Vinexpo Bordeaux 2017: what to expect

With just a few days to go until Vinexpo Bordeaux opens its doors to the trade, we bring you a preview of this vast international wine and spirits fair, including all that’s new, notable and unmissable.

Vinexpo Bordeaux is held every two years at the city’s Parc des Expositions

There’s no trade fair in the world quite like Vinexpo Bordeaux. With its lakeside setting, summer timing, and VIP visitors, it has a glamour that’s normally absent from other major international exhibitions, whatever the sector. Throw in the chance to dine in the newly-restored city of Bordeaux, or enjoy an evening in the châteaux of the Medoc, and one can understand why this biennial event proves such a draw, particularly for Asian wine buyers. And, for 2017’s edition, there’s also a first-rate vintage release to sample, with the 2016s already widely declared as excellent.

“We are based by one of the most famous wine regions in the world, and that is a major attraction. When we coincide with a good vintage in Bordeaux, it brings even more of a buzz,” says Guillaume Deglise, Vinexpo CEO and head of the exhibition, stressing the appeal of hosting an international wine fair in a wine region.

Referring to the restoration of the city of Bordeaux, he says: “Bordeaux is a newly-attractive city, and, since June last year, we also have the Cité du Vin” – the futuristic €81 million (£58m) wine centre in Bordeaux, which has been dubbed the ‘Guggenheim of wine’ because of its curved exterior, which has been designed to mimic the swirl of liquid in a decanter.

But while such elements enhance the appeal of Vinexpo Bordeaux, Deglise is adamant that the exhibition is the place to do business, and with the most high-profile personalities in the trade. “Vinexpo is where all the decision-makers, the owners, come to,” he says, highlighting the prestige of this event.

Further enhancing the draw of the fair is the fact that it occurs every two years, says Deglise. “Vinexpo Bordeaux is not every year, and this is really an advantage for us, like the Olympic Games or the Football World Cup, if it is every year then there is less excitement.”

Rich content

Vinexpo CEO Guillaume Deglise

It is also an exhibition that is rich in content, with myriad masterclasses and conferences. “All the latest trends and new technologies are being discussed – Vinexpo is where the future of the industry is being decided,” Deglise says.

He is keen to stress too that Vinexpo Bordeaux is not a French-wine fair. “For our last edition we had 2,350 exhibitors from 44 countries, and while France is the leading exhibitor country, there is a good balance between France and the rest of the world,” he says.

As for visitors, the audience is also truly international. “We had 150 nationalities attending Vinexpo Bordeaux 2015, and of the 48,000 visitors, 37.8% were from outside France,” he adds. He says Vinexpo is very careful to manage the nature of the attendees. “We are very strict when it comes to the profile of our visitors; we only want professionals.”

So what’s notable for this year’s fair? For a start, Spain has been selected as the country of honour. “There is a lot of excitement on the other side of the Pyrenees about Vinexpo Bordeaux this year,” says Deglise, adding that Spain was chosen because, as a wine producer, it is strong in the UK, the US and Latin America, as well as, increasingly, Asia. He also sees plenty of potential for the country. “Spain is really a country to watch, and there is a lot of interest in Spanish food,” he observes.

And, celebrating both the wine and food of Spain, will be A Taste of Spain, an evening event on Monday 20 June at Bordeaux’s Palais de la Bourse, featuring 100 of the country’s top wineries alongside many of its most famous restaurants. “Ten Spanish chefs will be preparing food for this event, and they have been selected by Ferran Adrià and José Andrés, who are also both joining us,” says Deglise. “So this will be a very exciting addition to Vinexpo for this year.” Among the wineries in attendance will be CVNE, Pingus, Finca Allende, Marqués de Riscal, González Byass, Pazo de Señorans, Torres and Alvaro Palacios.

Spain will also be honoured with a ‘Spanish night’ at the Cité du Vin on the Sunday evening before the big celebration the following night, while Deglise says there will be a tasting area featuring Spanish wines housed in Enomatic wine dispensers at the fair.

Organic area

Meanwhile, for the first time, Vinexpo will be introducing an area dedicated entirely to organic and biodynamic wines. Named WOW! (World of Organic Wine!), the area will give organic and biodynamic producers a platform from which to present their ranges. In addition to encounters with winemakers, visitors will also be able to attend conferences and take part in roundtable discussions on issues relating to organic wine production, while a restaurant, situated in the WOW! area, will serve 100%-organic food. “Organic wines have always participated in Vinexpo, be it on the exhibition stands, in the tastings of the Vinexpo Academy or at the tasting of the Vignerons bios d’Aquitaine, yet the creation of WOW! caters to a real need for finding organic wines,” says Deglise. “Numerous importers, sommeliers and wine shop owners are looking for a clearly identified offer of organic wines to satisfy the increasing demand for this type of product.”

And this year’s exhibition will feature a further theme. This time it doesn’t concern a country or a farming philosophy, but a grape variety. This year’s Vinexpo Bordeaux will focus on Riesling, and Wednesday 21 June will be Riesling Day, with a programme of events around the grape.

But why choose this variety, which, although the darling of the wine trade, in commercial terms lags behind the likes of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio? Deglise says that not only does Riesling have a high level of global recognition but also that it‘s planted worldwide. He also says: “We chose Riesling because it would be such a fun thing to have a big Riesling day at Vinexpo – it’s a fun message to have a Riesling focus at a show in Bordeaux.”

He says Riesling provides a good reason to bring together different nations at the fair, from Germany, France, Australia and the US. He adds: “And I love Riesling.”

As for successful initiatives from two years ago that are returning in a more focused form in 2017, one key feature is the Hosted Buyers Programme, which is an initiative designed to draw in the key buyers in e-commerce, travel retail, and the off- and on-trades. Vinexpo will offer to host as many as 200 new international buyers, with the requirement that they participate in at least four One-to-Wine meetings each day – a special service that launched in Vinexpo Bordeaux 2015 to facilitate appointments between exhibitors and buyers.

Vinexpo has introduced WOW for 2017

Also returning in 2017 will be The Blend networking party; there will also be Les Terrasses, which is an indoor-outdoor exhibition space showcasing a dozen major wine and spirits brands; along with L’Atelier Food & Wine – a series of pairing demonstrations featuring top chefs and leading sommeliers.

In short, visitors to Vinexpo Bordeaux can expect the usual intense timetable of meetings, masterclasses and events, from first thing in the morning to late into the evening. And, like the 2015 edition, they can expect improved transport to and from the fair, particularly with the tram service from the exhibition site to the centre of Bordeaux. The line was finished just over two years ago, taking this journey down to 20 minutes. Again like the 2015 event, there will be plenty of upscale food to choose from at the exhibition, and from a range of countries.

Then, in addition, attendees can take advantage of the enhanced Spanish offering, and the focus on organic wines, along with the events on Riesling.

However, there is one overarching message Deglise wants to convey to the drinks trade. “Vinexpo has changed,” he states, referring to the extensive improvements made to the fair two years ago, and the further enhancements for 2017. As a result, he hopes that those who didn’t attend Bordeaux two years ago, will, this year, come and see how far the fair has come since Deglise took over the management three years ago. After all, as he has told the drinks business in the past, “Some go to Vinexpo because they have to; we would like them to come to Vinexpo because they want to.”

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How to get to Bordeaux Parc des Expositions

By train: arrival at Gare Saint-Jean. From the train station: public transportation, direct line Tram C: 40 minutes – by car: 20 minutes

By tram: direct line with the C line, from the train station Gare Saint-Jean, the city center or the entire metropole of Bordeaux (exit at Parc des Expositions)

By car: follow the direction Bordeaux-Lac, highway A630, take exit no.4 if you arrive via the “Pont d’Aquitaine” bridge or no.4a if you arrive from the airport

By plane: arrival at Bordeaux-Merignac airport. From the airport: shuttle bus to the city center, then Tram line C – by taxis: cab station at airport arrival – by car: 20 minutes

By Free Vinexpo shuttles: Vinexpo shuttle access is free with your Vinexpo Bordeaux badge. Transfers are available from the airport, the train station Gare Saint-Jean, Mériadeck, the city center and the Cité du Vin.

About Vinexpo Bordeaux

Founded by the Bordeaux Gironde Chamber of Commerce and Industry in 1981, Vinexpo claims to be the world’s leading show for wine and spirits professionals.

Vinexpo is held in Bordeaux in odd-numbered years. Since 1998, Vinexpo Hong Kong (formerly known as Vinexpo Asia-Pacific) has taken place in even-numbered years, and in 2014, Vinexpo expanded to the Japanese market with the debut of a third biannual fair, Vinexpo Tokyo.

In January 2017 Vinexpo launched a new concept, Vinexpo Explorer – a new annual event aimed at accelerating trade with up-and-coming wine regions, which will see wine buyers taken to vineyards in a host region as part of a two-day business building programme.

Then, in March, the show organiser announced the addition of Vinexpo New York, which takes place for the first time on 5 and 6 March 2018 at Manhattan’s Javits Convention Center. This will be the first time Vinexpo has hosted a drinks trade event in the Americas for more than 15 years: Vinexpo hosted the inaugural Vinexpo Americas in 2002, which saw 600 exhibitors descend on New York in November.

Vinexpo facts

> Vinexpo Bordeaux 2017 will be held June 18-21 at Parc des Expositions. This year marks the 19th show held in the city by the exhibition organiser.

> The show is open from 9:00 to 18:30.

> In 2015, Vinexpo Bordeaux comprised 2,350 exhibitors from 44 countries, and 48,000 visitors, 38% of whom were from outside France.

> The top five sources of foreign visitors are, in order, China, the UK, the US, Germany and Canada.