Global wine production in 2021 is set to fall by 4% vs. 2020, to around 250 million hectolitres (mhl), close to the historic low of 2017, the International Organisation for Vine & Wine (OIV) has projected.

Such figures are preliminary, but they highlight the “severe impact” of adverse climatic conditions on the 2021 vintage in parts of Europe, said OIV director-general Paul Roca.

Europe’s major producing countries, France, Spain and Italy, lost about 22mhl of potential wine production to weather-related factors like frost, hailstorms and mildew, the OIV estimated.

France could see its tiniest wine harvest in decades and Roca said it is likely to fall behind Spain to third place in world wine production figures. France’s 2021 harvest is expected to hit 34.2mhl, down 27% on 2020, with Spain on 35mhl, down 14%, the OIV said. Italy, the world’s biggest producing nation, is likely to see a 2021 harvest of 44.5mhl, down 9% on last year.

Smaller harvests don’t necessarily offer lesser quality, and several winemakers have told Decanter that they remain optimistic about grapes that survived the 2021 conditions. Roca also cautioned against assuming that wine lovers will see shortages. Even though the OIV expects global wine consumption to rise, he said, “we cannot say there will be a shortage, because there is inventory”. Actually global wine stocks were high already before Covid crisis.  Stock levels may naturally vary by area, of course.

Many Southern hemisphere countries saw bigger vintages in 2021. Australia and Chile both increased wine production by around 30% versus 2020, to 14.2mhl and 13.4mhl respectively. US wine production was likely to rise by 6% versus 2020, to 24.1mhl, but is down by 3% on a five-year average. Drought has hit yields in some areas. On a global measure, however, 2021 is “the third year in a row that world wine production is below average”, Roca said.

Coming in the week of the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow, a significant amount of the OIV’s press conference was devoted to climate challenges. Climate scientists have repeatedly warned of more frequent and unpredictable extreme weather events, which impact vineyards alongside whole communities. Roca spoke of a “destabilisation” of climatic conditions but also about the importance of work being done within the OIV and elsewhere to help winemakers adapt.

Film director Francis Ford Coppola’s Domaine de Broglie winery in Dayton was ravaged by fire in the late hours of Sunday, Oct. 31. It is unclear when it will be able to re-open.

Domaine de Broglie winemaker David Petterson was alerted shortly after midnight on Nov. 1. Petterson spent the night watching fire crews sift through the fire’s aftermath.

Petterson said the call reporting the blaze came into the Dayton Fire Department switchboard at approximately 10 p.m. According to Petterson, the fire began in the north end of the building, the location of the winery’s offices. While the full extent of the structural damage is unclear at the moment, Petterson said the offices were destroyed and the tasting room suffered smoke and water damage. “The destruction is significant,” Petterson said. Domaine de Broglie, the former Vista Hills Winery, opened its doors under Coppola’s ownership in the spring of 2019. Their wines are made at the Elizabeth Chambers Cellars facility in McMinnville. Petterson informed Coppola of the damaging fire via email.  “Francis immediately said ‘the show must go on,’” Petterson said. The cause of the fire is under investigation

Verona – Attendance by more than 12,000 professional operators, with more than 2,500 buyers (about 22% of total) from 60 countries: the special and extraordinary edition of Vinitaly closes today as the third and last Italian stage in the run up to 54th edition scheduled 10-13 April 2022.

“This result goes far beyond our expectations,” said the President of Veronafiere, Maurizio Danese. “Companies, consortia, agricultural and supply chain associations and operators rewarded this business initiative project with a high rate of contacts and sales, as well as a unanimous index of satisfaction. The third event attended in person with Vinitaly today,” Danese concluded, “is part of a scenario of impressive acceleration of Made in Italy exports and Italian wine on all the main target markets, including the domestic market thanks to collaboration activated with Fipe and Vinarius. We are experiencing a strong recovery in which Veronafiere plays a fundamental driving role for the internationalization of SMEs and Italian wine, with a commitment towards increasing the value of sales.”

The map of countries taking part in Vinitaly Special Edition sees Europe (with Northern countries, Germany and France at the vanguard), Russia, the United States and Canada lead demand for Italian wine at the trade fair, followed by Eastern Europe (Romania, Ukraine, Poland, Belarus, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic), the United Kingdom and China, returning to Verona again. “This geography,” commented Giovanni Mantovani, CEO of Veronafiere, “is perfectly aligned with the growth figures seen on international markets which, in the first 7 months of this year, posted an overall leap ahead of 15% compared to the same period last year. We upheld our declared commitment to organise a highly qualified Special Edition thanks also to the support of ICE Trade Agency,” Mantovani went on, “with international operators arriving precisely from the areas where Italian wine is growing significantly. “Now,” Mantovani concluded, “we are aiming to achieve a great 54th Vinitaly in 2022.”

Areas of interest among operators and buyers saw those dedicated to organic wines achieve a surge in attendance. Over the three days, 42 exhibitors in this segment saw their agendas crammed with b2b appointments, especially with buyers from Northern Europe and Germany. And in relation to new trends, the Mixology Masterclass calendar was sold out. There was also positive feedback for the equally Special Editions of Sol&Agrifood and Enolitech.

Based on Vinitaly press release, October 19, 2021