Germans recently drank around 37 glasses of sparkling wine per capita per year. Within a decade, the consumption of sparkling wine, prosecco and champagne fell significantly.
A total of 267 million liters of sparkling wine, prosecco, cremant and champagne were sold in Germany last year. The Federal Statistical Office announced this today. Even though demand remained stable compared to the previous year, it has fallen by 17 percent in a ten-year comparison.
In 2013, Germans aged 16 and over drank an average of 4.6 liters of sparkling wine per capita per year. In 2023 it was 3.7 liters per year – and therefore 37 glasses of 0.1 liters each.
Tax since the Empire
Only sparkling wines containing alcohol are recorded in the statistics because the sparkling wine tax introduced in the Empire is still levied on them. Originally intended to finance the imperial war fleet, today, with an annual revenue of 361 million euros, it only accounts for 0.04 percent of total tax revenue.
This year, a 0.75 liter bottle of classic sparkling wine will be taxed at 1.02 euros net, regardless of the price. When it was introduced in the German Empire in 1902, the price was 50 pfennigs per bottle.
Taxes on beer lower
Recently, 580 million euros flowed to the states from the beer tax. Unlike the sparkling wine tax, it is not calculated as a flat rate, but rather depends on the original gravity of the beer.
The tax burden is significantly lower: a 0.5 bottle of commercially available full beer costs just four cents, while for strong beer it is six cents.
