Portugal is the only EU country with a higher wine production than last year
World wine production in 2019 (excluding juices and musts) is estimated between 258 and 267 Mill. HL, a production that decreases by 10% compared to the previous year. Although this difference seems significant, the level of 2019 production remains at the levels observed in the 2007-2016 period (with the exception of 2013). According to the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV), after two consecutive years that can be defined as highly unstable, in 2019 wine production has returned to its average levels.
Europe
In the European Union (EU), unfavorable weather conditions – from frost to drought – had a significant impact on wine production in 2019, which is below average. The estimated production volume at 156 Mill. HL (which represents 60% of world production) is approximately 15% lower compared to the previous year. This implies a significant reduction of about 26.7 Mill. HL compared to the production of 2018 (182.7 Mill. HL).
Compared to the exceptionally high production volume of 2018, there is a decrease of 15% in Italy, 15% in France and 24% in Spain. This can be explained, mainly, by the unstable climatic conditions among which a very cold and rainy spring stands out followed by an extremely hot and dry summer. This reduction compared to 2018 is recorded in most of the EU countries. However, while in Italy, France and Spain (which together represent 80% of EU production) production is low not only compared to 2018 but also compared to its last five-year average, other countries such as Germany, Austria , Romania and Hungary keep production levels equal or even above their last five-year average. Portugal, with 6.7 Mill. HL in 2019, is the only EU country with a higher wine production than the previous year, 10% more.
North Hemisphere
Outside the EU, 2019 wine production is high in countries such as Russia (6.0 Mill. HL, +7% / 2018) and Georgia (1.8 Mill. HL, +1% / 2018). Despite being lower than last year, the volume of production in Switzerland (1.1 Mill. HL, −6% / 2018) is 10% higher than the average recorded in the 2014-2018 period. which represents approximately 12% of production in the northern hemisphere, with a preliminary estimate of 23.6 Mill. hL of wine production (−1% / 2018), records a high level of production for the fourth consecutive year. This figure is based on vintage forecasts, so it could undergo a significant revision in the coming months when more information becomes available.
Southern hemisphere
In the southern hemisphere, where the harvest ended at the beginning of 2019 and therefore the preliminary figures on wine production tend to be more accurate and reliable for this period of the year, the scenario for 2019 is somewhat similar to that of the northern hemisphere , with a wine production generally lower than the previous year, but maintains its five-year average and represents approximately 20% of world production.
South America is the region of the southern hemisphere that registers the greatest decrease with respect to the high production of 2018. In Argentina, it is estimated that the wine production of 2019 probably reaches 13.0 Mill. HL (−10% / 2018 ). Chile, with 11.9 Mill. HL records a 7% decrease compared to 2018 and an 8% increase over the last five-year average. Brazil, after two consecutive years with a production level of more than 3 Mill. HL, has an estimated figure of 2.9 Mill. HL, more than 10% higher than its five-year average. In South Africa, where the drought had a notable impact on the harvest, wine production is estimated at 9.7 Mill. HL. It is the only one of the main producing countries that, for the second consecutive year, experiences a lower than average production volume (−9% with respect to the five-year average). In Oceania, Australia registers a slight decrease in the volume of wine production, estimated at 12.5 Mill. HL (−3% compared to 2018 but the five-year average is maintained). In New Zealand, wine production records for the fourth consecutive year a figure close to 3.0 Mill. HL in 2019 (−1% / 2018).
