NEWS FROM THE STATES - THE U.S. IS FOURTH LARGEST PRODUCER… WINE ENTHUSIASTS ASK FOR MORE SPACE TO CONSERVE WINE… A GIANT BOTTLE ON WALL STREET… SUPERMARKET SALES UP

The U.S. is the fourth largest producer …
In 2005, the United States produced 33.89 million hectoliters of wine, classifying as the fourth largest winemaker among the top wine producing countries, just after France ( with 50.5 million hectoliters produced), Spain (35.3 million), and Australia (15.59 million). From sixth to tenth place, the classification follows with Argentina (15.22 million hectoliters), Germany (10.5 million), Chile (7.88 million), South Africa (7.58 million), and Portugal (7.25 million). In total, wine production for these top ten countries reached 233.41 million hectoliters out of a global total of 264.76 million hectoliters.
These are the results of the “International Wine & Spirits Record” study that was conducted for Vinexpo.

More space needed for preserving wine …
Many wine collectors, not having enough space to conserve their collections in their own homes, have turned to companies that specialize in renting climate controlled spaces, as was recently reported in an Associated Press article by Janet Frankston Lorin. Even though the LLK Company (an affiliate of New York shop Acker Merrall & Condit) located in Fairfield, New Jersey recently doubled its space by over 1,000 square meters, it is once again full and now hopes to triple its capacity within 2007. Lars Neubohn, president of Wine Cellarage of New York, noted that three years ago he set up his storage activity because it was a market where the supply was less than the demand. He offers storage units that maintain a 55° F temperature and a humidity level between 60 and 80%. Clients can also monitor their wine via internet. The business of rental spaces for wine is developing rapidly throughout the United States, confronting the current lack of climate controlled space for the proper conservation of wine.

A giant bottle on Wall Street …
The traffic on Wall Street was blocked recently for the arrival of an enormous bottle of wine, brought in for a promotional event by Australian winemakers held at Cipriani Downtown. Kim Bullock, Australian wine producer, presented the largest bottle of wine in the world, coming in at 180 centimeters in height and weighing 500 kg. The creative producer built the glass bottle in Germany, the cork in Portugal, and bottled it with a special edition called “Five Virtuos”, obtained from the five different Australian Shiraz varieties. The bottle’s enormous label cost $1,500 dollars, the cork cost $3,500 and the packing and shipping from Australia to New York a total $7,500. It broke the previous record held by a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from California that was 175 cm, on auction at Sotheby’s in 2004 for $55,812.

Wine sales in supermarkets on the rise …
Retail wine sales in supermarkets throughout the U.S. increased by more than 2 million dollars from November 2005 to November 2006, for a total of 112.06 million 9 ltr containers of wine sold, earning 7.46 billion dollars, equaling an increase rate of 3.1% in quantity and 8.4% in value compared to the same period from 2004 – 2005.
This data, however, only represents 22-23% of total wine sales in the U.S. and offers a limited view of overall sales in the U.S. The increase in value continues to be almost triple in respect to its quantity, indicating that consumers in 2006 acquired more expensive wines than in the preceding year.
Wines produced within the U.S. earned 85.73 million 9 liter containers, for a total value of 5.25 billion dollars in the 2005-06 period, with an increase of 2.3% in quantity and 8.6% in value compared to the same period in 2004-05. Imported wine sales totaled 26.33 million containers for a value of 2.2 billion dollars, with an increase of 5.9% in quantity and 7.9% in value.
The sales of Italian wines increased by 8.46 million containers, for a total value of 738.2 million dollars, thus an increase of 6.4% in quantity and 8.3% increase in value.