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 Vinisud is the international wine exhibition for Southern European Wines and has gained a reputation over the last two decades as an exemplary showcase offering visitors an opportunity to appreciate the variety and quality of Mediterranean wines under one roof. It claims to be one of the Top 5 wine shows in the world. It had announced last year that the 13th edition would be held at the usual venue, Montpellier Exhibition Centre on 29-31 January, 2017. It was reported in delWine
The 12th edition held at the same venue last year welcomed 31,000 people, including 28% foreign visitors. Wine professionals including 9,000 buyers from 70 countries attended the 3- day wine trade fair on February 15-17 when 1650 exhibitors participated. It has been organised every alternate year when Vinexpo was not being held- Vinisud in even numbered years while Vinexpo is in June of every odd numbered year. With Vinexpo slated to be held this year on June 18-21, France would be hosting two of the biggest wine shows on earth within a gap of only 6 months, making it an interesting activity to watch for wine stakeholders and industry watchers.
The Master Classes
One of the most interesting features of Vinisud has been the Masterclasses where industry experts led by Masters of Wine conduct guided tastings and conduct seminars on interesting and relevant topics. delWine has reported on several of these Masterclasses organised during the previous 3 editions of Vinisud and attended by our representatives.
This year, the organisers have zeroed in on women Masters of Wine and are bringing four of them to conduct various seminars. Sarah Abbott MW (UK) / Christy Canterbury MW (USA) and Elizabeth Gabay MW (UK) will jointly conduct a seminar and will talk about ‘The many different styles of Mediterranean Rosé'. There is no platform more important than Vinisud for tasting hundreds of the world’s best Roses and hopefully the ladies would be able to impress upon the delegates that one does not have to be a woman to enjoy this delicious style- especially in Mediterranean summers and the Indian weather conditions at most places most of the year. They would also hopefully be able to dispel the misconception once and for all that Rose does not have to be sweet and in fact it is the drier version that is a rage with the world.
Prosecco has become the fastest growing sparkling wine in the world and has overtaken champagne as the most selling sparkling wine with the combined number of DOC and DOCG versions flirting with the annual sales figures of half a billion bottles! Conegliano Valdobbiadene is the original region of producing Prosecco which got elevated to DOCG as a region in 2009. The fourth woman Master of Wine Mai Tjemsland MW from Norway will present Conegliano Valdobbiadene, the original expression of Prosecco. Hopefully, the Presentation will include different styles of Prosecco for tasting. She would tell us if the quality of these classic wines is generally better or if there is no discernible difference except the marginally higher prices. In any case, any sparkling wine enthusiast cannot ignore this Presentation.
Languedoc is no longer considered the wine lake of France. Its wines have jumped up in quality and with many reputable producers in France and in fact other parts of the world investing, Languedoc wines have become very popular. Christy Canterbury MW will talk about' Languedoc AOCs are internationally popular: what’s the secret of their success?’
Sarah Abbott MW, Christy Canterbury MW and Elizabeth Gabay MW will discuss Marketing unique Mediterranean style wines in New York and London. But surely, there would be tips about how to market them in India or a country of your residence where their Brand might perhaps need to be bolstered.Christy will also present a seminar on Pic Saint Loup, AOC in 2016: take a journey through an appellation – what are the challenges and strengths?
Additionally, the Show calendar is full to the brim with several other interesting seminars on topical subjects like wine marketing, branding and a special focus on wine tourism, the marketing buzzword today. For details, visit
http://www.vinisud.com
There are several special areas to visit besides the exhibitors’ stands where one normally meets their reps, tastes the latest vintages and negotiates business. Some of the other popular stands to visit are:
Palais Mediterranean -A free access tasting area open daily and hosted by the Union des Enologues de France, offering a glimpse of the Mediterranean vineyards’ rich diversity, has over 2,500 labels to taste in your privacy. Organised by colour and wine category, this breakdown will offer visitors a new approach to what the exhibition has to offer. There are 5 major wine zones (Red, White, Rose, Sparkling, and Natural Sweet).
Sparkling Zone
All that sparkles is not champagne or from La Champagne region of France. There is a world of sparkling wines in Italy (Prosecco, Franciacorta), Spain (Cava) and France too. There is space dedicated to the bubbles of the Mediterranean countries that answers the always more increasing demand of the world market:
Here is a Zone of free tasting, with more than 250 presented samples, and a bar proposing original cocktails with Prosecco, Cava, Franciacorta, Blanquette of Limoux.
Wine Mosaic
This area showcases the rich diversity of the Mediterranean's wine-growing, culinary and cultural heritage. It will present:
“Unusual Mediterranean and Southern French grape varieties” where there will be “Talk and Taste” sessions where the winegrowers invite you to sample their wines produced from unusual grape varieties. There is also a Winegrowers' oil tasting bar.
SOWINE
Sowine is the “Digital Hub” at Vinisud. It will highlight new global trends in communication. Hosted by a team from specialist wine agency, SOWINE, the Vinisud Digital Hub, is a forum for sharing and discussion with influencers from across the world, and will present a range of expert-led workshops and debates each day.
As evidence of its ongoing dialogue with online opinion leaders, the Mediterranean Wines Blog this year once again welcomes new contributors from across the planet. Bloggers from previous editions join with these international influencers in sharing their views with all Mediterranean wine professionals and enthusiasts.
Mediterranean Wine Tourism
Wine Tourism is the new buzzword, not only in India but the rest of the world. As an innovation at the 13th edition, Vinisud joins WineTourisminFrance.com to propose a zone dedicated to wine tourism. Region’s exhibitors at Vinisud represent more than 3,200 cellars in one of the most tourist-frequented areas of the world. This allows the trade fair to create a new dynamic and innovative space.
Several federations of small and big producers will make their tourist offers to discover a space for Mediterranean tourism for B2B of exposure and meetings for the persons receiving providers and suppliers of the sector:
- Booths for the players in the sector
- A kiosk- a shop window for the exhibitors’ services tourism routes
- Conferences and round tables provided by WineTourisminFrance.com
- A picnics space set up for the tasting of products of countries
Vinisud is passionately Mediterranean. Its main aim is to be an International Showcase for Southern European Wines by sharing its Discovery and Expertise of over two decades. This makes it an interesting Show to visit, even if you plan to visit ProWein or Vinexpo later this June.
For more details visit and Google Search our several Articles in www.indianwineacademy.com or visit www.vinisud.com
Subhash Arora |