21/05/2015
Bubble Trouble: Warning Of Prosecco Shortage
A "very poor" harvest of Prosecco grapes could lead to a global shortage of the sparkling wine, a leading producer has warned.
Lovers of the Italian bubbly, which has seen sales soar during the economic downturn, are being warned they could face a hike in prices of their favourite drink as demand threatens to outstrip supply.
Robert Cremonese, Bisol export manager, told The Drinks Business trade publication that wine merchants, known as negociants, have been bumping up their prices by as much as 50% to take advantage of the situation.
He said: "Last year's harvest was very poor, and down by up to 50% in some parts, so there is a very real possibility of a global shortage.
"We'll find out how big the problem is in August when the brokers release their stock. At the moment we don't know how much Prosecco they're holding on to.
"Because there is such a demand for Prosecco, the negociants are releasing it onto the market slowly and are taking it as an opportunity to put prices up, in some cases by 50%.
"The negociants hold the power at the moment as they bought all of the stock. It might turn out that some of them have no fizz left but we’ll have to wait and see."
Mr Cremonese told the publication that grapes grown in the DOC flatlands of the Prosecco-producing region north of Venice had been worst-hit by bad weather.
He said: "A lot of the vines in the DOC area are newly planted and they ended up soaked - the grapes were rotten and yields were down by half in some cases."
Prosecco replaced Champagne as the world's favourite sparkling wine in 2013, selling some 307 million bottles compared to its French equivalent's 304 million, according to figures from the OVSE, the Italian wine observatory.
Last year, exports of Prosecco to the UK soared by 40.2%, which analysts claimed reflected a taste for "affordable luxury".