The 50th edition of Vinitaly, the world’s largest wine event, represents the hottest ticket in Verona each April – but for members of the wine trade traveling from abroad, that ticket is free.
Until April 1st, international industry visitors are invited to pre-register for free and skip the 75 euro online ticket price (80 euros on-site). Details and application can be found at: http://www.vinitaly.com/invitation. Applications will be reviewed according to strict screening criteria, in order to maintain the professional standards of the fair.
“Vinitaly has always been above all the premier showcase of Italian wine on the world stage,” says Managing Director of Vinitaly International, Stevie Kim. “That means encouraging increased participation from the international wine community, bringing in more foreign buyers, and rounding out our programming with an more and more important international tastings through the Vinitaly International Academy – including verticals of d’Yquem, Cheval Blanc, and other world-class wines.”
The Vinitaly International Academy is an educational initiative launched in February 2014 by Stevie Kim and Scientific Director Ian D’Agata with the goal of explaining, divulging, and broadcasting the characteristics of Italian wine and the diversity of Italian grape varieties around the world. The second annual certification course – five intensive days of lectures and tastings – will take place from April 4-8th in Verona, with candidates vying for the honor of calling themselves Italian Wine Ambassadors or Italian Wine Experts.
Cathy Huyghe, American journalist and contributor to Forbes.com, captured the infectious spirit that attracts industry types the world over to Verona each year: “Vinitaly is where the industry gets up to speed on what’s happening now. It’s where business happens, where deals are made… relationships are created or dissolved or solidified, both at the fair itself and during the extremely lively evening and late-night activities. That’s the persistent lesson of the wine business: it’s about relationships.”
Vinitaly 2015 welcomed more than four thousand exhibitors and 150 thousand visitors – more than a third of those foreign visitors who traveled from 140 different countries.
About
Veronafiere is the leading organizer of trade shows in Italy including Vinitaly (www.vinitaly.com), the largest wine and spirits fair in the world. During its 49th edition Vinitaly counted some 4,000 exhibitors on a 100,000 square meter area and 150,000 visitors including 2,600 journalists from 46 different countries. The next edition of the fair will take place on 10 – 13 April 2016. The premier event to Vinitaly, OperaWine (www.vinitalyinternational.com) “Finest Italian Wines: 100 Great Producers,” will unite international wine professionals on April 9th in the heart of Verona, offering them the unique opportunity to discover and taste the wines of the 100 Best Italian Producers, as selected by Wine Spectator. Since 1998 Vinitaly International travels to several countries such as Russia, China, USA and Hong Kong thanks to its strategic arm abroad, Vinitaly International. In February 2014 Vinitaly International launched an educational project, the Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) with the aim of divulging and broadcasting the excellence and diversity of Italian wine around the globe. VIA has now also organized its very first Certification Course with the aim of creating new Ambassadors of Italian Wine in the World.
