His majesty, red wine, is beginning to be restless, because competitors are emerging that threaten his prolonged reign. The annual report of the OIV, the International Organization of Wine, was presented this week. And it emerges that his reign is faltering.
Red wine is losing its appeal and has gone from representing 53% 10 years ago to 48% today. More than half of the wine consumed in the world is no longer red: we are facing a symbolic (and historical) milestone.
"It is necessary to adapt to a new consumer", indicated Pau Roca, general secretary of the OIV, who pointed out some ideas, such as "looking for an ever-increasing demand for premium wines, using red wines as a basis to make sparkling wines or explore non-alcoholic wines”.
From the OIVE, Interprofessional Wine Association of Spain, they recognize that "there is a boom in sparkling, white and rosé, light and fresh wines", although in the decline of red wine you have to discount some weakness timely in markets that love this variety, such as China or the United Kingdom. It is true that the introduction of varieties such as prosecco (a carefree wine, ideal for cocktails and appreciated by young people) has already caused a stir in traditional sparkling wines, such as cava or champagne.
It is further proof that wine tastes are reorienting, in an economic context strained by inflation. According to the study, the price hike in 2022 boosted the value of exports, but caused a decline in consumption worldwide.
"Wine exports in 2022 were severely affected by high inflation and disruptions in the global supply chain, which caused a significant slowdown in maritime transport."
"This combination of events translated into less overall volume of wine exported at a much higher average price (15% compared to 2021)," the study notes.
The value of world exports of this drink was the highest ever recorded (37.6 billion euros), with an increase of 15%. On average, on a global scale, the price of bottled wine rose by 7%, while that of sparkling wines shot up by 18%. The rise is a reflection of the increase in costs borne by wineries: for example, inflation led to a 30% rise in the prices of glass bottles and labels, 20% in corks and of the wire that closes the sparkling wine and 45% of the cardboard boxes.
The other side of the coin was less demand. Global consumption reached 232 million hectoliters (mhl), which represents a decrease of two million compared to 2021. “There was an increase in production and distribution costs. This resulted in a significant increase in wine prices for consumers", the OIV acknowledges.
According to the report, this negative trend that started in 2018 can be mainly attributed to the decline in consumption in China, which has lost an average of 2 mhl per year since 2018. A contraction that was accentuated in 2020 by the pandemic , which caused a depressing effect on many large wine markets.
In any case, the current levels of wine consumption in the world are well below the average of previous years and, in fact, last year consumption dropped to the same amount of wine that was consumed 20 years ago. In Europe, the homeland of wine, 15% less of this drink is consumed today than in 2000.
"All this context of uncertainty affects wine, which is very sensitive to drops in consumer confidence. We want to believe that it is an issue that will pass", say the Oive.
In terms of global production, it is stagnant at 258 million hectoliters in 2022, and also marked a slight decrease of 1% compared to the previous year, in which you have to discount the drought and heat waves during spring and summer. We are not about to uncork bottles: for the fourth year in a row, this vintage figure is slightly below the 20-year average.
If we look at data by country, the OIV study points out that half of world production depends on three countries: Italy, France and Spain (in that order). In terms of consumption, Spain is far below. In liters per capita, France and Italy drink twice as much wine as the Spanish. The Portuguese, almost three times more.
Spain is the country with the largest area in hectares dedicated to the cultivation of wine, 13% of the total. And it is the second world exporter by volume.
But, considering that last year's production was 5% below the average of the last five years, the drought is a threat. "The lack of rain is a tragedy. If the rainfall does not arrive and the summer is dry, the next harvest will suffer", say the professionals.
And they can't trust everything to red wine like before either, because the king goes naked.
