I NEWS I Expanding
I NEWS I Expanding exports across Europe At Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022, the Portuguese winery Coelheiros was in search of importers to take on the wines made at its attractive estate. A new expression of Bordeaux from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean Château Roquefort was shining the spotlight on its new cuvée Les Roches Blanches - Cabernet Franc, at Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022, with a new rosé to complete its range. Winemaker Frédéric Bellanger said: "Our estate is unique in Entre-deux-Mers, a region that’s been inhabited for over 5000 years. We have our hearts set on expressing our roots – both lovely and robust – as well as spreading our wings to bring to life a new expression of Bordeaux and to highlight our superb terroirs in harmony with humanity, nature, the earth and the vineyards." Their new cuvée, made from Cabernet Franc grapes on the south facing vineyards of Castelviel, is geared towards Hotel, Restaurant & Catering (HRC) and offers a new expression of Bordeaux wines. Its label is decorated with a starfish, an allusion to a perfectly preserved fossil which was discovered in the grounds of the 18 th century estate, because 30 million years ago the entire region was at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Like all of Château Roquefort wines, the new rosé is already certified HVE 3 (High Environmental Value – Level 3) and the estate started the transition to organic farming two years ago. Its refreshing and mineral taste comes from the areas rich limestone soil and rich geological heritage. Frédéric took over the reins of Château Roquefort in 1995 and with the help of his wife Anne has grown the vineyard which now covers 240 hectares in terms of both quality and quantity Hailing from an area that can trace its winemaking back centuries, the Portuguese winery Herdade de Coelheiros has a rich heritage - but at Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022, the focus was very much on the present. With a selection of red and white wines from its two key brands - Coelheiros and Tapada de Coelheiros - on display, Mariana Tavares, the commercial director, said she was looking to expand exports to other parts Europe. "We're trying to get some new clients from countries that we don't sell in yet," she said. Currently, about 50% of the annual production of 120,000 bottles is sold within Portugal, with other key export markets including China, the US, Brazil and France. Around 70% of the production is red wine and the rest is white. Production takes place at the company's 800-hectare estate, around 50 hectares of which is for wine production. The vines are in seven plots at an average altitude of 300 metres and are being converted to organic production. The rest of the estate is involved in a variety of other agricultural production, including walnuts, and includes a very large area of cork forest, where sheep and deer graze freely, reflecting the importance given to biodiversity and sustainability. Coelheiros dates back to 1991, a decade after the vines were planted, but there is evidence that wine production has taken place in the region for centuries. "It's a mosaic of different cultures all embedded, and we have wine tourism. People can come and taste the wines and visit the estate and see where they come from," said Mariana The Daily is a CLEVERDIS Publication. 439 route de la Seds 13127 Vitrolles, France - Tel: + 33 442 77 46 00 SARL capitalised at €155,750 - VAT FR 95413604471 - RCS Marseille 413 604 471 info@cleverdis.com - www.cleverdis.com - www.vinexpodaily.com • Publisher: Jean-François Pieri • Senior Account Manager: Benjamin Klene • Head of Editorial Team: Emiliana Van Der Eng • Editorial team: Daniel Bardsley, Thomas Campbell, Luc Citrinot, Laura Sharman, Reuben Tasker • Art Director: Hélène Beunat • Webmaster: Guillaume Vinrich. With the participation of: Bettina Badon, Zineb Elhabiri, Veronika Verzhak. >>>> To contact them: first name.last name@vinexpodaily.com Photo Cover: © Philippe Labeguerie - Vinexposium © CLEVERDIS 2022 - Registration of Copyright February 2022. Information presented in this publication is purely indicative in order to illustrate subjects contained therein. 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I NEWS I Quality wines from Israel on show Turning around underperforming vineyards Palacios Vinos de Finca has improved yields and quality by selecting more appropriate grape varieties Golan Heights Winery, an award-winning Israeli producer, showcased its four brands at Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022 as it looked to consolidate its annual €2m sales in Europe. The company, said Sydney Knafou, manager at Casimex Fine Foods, Golan Heights Winery's French importer and distributor, focuses on increasing the quality of its wines rather than upping annual production, which is about 5.3m bottles. Much of the production remains in Israel thanks to heavy demand, but select high-end outlets, such as Michelin-starred restaurants, sell the company's wines. "Their policy is more to reduce the quantity of cheap wines and keep the best wines," said Mr Knafou Palacios Vinos de Finca, a Spanish producer, showcased wines from all three of its brands - Nivarius, Trus and Proelio - at Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022. Founded in 1999 by Javier Palacios, whose background was in the meat industry, the company has often bought up what are sometimes under-performing vineyards and carried out a detailed analysis of the soil and other conditions to decide on improvements. Often this has meant selecting a grape variety different to the one the previous owner was growing, which has helped the company achieve better yields and quality. Between the three brands, production is about 1m bottles a year, much of it from grapes grown in La Rioja. Many vineyards are at high altitude, which means they are ideally located to cope with the effects of climate change. Around 40% of the production is exported to markets including the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Brazil and Japan. "We work in about 40 countries right now," said Borja Larroca, the company's export director. "Japan is taking a lot of white wines. They're interested in wine, they love it and they take it by containers." With production stable, the company is focused on upgrading facilities and opening wineries to visitors. "We want to introduce new equipment that can allow us to make better wine," said Mr Larroca. "We want to invest in tourism. We get calls on a weekly basis from people who want to visit the wineries. When someone from the other side of the world calls you and says, 'I want to know about these guys,' that part of the business is very important" A Tuscan flair with Le Regge Le Regge, a family-owned Tuscan winery, was glad to make contacts from many parts of Europe at Wine Paris & Vinexpo 2022. "It has been one of the first international fairs that started again, so we saw many people from all around," said Maristella Bonafede, export sales manager. With seven hectares of vineyards, Le Regge produces about 70,000 bottles a year, including Chianti Classico, Toscana Rosso and Nymphaea. "All of our production comes from the property. The company cares a lot about quality. We are not Bio, but chemical use is very low," added Maristella) THE DAILY •WEDNESDAY 23 RD FEBRUARY 2022 • 3
