Mon Dieu: The French Are Now Drinking More Beer Than Wine
- 23 minutes ago
- 2 min read
For the first time in France’s recorded history, beer has overtaken wine as the drink of choice.
Wine has always been an integral part of the French national identity - on a par with their enjoyment of a good baguette, lots of cheese, and the absolute necessity of garlic and butter as the basis of most cooking. Oh, and pure, unfiltered anger at the makers of Emily in Paris.
However, for the first time ever, the consumption of beer has overtaken wine as the French drink of choice, thereby challenging the Gallic notion that beer is the preferred drink of the Germans, the Belgians and ze rosbifs (that's what they call the Brits).
Indeed, according to new data released by l’Organisation Internationale de la Vigne et du Vin (OIV - the International Organisation of Vine and Wine), the French drank 22 million hectolitres of wine last year. Meanwhile, the French brewery association Brasseurs de France released figures revealing that the French downed 22.1 million hectolitres of beer in 2025. It's an historical moment. Indeed, wine consumption in France has slipped to its lowest level since 1957.
This could be good news when it comes to the lowering alcohol consumption (beer has a much lower percentage of alcohol), but a terrible development for those who support Louis Pasteur’s words: “Il y a plus de philosophie dans une bouteille de vin que dans tous les livres” (“A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world”).
However, France still remained the largest European consumer of wine last year, so that should come as some comfort. So, should you be heading to France any time soon, you needn’t fear appearing uncouth if you order yourself a pint. Just don't talk about Emily in Paris.