Declining Interest in Bordeaux?

Throughout the course, we’ve discussed changing consumption preferences as both share of throat and share of buzz, as well as the rise of Bordeaux as a premier wine region. While I expected those trends to continue outside of the US, I was very surprised to see the headline that French domestic consumption of Bordeaux has declined to the lowest point in the past two decades.

The Bordeaux wine industry primarily attributed the domestic decline in Bordeaux consumption with an increasing consumption of craft beer. That said, digging into an internal study, they claimed that out of 100 unsold bottles of Bordeaux:

• 64 were due to a reduction in alcohol consumption (a smaller throat/buzz)
• 32 were due to customers choosing another form of alcohol, primarily beer (share of throat)
• 4 due to customers choosing wines from other regions 

The overall reduction in wine consumption makes sense as health and wellness trends grow. Similarly to what we saw in the US, France’s younger consumers have different drinking preferences than the older generations. Young French consumers are moving towards chilled wines and rosé as well as beer.

And what about Bordeaux? The wine board of Bordeaux is increasingly concerned. 54% of Bordeaux is consumed domestically, the rest is exported. China accounts for approximately 25% of all Bordeaux wine sales and is seeing a decline in sales. Combined with US tariffs and the subsequent decline in demand, the wine board is justified in their concern.

Source: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/11/bordeaux-bows-french-thirst-craft-beer-amid-record-drop-domestic/