From Prosecco to Asti, the great Italian sparkling wine territories are stable (and growing)

Initially, those companies that felt the crisis the most due to the restrictions that have affected social relations as we knew them before Covid-19, canceled a good part of the year, and were heavily limited in the remaining part. Instead, Italian bubbles, at least in their most pop version, at the end were stable. There is more. Looking at the data on bottling and certifications, and even though they are not real market data are still a key indicator of how things are going, have even grown. And, this applies to all the major denominations, from the Prosecco galaxy, DOCG to DOC, including Asolo, to Asti. This snapshot, obviously, is looking at the territories on the whole, being quite aware that within the same denomination, as well as throughout the Italian wine sector, there are companies that have survived the year of Covid-19 better, and others that instead, unfortunately have experienced much greater challenges. The IRI data on Italian mass retail, updated to November 22, 2020 (and, therefore, before the holiday period, where people toasted, even though they stayed home) has also evidenced the good health of the sector. Since the beginning of the year, it has registered an increase in sales, +10.2% and +9.9% in value, in hypermarkets and supermarkets and in the small self-service stores, however, at substantially stable prices (-0.3%).

The champions of this growth, specifically, are Prosecco DOC, at +21.7% in volume and +17.2% in value, and Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG, at +16.8% in volume and +15% in value. These data, together with exports that did not suffer that much, in the end, as well as the contribution of online sales, have led to an end-of-year balance sheet that appears decidedly positive, and even more so in light of the challenges related to the pandemic. The most impressive figure is from Prosecco DOC. Stefano Zanette, at the helm of the Consortium, has announced very recently that for the first time in their history, in 2020, they have surpassed 500 million certified bottles, up +2.8% compared to 2019. This is yet another testimony of the enormous success of the most famous Italian sparkling wine in the world. It is also an excellent result The historical soul of the Prosecco phenomenon, or the denomination of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG has also shown an excellent result. According to the data of the Consortium, led by Innocente Nardi, in 2020, 92 million bottles of the famous bubbles that are grown in the UNESCO Heritage Hills were certified, the historical and original territory of the Prosecco phenomenon, which therefore has confirmed the 2019 record.

Asolo Prosecco DOCG has done even better, in terms of growth, though starting from enormously smaller numbers, which, according to the Asolo Prosecco Consortium, led by Ugo Zamperoni, closed the tough year 2020 at 18.7 million bottles certified, which is a 10% increase compared to 2019, 17 million bottles had been certified. It was a positive year also for Asti Spumante and Moscato d’Asti, according to the first data (reported by the Italian newspaper “La Stampa” that the president of the Consorzio dell’Asti DOCG Romano Dogliotti, commented, ed.), according to which they reached 92 million bottles overall, up to + 8% compared to 2019. The data is partially definitive, and partially to be confirmed, but it testifies to the strength of a sector, Italian sparkling wine, which has been a driving force for the growth of Italian wine in recent years, and has confirmed its strength, even during one of the hardest years in recent history.