London Wine Fair 2024: Showcasing Greek Wine on the International Stage

More than 9,000 industry professionals attended the three-day exhibition, providing them with the opportunity to discover new innovative trends and products, participate in tastings, and attend lectures, masterclasses, and presentations on the new challenges facing the wine industry.

As stated by Antonis Sioulis, Managing Director of Reco Exports, the exclusive representative of the London Wine Fair in Greece responsible for Greek participation:

“This year’s event was exceptional, both in terms of the quality of attendees and the thematic sections of the three-day event. Masterclasses, conferences, awards. This year’s London Wine Fair was a one-stop-shop for every professional in the field, as evidenced by the nearly 10,000 British buyers, distributors, journalists, and wine experts in attendance.

Regarding the Greek pavilion, the two Free Wine Tasting & Wine Bar areas operated very efficiently, informing visitors about the varieties and participating wineries. The informational booklet we designed served as a real guide, aiding in the understanding of the wines tasted as well as the indigenous varieties. With a total of 1,073 visitors over the three days, this underscores the unique interest and momentum for Greek wine among British importers.

On our part, aiming to meet the needs of both the British in terms of selecting the right wine and winery for potential collaborations, and addressing the challenges faced by Greek wineries in understanding how the British market operates and meeting its demands, we established the newly formed company Orpheus Wine, which aims to support both sides and thus achieve optimal penetration of Greek wine into the UK.”

Greek Participation

Greek participation in the 2024 event was particularly significant, encompassing a total of 36 wineries. The National Pavilion, located in a highly privileged space at the center of the exhibition, featured 35 wineries supported by the regions of Eastern Macedonia & Thrace, Central Macedonia, Crete, and Central Greece, with 2 independent participants. Additionally, Achaia Clauss represented Greek presence at a stand outside the National Pavilion.

Among the over one thousand visitors to the National Pavilion were buyers from companies such as Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, Hatch Mansfield, Mentzendorff, Friarwood, and others.

The Greek participation was visited by the Commercial Counselor B’ of the Greek Embassy in London, Ms. Paraskevi Kambouroglo.

Greek Wine Bars

Two Wine Bars were organized within the National Pavilion, where over 1,000 visitors had the opportunity to find and taste three representative wines from each participating Greek winery.

All wines in the Wine Bars were included in the special guide issued by RECO EXPORTS, providing information on each label and the respective winery.

The operation of the Wine Bars was supervised by two esteemed professionals in the UK:

• Martyna Pawliczek, former Head Sommelier at La Dame de Pic London, holds a prominent position in the world of fine dining and wine. She is currently a member of Clark Foyster Wines Ltd, with extensive experience in the wine industry, having worked in top restaurants worldwide.
• Zigmars Grinbergs, holder of WSET Diploma and Advanced Sommelier, currently pursuing Master Sommelier. With over 25 years of experience in hospitality, he has worked as a head sommelier and now works as a wine buyer for Central Europe.

Additionally, the Region of Crete independently participated in the Free Wine Tasting Area, where Klearchos Kanelakis presented visitors with the most famous wine varieties from all over the region’s wineries.

Masterclass: Greece – an authentic modern classic

The exhibition’s three-day program concluded with a presentation of 9 labels of Greek wines selected by Demetri Walters MW from the wineries participating in the National Pavilion, in a special Masterclass Session.

The Masterclass titled “Greece – an authentic modern classic” took place on Wednesday, May 22, in the specially designed “Walk-up Tasting” area of the exhibition, in a packed room of buyers, sommeliers, distributors, and wine enthusiasts.

For more information, you can visit Orpheus Wine.

Source: News24|7