“Vinitaly in the World”, the project started by veronafiere to promote the excellence of Italian wines in the world, it restarted at the end of January with a new name: “Vinitaly International”, making its debut at the two US stages that opened the 2013 season, January 28 in New York and January 30 in Miami. The review will involve strategic markets such as the USA, Russia, Japan and Hong Kong, establishing itself as an extension of the historic Italian appointment on a global level. Vinitaly International represents, in fact, a particularly effective commercial platform for the promotion and export of Italian wines, through the creation of a constant dialogue between domestic companies, government bodies and first-rate international players. In this regard, a rich itinerary of guided tastings has been planned, held by the Italian Wine Group (GIV), Soave, Palm Bay and the Prosecco DOC Protection Consortium, with the support of the new “Vinitaly Interactive” iPad application, registering the preferences of each taster using a QR code and allowing them to receive a personalized tasting book at the end.
On the occasion of the first stage of Vinitaly International 2013, the results of theAnnual Survey of Imported Wine Consumption Trends in the USAmade by the institute Wine Opinions, on US wine consumption trends. The research data show that, since 1993, wine consumption in the USA has grown steadily every year, so much so that the closing forecasts for 2012 stand at +2,9% on 2011. Italy turns out to be the first wine exporting country in the USA, with a market share growing by 7,2% in the first 9 months of 2012 compared to the previous year. And, according to forecasts, the growth in consumption will continue at a rate of 2,4% per year until 2016. The USA also represents among the wine-producing countries, the one with the largest number of consumers, followed by Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Italy. In fact, it has been estimated that there are 100 million adults who drink wine at least once every 2 months, 93% of which belong to the category of “core drinkers”, i.e. those who drink wine at least once a week. THE "Millennials", young people between 16 and 33 years old, represent the driving force of this market, with less and less occasional and more "core" consumption habits. Details of the quantities of imported wine sold in the USA in the October-December 2012 quarter, Italy dominates the ranking, ahead of France and Australia, both in absolute quantities and in percentages of purchases of each of the four age groups analysed: Millennials (16-33 years), Generation X (34-45), Baby Boomers (46-66) and Over 67.
Research shows that the most appreciated Italian wines are the red ones: in the second half of 2012 the Italian market in fact stands out in first place with 62% of total sales, registering +8% on France and +1% on Spain. Italy, on the other hand, takes a position in second place in the ranking of white and rosé wines with 35% of the quantity of bottles sold, behind France (46%). It should be noted that the passion for Italian reds is also expressed in the more expensive ones, between 20 and 50 dollars, which Americans reserve more for special occasions. 62% of those interviewed define them as "excellent", a figure that drops to 57% for French wines and 51% for Spanish ones. In the ranking of "cheap" reds, at less than 20 dollars a bottle, Spain and Italy are at the top of the preferences of the Americans, followed by France.
Finally, the popularity of our wines is confirmed by the choices of the same shops where most of the purchases are made: Italy is in first place both for the assortment and the variety of labels with 55% of the preferences, followed by France (52%) and Australia (50%).
