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Repas sans vin, repas chagrin, as the French say.
Translation: A meal without wine is a sad meal.
Some stereotypes don’t come from nowhere, and wine is an integral part of the French national identity on the same level as the consumption of a good baguette, excessive amounts 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, the first part of that statement is changing…
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.
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. Compare that figure to the one from the French brewery association Brasseurs de France, which state the French downed 22.1 million hectolitres of beer in 2025, and you have yourself a historical moment.
More alarming, wine consumption in France has slipped to its lowest level since 1957.
This could be positive news when it comes to the lowering alcohol consumption, but a terrible development for those who ascribe to 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”).
So, what gives?
The steadily expanding French beer scene? Oui.
People drinking less alcohol despite studies which suggest that wine drinkers show lower heart risk than other alcohol consumers? En effet.
The cultural shift which leads a Sciences Po lecturer to tell Les Echos: “Wine and its 75cl bottle are still associated with dining at the table, whereas people are eating at the table less often”? Certainment.
Most beers also have lower alcohol content and, again according to the Brasseurs de France, the drink is more associated with “convivial moments” such as sports matches.
Much less fun are the economic reasons behind beer overtaking wine. La bière is typically cheaper, and the growing cost of living crisis is altering drinking habits – especially among young people.
The OIV also mentions that US tariffs have piled pressure onto the global wine trade.
“What we can see in the 2025 data is a sector that’s reacting to real-time impacts of US tariff policies, but also adapting to some longer-term changes in terms of climate and consumption,” said OIV Director General John Barker.
France still remained the largest European consumer of wine last year, so that should come as some comfort. However, should you be heading to France any time soon, you needn’t fear appearing uncouth if you order yourself a pint as opposed to a pichet.
Les temps changent …
Disclaimer: Drink responsibly.