The Tuscan Wine Consortia and the Consorzio Vini Doc delle Venezie (Consortium of Doc Venetian Wines) give a positive assessment of their participation in Wine Paris 2022. While people are already thinking about the next edition, scheduled to take place in Paris from 13 to 15 February 2023, Italy’s wine glass is, by all accounts, half full.
Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022 welcomed a total of 2,864 exhibitors, visited by 25,739 wine professionals, 28% of whom came from 109 countries around the world. Among the most represented countries was Italy, which came third, preceded only by Belgium and the United Kingdom and followed by the Netherlands and the United States. The largest share of the public was French.
Among the Italian consortia, some made their absolute debut. «It’s the first time we’ve taken part – Alessio Durazzi, director of the Consorzio di Tutela del Morellino di Scansano, told winemag.it – and we’ve chosen to do it together with Chianti, under the umbrella of Ascot, a successful formal union of our Consortia».
MORELLINO AND CHIANTI TOGETHER AT WINE PARIS 2022
«Although the fair is largely dedicated to French wine, it also offers excellent opportunities for Italy. We had some important meetings, especially with French and Dutch buyers, which we hope will bring the hoped-for results for the companies that have joined us. A great way to make a debut abroad».
The Chianti Consortium confirmed these impressions. We had already taken part in Wine Paris in 2020,” recalls Event Manager Luca Alves – and starting again from here, two years later, has much more than a symbolic value. France is a reference country in terms of both style and commercial trend».
«Chianti is such a fundamental and pivotal appellation for Italian wine that it cannot miss events of this international scope. This is not an edition of numbers, but of confirmations: it is right that we should start doing what we have always done.
We are encouraged by the results of this edition, which saw French and European buyers make up at least in part for the lack of buyers from the East and South America, important markets for our denomination».
SATISFIED THE BLACK ROOSTER
There was also a good turnout at the “wine bars” of the Chianti and Morellino di Scansano Consortium, with dozens of labels being tasted. The same applies to the other side of Tuscan wine: the Chianti Classico Consortium, present at Wine Paris 2022 with 33 companies and 62 labels for tasting. An edition that repeats that of 2020, the last pre-pandemic fair in which the Barberino Tavernelle (FI)-based organisation took part.
The French market is one of the targets of the Black Rooster, which can count on a public of professionals and enthusiasts able to recognise and appreciate the various nuances of the territory. The 2022 edition of Wine Paris confirmed the interest of French buyers in the Appellation, who made up for the absence of operators from Eastern countries.
Paris was a positive experience for Chianti Classico, driven by the latest comforting market data. In fact, 2021 closed with +21% markings. And the new year will see the important introduction of additional geographical units (UGA).
WORD FROM THE CONSORTIUM FOR DOC WINES OF VENICE
Not far from the Tuscan consortium stands, in Hall 5 dedicated to Italian wine, another icon of Italian wine: the wines of the Venezie. Nazareno Vicenzi, head of the technical area of the Consorzio Vini Doc delle Venezie, told winemag.it how satisfied he was with the edition of Wine Paris that ended this week.
«Apart from the theme of restarting, which is very important for everyone – commented the Veronese authority’s technician – we confirmed our presence in Paris on the strength of the denomination’s growth (+5% over 2020) and the recent consortium rebranding. In terms of numbers, we are second only to Prosecco, with around 250 million bottles».
France is a country that counts for the Venezie in the calculation of the 190,000 hectolitres bottled abroad. In the near future, the Denomination is aiming to keep up with the 2021 figures and maintain stock levels, which have improved considerably compared to the past.
CHALLENGES: RENEWAL OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND COLOUR OF PINOT GRIGIO DELLE VENEZIE
And it is among the Consortia that the changing of the guard is taking place, with the figure of Albino Armani being questioned in recent weeks by some Pinot Grigio reference wineries, according to winemag.it rumours.
«The priority is to maintain the credibility of the Denomination – said Vicenzi – Clearly there are areas of the territory that work more carefully on viticulture and others on bottling. In this sense, it is even more important to always have a figure who is representative of everyone».
It seems incredible but, in addition to internal dynamics, there is an international challenge awaiting Pinot Grigio delle Venezie: «Explaining the colour of the grape and the wine – comments the Consortium technician – was not a trivial matter, even here at Wine Paris 2022».
«There are white wines and pink wines made from the same grape variety – concludes Vicenzi – and not everyone knows what the blending varieties are. We are devoting a lot of time to training, to tell the world about our Pinot Grigio in the best possible way, also through the new payoff “Sigillo di Meraviglia”, “Seal of Wonder”».