SLOW WINE FAIR 2023 DOUBLES DOWN

Over 10,000 visitors, half of whom were industry professionals from Italy and abroad, came to Bologna for Slow Wine Fair 2023, the international exhibition for good, clean and fair wine, which closed after three days on February 28, 2023.

The success of the second edition

Slow Wine Fair 2023 welcomed 750 wineries, 50% more than last year, doubling the area of the exhibition to two pavilions of BolognaFiere, with more than 100 international producers, with a particularly strong presence from France, China and North Macedonia. There were over 4000 labels on display, all representing an ethically and ecologically coherent approach to winemaking.

The potential of the Slow Wine Coalition

“The numbers confirm the potential of the Slow Wine Coalition. In order to revolutionize the wine world, we must begin from the three main actors: the producers, who we’ve been dialoging with for years in order to encourage the growth of a more environmentally-oriented viticulture; those who sell wine, and those who buy it. Everything centers around the search for authentic sustainability backed up by concrete actions in our daily reality. These prerequisites are merely a point of departure, and the road ahead is long,” underlines Giancarlo Gariglio, coordinator of the Slow Wine Coalition.

The satisfaction of the producers

The enthusiasm in the air across the three days of the event is echoed by the producers. Angelo Barraco, who brought her natural wines produced in Marsala to the Fair, commented on the selection and democratic organization of the Fair, giving all producers an equal space. “What counts is the wine, and not the economic power of the wineries.” Sergio Germano of the Ettore Germano winery in Piedmont felt similarly: “I met a mindful and curious crowd that wasn’t here to drink, but to learn. This allowed us to communicate and educate, despite the constant flow of the crowd.”

Buyer impressions

Specialist operators in the international wine market were similarly pleased. Jose Ruiz, who works for Southern Glazer’s, the largest wine distributor in North America, was particularly enthusiastic: ““I’ve seen a tremendous amount of passion from the producers here. My wish for the wine world is a uniform, voluntary standard for all wine producers to declare what goes into their bottles, like a Participatory Guarantee System: and the Slow Wine Fair represents a concrete attempt to realize this dream.”

The Human Factor

Italian wine distributors also expressed satisfaction. Mario Galleni of Il Teatro del Vino, a group which brought 16 producers to the Fair, saw room for improvement: “We’d like to see an increase in the number of industry professionals here, but the curiosity and interest of all the visitors was high. I perceived, in the people who came to taste “our” producers, the importance of the philosophy of Slow Food. There’s a search for quality and the human factor. The protagonists of the Fair were wines and winemakers that deliver a message of hope: for a greener future, also in terms of human relations. There’s a lot of work still to do, and we must speed up the process, but the Fair has given me reason for optimism.”

See you next time, from February 25-27, 2024!

Slow Wine Fair is supported by ICE – the Agency for the Promotion of Italian Businesses Abroad, and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, by FederBio and Milano Wine Week; with the patronage of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forests, the Emilia-Romagna Region and the Emilia-Romagna Regional Enoteca; with the partnership of Tannico, Amaroteca and ANADI. Our main partners are Luigi Bormioli, Bormioli Rocco, Parmigiano Reggiano, Reale Mutua; InKind partners are Direct From Italy, NakPack, Pulltex, San Bernardo, WinterHalter, Fisar; Media partners are Il Sole 24 Ore, Bar.it, BioFiera.it, Premiata Salumeria Italiana, Green Retail, Horecanews.it, I Grandi Vini, Italy Export, Italian Wine Podcast, Luxury Food & Beverage Magazine, Tabui, Vendemmie.