Global economic vitiviniculture data 
 
 2016 World wine production estimated at 259 mhl, a fall of 5% compared with 2015 
 
 2016 Production among the lowest in 20 years, yet highly contrasting situations as a consequence of climatic events 
 
 Italy (48.8 mhl) confirms its place as the leading world producer, followed by France (41.9 mhl) and Spain (37.8 mhl) . 
 
 
 
 confirms its place as the leading world producer, followed by and . After two poor harvests, Romania (4.8 mhl) returned to a good level of production. 
 
 
 
 returned to a good level of production. An even higher level of production was recorded in the United States (22.5 mhl) . 
 
 
 
 . In South America, production plummeted in Argentina (8.8 mhl) , Chile (10.1 mhl) and Brazil (1.4 mhl) . 
 
 
 
 , and . Australian production (12.5 mhl) and New Zealand production (3.1 mhl) was on the rise. 
 
 Global wine production, excluding juice and musts, is likely to reach 259.5 million hectolitres – a decrease of 5% compared with 2015, it ranks among the three poorest years for production since 2000, according to the OIV's early estimates. 
 
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 PPT Presentation [FR] 
 
 2016 Global economic vitiviniculture data 
 
 ||||| South America, particularly Argentina and Chile, likely to see biggest decline, which may concern fans of wines such as malbec 
 
 Global wine production is expected to fall by 5% in 2016 because of “climatic events” causing steep drops in production in most of the southern hemisphere, particularly Chile and Argentina. 
 
 The International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) has estimated that output will reach 259.5m hectolitres (mhl) this year, making 2016 one of the lowest production years in the past two decades. 
 
 While the amount of wine produced should meet consumer demand, the figures are a reminder of how global warming and natural climate variability are having a profound effect on wine, and perhaps where it will be grown in future. 
 
 Italy is expected to produce the most wine in 2016, followed by France, Spain, the US, Australia and China. France is likely to remain in the top three, despite a predicted 12% drop in production to 41.9mhl. 
 
 The most precipitous declines are set to be in South America, a potential source of concern for fans of the malbec and carménère varieties. Production is estimated to have plummeted by 35% in Argentina and 21% in Chile, the seventh-biggest producer. 
 
 South Africa is set to report a 19% fall, but the news is better for Australia and New Zealand, which are expected to increase production by 5% and 35% respectively. The New Zealand figures would put it near a record it set in 2014. 
 
 The OIV said the predicted overall decline was strongly affected by climatic events. “The El Niño climate phenomenon seems to be back in Latin America, where production was affected by fairly exceptional weather, with lots of rain,” said OIV’s chief executive, Jean-Marie Aurand. 
 
 El Niño, which occurs every four to five years, affects rainfall patterns and causes both drought and flooding. 
 
 A report released earlier this year by the Earth Institute at Columbia University said warming temperatures, the main driver of grape harvest timing, have significantly pushed these periods forward globally. 
 
 “Across the world, scientists have found that each degree centigrade of warming pushes grape harvests forward roughly six or seven days,” the report said. This phenomenon could eventually make pinot noir grapes unsuitable for many parts of Burgundy, according to a 2011 study by the climate scientist Yves Tourre. 
 
 A 2014 paper in journal Wine Economics and Policy concluded that rising temperatures would have an “extraordinary effect” on agriculture and there were few crops more susceptible than grapes to minor changes in climate. 
 
 In Europe, the paper pointed to a potential chilling of the Bordeaux region and parts of Spain, due to the loss of the Gulf Stream, while other regions, including Alsace, are expected to get warmer and experience shorter growth seasons. In the Italian region of Chianti, grapes have begun ripening too early, leading to possible future changes in wine varieties. ||||| FILE - This Monday, Oct. 7 , 2013, file photo shows workers collecting red grapes in the vineyards of the famed Chateau Haut Brion, a Premier Grand Cru des Graves, during the grape harvest in Pessac-Leognan,... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - This Monday, Oct. 7 , 2013, file photo shows workers collecting red grapes in the vineyards of the famed Chateau Haut Brion, a Premier Grand Cru des Graves, during the grape harvest in Pessac-Leognan, near Bordeaux, southwestern France. Floods, drought, frost and hail cut into world wine production... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - This Monday, Oct. 7 , 2013, file photo shows workers collecting red grapes in the vineyards of the famed Chateau Haut Brion, a Premier Grand Cru des Graves, during the grape harvest in Pessac-Leognan, near Bordeaux, southwestern France. Floods, drought, frost and hail cut into world wine production... (Associated Press) FILE - This Monday, Oct. 7 , 2013, file photo shows workers collecting red grapes in the vineyards of the famed Chateau Haut Brion, a Premier Grand Cru des Graves, during the grape harvest in Pessac-Leognan,... (Associated Press) 
 
 PARIS (AP) — Floods, drought, frost and hail cut into world wine production this year across Europe and South America, but the quality of the 2016 vintage shouldn't unduly suffer. 
 
 Italy remained the world's top producer for the second straight year, with a volume of 48.8 million hectoliters, according to figures released Thursday by the International Organization of Vine and Wine. Next come France — hit hard by spring floods and summer drought — and Spain. 
 
 Overall global production fell 5 percent from 2015 levels to 259 million hectoliters, one of the weakest levels of the past 20 years. 
 
 U.S. wine-making grew 2 percent to 22.5 million hectoliters, while Argentina, Chile and South Africa saw big drops. 
 
 Lower production could push up prices, but the bad weather may not have hurt the quality. 
 
 The wine division of EU farm federation Copa & Cogeca said that while European wine production dropped this year, it's still at a "fair level" compared with 2015. 
 
 "Overall, the 2016 harvest is on a par with previous harvests and the quality was good across the board," wine division chairman Thierry Coste said in a statement. 
 
 Italian, French and Spanish exports surged this year, according to Copa & Cogeca. 
 
 The group also released figures this week that were in line with the trends by the International Organization for Vine and Wine, a group representing 46 wine-producing countries. ||||| Archive-It Partner 1067: The Political TV Ad Archive, a project of the Internet Archive, collects political TV ads and social media sites in key 2016 primary election states, unlocking the metadata underneath and highlighting quality journalism to provide journalists, civic organizations, academics, and the general public with reliable information on who is trying to influence them & how.
– It may be too early for panic buying, but wine production has taken a hit from climate events this year and is close to a 20-year low, the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV) warns. According to estimates released Thursday, global wine production will be down around 5% for 2016 as compared to 2015, with floods, drought, and frost hitting vineyards in countries including France, the AP reports. In Argentina, production may drop as much as 35%; in Chile, 21%, which the Guardian sees as possibly worrisome for malbec lovers. "Output was greatly affected by exceptional weather conditions," says OIV director Jean-Marie Aurand, per Bloomberg. "If there is one product that is vulnerable to weather events, it’s wine." This year's decline has been linked to the El Nino effect, though warming temperatures are starting to shrink wine-growing seasons around the world and could eventually lead to major shifts in what varieties of wine are produced in different countries, reports the Guardian. But the news wasn't all bleak: According to OIV's estimates, wine production is up for the year in countries including the Australia and the US; our estimated 22.5 million hectoliters is less than half of what the No. 1 producer, Italy, will log for the year: 48.8 million hectoliters. With total global production of around 35 billion bottles (based on an estimate of 259.5 million hectoliters), there should be enough to go around. (This Italian winemaker says listening to Mozart has been great for his grapes.)