Australian fine wine attracts high interest at ProWein 2016
Australian wine exhibitors have hailed ProWein 2016 a success after three days of consistently high traffic at the Wine Australia stand, reflecting a growing interest in Australian wine by the international wine community.
Considered the world’s leading wine fair, ProWein, held in Düsseldorf, Germany, attracted more than 55,000 trade visitors from around the world.
The Wine Australia stand included more than 500 wines from 79 Australian wine brands hailing from 21 regions, while across the whole fair there were more than 100 Australian wine brands exhibiting to arguably the world’s most influential wine trade guest list.
Wakefield Wines General Manager of Exports Neil Hadley MW said ‘the hall and this stand have been busier than most, so that’s really encouraging for Australia.
‘We’ve had visitors from Brazil to China as well as from Europe, which reflects the importance of ProWein as a world show and an opportunity to reengage with the Australian wine story.’
Howard Park Commercial Director Sue Henderson said this year’s stand took the ‘Australian presence to a new level’.
‘What people are telling us is they are starting to realise the complexity and elegance of our wines,’ she said.
‘We’ve got lots of brands, lots of regional diversity and the place has an energy that it hasn’t had before.’
Hairy Arm Wine Co. Consultancy Director Steve Worley partnered with Wine Australia at ProWein for the first time this year.
‘I do a number of fairs and this is a one-stop shop. I’ve met with my Canadian distributors and also touched base with my UK, Scandinavian and even Asian contacts,’ he said.
Head of Market EMEA Laura Jewell MW said, ‘I was pleased to see our meeting areas were constantly busy with wineries meeting with buyers and distributors from around the globe.
‘ProWein is highly regarded by the Australian wine sector and we anticipate strong interest in ProWein 2017 when registrations open soon.’
Fine Australian wines will feature at next week’s Langton’s Classification trade tasting in London on Monday and Edinburgh on Tuesday.