Piedmont's Barbera d'Asti growers set this year's harvest limit at 8.5 tonnes per hectare, down from nine, while consortium head Filippo Mobrici praised the harvest's quantity and quality; producers cite oversupply, trade disruption and changing drinking habits.
Piedmont recorded its hottest summer on record in 2026, averaging 21.6°C, with temperatures reaching 40°C near Agliano Terme. Rainy winter and early spring conditions helped vines build water reserves, and growers left more foliage than usual to shield grapes from the sun.
Official data showed Italian wine stocks rose 6.9% year on year in July to the equivalent of more than 5.6 billion bottles, nearly a year's production. Some Piedmont growers are turning wine into vinegar. The Italian Wine Union has called for production to match the market and no new vineyard plantings; its president, Lamberto Frescobaldi, is open to removing old or unviable vines. Mobrici refuses to consider uprooting vines, describing vineyards as part of local culture and important to preserving the land.
