Brexit jitters could lead to bubbly sales volumes falling in 2018, the Wine and Spirit Trade Association fears LUKE MACGREGOR/ALAMYCorks will be popping to welcome in the new year tomorrow, but the sparkling wine industry could be facing a hangover in 2018. British consumers bought more than 140 million bottles of bubbly in the year to September, worth more than £1.3 billion, as volumes rose 12 per cent, according to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association. Frosts and droughts in Europe meant lower yields in 2017 and uncertainty around Brexit could lead to sales volumes falling in 2018, Miles Beale, the group’s chief executive, said. He added: “If Brexit gets in the way of trade coinciding with a bad harvest, this could be damaging.”

Source: The Times December 30, 2017 00:00 UTC