I TRADE TALK I PRESS
I TRADE TALK I PRESS CORNER Iris Trenkner-Panwitz Editor, Weinwirtschaft "Do not consider wine tourism only as an ancillary activity" Changes in viticulture and the importance of Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022 For years, Iris Trenkner-Panwitz has been at the forefront of cutting edge wine journalism with Weinwirtschaft magazine. The editor sat down with us to discuss what to expect from Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022, changes in viticulture and which beverage trends are worth your investment. What do you expect from Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022? First and foremost, I am curious to see how Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris will be received by the visitors. It takes a lot of optimism, self-confidence and courage to hold the fair on time as the only major wine event in Europe. I expect to have many interesting opportunities to talk to producers and buyers, to find out as many new products and news from the industry as possible for our readers. And I hope I can finally make new contacts again, after the long forced break - the basis for well-founded and up-to-date reporting in our medium. What are the most important trends in wine and spirits that you follow? There are many interesting topics and trends, some of which have been manifesting themselves for quite some time. In addition to non-alcoholic wine and sparkling wine, these certainly include increasingly alcohol-reduced wines and mixed wine drinks. The issue of sustainability is also becoming increasingly important, while organic has almost become the norm for some producers. But of course it continues to play a major role. We also follow with great interest the development of distribution structures since Corona times, the shift to the online-sector. What are the biggest challenges and opportunities for the industry? Climate change and the resulting weather extremes are already having an impact on viticulture. And according to the experts, this will become even more acute in the next few years. Adapting viticulture to this will probably be one of the greatest challenges. Piwi will play an increasingly important role, as will the rediscovery and cultivation of indigenous grape varieties. Nevertheless, it will not be possible to deal with extreme frost, heat or drought periods; this is an issue that must be tackled globally. On a small scale, however, the issue of sustainability has to be implemented, and that will be a major challenge for some companies. By now, however, most wineries have probably realised that this is not only a trend among the younger generation, but has become a necessity in order to secure the future of viticulture, its quality and the wine-industry. On the other hand, climate change offers opportunities for new wine-growing areas in more northerly or higher regions. Some wines then develop a completely new style, which can be advantageous, but does not have to be. A wine with a hitherto fresh acid structure is more likely to lose out due to climate change © AD LUMINA Ralf Ziegler Noemie Catier is a consultant in wine tourism, working with numerous Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris exhibitors. How does wine tourism help to promote vineyards and products? Wine tourism is an accessible means of global promotion and developing direct sales. Opening up your estate, showing off your profession, inviting visitors to live a real experience, highlighting your products in a reallife situation and creating events are all ways of gaining notoriety and increasing turnover. However, this requires a real investment on the part of the winegrower, both in terms of resources (human and financial) and in terms of availability. Is wine tourism only a complementary activity of an estate? Wine tourism should not only be considered as a complementary activity, but as an integral part of the estate, with its own seasonality and organisation. It is too often considered as an ancillary activity, whereas it can be easily added into an already busy organisation. Setting up a wine tourism project is never trivial in terms of cost and time, especially if you want to give yourself the means to make it work! How has wine tourism evolved and how do you see the future of this sector? Wine tourism is clearly in line with the development trends of wine estates, as visitors are increasingly interested in activities, discoveries and shared experiences. The evolution of technologies supports this development with the great boom of virtual visits for example. But a simple winegrower's lunch also delights wine lovers! It seems to me that the possibilities really are numerous and that it is necessary to consider things according to one's own means and objectives, to know how to target an audience, to communicate well, and there you go! Don't hesitate to ask for help to manage it ! © Vincent Agnes 10 • THE DAILY • MONDAY 14 TH FEBRUARY 2022 vinexposium-connect.com
I EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW I Paul Mas reinvents the ‘tradition of tomorrow’ with a drop of wax The renowned wine maker’s new gothic edition brings back lost traditions while taking an environmental step forward. We asked Jean- Claude Mas, Founder and Executive Manager, Les Domaines Paul Mas, to tell us about this year's innovations in an exclusive interview We have made a new wine bottle for our ‘gothic range’ with the help of students at the Beaux Arts - Fine Arts school. The bottle is inspired by the concept of rural luxury and designed to look like a ‘gothic flûte’ with a crystal finish. They are sealed with a drop of wax instead of using a traditional cork or screw top. This technique is nothing new, it was used during the so-called Californian wave around 25-years ago. But all the machines have gone out of circulation and I couldn’t find one anywhere. So three or four years ago, I started working with a manufacturer to relaunch the so-called ‘wax drop’. In the gothic range I’ve used a variety of grapes, all well suited to the flûte, including a shiraz from the north, a grenache, a pinot noir, pinot gris, riesling, gewurz, viognier. What are the advantages of using wax over caps? It has many advantages over screw tops which are harmful for the environment. So for people who want to go the extra environmental mile, there is a natural product here - made with a drop of wax, paper and glass, which is much better because it can be recycled over and over again. For now, we can’t use the ‘wax drop’ in France because of the marianne or CRD. Hopefully this will change, but it’s going to take time. In France, change has always been complicated. You have to reinvent the tradition of tomorrow. Because today’s tradition is not fixed, it’s always dynamic. You export wines all over the world. What advice would you give other wine makers looking at new horizons? When it comes to wine making, there’s always room for innovation, but the key is to make wine which is enjoyable Jean-Claude Mas Founder and Executive Manager, Les Domaines Paul Mas to drink. You see, I think there are two types of wine - pleasure wines and dream wines. Pleasure wines, you buy a bottle without really looking at the label and you buy more because you like the taste. So for pleasure wines, appealing to the palette of new consumers is very important. Obviously, people’s tastes are different in other parts of the world, and you must not fall into the trap of trying to tailor wine to a specific market, but there are different terroirs which are better suited to some THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF WINE - PLEASURE WINES AND DREAM WINES. places than others. So discovering what terroir reveals the right style of wine for a certain place is key. How do you see Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2022? I think Paris has always attracted more people, so naturally we needed to have a big wine trade show like Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris. It’s been two years since people have been to a trade show, so I think they are going to be thinking ‘let’s do it’ THE DAILY • MONDAY 14 TH FEBRUARY 2022 • 11
