Record Harvest & Growth for Prosecco DOC

The Consortium for the protection of Prosecco DOC has released new, official figures showing both a record 2015 harvest and year-on-year growth in levels of production since DOC status was granted in 2009.

Despite claims of difficult growing conditions 4.5 million quintals of suitable grapes were harvested in 2015, which will make an estimated 3.4 million hectoliters of wine, which is a maximum of 450 million bottles of wine. It’s anticipated that the increase in volume will result in a jump of more than 50% in wine produced from 2014.

The bumper crop will be welcomed by the UK market in particular, as figures show a 48% increase of Prosecco consumption between 2014 and 2015. Thirsty Brits buy one in every five bottles produced, making the UK the leading export market. Together with the USA and Germany, the three regions claim three quarters of all the Prosecco produced annually. 70% of Prosecco is exported (of this 70%, the UK market take 35%), with 30% staying in Italy.

President of the Consortium, Stefano Zanette says: “Prosecco is a product of the land and so it will always be subject to Mother Nature but given the changeable climate throughout 2015, the numbers are very encouraging. We’re estimating being able to produce 450 million bottles of wine from the harvest, which is an additional 144 million from the previous year.

“The consortium is working hard, alongside our producers, to grow our markets globally and we warmly welcome increased demand. Since receiving DOC status, we’ve been able to increase volumes consistently every year, fulfilling the growing appetite from consumers for our wines.“

The consortium – which is made up of 356 sparkling wine producers – was set up in 2009 to safeguard the quality of the wine being produced, while developing and promoting the product globally. Only bottles marked with the DOC seal can be officially considered as Prosecco.

The result of the consortium’s efforts has been consistent year-on-year growth between 2010 and 2014, increasing the volume of wine produced by just over a million hectoliters or 165 million bottles, without compromising quality.