NEWS © Phillippe
NEWS © Phillippe Labeguerie UK & EU Wine Leaders Unite in Call For a “Free Trade Brexit” Vinexpo debate sets out best and worst-case scenarios for wine industry following the UK’s exit from the EU The UK and EU might be going through a public, and hopefully not too painful, divorce, but behind the scenes, British and European wine bodies are very much united in trying to ensure there is as little fall out as possible from Brexit. That was very much the underlying message from last week’s Vinexpo Brexit debate, held on the second day of formal UK and EU negotiations taking part in Brussels. Although the talks are at the earliest of stages, it was clear from the panel that the hopes of a trouble-free Brexit have been raised. Both Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine & Spirits Trade Association in the UK and Jean Marie Barillère, president of the CEEV, representing the interests of EU wine companies and bodies, were united in the view that they would like to see “as little change as possible” to current trading arrangements from any Brexit deal. “We want to see trade as free and as unrestricted as possible,” stressed Beale. Barillère hoped the Brexit talks would be as much of a “non-event” as possible. They are certainly doing all they can between their respective bodies to present the case to the UK government and EU that a continued free trade agreement was in everyone’s interests. Both the WSTA and CEEV, and other relevant world trade bodies, were also working on creating a potential “blueprint” for how future trading could work post-Brexit that governments could quickly implement. Beale said news from the UK government that Chancellor Philip Hammond would welcome a transitional period for future trade deals to be done after the UK leaves the EU means a phased implementation is now more likely. “It is the first time we have heard that and it’s a significant step,” added Beale. It would effectively mean the UK leaving the EU in March 2019, then having the needed time to agree a EU trade deals, the UK then leaving the Customs Union, followed by the opportunity for the UK to then negotiate bilateral trade deals with non-EU countries. That would then give the industry anything between two, three, five or more years to carry on as normal and prepare for any subsequent trade deals to be done. “That is the best for the business community to deal with,” he said. Andrew Shaw, group wine buying director at Conviviality, the biggest wine distributor in the UK, said it was vital a “roadmap” could be established, which businesses could then follow in order to get some “sustainability” back into to their decision making. It was the “uncertainty” that has gripped the wine market since the EU referendum that was so hard for a business like Conviviality to have “clarity” on its future strategy. “We need future trade to be as simple and effective as it is now,” said Shaw. Sean Allison, owner of Bordeaux’s Château de Seuil, said it was vital both sides took a “pro-active approach” to maintain “security in the economy” and ensure the UK does not start losing foreign investment. Whilst the big changes and falls in currency rates post the EU referendum have only added to that insecurity, they only account for 1% to 3% of the overall costs and it was still inflationary pressures and duty and VAT that were the “dominant factors” that the wine trade has to face up to, stressed Shaw. Beale confirmed that UK inflation in the past year has seen a 3% increase on wine prices compared to 1% in the previous two years. Vinexpo chief executive Guillaume Deglise says it’s very much in the interests of the global wine industry that there should be no future “unfavourable trade deals”, and that Vinexpo is very much in support of the UK wine and spirits industry. “The UK is in the top two of countries’ wine exports and the trading power of UK wine buyers is formidable,” he said • 6 VINEXPO DAILY / REVIEW EDITION / FRIDAY 30 TH JUNE
François Adamski with his team of apprenticies Adamski Reveals Air France Menus at Vinexpo Soirée The Michelin-starred Chef, François Adamski was present at Vinexpo at a private evening organised by Air France for some of its top customers and partners. Adamski having received a Michelin Star in Bordeaux, and another in Bourges, Meilleur Ouvrier de France (2007) and Bocuse d’Or (2001), now creates menus for major restaurants in the South-West. His dishes invite all Air France Business customers to enjoy his culinary skills: cuisine without pomp and ceremony, which tastes just right and is always surprising. Since October 2015, Adamski, has been working with Servair and Air France in the long and medium-haul Business cabins. In keeping with his commitments, the Michelin-starred Chef is also the president of the French Bocuse d’Or team, an association that supports the French candidate, of which Air France and Servair are Premium partners. At Vinexpo Bordeaux, he revealed the six new dishes to enhance the pleasure of Air France Business customers on board long-haul and medium-haul flights departing from Paris. They will be, in July: Roast chicken thigh, curry risotto and chorizo, Lightly smoked shrimps, coloured vegetable balls and creamy lemon sauce. In August: Slow-cooked beef with creamy tomato sauce, mashed potatoes with green olives, Roast chicken fillet with supreme truffle sauce, carrots, celery and mushrooms. In September: Candied lamb shoulder, semolina with baby vegetables, preserved lemon, Cod with meat jus, crumble with hazelnuts, parsnips, celery, chestnuts. According to Adamski, there are a number of constraints when it comes to concocting menus for in-flight dining: “The first is products; we can’t use all products. We also have to respect a certain cooking temperature so as not to have problems with bacteria. Then the most important problem is that of re-heating. We work upstream in the kitchen, and then there are the cabin crew who have to re-heat the food. And it’s this re-heating that is the most complicated stage. We can feel that Air France, with their rise in quality, is training its staff as it should. There is a will to ‘do the right thing’ and that’s a very good thing.” As all French gastronomy tends to be just as visual as it is tasty, this is another challenge. “In Business Class, we are working plate by plate in a spirit of ‘plating’, where, in some aircraft, the plates are dressed in-situ. The staff are trained by experts at Servair in this respect. This was already the case in La Première, but now we can also find this in Business Class.” PAOLO BASSO – SOMMELIER FOR AIR FRANCE – WORKING WITH BETTANE+DESSEAUVE ON WINE LIST Since September 2014, Air France has been entrusting the elaboration of its wine list to Paolo Basso, elected best sommelier of the world in 2013. He collaborates with bettane+desseauve, authors of the Great Guide of French wines in the first and business cabins. Associating the intimate knowledge of the French vineyards of bettane+desseauve with Paolo Basso’s expertise as a taster allows Air France to offer a selection of exceptional quality: a journey through the regions of France and the prestigious domains. In business, the new wine menu is innovative, highlighting the diversity of the French vineyard, with renowned labels, for example Médoc Château Rollan de By 2009. The discoveries also have their place and the favorites of Paolo Basso are in the spotlight. The first cabin focuses on the excellence of the French Vineyard, in particular its major regions (champagne and Bordeaux with renowned labels, but also Burgundy, Rhone Valley). Champagne Krug Grande Cuvée, Saint-Emilion 1 st Grand Cru classified Chateau Beau-Séjour Kiss 2008, etc. bettane+desseauve and Paolo Basso select the best areas and the most exclusive properties, in vintages adapted to the consumption on board. Every year, one and a half million large bottles of wine, including eight hundred thousand bottles of champagne, are served aboard Air France flights • Paolo Basso Best Sommelier of the World in 2013 VINEXPO DAILY / REVIEW EDITION / FRIDAY 30 TH JUNE 7
