ISMEA and Unione Italiana Vini 2007 harvest data

September 20, 2007

A study from ISMEA and Unione Italiana Vini shows that:

- Wine production in northern regions is similar to that of 2006 and quality is good

- In the south, due to both drought and mildew, there is a notable decline in quantity.

In the overall there is an expected decline in production of 12%, with total production reaching 43.5 million hectoliters.

Going into regional details, the decline in production can be summarized as follow:

- Piedmont: hailstorms affected Nebbiolo Barolo production areas, minus 5%

- Veneto and Liguria : minus 5% and quality is good

- Valle d’Aosta : production levels similar to that of 2006

- Trentino Alto Adige: harvest initiated 20 days earlier than in 2006, quality should be excellent

- Friuli Venezia Giulia : the only area that has registered an increase, plus 5-10%, in production over 2006

- Emilia Romagna : decrease of 10% due to drought

- Tuscany : decrease around 5-10% due to the prolonged absence of rain

- Umbria : minus 5-10%

- Lazio, Marche and Abruzzo : decrease between 10-15% due to persistent drought conditions

- Puglia : decrease of 20%
- Campagnia : minus 10-15%

- Molise and Basilicata: minus 20%
- Calabria : minus 15%)

- Sicily : It has registered the most severe decrease, minus 30%

- Sardinia: the most stable with both quantity and quality expected to be very good.

Particular note has to be dedicated to the Brunello 2007 Harvest.
Brunello di Montalcino is respecting the normal harvest canons and it seems to be one of the few grapes that have followed a normal maturation process and have arrived right on time for the harvest.
For the 2007 grape harvest, the Brunello Consortium is predicting a slight quantitative decrease of between 5 and 10%. The average annual production of Brunello di Montalcino is 6.5 million bottles. 60% of production is destined for export (USA 25% , Germany 10%, Switzerland 7%).