Back in November the Guardian asked surfers to choose between Prosecco and Champagne for Christmas.

The Italians wiped out the French 2:1. Tesco supermarkets reported yesterday that the interweb crowd was on the money. “Tesco expects to sell 250,000 bottles of the Italian wine in the two-day runup to the new year, having reported a 70% increase in sales over the Christmas period. Prosecco has become so popular that it will account for one of every two bottles of all sparkling wine bought in its supermarkets and online over the festive season, including champagne and cava, the retailer said.”

Meanwhile in the Daily Mail, Olly Smith ups the odds to 3:1, recommending three Italians to one French.

All music to the ears of Woolworths wine buyer Ivan Oertle who loves the stuff and stocks it countrywide. No wonder SA bulk exports to the land of pasta were up over 9000% according to SAWIS figures to the end of October. After pressure from Vinpro, the November numbers were replaced with out of date figures from January, indicating that politics has taken over the reporting of statistics in SA wine.

Is this an outrageous attempt by Vinpro to manipulate the industry by restricting access to information or a secretarial stuff up? Producers should demand answers from their well-paid representatives as soon as they return from Stilbaai.