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Issue 771 - February 2nd - 6th 2026 - Expressly created for 3667 wine lovers,
professionals and opinion leaders from all over the world | |
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| | | From toasts on the bateau-mouche along the Seine with Franciacorta to those in the beautiful “Grand Palais” with the great wines of Primum Familiae Vini, from the Italian Embassy, with Pasqua, to the collective toast of the Italian Wine Signature Academy at Signorvino, to an unprecedented presence at the fair (one in five exhibitors will be Italian, with Italy second only to France), with over 1,100 Italian wineries (occupying 25% more space than in 2025): Italian wine, also in the presence of institutions, is preparing to flood Paris with its great diversity of offerings during the days of “Wine Paris” by Vinexposium (February 9-11). | |
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| | A veritable “archaeological vineyard” that will eventually cover more than 6 hectares, with native local vines and soil that has remained untouched for over two thousand years, and the construction of an organic winery in the Park, to resume production of “Pompeian wine”. This wine is unique in the world, not only because, thanks to Italian winemaking expertise, it has been revived from antiquity among the ruins of the Roman city buried by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, a symbolic place in world culture, but also because it tells the story of the importance of wine in our civilization. A new chapter is being written for viticulture and the cultural and natural heritage of Pompeii, Italy, and the world, thanks to a special public-private partnership between the Archaeological Park of Pompeii and the Tenute Capaldo Group, and, in particular, the Feudi di San Gregorio and Basilisco wineries, the result of important research on native vines and their cultivation over the centuries, in collaboration with Attilio Scienza, professor of Viticulture at the University of Milan, and the agronomic expertise of Feudi di San Gregorio and its production manager, agronomist Pierpaolo Sirch. The project is being carried out in one of the most important archaeological areas in the world, with over 4 million visitors in 2025. “Today we need to reintroduce wine to the younger generations, who no longer have the same relationship with this drink as they once did”, said Minister of Agriculture Francesco Lollobrigida to WineNews, describing the project as a virtuous public-private partnership that can be “replicated in other parts of Italy”. A collaboration between wine and culture “is right, because wine is much more than just a drink, and it is not just alcohol, but culture”, reiterated Undersecretary of Culture Gianmarco Mazzi, “it is a heritage to be defend”. “We have more than 100 hectares of green areas, which we want to transform from a cost into a source of development and education. The history of humanity is the history of agriculture, which has the same roots as culture”, recalled the park’s director, Gabriel Zuchtriegel. “This project offers us the opportunity to share the millennial culture of wine with the world, and for this reason”, said Antonio Capaldo, president of Feudi di San Gregorio, “I feel a great responsibility”. | |
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| | The “Big Apple”, the melting pot of American culture and ethnicity, the “city that never sleeps”: however you look at it, New York City is one of the world’s great economic capitals and the symbolic city of the United States, which is the world’s largest wine market and Italy’s leading foreign partner for wine (€1.5 billion in the first 10 months of 2025, albeit slightly down on 2024, according to Istat data analyzed by WineNews). New York City will be the venue for the third edition of Vinitaly.Usa, on October 26 and 27, organized by Veronafiere-Vinitaly and Ita-Italian Trade Agency, after two editions in Chicago. This choice is linked not only to the city, but also to the fact that “the State of New York accounts for 6.5% of total wine consumption in the United States”. | |
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| | | Since yesterday, the eyes of the world, sporting and otherwise, have been turned to Milan and Cortina, the “widespread theater” of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, for the performances of the champions of skiing and all the other disciplines in competition. And, when the Olympic Flame was lit simultaneously in Milan and Cortina, a toast was made in the presence of the Prosecco DOC Protection Consortium, with the world’s most famous Italian sparkling wine, which is the Official Sparkling Wine of the Games and will play a leading role throughout the event. “An investment - the most important in the history of the Denomination - that brings the Veneto and Friuli regions to a global audience of over 3 billion viewers”, explains a note from the Consortium, according to which the partnership with the Games “represents an important opportunity to promote Italian culture and identity on a global scale, in perfect harmony with the theme of Harmony that characterizes the event”. An event also “blessed” by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, who had lunch with the Italian athletes in the Olympic Village canteen and acted as “host” at the gala dinner organized by the Cerea family of the three-star restaurant Da Vittorio (with wines from Vie di Romans, Cà del Bosco, and Donnafugata). | |
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| | | Wine sales in Italian large-scale retail down in 2025 according to Circana data for WineNews: from January to December 28, just over 618 million liters of wine were sold (-3.1% compared to 2024), for a value of €2.3 billion (-0.5%) and an average price of €3.77 per liter (+2.6%). 0.75-liter bottles are worth €1.8 billion (+0.2%) and 331.8 million liters (-1.9%), with an average price of €5.47 per liter (+2.1%). Sparkling wines: value of €778 million (+3.6%), volume of 106.7 million liters (+3.1%), average price of €7.29 per liter (+0.4%). | |
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| | The “dream” of Italy, with its exclusive hotels, Michelin-starred dinners, prestigious wines, and iconic regions, remains as appealing as ever on Americans’ wish lists: as confirmed by the great success of the top Italian lots at the charity auction organized by the “Naples Winter Wine Festival”, held every year in Florida, where 51 lots were sold (raising over $30 million), dedicated to wines and trips to the most exclusive destinations on the planet. Record bids were made for the top Italian lots, ranging from a stay on Lake Como to the Tasca d’Almerita experience in Sicily, as well as a “full immersion” in the Brunello di Montalcino region, including Argiano, Altesino, Caparzo, and Castiglion del Bosco, as well as experiences and bottles by Biondi Santi, and a luxurious tour of Marilisa Allegrini’s estates in Veneto and Tuscany. | |
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| | In recent months, there has been no lack of support for the wine sector from institutions, starting with the Ministry of Agriculture led by Francesco Lollobrigida. This has taken the form of direct initiatives, regulations, promotional support, but also through the ITA - Italian Trade Agency, Italy’s work on the “EU Wine Package” now in its final stages, the decree to allow the production of alcohol-free wines in Italy. And now, on February 15, an institutional campaign to promote and communicate the value and culture of wine will be launched on national television and radio, and beyond. | |
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