page_title: Mexican wine
section_title: Wine consumption in Mexico today
hierarchical_section_title: Mexican wine / Wine consumption in Mexico today
caption_attribution_description: English: Wine vendor at the Nuestro Mercado de Quesos Artesanales of the Asociación de Amigos del Museo de Arte Popular, held at Lincoln Park in Polanco, Mexico City
context_page_description: Mexican wine and wine making began with the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century, when they brought vines from Europe to modern day Mexico, the oldest wine-growing region in the Americas. Although there were indigenous grapes before the Spanish conquest, the Spaniards found that Spanish grapevines also did very well in the colony of New Spain and by the 17th century wine exports from Spain to the New World fell. In 1699, Charles II of Spain prohibited wine making in Mexico, with the exception of wine for Church purposes. From then until Mexico’s Independence, wine was produced in Mexico only on a small scale.
  After Independence, wine making for personal purposes was no longer prohibited and production rose, especially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Many other European immigrant groups helped with the comeback of wine in Mexico. However, the Mexican Revolution set back wine production, especially in the north of the country. Wine production in Mexico has been rising in both quantity and quality since the 1980s, although competition from foreign wines and 40% tax on the product makes competing difficult within Mexico.
context_section_description: Despite Mexico’s Spanish heritage, it is not a major wine-drinking country; beer and tequila are far more popular than wine. Average wine consumption per capita is only two glasses a year. The Mexican government imposes taxes of 40% per bottle, making it hard to compete with beer and tequila. However, consumption of wine in Mexico is growing, with imports of wine in 2005 being nearly four times higher than ten years before. Most wine is consumed in major cities such as Mexico City, Monterrey, Guadalajara and Puebla, and is also commonly found in the tourist areas, such as Cancún and Cabo San Lucas.
  Most of the wine consumed in Mexico is imported from  Europe, Chile, Australia and New Zealand, with about forty percent coming from domestic wineries. However, wine consumption continues to grow with one factor being increased interest in it by the middle classes, especially in Mexico City. As the reputation of Mexican wines increases, preference for native wines is also increasing in Mexico. At one time, no sophisticated restaurant in Mexico City would serve Mexican wine. Today, newer restaurants always include selections from Mexico on their wine lists.
  While wine drinking is not widespread in Mexico, the consumption of brandy, or distilled wine is. Brandy is the most widespread distilled liquor in Mexico. It is even more popular than rum or tequila. Mexico is the fourth largest consumer of brandy in the world behind the Philippines, Germany and Equatorial Guinea. The last of Mexico's tariffs on imported brandy were lifted in the first decade of the 21st century, with sales and consumption expected to rise.
caption: Wine stand at a market for artisanal foods in the Parque Lincoln of Polanco, Mexico City.
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