Canadians are showing a growing preference for imported beers, according to Statistics Canada. (Mark Baker/Associated Press)

Beer continues to be Canada's top alcoholic drink, though a growing number of consumers are favouring wine, according to a Statistics Canada report released Monday.

In 2007, beer accounted for 47 per cent of alcohol sales, down from 52 per cent in 1997. Wine sales comprised 28 per cent of the market, up from 21 per cent in 1997, the federal agency said.

Wine's growing favour may in part be linked with a greater emphasis on food and wine pairings, said Sherri Haig, a spokeswoman for the Wine Council of Ontario.

"I think its [popularity] is going to continue to grow," Haig said.

"Whether it would ever outpace beer I don't know, but certainly we see wine is becoming more and more a part of everyone's culture and day-to-day experience, but particularly with dining and cooking."

An increasing preference for red wine helped drive up wine sales, Statistics Canada said. Red wine dollar sales have surged 130 per cent since 2000, while sales of white wine increased 33 per cent during the same time period.

Sales at beer and liquor stores across the country totalled $18 billion in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2007, an increase of 4.9 per cent from the previous year.

The volume of sales increased 3.1 per cent to 218.7 million litres. On a per-capita basis, Canadians spent an average of $667 on alcohol, an increase of $22 from the year before.

Beer sales total $8.4 billion

National beer sales in 2007 increased two per cent over the previous year to $8.4 billion, with Canadians spending $312 on a per-capita basis. The federal agency says volume sales totaled 2.3 billion litres, an increase of 1.6 per cent from 2006. Regionally, beer sales fell in Quebec, Ontario and the Northwest Territories.

André Fortin, a spokesman for the Brewers Association of Canada, said the numbers still reflect a healthy market.

"What we're happy to see in the report is that there's been an increase in the sales of beer in the last year and to us that's very good news," he said.

Consumers also showed a growing preference for imported beer, the federal agency said.

"The volume of imported beer sold jumped 7.6 per cent in 2006/2007, while sales of domestic brands edged up 0.9 per cent," according to the report.

"By volume, imported beer has more than doubled its market share in the last decade. In 2006/2007, foreign brands captured 11.4 per cent of the beer market in Canada, up from 4.8 per cent in 1996/1997."

Fortin said Canadian brewers are not threatened by this trend, noting tastes are simply diversifying.

"We're just happy to see that tastes are growing, tastes are evolving but Canadians still like their beer," he said.

A sharp 10 per cent rise in vodka sales helped drive up spirits sales to $4.5 billion, an increase of 5.8 per cent over the previous year. Canadian spirits accounted for 71 per cent of spirits sales, with whisky, scotch and bourbon the most popular choices.