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For two years now, Chinese – who used to be the largest consumer of red wine – have been drinking less of it. As a result, red wine consumption went down the second year in a row by 5 percent in 2015.
According to Jing Daily, the total red wine consumption of Chinese in 2015 decreased to 131.9 million 9-liter cases from 138.9 million in 2014 and 148.7 million in 2013.
But despite the lesser consumption of red wine, Vinexpo CEO Guillame Deglise maintains that the outlook is still bright for the industry in China. The country, with the sheer size of its population and the growing number of affluent consumers who buy luxury branded goods – including wine – is still the fifth-largest wine market and the biggest spirits market in the world, reported China Daily.
Among the reasons why Chinese drank less red wine the past 24 months are the slowdown in the Chinese economy, Beijing’s anti-corruption campaign since wine is often used to bribe officials disguised as gifts and the crash of the Shanghai stock exchange in August, explained Deglise.
Because red is a favorite color that Chinese associate with good luck, from 2009 through 2013, sale of red wine in the Asian giant logged an impressive 74 percent growth rate. This resulted in China overtaking the U.S., Russia and Canada in red wine consumption, although the U.S. is still the global leader in wine sales and consumption with a projected annual growth rate of 2.1 percent until 2019, according to the joint report released by The International Wine and Spirits Research and Vinexpo.
Deglise sees that in the next three years, as more Chinese become part of the middle class, a growing number would shift to drinking imported wine and ditch local spirits like the baiju. To introduce the different types of wine to Chinese consumers, Vinexpo will be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center from May 24 to 26. Deglise said about 1,300 international exhibitors coming from 34 nations would take part, while he expects about 16,700 guests.
