Vinitaly. USA closed its first edition in New York with over 3,000 professional operators, 36% more than the 2025 edition organized in Chicago. In the two days of the event, on 26 and 27 October, producers, importers, distributors and catering representatives from 40 countries and 20 American states met at Pier 36 in Manhattan. The 300 Italian companies present brought 2,500 labels and participated in over 1,600 business meetings. Numbers confirming the success of the event’s transfer to New York, decided by the organizers to strengthen business relations with the main non-European market of Italian wine.
The event, organized by Veronafiere in collaboration with ITA – Italian Trade Agency, has reached its third edition after the first two hosted in Chicago. The most significant result is not only the increase in attendance, but the composition of the public. 60% of the accredited belonged to the purchasing, distribution and hospitality sectors, i.e. to the activities that can actually bring Italian wines to shops, restaurants and American hotels. Veronafiere and ITA have also selected and invited nearly 800 leading buyers, mainly from the United States, Canada and Mexico, equal to approximately 27% of the participants. 222 media professionals were also accredited to the event.
“We are very pleased with Vinitaly’s debut. USA in New York and the positive feedback of exhibiting companies,” said Federico Bricolo, president of Veronafiere, in the budget at the end of the event. Matteo Zoppas, president of ITA, also considered the choice of New York, highlighting above all the quality of the operators present and the interest shown by American distributors. Alessandro Del Piero also participated in the inauguration, witnessing the initiative, along with representatives of Italian institutions and industry organizations.
Success comes in a complicated phase for Italian wine exports. The United States remains a fundamental market, but trade duties and the change in consumer habits have made sales trend less predictable. According to the provisional data processed by the Observatory of Unione Italiana Vini, between July and September 2026 exports to the United States grew by almost 17% in value compared to the same period of the previous year. The recovery was not enough to compensate for the difficulties of the previous months: in the first nine months of the year exports on the American market were still falling by 6%, for a total value of 1,27 billion euros.
New York also discussed how to reach new consumers. According to the UIV-Vinitaly Observatory, approximately 35 million Americans drink Italian wine, while in the United States the usual wine consumers are almost 90 million. This means that there is a potential audience of over 50 million people who already buy wine, but not necessarily the Italian one. During the event, changes in consumer preferences were also deepened, especially among younger generations, and strategies to expand distribution. The wine2wine program Vinitaly Business Forum has proposed more than twenty meetings dedicated to the American market, catering, new modes of consumption and wine tourism.
Tourism linked to wine was one of the other central themes of the event. According to ENIT, the National Tourism Agency, Italian wine tourism generates an estimated turnover of € 3.1 billion. The Ministry of Tourism considers the sector an important resource also for the economies of small towns and rural areas, where visits to wineries can help attract travelers outside the best known destinations. “The Ministry of Tourism supports and promotes ecotourism, a strategic sector worth € 3.1 billion, promotes territories and villages and promotes seasonal adjustment,” said Minister Gianmarco Mazzi on the occasion of the New York appointment.
The data on American tourism explain why the promotion of wine has become an integral part of that of Italian destinations. In the first half of 2026, according to ENIT, 1,9 million travelers from the United States visited Italy, generating over 17.7 million overnight stays. Compared to the same period of 2025, the number of travellers increased by 6.2%, 7.6% overnight stays and 7.5% tourist spending. In 2025, moreover, about 30 thousand Americans had chosen Italy for a holiday motivated mainly by food and wine, double compared to the previous year, spending altogether 42,3 million euros.
During Vinitaly. USA, ENIT has dedicated a specific appointment to the future of Italian wine tourism, with the expected participation of the managing director Ivana Jelinic and Gianluca Caramanna, advisor of the Minister of Tourism for Institutional Relations. At the heart of the initiative, the presentation of the Wine Tourism Hub, a digital space in Italian and English dedicated to the tourist experiences related to wine in the different regions. The aim is to provide international operators with information on the territories, cellars and activities that can be included in the travel itineraries. According to an ENIT analysis based on the data UniCredit-Nomisma Wine Monitor 2025, 98% of the respondents intend to repeat a wine-related experience over the next two or three years and 85% indicate Italy among the preferred destinations.
The budget of the event is therefore very positive, especially for the increase of the operators and the number of commercial meetings. The growth of attendance and the participation of qualified distributors and importers show that New York has succeeded in the intended purpose of attracting a wider audience than previous editions.
The article Vinitaly. USA, great success in New York: more than 3 thousand operators and 36% growing presences come from IlNewyorkese.
