THE HIGH END JOINT VENTURE TO CONQUER CHINA IS TAKING SHAPE: HOW DID "TASTE CORTINA" COME ABOUT AND WHAT ARE ITS EXPECTATIONS? WE ASKED LUIGI BELLINI, WHO TOLD US ABOUT AN INNOVATIVE AND WINNING STRUCTURE

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A bridge between great Italian wines and the upper middle classes in China, to conquer the palates of the Celestial Empire. Luigi Bellini of the historic Florentine family of antique dealers and a passion for wine & food, talks to WineNews

A high-end joint venture to conquer China between Bellini, historic Florentine family, experts in food & wine; Tairongda, elite Chinese entrepreneurs recognized by high-level government and Golden Moon, a company that promotes high-level food and wine tourism in Asia, which, on September 29th and 30th will open the event "Taste Cortina" (www.gustocortina.it). How did the project come about and what are the expectations and possibilities that will open up the world of Italian wine?

We spoke to the founder, Luigi Bellini.

"After 15 years working in China in the field of art and exhibitions, through which I came into contact with sources close to the government, I thought it was time to focus on other areas. We have a structure”, Luigi Bellini told WineNews, “that is betting on the true “Made in Italy” products not the “famous” ones, but those products that are known around the world thanks to their excellence, like Italian wine. For this reason we decided to start from a structure that revolves around a wine bar, the real attraction for people, which will be on two floors in 4-5000 square feet and next to this a retail food and wine structure, following the common thread of wine, so people see how wine and food are inextricable, and finally a very elegant supermarket, which will house a wine cellar inside. A "mixed" structure like this does not exist in China, where instead, Italian wine is always forced to be near stores or supermarkets featuring Chinese products. I would like to bring more Italian wine and food here.

Of course, we also have the big Chinese financial backers who have every reason to expand the discussion: our idea is to turn it into a franchise. "Gusto Cortina" and its associates have taken the first step. It is a project that can create a real economy, not very original perhaps, but certainly one that will grow exponentially: in the last year, Italian wine sales in China increased 270%, a clear sign and higher than the growth rates of French wine”.

It is a winning idea, on solid foundations, like “being partners with government structures, which helps us enormously, both for publicity and funding, we have the support of the nation that has the most imposing political structure the world”. Then there are the partners of "Gusto Cortina", a "bet that has been promoted and I hope by September it is evident to everyone that this idea has great openings for Italy, because today the upper middle class in China is an increasingly large slice of the population that wants to find great wine at home, not just on vacation”.