Cheers! Wine consumption on the up in Spain

THE consumption of wine in Spain in 2016 went up for the first time in decades according to new figures released by the Spanish Wine Market Observatory (Observatorio Español del Mercado del Vino).

It went up somewhere between 2.5% and 4% to hit 9.8 million hectolitres (one hectolitre equals one hundred litres).

But is far below the country’s average production of around 42 million hectolitres which means Spain is at the bottom of the rankings for wine consumption among producer counties.

In the 1970s the average annual wine consumption in Spain was above 40 litres per head but this has since dropped off dramatically to just 21 litres per head in 2014.

OEMV director Rafael del Rey said the rise in consumption can be put down to Spain’s improving economic situation and a more mature and competitive industry.

The Spanish wine sector is now planning to launch a strategy aimed attracting younger generations of drinkers.

The Vatican has the highest wine consumption in the world according to the Wine Institute at 53.83 litres per head per year. Croatia and Slovenia are in second place (44 liters), followed by France (42.5), Portugal (41.7) and Italy (33). In the UK, the figure is just 22 litres.