We’re back from three days of tasting, learning, and exploring at the colossal Wine Paris trade show! Each day, I wandered the exhibition halls from open until close to try and soak up clues about what’s happening in the international wine biz.
On Friday, I shared seven personal moments that defined my Wine Paris experience. Now, it’s time for some industry talk and trend-spotting.
Hundreds of conversations and hundreds of wines later, here are six things that stood out to me at Wine Paris 2026.
1. Everybody is nervous.
Let’s begin with the glaring topic of 2025-2026: The plummeting consumption of alcoholic beverages around the world. In France, where the largest number of Wine Paris exhibitors hail from, wine and spirits exports have now hit a 25-year low. That’s according to an industry report that landed just days before the convention.
Large producers are struggling to right the ship with small nudges: New marketing tactics and bolder packaging. (Neons, handwriting fonts, and naughty words are still going strong in the lower price tiers.) Small winemakers are seeking visibility, distribution, and investment against seemingly impossible odds.
As the entire world faces a grape glut, it’s hard not to notice the imbalance between sellers and buyers. “You know any importers at home?” was as common a question at the tasting booths as “Red or white?”
It’s a bummer to talk about it, and exhibitors at trade shows are trying to stay upbeat as they showcase their best products and ideas. Still, many conversations did touch on the change in drinking habits and the decline in sales that results from it. Exhibitors also expressed anxiety around climate change and the United States tariffs that are putting a dent in one of their most important export markets.
2. Australia for quality, Spain for value.
Australia showed up strong at Wine Paris 2026. Exhibitors included producers both small and large, classic and innovative. I dropped in on some favorite Aussie producers (Mitolo, Hickinbotham) and got acquainted with some new ones, too. If it’s only Shiraz and red blends on your Australia wine list, then you’re missing out.
A series of Australia masterclasses by Emma Symington MW persuasively demonstrated the great strides the country has made over the last couple of decades. Cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay were standouts–and there were plenty of zesty and fragrant Rieslings to perk up your tastebuds when the Wine Paris doors opened at 9 in the morning.
Right across the corridor in Hall 6, Spain was making a case for value. Wines from Aragón organized a class highlighting the strength and versatility of its Garnacha variety. When made with care, these are complex, age-worthy wines that can stand with the best in the world. A productive, heat-tolerant vine, Garnacha is poised to meet a changing climate (along with consumer demands for organic farming and moderate pricing).
Spanish white and sparkling producers were ready with value propositions, too. The Rueda booth was one of the minority of exhibitors who listed wholesale prices at their tasting station, tempting restaurant and bar owners to craft a profitable wine list around Spain’s fresh, food-friendly whites. And Cava advocates were eager to talk about how revised DO regulations are pushing the Spanish sparkling wine to new heights of quality.
Naturally, three days is not enough for a complete survey of the wine-producing world. But these two countries captured our attention with their admirable quality and unified messaging.
3. De-alcoholized wine: We’re still trying to make that happen?
Wine Paris invested heavily in the “low/no” category with a new dedicated building: The “Be No” pavilion and stage.
A reported 64 exhibitors from 13 countries brought over 300 no- and low-alcohol beverages to sample for buyers. Seminars with titles like “Is No Alcohol an Ally or Competitor?” and “Rising to the Alcohol-Free Challenge as a Prestigious Wine Estate” reflected the industry’s heightened attention to non-drinkers.
Was the first “Be No” exhibition a success? It’s hard to say for certain…but it sure looked like crowds there were sparse. The only time I was in that building was at lunchtime, when I was looking for a shorter concession line than the ones in the busy wine and spirit expo halls.
Look: It’s clearly important (obligatory?) to have non-alcoholic alternatives for health-conscious and sober-curious consumers. There are countless startups dedicated to the idea, and many of the major brands now have a 0% wine in their portfolio.
Why? Because the alcohol industry is running scared from the historic decline in consumption. As a result, the proliferation of low/no products often feels more reactive than creative.
I’m not trying to be a naysayer, and it certainly sounds good in theory: Wine that’s inclusive, healthier, and appealing to grown-up palates? Great!
But it’s been hard to get drinkers, sommeliers, and purchasers to commit to a product that’s often more expensive than regular wine, and often doesn’t taste very good.
At trade tastings, de-alcoholized wine is described with a smile, then poured with an almost apologetic grimace. The expansion of the alcohol-free niche gets breathless coverage in the press…but double-digit increases are to be expected from a product that basically didn’t have a presence on bar and grocery shelves a few years ago.
I was a good sport and tried some non-alcoholic wines as I sipped and strolled around Wine Paris. Sadly, I found nothing that I’d go out my way to recommend to a customer, especially at the price these beverages command.
Zero-percent sparkling wines and aromatic whites–such as New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc–tended to be more palatable than the reds, rosés, and amaros. But few out-performed a freshly-made non-alcoholic spritz, and many continue to taste watery and flat. (Even non-alcoholic beer is more consistent overall.) I had hoped to leave Wine Paris feeling more excited about low/no alcohol wines, but it seems the category is still finding its footing.
4. The appetite for education is strong.
Wine Paris is primarily a business convention. People are there to write orders, meet with clients, and close deals.
But an inspiring number of wine pros took time out of their day to brush up on their wine knowledge. Wine Paris’s Academy sessions were overall well-attended, with visitors queuing up for classes on marketing, tasting, and wine regions of the world.
There are seminars at Wine Paris in several languages: English, French, and Italian. They range from informal pop-ups at vendor booths to large, multimedia presentations in dedicated classroom spaces. Some require advance registration, but most are first-come, first-seated. It’s easy to use the Vinexposium app to view open sessions and navigate the exhibition halls.
5. Rosés (and light reds) have a healthy glow.
Statistics have shown for years that red wine is losing market share to whites and rosés as consumer preferences evolve. Red wine now accounts for less than half of global consumption, according to Decanter, and its downward slide is likely to continue.
Hotter global temperatures may be one reason for the shift toward chill-able styles. Another frequently-cited factor is the millennial and Gen-Z preference for casual dining and for Asian, spicy, and plant-based cuisines–rather than the Cab-‘n-steak diets of our parents and grandparents.
But the red wine sector is not going down gently. Regions and producers are coming up with creative ways to adapt to changing tastes. Merlot in particular is lending itself to light-bodied, berry-ful reds that are hoping to claw back some territory from rosé.
The Vins de Bordeaux association had a large corner booth and a free-tasting station dedicated to its Claret. With colorful, cartoon-y labels and (often) screw-cap closures, Bordeaux Claret is marketed as an inexpensive, early-drinking, and informal way to enjoy a French red. The Bordeaux Wine Council is re-defining the labeling term “Claret” (starting with the 2025 harvest) to include only wines with a light red color and no strong tannins.
Elsewhere in the France and International buildings, producers were eager to convey that “blanc de noirs” is not just for Champagne anymore. We spotted lots of Cabernet, Merlot, and Malbec that has been vinified as white wine.
We also checked in on pink wine. After 20 years of historic growth, is rosé finally passé? Not from the looks of it.
Despite some minor corrections in recent years, rosé is still a strong category–around 10% of still wine consumed globally. It’s a favorite year-round bevvie in France and the United States and increasingly popular with men as well as women. (Rosé–both local and imported–does very well here in Texas.) Drinkers and diners love its versatility, while retailers and restaurants appreciate a wine that is high-margin, high-demand, and consistently available.
Upstairs from Bordeaux Claret, the Provence Tasting Lounge was a hive of activity, showcasing slender, chilled bottles in every hue. Exhibitors poured everything from ultra-premium, terroir-driven rosés in gorgeous packaging to almost-free saignee-method table wines.
Apart from the rosé specialists in the France building, many Spanish, Italian and New World exhibitors had at least one pink wine on the table. Rosé is looking just peachy as it matures from a regional novelty to a durable, evergreen category.
6. The Métro is a marvel.
For thousands of Wine Paris attendees, each day starts and ends on the Métro. Paris’s vast and efficient public transportation network made the daily commute simple and cheap. (A Métro ride from my hotel in the center of Paris took about 30 minutes and cost €2.55.)
For me, the Paris Métro is a thing of beauty surpassing even the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower. (That’s because I’m from Dallas, which has the ignoble distinction of being one of the most car-dependent large cities in the world. And we’re about to try and host the World Cup this summer…we’ll see how that goes.)
The Métro entrance is just a few feet from the gates of Wine Paris, allowing convention-goers to duck out of the rain and connect to lodging and dining throughout the city. The tunnels were well-staffed and clean, with courteous crowd-control officers waiting to direct the expo’s record-breaking crowds.
Those trains were jam-packed–and no doubt very boozy–at the close of each day. But the proximity to mass transit made Porte de Versailles an ideal venue to host tens of thousands of visitors to Wine Paris.
Next year’s Wine Paris is scheduled for February 15-17, 2027. For more stories from this year’s Wine Paris, check out Wine Paris 2026: A trip to remember!
Further reading:
Reuters: French wine, spirits export volumes sink to at least 25-year low
Tasting Insider: The New Bordeaux Claret – time for a refresh?
The Sunday Times: As tastes change, Bordeaux turns its black grapes into white wine
The Drinks Business: Is the future of rosé still rosy?
Review disclosure: I was not compensated or provided any free products for this review. Opinions expressed on The Wine Fairy blog are entirely my own.
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