Vinexpo Bordeaux started off with great grandeur and went through flawlessly till the end of the grand closing ceremony.
The exhibition of Vinexpo is more like a festival or a tradition for wine connoisseurs all around the world. People flock to Bordeaux in large numbers every other year, when this exposition opens its doors in the month of June. The trams, the buses, the streets are all filled with twice the usual number of people in the city. The banter of these tourists can be heard in multiple languages and this old-southern capital of Aquitaine suddenly transforms into a cosmopolitan city.
With business seminars and interviews and meetings with prospective clients, the exposition can come off as a strictly wine-professionals-only event. But the delicious product at display definitely steals the spotlight with innumerable tasting dispensers and booths available to appreciate the incredible variety of wines present. If you are staying in Bordeaux and are in any way involved with wines, (enjoying a few glasses of good wine occasionally counts as well) this exposition is an event you must attend.
The grand entrance of the exhibition is adorned with an extensive red carpet that greets you just like the wine celebrities you aspire to meet indoors. With a second entrance letting you cross the pristine blue waters of the river on a wide bridge taking you over to the exposition hall, you could see a million cameras flash, trying to take in the beauty of the frame.
The thought of having over 2000 exhibitors from around 40 countries all under one roof is enough to make you feel like a child in a candy shop. And similarly, the thrill of spotting some of the big names that you have always read about or the small producers and sellers with their hidden gems just waiting to be discovered can be a very enjoyable yet exhausting experience.
In 2017, the country of honour for the event was Spain, and it was rightly represented so. With around 100 Spanish wines being offered for tastings through dispensers, you could fundamentally taste your way through the entirety of this wine-country.
An ocean of booths were lined up for the wines of Italy, Portugal, South Africa, Argentina, Chile, Australia, Napa Valley and Georgia to name a few. French wine and cognac houses as well as wine merchants with their famous names and even more famous wine-regions of origin made sure to make their presence felt in the sea of the exhibitors.
Day one of the exhibition saw some incredible events being organized, which were attended by an astounding number of visitors. And even though the day concluded at 6pm, multiple parties and tastings organized by various chateaux and wine bodies of the cities saw the celebrations go into the small hours of the night.
The second day similarly was concluded by giving the country of honour, Spain, its due importance in the field of gastronomy. An invite-only dinner called “Taste of Spain” saw twelve Michelin-starred Spanish chefs led by über famous Ferrán Adriá from El Bulli, prove their mettle by putting together a gastronomic extravaganza. And to add to the splendor, the food was perfectly paired with some exceptional wines from this beautiful country.
The third day of the exhibition gave some insight into the challenges that could be faced by the wine industry with the ever-changing socio-political scenarios in the world. The day concluded with ‘The Blend’ party (by invitation only), at the beautiful Place de la Bourse, which saw the biggest names in the wine industry mingle together.
The last day of Vinexpo saw the world’s best sommelier, Jon Arvid Rosengren leading a Vinexpo Challenge, which consisted of a blind tasting of 10 superb wines from all over the world. This event saw the best of the best of the wine and spirits industry attend and support the event. The conclusion of day four as well as the exposition was indeed an impressive affair!
Château Malartic Lagraviere hosted some exceptional names from the wine industry for the Fête de la Fleur or the springtime festival, bringing a fitting end to this grandeur of an exhibition.
The exposition of Vinexpo with its exclusive events and elaborate conferences and tasting is a mecca for wine professionals and connoisseurs alike. The event which also opens its doors in Tokyo and Hong Kong will soon see the light of day in New York as well.
Wine Paths was a proud supporter of the event as it brought together multiple member wineries and distilleries of our website from all over the world under one roof and gave us the opportunity to meet and mingle with the people who are behind creating all the wonderful wines and tours that we proudly represent!
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