However, Halewood, which owns 350 hectares of vineyard in Dealu Mare, Sebes and Murfatlar, was less hurt compared with other winemakers that lost even as much as 80% of their crop.
Countrywide, output will be one quarter smaller than in 2012.
Beside the 2,500 tons of grapes to be processed from its own vineyard, Halewood will buy a similar quantity from the market, so that the winemaker is directly interested in what’s happening with the other vineyards in the area.
One of the hardest hit areas in the country was Dragasani, where winemakers lost much of the 2014 crop because of strong hail. “Fortunately for us, we have an installation that disperses hail clouds in Dealu Mare,” says Dan Muntean.
However, in Sebes and Murfatlar things were different and overall output will be smaller this year.
While output declined, Halewood Romania head says he’s satisfied with the quality of this year’s wine.
Dan Muntean also says he has not felt any rebound on the wine market, an industry that has not witnessed any increase since the crisis onset.
Halewood made up for the local decline with exports, which generate 40% of the company’s revenue. England, Germany and China are the largest market for the winemaker, out of 34-50 export destinations overall.
The foreign markets the company wants to focus on in the future are the US and Canada, but despite rising exports, Muntean says deliveries abroad will not come to generate half of the company’s revenue.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)