Brand South Africa wine hits UK
6 October 2005
Over 280 South African producers representing more than 300 wineries will attend the first ever Wines of South Africa (Wosa) Mega Tasting in London on 11 and 12 October - where for the first time the industry will be promoting Brand South Africa, instead of individual labels and estates.
According to Wosa CEO Sue Birch, the response from South African wineries has been "terrific". Not only will the event be the largest tasting of South African wines ever held in the UK - and probably be the biggest national generic tasting ever staged offshore by a wine producing country - it is to be driven by producers rather than distributors.
Another first is that the tasting will be organised according to region - Stellenbosch, Constantia and so on.
Strong sense of unity
"The
enormous producer support from big and small wineries, corporates, co-operatives, independent boutique producers and garagistes [people who make wine at home] is a clear indication of the strong sense of unity and common purpose evident within the local wine industry," Birch told Business Report.
Each producer will be allowed to bring up to 12 wines - making for a potential 3 360 different types of wine. The tasting is aimed at attracting buyers, importers and media from around Europe for the first time.
The event is being co-ordinated by Wosa, the international marketing company of the SA Wine and Brandy Company, and replaces Wosa's annual two-day generic tasting normally held at Lords, which was organised for UK wine importers and focused exclusively on the UK market.
According to Business Report, there has been widespread interest from the international wine trade, with hundreds of bookings not only from the UK but also from across Europe and North
America, as well as Australia, India, South Korea, Ghana and Lesotho.
"There was demand to make the Lords tasting bigger, to accommodate more wines, and also there was concern over fatigue among wine buyers and the media with so many tastings and events around," Birch said.
"They want to see the producers themselves, not just UK importers. So we opted to create some excitement and do something unique by moving to a bigger, trendy and modern space - Billingsgate market on the Thames - opening it up to the pan-European market, getting our producers to come, and organising it by wine region, so as to highlight our theme of biodiversity."
'Variety is in our nature'
Birch told Business Report that the new Brand South Africa positioning would not be a once-off, as it would take time to be sufficiently understood by the market.
"By forming a united front, we have been able to find our collective voice and establish a unique
positioning, based on the competitive advantage afforded by the abundant biodiversity of the Cape's wine growing areas, which makes for a rich variety of wines and wine styles," Birch said.
The Mega Tasting is being organised under the theme "variety is in our nature". Birch said it was getting good publicity in the UK and Europe, attracting attention for its innovative approach.
"Exhibiting by region is new for everyone," Birch said. "People think we are pretty brave to do it. But it does emphasise South Africa's uniqueness and biodiversity."
Themed tastings at the event include Platter five-star wines, the Absa top 10 Pinotage, sweet wines, Chenin Blanc, Rosé, on-trade labels only and new entrants to the European market.
The Wosa Mega Tasting takes place on 11 and 12 October at Old Billingsgate, 16 Lower Thames Street, London, starting at 10am each day.
SouthAfrica.info reporter
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