Billed as the largest Italian wine event outside of Italy, the three day event was chock full of seminars, gala dinners and grand tastings for the press and the trade. Consumers were also offered the opportunity to try wines from the four sponsoring regions – Apulia, Calabria, Tuscany and the Veneto at a variety of wine stores and restaurants as part of an initiative entitled “Shop & Dine Vino 2010.” Additionally, Luca Maroni’s Annual
SensofWine Event was held at Cipriani 42ns Street on the night of February 4 and was aimed more at consumers.
Italian wines are the largest category of imported wines in the United States. In 2009, Italian imports surpassed their French counterparts for the first time in a decade. Italian wines currently have a 31% market share of the United States market, a remarkable number considering that Italy is only two-thirds the size of California. Consumption of all categories of Italian wines grew immeasurably but none more than sparkling wine. Sales of Italian sparklers rose by 14% in 2009 beating out their French competitors. This was due in large part to the success of Prosecco, an Italian sparkling wine from the Veneto region made using the charmat method.
Vino 2010 also saw the participation of four leading Consortium in an event called the “Italian Wine Masters.” The consortium of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore, Chianti Classico, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Brunello di Montalcino held a separate and well attended tasting as part of the event as well as educational seminars on Prosecco and Brunello di Montalcino led by wine expert Anthony Giglio, The program showcased more than 150 producers from these prestigious denominazione d’origine controllata e garantita (D.O.C.G.) regions. Italy currently has 321 Denominazione d’orgine controllata (D.O.C.) regions of which 44 are designated D.O.C.G.
Another part of the event focused on Italian producers who were looking for an importer in the United States,. This event was called “Meet & Greet and had 120 producers who are new to the United States market, The program called VINO2010 Direct program was a hit with these boutique style producers who were offered the chance to participate in Italian wine week.
Vino 2010 also showed its savvy in terms of Social Media with its Virtual Vino 2010 outreach. Thanks to a live Twitter feed, an official blogger and a panel of experts, Vino 2010 used new social media tools to reach out to a much wider audience than in the past. Bloggers and members of the non-traditional media who were not physically present at the event were able to participate and ask questions at a seminar.
During one of the breakout sessions, Giuseppe Martelli, General Director of Assoenologi, the Italian National Association of Enologists spoke about the 2009 harvest. “In 2009, Italy produced 44.5 million hectoliters of wine and grape must, 4% less than in 2008. The decrease is attributed to the climate or the meteoric trend that affected the Southern regions and, in particular, Marche, Abruzzo, Apulia and Sicily in the month of September. Veneto remained the most productive region,” Martelli said in his presentation, “Overall, though, the quality is more than good with some excellent peaks.”
Each of the four sponsoring regions hosted a dinner in a well-known Italian restaurant featuring the cuisine from their region prepared by a top Italian chef. The regions were also discussed in separate seminars led by wine experts and attended by journalists, educators and importers. A host of other seminars were offered as well on topics as varied as Italian=American food, Luxury Wine, Transparency and Traceability in Wine, and On-Premise sales.
In sum, the week was a full immersion for all in the exciting and varied world of Italian wines. For those who are going to Vinitaly 2010 in Verona from April 8 to April 12, the week was a taste of what they will see there at the world’s largest Italian wine fair.
