VINEXPO HONG KONG 2016

Ms Rosanna Law, JP Acting Commissioner for Tourism of Hong Kong, Mr. Ettore Francesco Sequi, Ambassador of Italy in Beijing and Mr. Anthony Lau Executive Director of the Hong Kong Tourism Board joined Chairman Mr. Xavier de Eizaguirre and Mr. Guillaume Deglise CEO of Vinexpo Hong Kong to welcome esteemed guests, wine exhibitors, trade professionals and media to the 2016 show at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.

The opening ceremony included a ribbon cutting followed by a traditional Lion Dance to open

the show. The Chairman and CEO of Vinexpo Hong Kong 2016 will welcome 17,000

professional visitors, 1,300 exhibitors and 33 producing countries over the three day show

which runs from today until Thursday, May 24-26 2016.

Day one of the show saw a multitude of famous faces and acclaimed brands take to their

booths as well as to present seminars and tastings in relation to the world of wine and spirits,

across three levels of the HKCEC.

Vinexpo commits itself to setting the highest professional standards for exhibitors and

visitors alike. The main objective for Vinexpo Hong Kong 2016 is to gather leading wine and

spirits specialists in one place and to assist in maximizing business and networking

opportunities for importers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers and off- and on-trade buyers.
Events of note from today included the first of a series of 10 tasting events entitled Vinexpo

feat. bettane+desseauve. For this year Vinexpo teamed up with Michel Bettane and Thierry

Desseauve,the leading French wine critics, for a series of professionaltastings. Today,topics

included ‘Burgundy Stars and Newcomers’ as well as ‘Champagne’s Great Terroirs’ and ‘South

of France Hidden Gems’. Tomorrow includes ‘Italian Classics at Their Best’ and the unveiling

of an affordable ‘Super Bordeaux’ to name a couple.

Today saw the first professional appearance of the newly appointed ‘Best Sommelier of

World 2016’, Jon Arvid Rosengren from Sweden who presented alongside the CEO of

Vinexpo at the Vinexpo Challenge, a blind-tasting which saw 100 guests in attendance with

the winner receiving a jeroboam of Louis Roederer champagne.

In addition the acclaimed Ian D’Agata, named as one of Italy’s best wine journalists, took to

the stage to present, ‘The New Top Official Tier of Chianti Classico Wines’ as part of the

Decanter series of events.

During lunchtime today, the China Market Conference took place in front of a full house.

Panellists including Judy Chan, co-owner of family-owned China winery Grace Vineyard,

ChrisTung, Chief Marketing Officer of Alibaba Group and Robert Foye, President of Treasury

Wine Estates, explained and discussed topics including the wine business in China and the

growth of Chinese wines in the next five years to an audience of over 100 guests.

As day one ends, Vinexpo continues to be one of the leading wine and spirits shows for

professionals, showcasing one of the largest and most relevant selections of international

wineries and spirits brands. Brands that took to the stands today, and will be on display until

Thursday 26 May, included Bernard Magrez, E.J. Gallo, Moët Hennessy Estates & Wines,

Zuccardi, Baron Philippe de Rothschild, François Lurton, Il Borro, Suntory Sake from Japan

and Changyu from China.

New initiatives encouraging trade interaction and business networking that have been

introduced to this 2016 show include ‘The Blend: Aperitivo Italiano’ – Vinexpo’s after-show

networking event tomorrow (Wednesday 25 May) at the HKCEC Grand Foyer -which is open

to all exhibitors and visitors free of charge.