|  "After the 20th edition was moved to November 2012 to give more space and visibility to the event through more relaxed organisation and a more impressive programme, in 2014 we return to the pre-Vinitaly calendar that has characterised the Competition since its inception." says Giovanni Mantovani, CEO & Director General of Veronafiere which organises Vinitaly, one of the most important annual international wine shows - usually in the first week of April.
The choice of dates close to the opening day of the international wine exhibition is more strategic from a marketing point of view. It allows companies winning medals or special mentions to present new products already distinguished by such success, according to the Press Release earlier in the week on Monday.
The previous edition, dubbed as Vinitaly Concorso Enologico Internazionale was held in November 2012. Thus there has been no competition during the current calendar year 2013. The 20th edition attracted about 3,000 wines from 22 countries. A total of 105 international jurists including sommeliers, wine producers and journalists were involved. The judging was done by 21 juries, with each panel consisting of 5 judges.
Traditionally, the competition spread over 5 days has been held to close a week before the beginning of the wine show and the results announced at the Show. Organised by Veronafiere, the Vinitaly International Wine Competition is held in collaboration with Assoenologi and under the patronage of the Ministry for Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies, the Ministry for Economic Development, OIV and the Union Internationale des Oenologues.
"OIV provides its patronage," says Director General of OIV, Federico Castellucci, "not only because the competition uses our assessment system but also in view of the serious organisation demonstrated over these 20 years."
In order to ensure the utmost strictness, all wines entered in the Competition undergo a double blind anonymity and numbering process. It is supervised by Maria  Maddalena Buoninconti, a Notary in Verona and legal director of the Competition.
"It is also an extremely selective competition," says Giuseppe Martelli, Director General of Assoenologi and who is the Director of the competition, "since the regulations envisage assigning medals to no more than 30% of the entries."
The rules allow a maximum of 50 samples to be tasted every day. The scores are given individually for each wine by the judges without any discussion, in a totally silent atmosphere. The top and bottom scores are eliminated and an average of the balance 3 is taken into consideration to decide the Grand Gold, Gold, Silver, Bronze and ‘Special Mention’ Certificate.
The 18th Vinitaly International Packaging Competition is scheduled on 14 March 2014. The award for the best finished bottles for wine is for companies that stand out through characteristic images for their products. 8 judges, chosen among designers, advertising experts, oenologists and wine journalists are involved in this competition.
Entries for both competitions may be submitted from January 2014 exclusively online through the Vinitaly website.
Subhash Arora
Tags: Vinitaly, Veronafiere, Giovanni Mantovani, Federico Castellucci, Maria Maddalena Buoninconti, Giuseppe Martelli, Assoenologi |