It might come as a surprise to many that the place that drinks the most wine in the world is none other than Vatican City. Vatican City is the smallest country in the world; in 2012, it had only 450 residents. A study conducted in the same year revealed that every resident of Vatican City consumes an average of 74 liters of wine annually. That's about 100 bottles of wine per capita. In comparison, only about half of that amount is consumed in France, and even less in the United Kingdom.
There are various theories as to why this might be. Some believe it has to do with Vatican City's demographics. Older, educated men are proportionally high in this independent city-state. Others argue that high consumption is due to wine being taxed less than in other countries. Still others feel that much of the consumption is ceremonial communion wine.
Following Vatican City in wine consumption are European micro-states Andorra and Luxemborg. These are all small states with small populations. So it may be an additional indication that Vatican City drinks the most wine due to size and population more than anything else.
More about Vatican City:
- Vatican City is home to the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church. The city-state was founded in 1929.
- Vatican City has an area of about 100 acres (0.4 square kilometers). That's about one-eighth the size of Central Park in New York City.
- The makers of the 2009 Tom Hanks movie Angels & Demons were banned from filming in Vatican City. They reproduced parts of the city as sets based on pictures.