The 2023 harvest in the European Union: 150 million hectoliters, -5.5% on the five-year average

The 2023 harvest in the European Union was lower in quantity, as estimates had foreseen. But, since the surpluses found in wine cellars in many producing countries are quite high, it is not such a bad thing.
Now that grapes are all in the wineries everywhere, the COPA-COGECA (European farmers and agri-cooperatives organization) estimates, presented yesterday in Brussels, revealed a total production of 150 million hectoliters, meaning it has fallen -5.5% on the five-year average. France (growing), Italy and Spain hold first second and third places, while there were significant drops in countries such as Austria (-6%), Greece (-23%), Croatia (-31%) and Slovakia (-20%), due to dry winters, hail and rainy springs. “The sector has been facing major challenges for several years now, not the least of them, of course, the consequences of the Covid pandemic, as well as climatic events and the sharp increase in production costs, combined with a significant increase in interest rates. Nevertheless, European producers have continued growing and demonstrating their resilience”, Luca Rigotti, head of the COPA-COGECA Wine Group, as well as the Alliance of Italian Cooperatives, and the Trentino company Mezzacorona, commented.
Examining the data of individual countries, in 2023, France became the leading European wine producer at an estimated production of 45 million hectoliters, which means +1.47% increase compared to the previous year. However, even though France was hit by downy mildew and drought, especially in the South, it managed not to be overcome, thanks to crisis measures they put in place, such as aid for distillation and green harvesting.
Therefore, for the first time in seven years, Italy has lost its lead as top wine producer as its estimated production is 43.9 million hectoliters, which represents a loss of 11.92% compared to last year. Heavy spring rains, which turned into floods in the Emilia Romagna Region, and the episodes of downy mildew, particularly in the Center and South of the Country, explain this significant decline.
Spain, however, is still the third European producer, at an estimated 30.8 million hectoliters, in spite of the collapse in production in 2022 (-14.42%). The adverse climatic conditions; that is, dry autumn, winter and spring, heavy rains in the last part of spring, heat waves during the summer, and hail, meant that Spanish vineyards suffered heavily in terms of production. Thanks to low humidity, though, the vines were relatively healthy and provided high-quality grapes. France, Italy and Spain together, produced almost 120 million hectoliters, 80% of European Union production.
Regarding other countries, Portugal registered +8.6% increase while production was just under 10 million hectoliters, thanks to distillation measures they adopted. In Germany, the estimated production was 8.86 million hectoliters, - 2.1% loss in wine production due to inflation and high production costs throughout the supply chain. No significant decreases occurred due to climatic conditions, though, which remained stable.