Champagne shipments rose 3.2% through September, led by exports

Champagne shipments continued to recover through September, but the rebound remained uneven across markets and producer groups, according to Comité Champagne data updated through the month and reported Monday by the trade publication WineCouture. Shipments from January through September reached 174.2 million bottles, up 3.2% from the same period in 2025. September alone accounted for 25.7 million bottles, a 7.8% increase from a year earlier.

The latest figures extended the positive turn that emerged in August, when monthly shipments rose 24.8% and pushed the cumulative result for the first eight months of the year to 3.4% growth. Even so, the September data showed that the rebound did not gain further speed. The cumulative growth rate eased slightly from 3.4% at the end of August to 3.2% at the end of September, suggesting that the market is still recovering but not in a straight line.

The comparison with last year remained favorable. At the same point in 2025, Champagne shipments were down 1.5%. This year’s return to growth marked a clear improvement, but the breakdown of the figures showed that demand was not improving evenly across the industry.

Exports remained the main engine of growth. International shipments totaled 109.8 million bottles in the first nine months of 2026, up 6.8% from a year earlier. Within that total, shipments to the European Union rose 8% to 32.1 million bottles, while shipments to markets outside the EU increased 6.3% to 77.7 million bottles. In September alone, export shipments climbed 10.7%.

The French market continued to lag. Domestic shipments in France totaled 64.4 million bottles from January through September, down 2.5% from the same period in 2025. September was somewhat better, with domestic shipments up 3.1% for the month, but that followed a stronger 13% increase in August after several weak months. The cumulative decline in France improved only modestly, from -3% at the end of August to -2.5% at the end of September.

That left foreign markets carrying most of the recovery. Nearly two out of every three bottles shipped in the first nine months of the year went abroad, underscoring how dependent the Champagne region’s performance has become on international demand.

The split between producer categories was also pronounced. Large Champagne houses, or maisons, shipped 133 million bottles from January through September, up 5.1% from a year earlier. That represented 76.3% of all Champagne shipments, making the maisons the dominant force behind the overall gain. Their export shipments rose 7.7%, while their shipments in France were still down 1.1%. In September alone, the maisons shipped 20 million bottles, up 10% from September 2025.

Even for the large houses, however, the pace cooled slightly from August. Their cumulative growth stood at 5.6% at the end of August and then edged down to 5.1% after September. The figures still pointed to solid expansion, but they also suggested that August’s sharp jump did not carry fully into the next month.

Independent growers, known as vignerons, remained under pressure. Their shipments totaled 27.4 million bottles in the first nine months of the year, down 4% from the same period in 2025. That was only a small improvement from the -4.3% recorded through August. The main weakness was again the French market, where growers’ shipments fell 7%. Their export shipments increased 5.7%, but that was not enough to offset the domestic decline.

September did little to change that picture. Independent growers’ total shipments fell 1.9% in the month, even though their exports rose 7.2%. The monthly decline was smaller than the 4.2% drop recorded in August, but the segment remained in negative territory. The gap between the maisons and the vignerons was more than 9 percentage points over the first nine months of the year, highlighting how differently the recovery is being distributed within the same appellation.

Cooperatives followed a third path. Their shipments totaled 13.8 million bottles from January through September, down 0.2% from a year earlier. That was an improvement from the -1.2% recorded through August and put the segment close to flat. Unlike the broader market, cooperatives performed better in France than abroad. Their domestic shipments rose 3.6%, while their export shipments fell 3.8%.

The contrast among the three groups showed that the current recovery is not only about whether Champagne sales are improving, but also about which business models are best positioned to capture demand. The maisons benefited most from international markets, independent growers saw only partial relief from exports, and cooperatives found more support at home than overseas.

For the broader beverage sector, the uneven pattern may influence purchasing and distribution decisions in sparkling wine. Buyers may continue to favor larger Champagne brands with stronger export networks, while weaker demand in France and the continued decline among independent producers could keep pressure on smaller labels and on the domestic channel.

A longer-term measure also pointed to a market that is improving gradually rather than rapidly. Over the 12 months from October 2025 through September 2026, Champagne shipments totaled 271.4 million bottles, up 0.8% from the previous 12-month period. At the end of August, that rolling total stood at 271 million bottles, up 0.6%. September added about 400,000 bottles to the 12-month figure and slightly lifted the annual growth rate, while still reflecting the weaker months earlier in the cycle.