Today, Avag Harutyunyan, President of the Armenian Association of Vintners, spoke to reporters about the effects of the global economic crisis on winemaking in Armenia. He noted that wine production had risen 10% and cognac production had dropped 50% in the first seven months of 2009, as compared with the last seven months of 2008. In comparison, Mr. Harutyunyan noted that wine production had dropped 10% and cognac had risen 14% during the last four months of 2008 as compared to the same period in 2007. He stated that overall, wine and cognac exports had dropped 200% in 2009 in comparison to 2008. The picture was even bleaker when it came to the export of cognac raw spirits; this amount witnessed an 800% drop. Mr. Harutyunyan noted that contrary to the rest of the world, where alcohol consumption has risen due to the economic crisis, the situation in Armenia has proven to be the opposite. He pointed out that during the past nine months wine consumption in Armenia has dropped by 10% and 30% for cognac. "If these rates hold, by year’s end we’ll see a 30% drop in wines sales and a 50% reduction for cognac," he stated. Bucking this downward trend, were sales figures for vodka, specifically low cost vodka. Sales have been up 3-4% during the past nine months. Mr. Harutyunyan said that 2010 had the potential for modest growth for both wine and cognac production due to the increase in early orders for the spirits.