WINENEWS POLL - SALES TRENDS: FROM PIEDMONT TO SICILY, FROM THE VENETO TO CAMPANIA, SIGNS ARE THE MARKET IS REAWAKENING ... BUT ABROAD NOT IN ITALY!

Word from large producers and the Italian Wine Institute is positive for the first balance of the year. There is both optimism and caution and hope that this signals the end of the difficulties that Italian wine has experienced and that this latest report could be the signal that Italy has finally come out of it crisis.
One of the biggest names from the Piedmont region, Michele Chiarlo, comments on the state of Barolo and quality wine, confirming that sales for Barolo have increased: “After almost three years of stagnation we are registering a renewed interest in important wines like Barolo. It is a clear signal, Barolo is one of the main flags for quality Italian wine and is one of the first that has begun to grow again on markets. England is now demanding, for example, both for large quantities and high quality wine. And the emerging markets, though still small in regards to quantities exported, like those of Russia and China are still very promising, and we are registering a clear request for quality wines like Barolo”. For Piedmont wine producers, this positive trend had already begun in 2005, above all with wine exports to the United States and Canada.
In Sicily, on the other hand, Donnafugata proprietor, Giacomo Rallo, reports that 2005 was still a stagnant year and that only now are there a few weak signs of market growth: “I believe that it will take two or three years to be able to say that the crisis has passed, but I do have faith in this because it seems that a rationalizing process has begun, a seed that will bear its fruits with time. Prices are more reasonable, the restaurant sector is organizing better, the Horeca channel in particular seems promising. Donnafugata sales are going well in the United States and Japan, we have also begun to export to China, but things in Italy are going less well”.
Another Sicilian company, Tasca d’Almerita, confirms the stationary state in Italy, and has also signaled a jump in exports in the first few months of 2006. Tasca d’Almerita noted that, “In the first three months, our sales have grown by 20%, above all in Russia, even if the national market is at a standstill, we do have the first satisfaction from abroad. During this phase my company has registered good results, above all with products from the middle-high range”.
Attention to the “right” price is possibly one of the more interesting particularities of this renewed upturn in sales. In response to Masi sales, Sandro Boscaini explained, “After the shock, it seems to me that there is healthy realism. It has started to sell well, but a new period of euphoria, that creates a new speculative bubble and apparent absence of product, is not desired. There is a sentiment around that I hope lasts, a healthy realism that can help true growth. There is attention to the true value of wine, to the quality-price relation. I see an emphasis on wines that really represent the territory, and not inventions created solely for the market”. Boscaini advises prudence for emerging markets, where wine is still primarily a trend and a curiosity, and thus variable. For example, in Japan, where companies like Donnafugata can’t complain, others are registering a sharp drop in sales. Among these both Masi and Umbrian Lungarotti. In fact, Chiara Lungarotti confirmed, “In Japan, Italian wine is no longer as trendy as it was in the 80’s. Young Japanese women who once loved to drink Italian wine now order other things. There is more cultural interest than consumer interest. Abroad, the market is truly spotted like a leopard, more so than in Italy, and much also depends on the organization of sales”. In general, however, even for the Torgiano company there has been a registered upswing. On the Italian market it is mostly in medium and large sized cities, while abroad even Germany has recently increased its demand. And Lungarotti’s “reserves” are selling much better than “base” wines.
Even Michele Bernetti (Umani Ronchi) talks of increases, though they are small. 80% of production is shipped abroad and already in 2005 exports had increased by 3%, a positive trend that is continuing into the first months of 2006. Bernetti noted, “After years of complaints, this year nobody is lamenting. But attention: Italy is in a good position on the world wine market but it has not left the danger zone. Italy is growing but other countries are growing more and are making more inroads like in Australia, South Africa and Argentina. The demand is also changing, and Italian companies must adapt to the new market”. For Michele Bernetti, high level wines have a contained consumption future and it is important to invest in other products.
It may be that Italy is, therefore, more close to a “turning point” than a true market boom, according to Piero Mastroberardino, president of Federvini and owner of a wine company in the Campana region, who spoke with WineNews. “The feeling is that the mechanism is getting back into motion, without a doubt macroeconomic data and the international climate are positive. But I am only hearing talk of a positive expectations in general.
Alma Torretta