During New Year’s Day’s celebrations, more than 500 million bottles of Italian sparkling wine were uncorked abroad; an increase of 6% compared to the previous year. This is what emerges from an estimate by Italian farmers’ association Coldiretti on the basis of forecasts on Istat data. The data show that a value of 1.5 billion euros in export sales was reached for the first time in 2018.
WHO LIKES ITALIAN SPARKLING WINE
The most passionate consumers of Italian sparkling wine are once again the Britons, who do not appear discouraged by Brexit. In fact, in 2018 the UK was the first market for Italian sparkling wine, with sales up by 5%, far ahead of the United States where, however, there was a leap of 13%. Germany is in a more secluded position, with growth of 6%. In the ranking of the world’s favourite Italian sparkling wines there are, among others, Prosecco, Asti and Franciacorta, which now challenge the prestigious Champagne as equals, so much so that on the French market there is a record sales growth of 21%. Italian wine is also popular in Russia, given the increase of 21% despite the tensions caused by the continuing embargo on a series of Italian food products. A double-digit increase can also be seen in Japan (+18%).
IN ITALY
The trend in demand is also positive in Italy, where only three out of ten bottles of Italian sparkling wine are sold. New Year’s Day’s celebrations coincided with a peak in demand for Italian sparkling wine: 68 million bottles, with an increase of 3% compared to the same period of last year.