Prosecco is the driving force of Italian wine, thanks to never-ending promotional activities

Prosecco, the historic DOCG of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, and the younger and larger, DOC, is the driving force of Italian wine. In 2023, exports reached 1.6 billion euros, almost a fifth of the National total, up from the 1.5 billion euros in 2022. In the first quarter of 2024, exports have reached more than 368 million euros, that is, +7.7%, compared to the same period the previous year. These results are due to the work of the producers, first and foremost, as well as the Consortiums never-ending promotional activities in the USA, Asia and Europe, even during summer vacation. Franco Adami is the new president of the Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG Consortium, following the mandate of Elvira Bortolomiol, and the Prosecco DOC Consortium is now chaired by Giancarlo Guidolin, successor of the long-standing president, Stefano Zanette.
The DOCG Consortium headed to the USA at the beginning of June, stopping in Washington, Houston and Aspen, at the Aspen Food & Wine Festival, one of the most prestigious food and wine events in the United States. In the last few days, instead, the focus has moved to Asia. First to Japan, in Tokyo and Osaka. Then to China on July 3rd, in Beijing, at the Italian Cultural Institute, where Diego Tomasi, Director of the Consortium that the Italian Embassy in Beijing invited, will present the volume he has written, “The Power of Terroir: a case study of Prosecco Wine”. In the next few months, the target will be Europe, where various initiatives will be held in Poland, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, France and Germany. Prosecco DOC, instead, has planned activities using other formats, such as “Il Mese del Prosecco” ( Prosecco month), above all in restaurants, clubs and wine bars, as well as promotional communication campaigns on medias, social networks, and others, that has touched markets in Canada, in Alberta. They also went to Australia, especially to Melbourne and Sydney, with the “Prosecco Doc Lifestyle Drinks & Talks” event, thanks to the local Chambers of Commerce, and the big Italian design, fashion and automotive brands, such as Fiat/Alfa Romeo, SMEG, DeLonghi and MaxMara. And, of course, Germany, one of the most important markets for Prosecco, and the event, “Prosecco DOC Summer Vibes”, for the entire month of July. In the USA, the “National Prosecco Week” was held in June, which the Prosecco DOC Consortium had begun back in 2017, and boasts the participation of over 2.000 restaurants, e-commerce and retailers, plus special initiatives in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Chicago. Meanwhile, in China, Prosecco DOC bubbles hosted the “Prosecco Week” in Hong Kong, Macao, Xiamen, Beijing and Shanghai. Shanghai also hosted the “Prosecco Wine Festival”. In Japan, instead, and precisely, in Tokyo, the “Shibuya Prosecco Doc Garden” pop-up store opened in May in one of the busiest districts in the Japanese metropolis. The “Prosecco Month” event in August will include more than 225 restaurants, wine bars and wine shops located throughout Japan, to promote Prosecco by the bottle and by the glass sales, as well as events pairing bubbles to Italian cuisine, aperitifs with Spritz, and so on.
Furthermore, while still in the Far East, a pop-up store will be open in South Korea at The Hyunday Seoul, the largest Department Store in the South Korean capital, and a trendy place for Millennials and Gen Z, from July 5th to 11th. Meanwhile in Taiwan, in the months of August and September, the focus is on the collaboration with the supermarket Carrefour, in 66 stores and 9 Carrefour Flagship Stores, and the “Sparkling Symphony: A multi-sensory voyage on Prosecco DOC’S finest notes”, pairing wine to music. In Vietnam, also in August and September, the “Prosecco Month” event will be held, also in this case with participating restaurants, wine bars and wine shops. Obviously, there will be various events in the United Kingdom, one of the historic and most important markets for Prosecco DOC. In June, “Taste of London” kicked off the London summer with Prosecco DOC, which confirmed its presence for the eighth year , registering a growing success. The “National Prosecco Day”, traditionally celebrated in the United Kingdom on August 13th, this year Casa Prosecco UK has planned a weekend of various events promoting Veneto-Friuli bubbles on August 17th and 18th.
“The training, communication and promotional initiatives our Denomination has organized”, Giancarlo Guidolin, president of the Prosecco DOC Consortium explained, “are attracting great interest and growing participation from an ever more qualified public. Even the younger people appreciate the various formats that we have been proposing at our events, as they combine moments of advanced training in the classroom to more and more engaging and inclusive cultural entertainment situations. Prosecco is becoming more and more synonymous with friendliness, pleasantness and sociability, but it also expresses Italian beauty, culture and art, and especially the territory that produces it”.
“Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco DOCG is becoming more and more important on the International market, registering higher overall increases in long-term sales than those on the National market (+258.2% compared to 2003 abroad, while +124.9% compared to 2003 in Italy)”, Diego Tomasi, Director of the Consortium, said, adding, “today, you can buy Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco DOCG in more than 150 Countries around the world. The United States continues to confirm its leading position among sparkling wine importing Countries, holding 21.7% share in value. They registered a significant increase in value of imports, +20.3%, which is in line with the average for sparkling wines. Three million bottles of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG have been sold in the USA, for a value of just under 17 million euros. It is, therefore, a market that we want to strengthen more. Japan and China are two interesting Countries for our Denomination, which have registered significant increases in the value share”.