations that drive the purchase, and therefore the choice, of a bottle of sparkling wine is taste, followed by brand reliability and value for money. Finally, the study, signed by Verband Deutscher Sektkellereien, reveals a >b>great curiosity of German consumers for non-alcoholic sparkling wines, already tasted by 44% of respondents, and considered as a viable alternative to regular sparkling wines by more than 50% of them.