Champagne Is Finding A New Audience In Asia

As Asia continues to thirst for premium lifestyle experiences, Champagne is finding a new audience.

Champagne has come a long way since the days of Dom Perignon’s oft misquoted exclamation, “Come quickly, I am tasting the stars” – made while noticing the effervescence within a bottle of white wine that had gone somewhat awry. Back then, Champagne was known as the “devil’s wine,” as it was not uncommon for the weak, poorly made glass bottles of the day to spontaneously burst, wounding – at times fatally – those within the blast range.

These days, the quintessential, most luxurious of wines from the most salubrious of wine regions has won the hearts and palates of many and become a symbol of celebration the world over. In fact, its popularity has soared in recent decades, mostly thanks to new money from Russia and China, coupled with continued loyalty from its most abundant markets, the US and UK.

In Asia, trendy new Champagne bars are beginning to emerge in first-tier cities such as Shanghai, where hotspots like Monkey Champagne (houseofmonkey.com) are pitching high-quality, high priced Champagnes to Millennials with to Millennials who have the money to spend.

Champagne consumption in China is currently less than 1 percent of total wine consumption, but many believe there is plenty of room for expansion. Vinexpo and the IWSR (International Wine and Spirits Report) have already seen sales to China more than double in the last eight years and expect to see at least a 10 percent increase in Chinese consumption of sparkling wine by 2018.

China, however, is not the leader in the Asian Champagne market, nor does it feature in the top ten in the world. This honor goes to Japan, ranked the fourth largest export market for Champagne in 2015, at 11.8 million bottles annually. China by comparison imports just over two million bottles annually, while Hong Kong – the self-proclaimed “Wine Hub of Asia” – imports just over 1.5 million.