Category: Wine Tourism

Champagne Releases 2022 US Market Update and Outlook

Comité Champagne (Comité Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne (CIVC) recently released their 2022 US market update and outlook. Global champagne sales boasted the highest in 15 years – 325.5 M bottles shipped, worth over $6.6 billion.

“This is a proof of dynamism of the Champagne market in both volume and value,” said Gaëlle Egoroff, Comité Champagne Director of Protection and Promotion. “We can see the unique place that it holds in the hearts and the minds of consumers.”

Notably, the US remains Champagne’s number one export market outside of France. In 2022, US volumes reached 33.7 million bottles shipped, with a total value of nearly $1 billion. This marks a 1.1 percent decline from 2021 figures, which is a record. The marginal decline stemmed from an overwhelming global demand for Champagne in 2022, coupled with difficulties delivering those demands to the United States.

US Trends

The Comité Champagne credits the uptick in Champagne consumption in the US to emerging trends. These include by-the-glass pours, coupled with a growing thirst for rosé, low-dosage, and prestige cuvée Champagnes.

Remarkably, the US ranks 1st among other countries for rosé Champagne. Prestige cuvées represent the second US largest segment by value. More surprisingly, US imports of low-dosage Champagne exceeded 1 million bottles in 2022, an increase of over 50% from the previous year.

“American people have learned to appreciate Champagne,” said Egoroff. “The more they appreciate Champagne, the more they want to discover the diversity of Champagne.”

It’s also Interesting to note that American consumers lag behind in their EU counterparts in understanding Champagne’s origins, a problem that Comité Champagne plans to tackle with future trade and consumer education.

Source:  Comité Champagne

Anteprima della Vernaccia di San Gimignano, discovering a truly unique wine in Tuscany “The White Queen in a Land of Red Kings” – Filippo Magnani

A few weeks ago, experts, wine enthusiasts and the press gathered in the charming town of San Gimignano on February 16th to taste not only the new vintages of Vernaccia di San Gimignano, but also the reserve wines not yet released on the market. 41 wineries and 96 wines were presented to the Italian and international press at the De Grada Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, in the historical centre of San Gimignano.

The following two weekends the wines were also presented to 200 wine trade and wine enthusiasts at the Rocca di Montestaffoli, home of the Vernaccia Wine Experience. Here we had the extraordinary opportunity to meet the “unique, noble and rebellious” White Queen Vernaccia di San Gimignano! This is the only DOCG white wine to be produced in Tuscany where illustrious reds such as Brunello, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Chianti Classico usually take centre stage. United by a great passion for this grape and territory, the Consortium celebrated its 50th anniversary last year. It continues to support those who are the custodians and greatest interpreters of an age-old white wine tradition.

During this year’s event, Master of Wine Gabriele Gorelli conducted a Masterclass called “Timeless Vernaccia” with a vertical tasting of vintages going back as far as 1997, which was a wonderful chance to experience the results achieved with this grape over time and appreciate the longevity of the wines. The President of the Consortium described the latest vintage as a record year due to the continuing drought and high temperatures: “These did not, however, prevent Vernaccia di San Gimignano from reacting masterfully, once again, to the year’s climatic challenges, proving that this ancient, native grape variety has evolved in perfect harmony with its terroir.”

The Ancient Hills

As the cradle of white wine production in Tuscany, San Gimigano’s territory is situated completely on hills with variable exposures and altitudes of between 200 and 400m above sea level. Its ancient soils have high concentrations of fossils, shells, calcareous sediments, and clay. This composition is ideal for producing vigorous and mineral-driven white wines, and the unique combinations of all these factors, even in such a small area, make the wines produced in this denomination extremely fascinating and complex. Vernaccia is an ancient grape that, although grown throughout Italy, thrives particularly well here in San Gimignano which has become its spiritual home.  Vernaccia di San Gimignano was the first Italian wine to be granted DOC status in 1966. It was elevated to DOCG status in 1993, confirming its role as the leading white wine in Tuscany.

San Gigmignano, An Alluring Wine Destination

Almost half of San Gimignano is dedicated to farm production (vineyards, olive groves, fruit orchards and grains). It is a place where man and nature have lived together for centuries in a mutual relationship of respect. Tucked away in the Tuscan countryside, San Gimignano warmly welcomes wine enthusiasts from all over the world. It is located almost halfway between Florence and Siena (about 60 and 45 km) and is easily reachable by car or by bus. Historically the town was a place loved by important nobles and political figures of the past who left a trace of their passage, enriching this unique place with culture and art. It is known as the “Town of Towers” because in the first centuries after 1000 AD it was embellished with seventy towers and numerous palaces, built by the many wealthy families to display their wealth and power. Today 14 towers remain to create an unmistakable silhouette overlooking the surrounding Tuscan hills.

Smart Technology Helps Wine Tourism Grow in South Africa

Vinpro, together with the Cape Winelands District Municipality is funding a new wine tourism research pilot program to generate tourism intelligence and help South African wineries grow their Direct-to-Consumer business.

Launched in March of this year with sixteen wineries, this new pilot program is a continuation of one of Vinpro and the SA Wine Routes Forum (SAWRF)’s strategic objectives to conduct research focused on industry needs and knowledge gaps. Vinpro, and Vintelligence collaborated last year to release the SA Wine Tourism Visitor Research Report 2022 and this year the goal is smarter use of technology.

“We are extremely excited to have kicked off this amazing pilot program and we want cellars to get involved now,” says Marisah Nieuwoudt, wine tourism manager at Vinpro. “The new pilot program was launched together with Flow Networks, specialists in location analytics, proximity marketing and Guest Wi-Fi. This year we want to use the technology to our advantage to count our visitors and note where they come from, to understand the size and make-up of the total market. We want to help our wineries stay connected to wine tourists between visits, making consumer engagement in the DTC wine space possible.”

A tasting room is both the heart of the DTC sales strategy and the conversion zone for future online sales. The more data you can collect and record about customers, the better your can tailor offers and personalize communication. Flow Networks will work with the cellars involved on their marketing strategy to assist on cross-channel sales, manage their online reputation, build a loyalty and rewards program, or send offers via e-mail. Flow Networks is a reputable service provider, licensed to use Purple, and used by some of the largest brands in the world.

Presence Analytics is a software module that counts the number of mobile devices in range of a producer or cellar’s Wi-Fi router using a built-in location sensor. Visitors do not need to be connected to the farm’s Wi-Fi to be counted. It also measures the time spent in the venue and the frequency of visits.

Wi-Fi Analytics records visitors’ information that connect to a guest Wi-Fi service. A CRM record is created for each guest when they connect and is updated every time they return. This is done by linking up one or more of the farm’s existing Wi-Fi routers to the Purple Wi-Fi platform. Purple is installed on top of the existing Wi-Fi infrastructure, and setup takes less than an hour. The system can be managed via an online portal accessible to wineries. Purple instantly starts building a database via its user-friendly, custom-branded Wi-Fi landing pages once the winery goes live.

“As a region, we believe that wine tourism is not only about enjoying exquisite wines and breath-taking landscapes but also about harnessing the power of data and intelligence to support the growth of wineries and enhance our visitors’ experiences,” says Melody Botha, CEO Breedekloof Wine Valley. “That’s why we are proud to take part in the wine tourism research pilot program. By participating in this program, we aim to unlock valuable insights that can inform strategic decision-making for our wineries, enabling them to optimize their DTC business operations, improve customer engagement, and create memorable experiences for visitors. We recognize the potential of data-driven approaches to drive innovation and foster sustainable growth in the wine tourism industry.”

“We see this pilot program as an opportunity to pool our collective knowledge and expertise, so we can elevate our wine tourism offerings and position our region as a premier wine destination. We envision a future where wineries in our region can thrive in the DTC market, and where visitors can have truly exceptional wine tourism experiences,” Botha concluded.

“The tourism sector is one of the largest economic contributors in the Cape Winelands District. Between our mandated function of generating opportunities through local economic development and our role as Regional Tourism Office, this exciting and technologically advanced project ticks all the right boxes for the Cape Winelands District Municipality,” says Dr Elna von Schlicht, executive mayor of the Cape Winelands District Municipality.

 

Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Preview 2023 by Filippo Magnani

Tuscany’s “Old Red Wine Zone” becomes a leader in sustainability

The 2023 edition of the highly anticipated Anteprima Vino Nobile di Montepulciano returned to the medieval fortress of Montepulciano on February 15th.. The doors were opened to the public from Saturday the 18th to Monday the 20th. There were over 40 producers present, which is over half of the denomination.

Participants had the opportunity not only to taste both the 2020 vintage and 2019 reserve wines, they also had chance to learn about DOCG’s innovative projects related to sustainability and the ‘Pieve’ project which defines 12 unique zones of production called “Additional Geographic Units.”

As the first DOCG in Italy, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is also leading the way in sustainability and is now the first Italian denomination to have received the sustainability certification mark under the Equalitas standard. This has been a long journey, that started back in 1985 when the Consortium, with the support of the Municipality of Montepulciano, decided to install a network of meteorology stations to record weather data throughout the entire production area. Expert agronomists made recommendations based on the findings to limit the use of chemical pesticides. Further studies were done in 1992 and 2006 to investigate the soils and biological waste respectively. Then in 2015, the “Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Carbon Footprint” project became a model on a national scale, calculating the CO2 emissions for one bottle of Vino Nobile. The protocol established by Equalitas for certification is extremely rigorous and includes numerous environmental requirements, such as measuring the carbon footprint, the water footprint, and socio-economic compliance with free trade unions and equal opportunities.

The “Pievi” project continues the route towards the excellence of the pure expression of Sangiovese

Launched in 2021, during the pandemic, the Consorzio of Nobile di Montepulciano introduced 12 Additional Geographical Units called “Pievi” that are the result of an in-depth study of history, landscape, and wine production. The name refers to the ancient parish churches used to divide the territory into areas as far back as Roman times. The goal of the Consortium with this project is to reaffirm and codify a current physical reality with its ancient historical roots since Montepulciano is one of the oldest wines documented in the Middle Ages. In fact, one of the most interesting documents testifying to the existence of a Montepulciano wine production and marketing district dates back to a rare sales contract from 17th October 1350, preserved in the Madonna de’ Ricci (crociferi) collection found in the Italian National Archives in Florence. The first Vino Nobile wines with the “Pieve” label from the 12 selected zones will be released next year.

The noble heritage of Montepulciano

A symbol of local culture, the village of Montepulciano is situated on a gently sloping limestone hill that separates Val di Chiana from the Val del Orcia. Due to its rich history, Montepulciano represents a sort of open-air museum in the heart of one of the most popular and explored wine destinations in Tuscany. The old town is filled with Etruscan artifacts, Renaissance buildings, ornate churches decorated by illustrious artists, ancient theatres, and local artisan shops—a perfect place for wine enthusiasts to immerse themselves in Tuscan beauty and history.

 

Wine in Trentino Alto Adige, A Taste of the Dolomites – by Michele Shah [Part ll]

Trentino (the province of Trento) and Alto Adige (the more northerly province of Bolzano, also known as the South Tyrol or Südtirol, bordering Austria, unified to Italy in 1919, after World War I, share a range of fragrant white wines and German-accented syllables. Both Trentino and the Alto Adige produce notable amounts of the popular Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon, as well as Pinot Bianco, and Riesling.  While the more aromatic Müller-Thurgau, Moscato, Sylvaner and Gewürztraminer, which is said to take its name from Alto Adige village of Tramin, can be enticingly perfumed and unexpectedly age-worthy.

One main distinction between Trentino and Alto Adige is that production in Alto Adige comes mainly from small family-owned estates that sell their wines locally with limited exports to Germany and Austria. Trentino on the other hand counts on a large number of growers, and members of large cooperatives, such as Cavit and Mezzacorona. These popular wines have found their niche, both in Italy and abroad, among wine drinkers who look for reasonably good and affordable wines for daily enjoyment.

Alto Adige is divided by its waterways, the Adige River and the Isarco River, thus creating two valleys. The vineyards are dotted around the banks of the rivers rising from an altitude of 200 to 1,000 meters into the hills. Bolzano to Trento is an easy 60km and indications are well signposted with good restaurants, hotels and excellent wineries on the way.

Cooperatives in Trentino-Alto Adige, go as far back as the Hapsburg Empire and are quite common representing the lion’s share of production. Cooperative farming in Trentino-Alto Adige played a fundamental role, its success stems from the necessity to create an effective economic system for the region’s fragmented farming industry, including that of viticulture, the average grape grower owns little more than 1ha, and most vineyards rise up the mountainsides as spectacular steep terraced vineyards, some still using the ‘pergola’ system.

Cantina Terlano (www.kellerei-terlan.com), a cooperative founded in 1893, just above Bolzano at Terlano is one of the best expressions of ‘heroic vineyards’ in Alto Adige producing exquisite white wines, in particular its Pinot Blanc from the terraced Vorberg vineyards. Well worth the drive to visit the vineyards above Terlan.

Cantina Girlan (www.girlan.it) has built up a leading position as a Pinot Noir producer – with wines of great character and remarkable elegance. In the last few years, Cantina Girlan set itself still higher goals and conducted a search for a single site capable of producing an outstanding Pinot Noir combining an international standard of quality with the authenticity of the terroir. The choice finally made was a monopole site by the name of Ganger, home of the Pinot Noir Riserva Vigna Ganger.

Cantina Nals Margreid (www.kellerei.it)is a “star on Alto Adige’s wine scene. Their wines have received the highest accolades from prestigious wine publications, including Wine Enthusiast, Wine and Spirits, Wine Spectator and James Suckling. Their whites are particularly interesting, exhibiting an intense minerality and acidity.

Termeno or Tramin is home to Martin Foradori’s family estate, Hostätter, (www.hofstatter.com) one of Alto Adige’s historic estates established in 1907 especially to experience the zesty aromatic Gewurtztraminer of Tramin, his majestic single vineyard Pinot Noir Barthenau, Vinga S. Urbano is where Itlay’s best Pinot noir comes from 100-year-old vines of the Mazzon site, as well as home to local Lagrein.  Bolzano is one of Alto Adige’s top areas for red wines, including the light indigenous Schiava wines.  The surrounding chain of mountains creates a perfect microclimate characterized by warm summers protecting the vines, giving good ripeness.

As you reach Trentino, I suggest you visit the family-run Endrizzi estate (www.endrizzi.it). A beautiful old family house and estate at San Michele all’Adige producing some authentic indigenous and elegant varietal wines such as Pinot Grigio, Nosiola, Müller Thurgau in the whites and Teroldego Rotaliano, Lagrein, in the reds.  Top bottling includes their Masetto range. The estate has a well-stocked shop and a nice setting for a light snack.

Elisabetta Foradori’s (www.elisabettaforadori.com) a family-run certified biodynamic estate at Mezzolombardo, well worth a visit, produces indigenous wines from Teroldego, Pinot Grigio, Nosiola and Manzoni Bianc. Elisabetta is sought out for her Teroldego, characterized by its deep granite hue and soft tannins.  Her cellar with its hand-crafted amphorae which come all the way from an artisan in Spain is a must to see and a tasting with Elisabetta is a wonderful experience as she explains the importance of biodiversity in winemaking.

Trentino, which pioneered sparkling wine made by the classic method early in the century, has retained its leading position and these sparklers are now grouped under Trentodoc appellation. They are predominantly Chardonnay based, and the extensive amounts of Chardonnay in Trentino’s vineyards reflects the importance of this production. Today a fair amount of Pinot Noir is also used in Trentodoc production.  A visit to Ferrari, (www.cantineferrari.it) one of the oldest sparkling estates is a real eye-opener to premium Italian sparkling wines. If you have the time stop at the one starred Michelin Locanda Margon and then visit the family’s jewel which is Villa Margon.

South of Trento two distinctively different estates show up for the quality of their wines.  The first near Volano is home to Eugenio Rosi, a controversial, yet authentic production of the indigenous Marzemino wine, showing a fruity vibrant character, very enjoyable and versatile.  Slightly further south near Avis is Tenuta San Leonardo estate (www.sanleonardo.it), home to one of Italy’s premium age-worthy Bordeaux-style blends of extreme elegance and harmony. Top bottling Villa Gresti is a selection of 90% Merlot with 10% Carmenère.   This is another must, as the estate is comprised a large parkland and houses an interesting museum of farm machinery and tools, but above all the family Marchesi Guerrieri Gonzaga if in house are absolutely delightful hosts.

About Michèle Shah

Michèle Shah has championed and promoted Italian wines for more than 30 years. A noted marketer, writer, communicator and judge, she works with producers across Italy. She is passionate about bringing the quality and diversity of authentic Italian wine to an international audience: her “Speedtasting®” b2b tastings have helped hundreds of producers find new export markets. Her clients include the Consorzi of both famous and emerging Italian wine denominations. A great lover of Italian gastronomy and heritage, Michele also organises wine tours for businesses and enthusiasts. These allow her to share her infectious love for Italian culture, deep wine knowledge, and connections with many inspiring figures in Italian wine.