New Brand Finance data reveals 15 Chinese brands rank among the world’s most valuable and strongest alcoholic drinks brands
BEIJING, 5 November 2026 – Chinese brands continue to hold a commanding position across the global alcoholic drinks industry, with 15 brands featuring across the Spirits 50, Beers 50 and Champagne & Wine 10 rankings, according to the latest Alcoholic Drinks 2026 report by Brand Finance, the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy.
10 Chinese baijiu brands rank among the world’s 50 most valuable spirits brands, underscoring the category’s significant presence in the global ranking. Moutai (brand value up 2% to USD59.6 billion) retains its position as the world’s most valuable spirits brand. Moutai is also the third strongest spirits brand globally, recording a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 92.1/100 and an AAA+ brand strength rating. Brand Finance research shows stronger price acceptance, supported by lower prices in the Chinese market over the past year.
Wuliangye (brand value down 2% to USD27.3 billion) achieves the highest BSI score among Chinese baijiu brands at 93.6/100, earning an AAA+ brand strength rating and ranks as the second-strongest spirits brand globally. The brand achieves top scores for advocacy in its home market, alongside strong scores for credibility and knowledge.
Xinghuacun Fen Wine (Fenjiu) (brand value up 6% to USD6.2 billion) rises one place from 2025 to third in this year’s spirits ranking, while its BSI score rises from 49.9/100 to 57.4/100, lifting its brand strength rating from A- to A. The brand’s unique lighter-aroma positioning supports resilience as premium sauce-aroma baijiu faces greater pressure. Langjiu (brand value of USD1.8 billion) enters the spirits ranking for the first time, marking a notable addition to the category.
Meanwhile, softer consumer confidence, lower banquet demand and more restrained business gifting weigh on parts of the category. Luzhou Laojiao (brand value down 16% to USD5.3 billion) retains an A+ brand strength rating, while Yanghe (brand value down 46% to USD2.7 billion) sees its BSI score drop from 59.2/100 to 50.6/100. Gujing Gong Jiu (brand value down 32% to USD2.4 billion), Guoyuan (brand value down 38% to USD983 million), Shede (brand value down 28% to USD619 million) and Yingjia (brand value down 19% to USD483 million) also record declines in brand value.China ranks fourth by beer brand value, with four brands in the Beers 50 ranking. Tsingtao (brand value up 30% to USD4.7 billion) rises three places from 2025 to sixth this year. The brand is also the strongest beer brand globally, with a BSI score of 95.7/100 and an AAA+ brand strength rating. Demand for mid-to-high-end products, product innovation, broader distribution and overseas expansion support position despite softer conditions in China’s beer market.
Snow (brand value up 13% to USD5.3 billion) climbs one place to fifth and holds an AAA+ brand strength rating, placing it among the five strongest beer brands globally. Yanjing (brand value up 10% to USD705 million) grows, while Harbin (brand value down 22% to USD806 million) holds a AA+ brand strength rating.
The sole Chinese representative in the Champagne & Wine ranking, Changyu (brand value down 22% to USD641 million) retains fifth place. Its BSI score of 76.5/100 and AA+ brand strength rating place it among the strongest wine brands globally, even as cautious consumer sentiment, imported wine competition and weaker premium consumption weigh on China’s domestic wine market.
Scott Chen, Managing Director China, Brand Finance, commented:
“Chinese brands continue to command the global alcoholic drinks rankings, but performance is diverging. Baijiu is going through a market correction, not a collapse, and the winners will be those that shift from channel-led to consumer-led growth. Tsingtao and Snow show what that looks like, growing in a softer beer market by moving consumers towards higher-value products, while Changyu’s strong consumer equity keeps it resilient in a challenging wine market.”
Global insight
Premiumisation, local market growth and distinct drinking occasions are driving alcoholic drinks brand value in 2026. Moutai remains the world’s most valuable spirits brand at USD59.6 billion, and Crown Royal is the strongest with a BSI of 96/100. Tequila is the standout growth category, led by José Cuervo (brand value up 61% to USD1.6 billion), while cognac and Scotch brands decline amid tariffs and softer premium demand. In beer, Corona Extra leads at USD13.9 billion and Tsingtao is the strongest brand with a BSI of 95.7/100. Growth is shifting beyond the US, as heritage lagers lose ground to brands from Latin America and Asia. In Champagne & Wine, Champagne outperforms still wines, Moët & Chandon leads at USD2.3 billion and Barefoot is the strongest brand with a BSI of 85.1/100.
Brand Finance is the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy. Bridging the gap between marketing and finance, Brand Finance evaluates the strength of brands and quantifies their financial value to help organisations make strategic decisions.
Headquartered in London, Brand Finance operates in over 25 countries. Every year, Brand Finance conducts more than 6,000 brand valuations, supported by original market research, and publishes over 100 reports which rank brands across all sectors and countries.
Brand Finance also operates the Global Brand Equity Monitor, conducting original market research annually on 6,000 brands, surveying more than 175,000 respondents across 41 countries and 31 industry sectors. By combining perceptual data from the Global Brand Equity Monitor with data from its valuation database — the largest brand value database in the world — Brand Finance equips ambitious brand leaders with the data, analytics, and the strategic guidance they need to enhance brand and business value.
In addition to calculating brand value, Brand Finance also determines the relative strength of brands through a balanced scorecard of metrics, compliant with ISO 20671.
Brand Finance is a regulated accountancy firm and a committed leader in the standardisation of the brand valuation industry. Brand Finance was the first to be certified by independent auditors as compliant with both ISO 10668 and ISO 20671 and has received the official endorsement of the Marketing Accountability Standards Board (MASB) in the United States.
Brand is defined as a marketing-related intangible asset including, but not limited to, names, terms, signs, symbols, logos, and designs, intended to identify goods, services, or entities, creating distinctive images and associations in the minds of stakeholders, thereby generating economic benefits.
Brand strength is the efficacy of a brand’s performance on intangible measures relative to its competitors. Brand Finance evaluates brand strength in a process compliant with ISO 20671, looking at Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and the impact of those on Business Performance. The data used is derived from Brand Finance’s proprietary market research programme and from publicly available sources.
Each brand is assigned a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score out of 100, which feeds into the brand value calculation. Based on the score, each brand is assigned a corresponding Brand Rating up to AAA+ in a format similar to a credit rating.
Brand Finance calculates the values of brands in its rankings using the Royalty Relief approach – a brand valuation method compliant with the industry standards set in ISO 10668. It involves estimating the likely future revenues that are attributable to a brand by calculating a royalty rate that would be charged for its use, to arrive at a ‘brand value’ understood as a net economic benefit that a brand owner would achieve by licensing the brand in the open market.
The steps in this process are as follows:
1 Calculate brand strength using a balanced scorecard of metrics assessing Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and Business Performance. Brand strength is expressed as a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score on a scale of 0 to 100.
2 Determine royalty range for each industry, reflecting the importance of brand to purchasing decisions. In luxury, the maximum percentage is high, while in extractive industry, where goods are often commoditised, it is lower. This is done by reviewing comparable licensing agreements sourced from Brand Finance’s extensive database.
3 Calculate royalty rate. The BSI score is applied to the royalty range to arrive at a royalty rate. For example, if the royalty range in a sector is 0-5% and a brand has a BSI score of 80 out of 100, then an appropriate royalty rate for the use of this brand in the given sector will be 4%.
4 Determine brand-specific revenues by estimating a proportion of parent company revenues attributable to a brand.
5 Determine forecast revenues using a function of historic revenues, equity analyst forecasts, and economic growth rates.
6 Apply the royalty rate to the forecast revenues to derive brand revenues.
7 Discount post-tax brand revenues to a net present value which equals the brand value.
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