Tuscan wine starts again from exports, which, in 2020, held, touching one billion euros

The year of the pandemic and its consequent repercussions on the vital pulse of the world of wine events has left signs that will remain indelible. After the deafening silence arrived after the spreading of the virus, with the cancellation of all the events all over the world, and after a summer marked by widespread enthusiasm, followed by the long winter of orange and red zones, the spring has arrived representing the call to arms of the whole sector. Important signals, of a desire to restart and confidence, are coming from Tuscany, one of the symbolic regions of Italy in the world for wine, with its 972 million euros of exports in 2020, despite everything, and a dense production network supported by its 60,000 hectares of vineyards that draw one of the most beloved landscapes in the world, with an increasingly qualified production, so much so that the DOP made in Tuscany (Docg and Doc) are produced by 99% of the area planted with vines (in 2019 it was 95.8%). And that, with the will and synergistic efforts of the Region, the Institutions and the Wine Consortia, has decided to stage a “light” version of the week of the Anteprime. The driving force will be BuyWine, launched on May 10, a digital moment of business meetings between producers and selected buyers (which, between now and June, will focus on Europe, Asia and America), which will launch the week of the previews with PrimAnteprima (May 14, in Florence), with the presence of 12 consortia of the most promising territories of Tuscan wine (Candia dei Colli Apuani, Carmignano, Chianti Rufina, Colline Lucchesi, Cortona, Maremma Toscana, Montecucco, Orcia, Pitigliano and Sovana, Terre di Pisa, Valdarno, Val di Cornia Suvereto), and then, until May 21st, it will be the turn of the Anteprime of the most famous Tuscan denominations, Brunello di Montalcino, Chianti, Chianti Classico, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, Nobile di Montepulciano, each with a format suited to the needs.
It was an organizational effort on the part of stakeholders called to cross containment and prevention measures against the virus with the need to speak to a wider audience, qualified and selected as possible in the face of reduced availability of inputs, fighting against time. But, on this occasion, the clear vision of the organizers is to transform difficulty into an opportunity by strengthening the digital side of the events; with the need, first and foremost, to bring the voice of producers to all corners of the globe. The keyword is trust. Stefania Saccardi, Councillor for Agricultural Policies of the Region of Tuscany and Vice-President of the Region of Tuscany, and Francesco Mazzei, President of Avito (an association that brings together the wine consortia of the Region) agree on this. Davide de Crescenzo, President of Fondazione Sistema Toscana, Giuseppe Salvini, Secretary General of the Chamber of Commerce of Florence, Massimo Manetti, President of PromoFirenze, and Domenico Mauriello, Secretary General of AssocamerEstero, today at a conference in the Palace of the Region of Tuscany, in Florence.
“At a time when we are reopening this is a sign of confidence. A message to the world - said Stefania Saccardi - we wanted to try to do the “BuyWine” and “PrimAnteprima”, with the lesser known or emerging territories, and next week there will be the Anteprime of the other five best known consortia. An edition that has received great attention, and we managed to put together for the “BuyWine” 130 buyers and 150 selected companies. Tuscany needs to attract great attention at an international level and must return to be known for the quality of a sector that has suffered the consequences of the lockdown, the closures of restaurants and the absence of incoming with the heavy loss of tourism that is the first carrier of our wine. On exports, we have held our own, Tuscany is, however, in the national panorama at the top. All this has been possible thanks to teamwork. 600,000 euros have come directly from the budget of the Region of Tuscany, to support the sector, and the Chambers of Commerce have also made an effort, with personnel, tools and resources at their disposal. We have made a three-year agreement with the Chamber of Commerce; we will evaluate for the future how it is needed”.
A clear message also reiterated by Francesco Mazzei, president of Avito and Doc Maremma Toscana: “my congratulations go to the Region for having carried out this project with courage and determination. A great injection of confidence, especially for the production fabric that has suffered most from the crisis of the pandemic. Tuscany was the engine of Italian wine in the 1970s and now we, like Avito, are here ready to go”.
At “BuyWine”, overall, more than 130 operators will be involved, selected by PromoFirenze, through its network of international contacts, who have already received the vinotte packs, small samples of the wines, very carefully designed and personalized with the producer's logo, while the actual label and all the technical details have been uploaded by each company to the online catalog visible to buyers. Three stages are scheduled for the meetings: it starts with Europe, from May 10 to 14, with 18 participating countries, among which the most representative are Germany, France, Denmark, Belgium and the United Kingdom; from May 24 to 28, the second stage in Asia and Australia (12 countries reached by the vinotte, thanks to the collaboration of Assocamerestero, in the project financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, “True Italian Taste”), with China, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea are the countries with the largest number of buyers; the third stage, from June 7 to 11, with Canada, USA, Colombia and Mexico. Each stage foresees the participation of more than 40 buyers, against 50 sellers for a total of 150 Tuscan wineries involved in “BuyWine 2021”. Each producer could send up to a maximum of four labels, choosing to which of the three stages to participate.
Fondazione Sistema Toscana will be entrusted with the task of bringing the echo of the events to the digital world, with the interaction of the various social channels of the Region and its partners, as Davide de Crescenzo explained: “We will be online on the social channels of all the Tuscany Region, Fondazione Sistema Toscana and we rely on this synergy to give as much voice as possible. So we can give the Consortia the opportunity to present themselves online in the best possible way. Another interesting initiative, made possible thanks to digital technology, will be “Ciak & Wine”: through the digital on-demand platform, www.cinemalacompagnia.com, it will be possible to enjoy various docufilms related to wine”, from “Blood Into Wine” to “Barolo Boys”, from “Vinodentro” to “Langhe Doc. Stories of Heretics in the Italy of Warehouses”, from “Sulle strade dei vini (On the Wine Roads)” to “Vinum insulae”, from “Il vino di Leonardo (Leonardo’s Wine)” to “Il romanzo del Sangiovese (The Novel of Sangiovese)”.
Many tools, between business and communication, between moments in presence and digital, as the times dictate, to try to restart. And, so, after the first step of “BuyWine”, and after the day dedicated to “Primanteprima”, on May 14th, the week of the Anteprime di Toscana 2021. In addition to the tastings, at 12pm, the Teatrino Lorenese will host the conference, moderated by Nicola Prudente, aka Tinto, voice of “Decanter”, cult program dedicated to food and wine on Rai RadioDue, and also face of La7. Among the protagonists, in addition to the Vice-President of the Region of Tuscany Stefania Saccardi, the president of the Chamber of Commerce of Florence Leonardo Bassilichi, the president of PromoFirenze Massimo Manetti, the director of Fondazione Sistema Toscana Francesco Palumbo, the Master of Wine Gabriele Gorelli, the president of Avito Francesco Mazzei, the mayor of Suvereto and coordinator of the City of Wine in Tuscany Jessica Pasquini, the president of the Italian Association of Food and Wine Tourism Roberta Garibaldi and Fabio del Bravo (Ismea). They will talk about new vintages, reference markets, the value of export, wine tourism and, above all, the resilience shown by Tuscan wineries in facing the challenges imposed by the post-pandemic. The Teatrino Lorenese will also be the stage for the presentations of the Consortia. Thanks to 15-minute mini-talks moderated by Tinto, the 12 protagonists of “PrimAnteprima” 2021 will have the opportunity to talk about their work and projects for the future. Everything, of course, also in streaming on the social channels of the Region. Then there will be the appointments in the territories (all by invitation only): Saturday May 15 “Chianti Lovers”, with the Consorzio Vino Chianti and Consorzio del Vino Morellino di Scansano; Sunday May 16 and Monday May 17 (morning) “Benvenuto Brunello”, with the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino; Monday May 17 (afternoon) and Tuesday May 18 “Anteprima Nobile”, with the Consorzio del Vino Nobile di Montepulciano; Wednesday May 19th “Anteprima della Vernaccia di San Gimignano”, with the Vernaccia di San Gimignano Wine Consortium; Thursday May 20th and Friday May 21st “Chianti Classico Collection” of the Chianti Classico Wine Consortium (in Florence and in connection with London, New York and Chicago). For a Tuscany of wine, among the national leaders, trying to be central in the restart, to send a clear and strong message to those who produce wine and those who buy it.