Brits lead online wine sales

British online shoppers are the most avid wine enthusiasts in Europe, according to research conducted by search engine Twenga.

With wine accounting for 31% of all online food and drinks product searches, the research suggested that 64% of these UK searches were for French wine, said the Paris-based search engine.

French consumers are the most avid searchers for French wine, with Germany being the third largest French-wine searching nation. Italy and Spain rank French wine searches second behind their domestic production searches.

The research company said: "The overall dominance of French wine on the web can be explained by the fact that France has some of the most expensive wines and therefore justify the cost of shipping."

Preferred wine searches by British web users:

1. Bordeaux
2. Burgundy
3. Champagne
4. Rhône
5. Loire
6. Languedoc-Roussillon
7. Rioja
8. French sparkling wine
9. Barolo
10. Italian Pinot Grigio

Preferred wine searches by French web users:

1. Bordeaux
2. Burgundy
3. Champagne
4. Rhône
5. Loire
6. French sparkling wine
7. Languedoc-Roussillon
8. Alsace
9. Provence
10. Jura

Twenga is a search engine which finds products for consumers at the most competitive price.

Jane Parkinson, 14.09.2009