Germany

A large market under pressure

The size of the German wine market alone says little about its attractiveness for an individual producer.

In 2025, Germany imported 12.9m hl of wine. Import volume was only 0.6% below the previous year, while import value rose by 4.0% to €2.63bn. For bottled wine, the market even developed positively: import volume increased by 2.5%, and import value by 7.8%. At the same time, estimated wine consumption in Germany fell by 4.3% to 17.8m hl.

This is not a contradiction. It shows why looking only at total volume is not enough. A declining consumption market can still include segments in which imported and bottled wines grow.

Which part of the German wine market are we actually competing for?

Imported wine is established in the German market. In private household purchases, however, European origins dominate.

Germany imports large volumes of wine. But demand is not distributed evenly across all origins.

In the first quarter of 2026, only 2.4% of the wine volume purchased by private households came from the DWI’s combined “New World” category. Italy alone reached 19.4%, Spain 13.3%, and France 10.1%.

For Argentina, this means: market access and market relevance are two different tasks.

Argentina’s current market presence

The portfolio has to fit the market

Nearly half of the wine volume purchased by private households in the first quarter of 2026 was white wine. White wine reached just under 49%, red wine around 39%. Within white wine purchases, however, the volume share of the “New World” category was only 1.4%. For red wine, it was 4.1%.

This does not automatically mean that Germany represents an untapped opportunity for Argentine white wine. The data first shows something else: the structure of German demand and the current position of New World wines differ markedly by wine type.

A Germany strategy should therefore not simply transfer the existing export portfolio. Grape variety, style, price, origin, and target channel have to be considered together.

Distribution is part of positioning

Basis: private household purchases 2024.

A wine for grocery retail, an assortment for a specialized importer, and a positioning for gastronomy and sommellerie therefore do not solve the same market problem.

Market entry begins with choosing the market within the market.

Only when channel, price position, portfolio, and relevant comparison set are defined can it be decided which communication, stories, and contacts are actually needed.