Wine Observatory - UIV: production 2018 is up, but keep an eye on the weather

The analyses Ismea- market and agrifood services and UIV - Unione Italiana Vini carried out between the end of August and the first days of September and that the President of UIV, Ernesto Abbona presented to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, Forestry and Tourism, together with the “master of the house”, Minister Gian Marco Centinaio, Raffaele Borriello, and the Director General of ISMEA and Ignacio Sanchez Recarte, Secretary General of the Comité Européen des Entreprises Vins, estimate the national production of wine 2018 at 49 million hectoliters, recovering 15% compared to the 42.5 million in 2017 Agea registered based on production reports. The estimate, as usual, is the average of a range considered reliable that may vary between a minimum of 48 million and a maximum of 50 million hectoliters. It is widely known that the 2017 harvest was marked by very low production and even though the increase estimated for the current harvest is significant, it may not be sufficient to cover last year’s losses. This is especially the case in the Regions of Central Italy, Emilia Romagna and Sicily. Nevertheless, this year’s result would permit Italy to maintain its world leadership despite notable increases in production estimated for France and Spain. The latest French estimates, as a matter of fact, stop production at 46.1 million hectoliters, while in Spain the ceiling of 43 million hectoliters seems a reliable estimate. Looking back at the development of the vineyards, they started under the best auspices, but were then influenced by bizarre climate that alternated frosts, rains and humidity. The final result, both quantity and quality wise, as usual, for each vineyard, will depend on the period immediately preceding the harvest. Of course, there is also a minimum common denominator, which is the maximum attention that producers have exerted on monitoring the vineyards, and this is one of those years in which the winemaker’s ability will make the difference on the final result. Interventions in the vineyard have generally been more numerous both compared to last year as well as to an “average” vintage, and this will inevitably end up affecting production costs.