Vinitaly and Merano Wine Festival, first joint venture in the name of amphora

Vinitaly and Merano Wine Festival, i.e., the largest made-in-Italy wine fair and what started out as the “salotto buono” of Italian wine, later became a full-fledged trade fair event (albeit with obviously smaller numbers on the Verona kermesse) join forces with a first joint venture between the two organizations, with a very special focus: “Amphora Revolution” will be the name of the new joint project, dedicated to terracotta jars (event to be held on June 7 and 8, 2024, at the Gallerie Mercatali by Veronafiere) representing excellence at the national level with the objective, for both parties involved, of the revival of an ancient technique as a revolution in support of the naturalness of the product and sustainability, as well as a challenge against climate change, as anticipated, toWineNews, by the patron of the “Merano Wine Festival”, Helmut Kocher.
“It is an initiative that fits into the line of Veronafiere's strategic development plan for the three-year period 2024-2026 and explores new business-to-business and business-to-consumer areas closely related to the wine sector, which has in Vinitaly an international promotional platform capable of proposing wine in all its declinations and its possible commercial projections”, points out Maurizio Danese, Veronafiere CEO.
“Terracotta jars take us back to the future. Terracotta is found in the earth, and you find terracotta as part of winemaking”, Helmuth Köcher says. “Man has been making wine in amphora for at least 8,000 years, as archaeological excavations in Georgia show. Italy has great potential, there is a lot of quality, and I also say this based on my comparisons over the past 15 years with Georgian wines. We wanted to create this event to enhance this ancient tradition that today more than ever is proving to be an innovation, a real revolution. That is why “Amphora Revolution”: an ancient heritage that can guarantee the naturalness of the product, in tune with environmental sustainability and that can be a challenge against climate change”.
The project, the first signed together by Vinitaly and Merano Wine Festival, therefore, will be presented, at Vinitaly 2024, the Verona fair, from April 14 to 17, 2024, through a masterclass, led by The WineHunter Helmuth Köcher, which will aim to tell, in preview, the excellence of wines produced through the ancient technique of using terracotta jars.
An event, “Amphora Revolution”, that immediately stands out as an appointment of excellence “not only aimed at bringing together a selection of the best amphora wines nationwide, but at promoting and enhancing an old technology as an innovation, in response also to the challenges of sustainability and climate change that are increasingly concrete. Scheduled, in Verona, on Friday, June 7 and Saturday, June 8, at Gallerie Mercatali by Veronafiere, the event will unite producers, winemakers and opinion leaders among scientific convention, symposium, round tables and masterclasses. In fact, “Amphora Revolution” aims to position itself as the first national and international reference thanks to the presence of amphora producers from all over Italy, along with a series of technical-scientific conventions and symposiums that will aim to tell the fascination of these “ancient” but incredibly current oenological techniques”, explains a joint note.
Fermented wine, aged and stored in clay amphorae, a practice that originated in Georgia 6,000 to 8,000 years ago is experiencing a worldwide renaissance and now offers new opportunities for viticulture. According to proponents, the modern use of this technique (as also recounted in testimonies on the subject collected by WineNews) allows for slow micro-oxygenation, naturally controlled temperatures, pure expression of the fruit and softening of acidity-or, if cooked at a very high temperature, preservation of acidity. The amphora also, organizers further explain, offers an environmental and financial advantage, with a shelf life of decades, if not centuries.