Spanish sparkling wine overtook Italy on average import price in Britain

Spanish wine is strengthening its price position in the British market, even as Italy continues to dominate sales volumes by a wide margin, according to U.K. import data for the 12 months through May 2026.

The figures, based on HM Revenue & Customs data compiled by S&P and analyzed by Del Rey Analysts of Wine Markets, show that Spanish sparkling wine entered the United Kingdom at an average price of £3.60 per liter, slightly above the £3.56 per liter recorded for Italian sparkling wine. The shift is notable because Italian sparkling wine, led by Prosecco, has long held a stronger commercial position in Britain than Spanish sparkling wine, largely driven by Cava.

The higher average price for Spanish sparkling wine comes despite much smaller volumes. Italy shipped more than 121 million liters of sparkling wine to the British market over the period, compared with 13.6 million liters from Spain. That gap in volume translated into a major difference in value: Italian sparkling wine imports reached £432.3 million, while Spanish sparkling wine totaled £49 million.

The data suggests that Spanish sparkling wine has been moving toward a higher-value position in Britain since early 2021, shortly after the end of the pandemic period and during the broader global inflation cycle. At that time, the average import price for Spanish sparkling wine in the United Kingdom was just £1.83 per liter. By May 2026, it had climbed to £3.60 per liter. Italian sparkling wine prices also rose over that period, but at a slower pace. Since April 2024, Italian sparkling wine has seen a noticeable decline in average import price, falling from £3.87 per liter to £3.56, which left it below the Spanish level this year.

Spain is also maintaining a higher average price than Italy in bottled still wines, including fortified wines. In the 12 months through May 2026, Spanish bottled still wines were imported into Britain at an average of £2.92 per liter, compared with £2.79 for Italian wines. The two countries had tracked more closely since late 2021, but Spanish wines have remained above Italian wines for a longer period and widened that lead somewhat as Italian prices eased from mid-2023.

Even so, Italy remains far ahead in bottled still wine volumes. British imports of Italian bottled still wine reached 152 million liters in the period, while Spain supplied 83.3 million liters. That means Italy sold nearly twice as much bottled still wine as Spain in the category, a smaller gap than in sparkling wine but still substantial.

Taken together, Italy exported 273.5 million liters of bottled wine to the United Kingdom over the 12-month period through May, compared with 96.9 million liters from Spain. That means Italy sold about 2.8 times as much bottled wine overall as Spain in one of the world’s most important import markets.

The figures also explain why Italy can still post a higher overall unit value for bottled wine imports into Britain even when Spain now leads on average price in both major packaged categories, sparkling and still. The reason is product mix.

Sparkling wines account for a much larger share of Italy’s bottled wine exports to Britain than they do for Spain’s exports. Of all Italian bottled wine sold into the British market, 44.4% of volume is sparkling wine, imported at an average of £3.56 per liter. For Spain, sparkling wine represents just 14% of bottled wine volume, even though its average price is slightly higher at £3.60 per liter.

That difference matters because sparkling wines carry a higher average value than still wines in both countries’ export portfolios. Italy benefits from selling far more of its higher-priced category in both absolute terms and as a share of total shipments. Spain, by contrast, has improved pricing but still relies much more heavily on lower-priced still wines in volume terms.

The British market remains central for global wine exporters because it combines large import demand with strong competition across categories and origins. In that setting, Spain’s recent gains point to firmer pricing power and a stronger premium position than before, especially in sparkling wine. But the latest trade data also shows that Italy’s scale and its heavier concentration in sparkling wines continue to give it a clear commercial advantage in the United Kingdom.