Spirits

Grappa relies on exports, mixology and tourism against falling consumption

Retail purchases down by 7% in 2025 and out-of-home consumption also slows. Caffo (president of the Consorzio di tutela): 'Pure consumption continues to fall. Mercosur and India are opportunities to be seized but promotion and the fight against Italian sounding are crucial to return to growth

by Giambattista Marchetto

4 March 2026

La leva del turismo è un traino per la grappa trentina che non mostra segni di rallentamento

4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

The Italian grappa market is going through a delicate phase. Circana data on sales in the large-scale retail trade speak for themselves: at the end of 2025, the sector will decline by 7% in value (130.4 million euro) and 7.3% in volume (9.2 million litres). In the away-from-home (horeca) sector, things are no better: estimates for cash & carry and wholesalers indicate -9.2% in volume (2.5 million litres) and -7.8% in value (EUR 45 million).

Changing consumption

"In supermarkets, the average price remains substantially unchanged (+0.2%, ed.)," observes Sebastiano Caffo, president of the National Grappa Consortium, "and private label grappas are gaining ground, with sales growing significantly at the expense of brands. None of the top fifteen brands record growth, while we see a movement towards smaller formats, a sign of a change in consumption habits".

The Circana surveys confirm that spirits as a whole have held up in volume (-0.3%) and value (-0.1%), only for grappa, brandy and brandies to suffer while the ready-to-drink (+12%), aperitifs (+5%) and single-dose (+8.2%).
"The moment of consumption is moving from the end of the meal to the aperitif," Caffo explains, and in this sense the catering industry is also experiencing a significant change in consumption. "The pre-dinner moment holds, but the tightening of the Highway Code at the beginning of 2025 has had a negative effect on the consumer. The aperitif holds its own, because then there is time to eat'.

Export does not shine

If the domestic market slows down, exports do not shine either. After the acceleration recorded in 2023 (+30%), there was a slowdown and in 2024 and 2025, when in the first eleven months it left about 11% on the ground in value terms, dropping from 37.6 to 33.4 million euro (Nomisma processing of Istat data). But if the numbers are staggering, the Italian grappa chain is not letting up and is pushing on the accelerator.

'2025 was a year of satisfaction for the National Grappa Consortium,' Caffo points out, 'because in November it obtained erga omnes recognition. This means that it now officially represents the entire sector. The Assembly has started the process to appoint the inspectors and begin the protection activity'.

At the same time, the promotion activity continues, 'which until now has always been at the expense of the companies that believed in the project,' specifies the president, 'but now contributions are compulsory for everyone and the Consortium is submitting applications for funding to optimise resources. There is a 150 thousand euro project focused on Germany and in the UK we will start in April, as Assodistil, with over one million euro for targeted actions'.

Opportunities vs. Italian sounding

Export is in fact both a warning and an opportunity. 'It currently represents about 20% of total production,' Caffo continues, 'two-thirds concentrated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. The United States, despite the presence of Italian communities, represents only 2%. Yet the taste for wine products is there, but the spaces are occupied by other denominations of origin (such as Peruvian Pisco, for example) and so we have to make room for them'. A similar reasoning applies to the Mercosur, where among the 344 recognised and protected geographical indications, Grappa stands out as the only Italian spirit drink included in the treaty: 'Italian sounding in Asia and Latin America is a serious problem, but as a Consortium we will block 'grappa' labels not produced in Italia,' Caffo warns.

At the same time, markets such as India could represent an opportunity for the future, 'even if the product is unknown today', while certain technical requirements make it difficult for the distillate to enter China. However, major investments are needed for internationalisation. "We can think of conquering our slice of the market like the French did with cognac and the Scots did with whisky," Caffo reiterates, "but so far everything is on the shoulders of producers and distillers, companies that are often medium-small. Here we have to push an ultra-small category and we will be happy to count on dedicated funds. Minister Lollobrigida has supported the recognition of the consortium and we now await possible allocations to support the sector'.

Cocktails not to be snubbed

A path to enhancement in out-of-home consumption (but also in home consumption, as Circana notes) passes through mixology. 'We have already experimented with new uses of grappa in mixing,' Caffo points out, 'participating in fairs and collaborating with barmen. It is a long job and the more traditionalist producers are not in favour, but all the great international distillates have reinvented themselves over time thanks to mixology. Consumption in purity today continues to decline'.

Tourism in mountain distilleries

In this fragile context, there are niches of resilience. As Alessandro Marzadro, president of the Istituto di tutela Grappa Trentina, emphasises, '2025 was a year of stability despite the market not being favourable, but 'trentinity' probably becomes a guarantee'. The trident grappa makers see a 2026 in progressive continuity. "In mountain tourist situations, there are no signs of a slowdown, confirming the crucial role of the territory as an element of added value," Marzadro points out. It is precisely from Trentino that the winning model of tourism in distilleries emerges, a fundamental flywheel because "it creates culture, a bond with the customer and emotion, which today represent the drivers for the consumption of a distillate. The Trentino companies are seizing this opportunity, which brings growth and creates a powerful communication vehicle,' he explains.