Two years ago I wrote a blog titled The Beautiful Game (http://firstpress.blogspot.com/2007/09/beautiful-game.html) In it I lampooned the concept of wine fairs where no-one seem to buy anything. To suit myself I conveniently overlooked the value associated with meeting suppliers and the various tasting and discussion fora (or is it forums?) available at the better fairs. My idea at the time was to suggest that wine fairs could be more commercial and begin to pay for their extravagant costs.
This year I see that a few major players, such as Torres and Constellation, have pulled out of VinExpo. They cite current economic climate and strategic planning as reasons for their non participation. Fair (sic) enough. Nothing wrong with squeezing the cash in difficult times. It does, once again, remind me of how noncommercial major wine fairs are. Let's face it, big players would not pull out of the world's biggest wine fair if it was a commercial haven; if it was where deals were done; if it contributed to cash flow; if the contribution of the Wine Fair to the bottom line was a quantifiable one.
I suppose its the old chestnut of not framing a budget for the sales department because it's supposed to earn one of its own. At the same time no matter how big a wedge of cash is given to the marketing department it will always be spent! If only the two could meet in the middle.
Recently Wines of Chile subjected many of its producers to a fairly empty tasting hall in Dublin. This was the first Wines of Chile Fair in Ireland since a major fair a few years ago at Leopardstown race course attracted almost no one at all - except of course for the seventy odd producers. Now, Chile is a very long way away. Ireland might be an important market for its wines but I doubt anyone would want to travel over just to stand staring across an Irish aisle at ones competitors.
OK, so some fairs bomb. Get over it and get on with the next one. After all the New Zealand Fair always attracts a wild and enthusiastic mob. The Australians manage to pull an annual rash of favourable reviews after its yearly bash even after they changed the date away from Australia Day. Many suits find their way out to Prowein, London and then on to to VinExpo. Their bean counters must feel its money well spent. So, its not all a waste of time after all. Or is it?
Why do we have these fairs in the first place?
Originally it was to show off produce to potential customers who couldn't travel. Most major players travel today (in both directions) and wine fairs are very poor places to taste wines at. Net result is that the fair becomes a meeting room and a handshaking exercise. Wines are secondary to the equation. This is actually of no great importance as the 'important' wines find their way into secondary tastings again and again anyhow. Think how brilliant it is to taste at a Bibendum or a Liberty tasting compared to London Wine Fair.
Fairs are not Tastings. Let's not confuse them any longer.
If I am right then the large wine fair as we see it today is based on a bygone concept where tasting was important, meetings took place and new concepts were introduced to an eager and relatively ignorant audience.
This is all so old hat and unimportant to a modern and developed trade. Wine Fairs as they are presented should be radically overhauled. Imagine the savings. No wine. No silly shaking of hands for the sake of it and then, 'see you next week in the office'.
Imagine if a sales team was given the wine tasting budget rather than the marketing team. Ask the latter to justify the expense of the Wine Fairs while the sales team hauls in new customers on the basis of directed and personalised tastings with real customers. I reckon we'd see a new era of Wine Fairs where presentation would be a whole lot more than standing behind an open bottle; where hard work was interpreted differently to aching feet and tired legs - poor souls (sic); where customers would want to attend and where producers wouldn't dare lose their valued space.
I would prefer to see a Show rather than a Fair. Where entertainment was important; where intra-regional rivalry was suspended in favour of regional promotion; where Show Wine Competition was all that mattered for the wines; where leaders were encouraged to be charismatic and where genius was honoured. Now that would be interesting.
Let's wake up and give it all a shake up - it needs it.
See you at London.
