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Issue 803 - September 14th - 18th 2026 - Expressly created for 3677 wine lovers,
professionals and opinion leaders from all over the world | |
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| | | According to Istat data analyzed by WineNews, Italian sparkling wines totaled approximately 1 billion euros in exports (+0.4%) in the first six months of 2026, with volumes at 252.2 million liters (-0.7%). This performance bucks the trend for Italian wine exports as a whole, which during the same period fell by 6.1% in value (3.6 billion euros) and 4% in volume (989.6 million liters). It was achieved despite declines (see below) in markets such as the U.S. and the U.K. (while Germany is growing). In the first six months of 2026, Prosecco DOP reached 825.4 million in exports (over 80% of sparkling wine exports), a result not far from that of the first half of 2025. | |
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| | The wine markets are struggling and the harvest is in full swing, but it’s already time to kick off the season of international guides and rankings. And putting the spotlight on Italy is the “Top 100 Wines of Italy” 2026 by James Suckling, which, in this edition, has particularly honored the 2021 vintage of Brunello di Montalcino (with 12 wines on the list, including the top two, although the most-awarded geographical indication is Toscana IGT with 15 labels, ed.), one of the “best of the last two decades”. It is no coincidence that the No. 1 wine on the list is the 2021 Brunello di Montalcino from Eredi Fuligni, one of the historic wineries in the Montalcino region, led by Roberto Guerrini, followed at No. 2 by another prominent name, San Filippo, with its 2021 Brunello di Montalcino Le Lucère, in a “Top 10” that also features, at No. 7, the 2021 Brunello di Montalcino from Giodo, the winery of Carlo Ferrini, one of Italy’s most accomplished oenologists. On the podium, at No. 3, is Roberto Voerzio’s Barolo Brunate 2022, one of the great names of the Langhe (which, along with the 2021 San Filippo Le Lucère Brunello di Montalcino, are also the only two wines in this edition to have earned a perfect score of 100 out of 100). Rounding out the 2026 “Top 10”, however, are other great classics of Italian wine: at No. 4 is one of South Tyrol’s icons, the Terlaner I Grande Cuvée 2023 from Cantina Terlano, while at No. 5 is one of the most admired and sought-after Italian wines in the world, the Sassicaia 2023 from Tenuta San Guido, ahead of, at No. 6, another top name from the Langhe, G.B. Burlotto, with his Barolo 2022. At No. 8, South Tyrol is represented once again by another of the region’s most celebrated names, J. Hofstätter, with his Gewürztraminer Alto Adige Vigna Pirchschrait 2016, while at No. 9 we go to Mount Etna, with the Etna Rosso Calderara Sottana Prephylloxera La Vigna di Don Peppino 2024 from Tenuta delle Terre Nere, one of the “volcano’s” premier labels, while No. 10 takes us back to the Langhe, with the Barbaresco Paje Riserva 2021 from the Produttori del Barbaresco (for more details, see the complete list of the 100 wines, whose selection will also enrich the guide “The Best 100 Wines and Winemakers of Italy” 2026, by Luciano Ferraro, deputy editor-in-chief of the daily newspaper “Corriere della Sera”). | |
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| | Italian wine exports to Canada saw slight growth. According to Canadian customs data analyzed by the Interprofessional Organization of Spanish Wine (OIVE), in the first half of 2026, Italy was Canada’s second-largest wine supplier by value, at 208.6 million euros (+1.1% compared to the first half of 2025), and by volume, at 36.5 million liters (+2.3%). Overall, Canada recorded a decline in total wine imports both in value (-7.9%) and in volume (-6.8%), totaling 769.6 million euros and 174.6 million liters. The bond between Canada and Europe is growing ever stronger, so much so that EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in her “State of the Union” address, stated her intention to begin the process of welcoming Canada as the EU’s first associate member. | |
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| | | A true “archaeological vineyard” that, over time, will span more than 6 hectares, featuring native grape varieties and the “patriarchs of the vine” preserved by Feudi di San Gregorio in Irpinia, on soil that has remained untouched for over two thousand years, and the construction of an organic winery within the Park, in 2028, to resume production of “Pompeian wine”, 30,000 bottles per year, by 2029. A wine unique in the world, not only because, thanks to Italian winemaking expertise, it is reborn from antiquity amid the excavations of the Roman city buried by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 A.D., but also because it speaks to the very importance of wine in our civilization. In recent days, yet another chapter has been written in the history of Pompeii and humanity, thanks to a special public-private partnership between the Archaeological Park and the Tenute Capaldo Group, along with Feudi di San Gregorio and Basilisco wineries, and thanks to the return of the harvest of the red grape varieties that the Romans once cultivated in Campania - Aglianico, Piedirosso, Sciascinoso - in the current vineyard of just over one hectare at the Domus. The project, in fact, is the result of significant research on native grape varieties and their cultivation over the centuries, conducted by Professor Attilio Scienza and agronomist Pierpaolo Sirch. | |
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| | | The great Piedmontese wineries Giacomo Conterno, Gaja, La Spinetta; Ca’ del Bosco, one of Franciacorta’s gems; Cantina Terlano, a benchmark in South Tyrol, and Fontodi, one of the most celebrated names in Chianti Classico: these are the exceptional “sextet” that has achieved 3 wines awarded the “5 Grappoli”, the highest quality distinction granted by “Bibenda” 2027, the 29th edition organized by the Italian Sommelier Foundation (FIS), taking place on November 28 in Rome. | |
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| | Bringing wine back to the center of the experience: that’s what the “Festival Franciacorta in Cantina” does, the quintessential “local” event for Italian wine organized by the Consortium of the prestigious Metodo Classico (which has set the standard), to meet producers at open cellars - from Barone Pizzini to Bellavista, Contadi Castaldi, Berlucchi, Bosio, Ca’ del Bosco, Camilucci, Castello Bonomi Tenute in Franciacorta, Lo Sparviere, Majolini, Marchesi Antinori Tenuta Montenisa, Monte Rossa, Mosnel, Muratori, Ricci Curbastro, Ronco Calino, Terre d’Aenòr, and Villa Franciacorta, among others - and to learn about the “Franciacorta Method” (in masterclasses at the Consortium, with Accademia Symposium, where you can also visit an exhibition dedicated to the zoning of Franciacorta), combining wine, cuisine, nature, culture, and fun. | |
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| | The harvest has begun, but for Barolo, it’s also time to unveil the new vintages. Making its debut is the first Municipal Mention of Barolo from Serralunga d’Alba 2023, one of the most prestigious Additional Geographical Mentions (MGA), with producers gathering for “Serraluna Day” at the Farinetti family’s Villaggio Narrante in Fontanafredda, in the Langhe (read more). A discussion centered on the “Manifesto”, the portrait of the vintage, but also included producers of another iconic Italian red: Brunello di Montalcino. | |
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