Italian wine continues to reap successes and conquer records all over the world. Not only has our export increased in the first six months of the year, reaching 2,5 billion euros thanks to the great popularity that our Prosecco is enjoying on international markets (+12%), not only Italy is the first country in the world for the volume of bulk wine exports (20 million hectoliters compared to France which exports 14 million), not only does Italy maintain the European primacy of wines with indication of origin and geographical indication with 73 DOCG, 322 DOC and 118 IGT, but now is also the time to which we can raise our heads against French wines on a terrain in which they have always been the undisputed rulers, that of champagne and bubbles.
The good news comes from “Champagne and sparkling wine world championships” prestigious international competition dedicated to bubbles, organized in London by Tom Stevenson, one of the most authoritative experts and connoisseurs of the subject in which producers from 19 countries of the world took part, from France to the United States, from Croatia to Chile.
Well, Italy has done itself a lot, but a lot of honour: of 149 gold medals and 143 silver medals awarded by the Championship jury, our country won 30 gold and 36 silver medals, placing it second behind France. A result that a few years ago would have appeared totally unthinkable.
Observing the palmares of medals won by Italy, it must be said that this rewards three regions which for years have invested with strong determination in a high-level qualitative production: on bubbles of excellence, Lombardia in the lead which was awarded 14 gold medals, followed by Trentino with 11 gold medals and since Veneto with 5.
The silver medal table instead saw the three leading regions in this sector tied with 12 medals each and with the addition of a medal for the Piemonte. Italy's affirmation in this world competition rewards on the one hand the choice of excellence of our wineries and on the other turns on the spotlights of international buyers with further prospects for the export of our sparkling wines.
The world sparkling wine market does not seem to experience any crisis these days and a study by FranceAgriMed on production and commercial trends in 2015 shows that sparkling wines now represent 7% of world wine production with a marked increase compared to the past. Suffice it to say that in 2000 they did not exceed 5% of the total with 19 million hectoliters. Needless to say France with almost 5 million ranges widely throughout the world but for some time now our bubbles, thanks also to the great favor that Prosecco is enjoying on international markets, have been conquering new and interesting market spaces. For the record, in fact, Prosecco surpassed Champagne last year in sales value both in Great Britain, where it is the most requested for weddings, and in the United States.
