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Issue 381 - August 13th-17th - Expressly created for 11.897 wine lovers,
professionals and opinion leaders from all over the world |
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Highs and lows are the order of the day in the ranking of the 50 most expensive wines on the market. And, the scepter of the most expensive wine is firmly in the hands of Romanée-Conti, which, according to Wine-Searcher, commands 16.270 euros per bottle (+ 25%), and has 7 wines in the standings. In second place there is another Burgundy, Musigny Grand Cru of Domaine Leroy (counting 12 different wines among the 50 most expensive, ed.) that thanks to + 86% growth has reached 11.970 euros. Third place, instead, goes to the legendary Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese of the Moseron vigneron Egon Muller, costing 10.190 euros per bottle, 13% more than in 2017. |
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Wine is the champion of Italian exports to the United States, thanks to shipments amounting to over 1 billion dollars out of the 2.5 total of all Italian agri-food, which in the first 6 months of 2018 registered + 13.8% overall growth. Italy is also a market leader of many other products that end up on the tables of Americans, from olive oil to cheese, pasta and mineral water. This data is from the US Department of Commerce and consequently assessed by the Italian trade institute ICE, which shows Italy holding the record in various strategic sectors, and Italy is the sixth US supplier in agri-food, as well. Wine is the most important item in the market basket, weighing for 39.7% of the total, while the remaining 60% is made up of primarily olive oil (20%), pasta (12%), cheeses (11%), sauces and other prepared foods (9%), canned vegetables and baked goods (7%), and mineral waters (6%). Moreover, as ICE has explained to WineNews, Italy has definitely maintained its record in olive oil imports, despite the 8.2% less in volume in 2017, because in the first half of 2018 Italy exported olive oil for 275 million US dollars, which is a 4% increase in value, for a dominant market share of 37.5% in value and 33.6% extra virgin olive oil in the USA. Italy stands out in the cheese sector as well, thanks to a +19.6% jump in value for 154 million dollars, and a market share of 25.5% in value, twice that of France, which takes second place. Further, Italy’s numbers are double those of Canada in pasta and register +18.1% for 162.8 million euros and a market share of 35.5%. The Italian record is solid even for mineral waters, at 95 million euros in value, + 21.3%, and a market share of 34.5%. Additionally, Italy is growing by double-digits also in sauces (125 million US dollars, + 26.9%) vegetable preserves (97.5 million US dollars, + 13.1%), baked goods (80 million US dollars + 28.7%) and coffee (50.8 million euros, + 5.1%). Italy’s growth has been continuous thanks to the ICE support campaign backed by the Ministry of Economic Development project, in place since 2015, which focuses on direct communication to consumers to also fight counterfeiting and “Italian Sounding”. |
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Italy, France and Spain are preparing for a grape harvest redemption this year, according to forecasts. Ismea, the agri food market services and Uiv, the Italian wines union are talking about 46 million hectoliters, and Agreste, the statistics service of the Ministry of Agriculture in France predicts the same numbers as Italy, i.e., 46 million hectoliters, while forecasts for the Agri-Food Cooperatives in Spain are 42-43 million hectoliters. These forecasts are based on data from July, and before grapes are actually in the cellars, a situation which we often say should be taken with a grain of salt. France has been in the center of much criticism recently because buyers have been trying to push down bulk prices. Agreste, however, refused to accept this and released indisputable data. Since 2014, forecasts have been published around July 20th, and the margin of error has never exceeded 3%... |
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The “Global Market Report” by the Ciatti Company, one of the largest bulk wine brokers in the world, focuses on Italy and its dynamics in the vineyards, since the grape harvest is at the door. Following an optimal seasonal trend, which quantity wise is showing a total reverse trend with respect to last year, and forecasts from the Italian agri food market services, ISMEA are indicating 46 million hectoliters. This comeback puts the bulk market on standby, while the buyers are waiting for the grapes to actually be in the cellars to be able to know the production level and 2018 prices, before making rash decisions. Consequently, bulk prices are either all stable or on the decline. Table white wine prices are 50-60 euro cents per liter, the same as table reds, while Chardonnay is going on the market at 0.75-1.10 euros and Cabernet Sauvignon at 70-80 euro cents, like Merlot. Primitivo, instead, remains stable at 1.20-1.40 euros per liter. Examining denomination wines, Pinot Grigio DOC is confirming a market quotation of bulk at 1-1.10 euros per liter, Prosecco DOC is stable at 1.90-2.10 euros per liter and Montepulciano DOC prices are 0.75 to 0.80 euro cents per liter, while Chianti DOC, strictly bottled only, has grown to 2-2.25 euros per liter. |
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Antonio Carpenè has gone down in history as one of the most enlightened minds of the nineteenth century in science and entrepreneurship, author of wine and viniculture publications, a “wine visionary” in the historic sparkling wine world for transforming Glera into the best performing Italian wine. This is the story of the “father” of Prosecco, 180 years after his birth on August 17, 1838. The 1924 Prosecco selection (on the market in September) was the first year the name Prosecco was put on the label. |
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Vindigo, the blue wine that has conquered consumers does not convince experts. The producer, René Le Bail, a Frenchman who has chosen to conduct his business in Spain, has guaranteed the blue wine is all natural. It is none other than Chardonnay which, thanks to the anthocyanin pigment of the red berry peelings on which it rests, turns blue. This explanation has not convinced the scientific community, skeptical about the explanation of the producer, and they remind us that a practice such as adding red grapes to a white wine is also prohibited in the production of rosés. In short, more than a fashion, it looks like a joke. There is a precedent, as in 2015 another blue wine appeared on the Spanish shelves, Gik. But, the use of additional colors was discovered, and it became a “wine-based alcoholic beverage” ... |
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The director of ICE New York, Maurizio Forte, has confirmed to WineNews that “there is a positive trend in the agri-food sector, and that Italy has taken first place among the suppliers of various categories (still wines, olive oil, pasta, cheese and mineral water) as well as being in sixth place for total imports. In the first six months of 2018, + 13.8% growth in value was recorded, confirming that the American consumer is definitely interested in Italian products, especially wine (39.7% of the entire market basket), for 2.52 billion US dollars”. |
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