Time for a coffee? Better make it a glass of red wine this time because unless you live in China, we’ve all got some catching up to do! The time has come for France and Italy to step aside as China has pipped these famous wine producers to the post to become the world’s biggest consumer of red wine, according to a study by International Wine & Spirit Research.

The survey revealed that Chinese consumers downed 1.865 billion bottles of red wine last year, contributing to a 136 percent rise in consumption over the past five years. The biggest consumers of all types of wine does, however, remain the U.S. As far as red wine goes, the latest data on red wine consumption shows that China has pushed traditional wine-drinking countries France and Italy into second and third place respectively. China consumed 155 million nine-litre cases of red wine in 2013. France consumed 150 million cases and Italy consumed 141 million cases. Consumption of wine and spirits in China, the world’s second biggest economy, has risen sharply in recent years alongside an increasingly affluent consumer society. This reflects a similar situation with the increase in consumable commodities in general as those who follow the markets will be aware.

Apart from the fact that China’s taste for luxury goods is increasing, the Chinese view the colour red as a lucky colour and to some extent this may help explain their preference for red over white wine. The situation has led industry insider,s including Morgan Stanley, to question whether China is actually fueling a global wine shortage. We’ll certainly be keeping an eye on those prices. In the meantime, have a glass of red wine on us…cheers!