(Wine-Searcher) - The domestic market has turned sour but exports are booming for Champagne.

Champagne shipments have recovered after a recent dip in their fortunes.

In 2014, Champagne producers shipped 307.1 million bottles. While that figure is 31m bottles fewer than the record high in 2008, the value of those bottles was €4.5 billion ($4.9m) – just shy of the 2008 record, thanks to growing interest in prestige cuvées and vintage Champagnes.

The most impressive growth is occurring outside the European Union: Australia has tripled its consumption of Champagne in the last decade, while Brazil crossed the million-bottle mark for the first time in 2014. The US and Japan, the sparkling wine producer's two major markets outside of Europe, are also experiencing strong growth.

"In business and luxury tourism hubs like Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates, consumption of Champagne's most expensive wines hit new highs," said Thibaut le Mailloux, spokesman for Champagne's wine trade association, the CIVC.

"Champagne is the wine of celebration, there is a correlation between the economic health of a country and its Champagne consumption," he claimed.

Back in Europe, the United Kingdom, whose GDP grew by 2.6 percent in 2014, regained its taste for Champagne after three consecutive year of decline. Britain imported 32.6m bottles, an increase of 6.1 percent.

"In mature markets, such as the UK, volume growth will always be limited. On the other hand we are looking to improve the worth of our sales with prestige cuvées, vintage and rosé wines, which reinforces our image as the finest sparkling wine in the world," he added.

The domestic market's appetite for Champagne has been on the wane since 2011, with sales down 3 percent year-on-year to 162.3m bottles, representing a turnover of €2.1bn.