Around a hundred wineries from eleven countries-Argentina, Australia, Chile, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa and Uruguay, will be presenting their wines at the event which has now closed its registration- a testimonial to the quality of participation and not to sell as much space for the event by the organisers as they can.
Bulk wine importing companies from 40 countries from all over the world will attend the event including the state- owned COFCO from China, NWT from Russia and Kataoka & Co from Japan. The buyers that have confirmed their attendance at the event include Angola, Nigeria, Thailand, Sierra Leone, the United States, Canada, almost all European countries and even India.
The pursuit of quality in bulk wine is claimed by the organisers to be raison d’être of the exhibition since the beginning. The World Bulk Wine Exhibition (WBWE) and the German publishing house Meininger have jointly launched a competition to promote and reward quality in bulk wines from all over the world.
Another fundamental focus of the WBWE is the need to promote discussion among professionals in the industry. A series of lectures have been planned during the conference. These are endorsed by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV), and are dedicated to Good oenological practices and the improvement of bulk wine quality.
This lecture series will be inaugurated by Barbara Iasello, a member of the OIV’s Statistics Committee. She will talk about the recent changes in the international market with a focus on the bulk wines. A panel discussion on the evolution of bulk wines in various countries will include the British author and writer John Salvi MW who frequently contributes articles to delWine as well as his South African wife Petronella Salvi.
“New trends in grape juice markets”, will be presented by Manuel Civera, general secretary of Azumancha, Spain and will be of interest to the Indian manufacturers of wine or ‘Made Up’ wines as they are referred to sometimes. Rafael del Rey, director of the Spanish Wine Market Observatory will share his views on the “New trends in the bulk wine market: Current situation and outlook.” A speech on “Wine consumption in the Netherlands: Prospects for bulk wine”, will be delivered by Fernando Miranda, the agricultural attaché to the Spanish Embassy in The Hague,
WBWE is an important international event for bulk wine professionals and also a major focal point for business. It claims to have such influence in the world’s bulk wine markets that it has the ability to affect prices and trends. It is organised by the Spanish company Pomona Keepers and has been timed to take place after the harvesting is complete in the Northern hemisphere. For more details on the programme visit www.worldbulkwine.com |