Young Italians Are Drinking More Wine

A new report from the Uiv-Vinitaly observatory is challenging one of the wine industry’s most persistent assumptions: that young adults are turning away from wine. The study, titled “Profile and Attitudes of New Wine Consumers in Italy,” says the opposite is happening. In Italy, the number of wine drinkers remains just under 30 million, or 55% of the population, a figure that has held steady over the past five years and is more than 600,000 higher than in 2011.

What has changed is not whether Italians drink wine, but how they drink it. Daily consumption has declined, especially among older consumers, while occasional drinking has increased. The report says 61% of Italians now drink wine only occasionally, compared with 39% who drink it every day. In 2006, those numbers were nearly reversed.

The biggest shift, according to the data, is among people ages 18 to 24. That group is the only one to show a significant increase in wine consumption since 2011, rising 8 percentage points from 39% to 47%. Millennials have lost ground, while older generations have remained largely stable. The report suggests that the decline in regular drinking is tied more to changing habits among Boomers and Generation X than to any rejection of wine by younger consumers.

The reasons behind those changes are practical and cultural. For Boomers, wine remains closely tied to meals: 70% say they drink it mainly with food. Among Generation Z consumers, taste comes first. Half say they choose wine because they like the flavor. That difference matters because it points to a shift from habit-based drinking to preference-based drinking.

The report also finds that wine plays a stronger identity role for younger consumers. Among Gen Z respondents, 43% said wine appeals because it makes them feel sophisticated or fashionable. Among Boomers, that figure falls to 7%. The observatory does not frame that as superficiality. Instead, it describes wine as part of how younger adults present themselves socially, alongside clothing, venues and online profiles.

That identity-driven approach appears to affect spending. The average check for Gen Z consumers drinking outside the home is 18 euros, compared with an overall average of 10 euros. Nearly all Gen Z wine consumption happens away from home: 97% say they drink wine primarily outside the house. Restaurants are their preferred setting, cited by 86% of respondents in that age group, compared with about 60% among Boomers.

The report also challenges another common stereotype: that younger drinkers prefer only light or easy wines. Millennials favor Prosecco, but Gen Z shows a clear preference for structured red wines. Amarone della Valpolicella ranks first among their choices, with a conversion rate to purchase of 68%, followed by Barbaresco, Taurasi, Bolgheri and Chianti. The top five are all reds with depth and complexity.

That finding runs against years of industry messaging aimed at making wine seem simpler and more approachable for younger audiences through lighter styles and lower-alcohol products. The report suggests that complexity itself is not a barrier for younger drinkers if the wine is presented in a way that feels relevant.

The study also shows that Gen Z relies more than older groups on outside guidance when choosing what to drink. In restaurants and bars, sommeliers and servers still influence decisions. Online, 61% of Gen Z respondents said they read advice and reviews on websites and blogs before buying wine. That compares with 38% of Millennials and 24% of Boomers.

For the observatory, the broader message is that younger consumers are not the cause of falling wine consumption in Italy. They are part of its future growth. Their numbers are rising, their spending is relatively high and their interest in wine appears tied less to tradition than to taste, image and social context.