BARON PHILIPPE DE ROTHSCHILD APPOINTS ARIANE KHAIDA TO MANAGE ITS CHÂTEAUX WINES DIVISION

The Board of Directors of Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA has recently appointed Ariane Khaida to the position of Executive Director, Châteaux Wines – this includes: Château Mouton Rothschild, Château Clerc Milon, Château d’Armailhac, and Domaine de Baronarques. Effective July 1, 2020. Ms Khaida will also sit on the Board of Directors of Opus One, Chile’s Almaviva and Domaine de Baronarques in the Languedoc.

Born into a non-winemaking family in the Champagne village of Rilly la Montagne, Khaida spent five years working for luxury goods giant LVMH, two of them as the buyer of Louis Vuitton leathers, a role that saw her select skins all over the world.

In 2014 she was the first woman to be made the head of a major Bordeaux négociant house, running Duclot, owned by the Moueix family.

As the manager of leading Bordeaux merchant houses, Ms Khaida demonstrated her energy, her decision-making ability, her capacity for forward-thinking and her excellent knowledge of the world of fine wines.

She will succeed Philippe Dhalluin, who has decided to retire after more than 15 years as manager of the company’s estates and will relinquish his position as Executive

Director, Châteaux Wines on 1 July 2020.  In order to ensure the smooth handover of responsibilities within the Châteaux Wines division, he will continue to serve as Adviser to the Chairman until 1 December 2020, at which date he will leave the company.

“My family and I express our deepest thanks to Philippe Dhalluin for all his wonderful work. Over the last 15 years, he has taken Mouton Rothschild and our other family châteaux to an unprecedented level of excellence and reputation. He has also been successful in attracting and training the necessary talents to continue our unceasing quest for excellence”, said Philippe Sereys de Rothschild, Chairman and CEO of Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA.

WBWE Asia Launches Virtual Wine Exhibition July 12-13 in Yantai

The World Bulk Wine Exhibition, WBWE Asia has just launched a virtual wine exhibition, which will include an online trading system in which wineries will establish direct contact with buyers.

How it will work

The technology-based communication system will allow wineries to close deals without being in person at the trade fair. Wines will be shipped to China as usual and displayed with a promotional stand, material and staff representing the winery. Chinese buyers and merchants will be able to taste the wine and can ask winery managers any further details via WBWE Asia’s virtual system.

WBWE will be inviting buyers, purchasing managers, consultants, managers, merchants and the media to the fair on 12-13 July in the city of Yantai. All attendees will receive a list of those exhibiting before the show starts.

Winery managers who are unable to travel to the exhibition can instead “virtually attend”.

The statement noted: “Winery managers will be able to do business from their offices or their place of origin, whilst virtually attending the fair with the same trading warranty as if they were in China.

“Right now, it is too soon to be certain that the fairs of the future will follow this route, yet we cannot afford to run the risk of stopping exports while we wait to see what unfolds.”

“WBWE Asia ensures that your winery is accurately displayed and that your wines are available to be tasted by an important portfolio of buyers and distributors from China, whether you can attend the fair in person or via the internet.”

WBWE Asia noted that the bulk wine market was helping the Chinese market to recover from Covid losses. Imports of bag-in-box (BIB) to China rose from 1.12 million litres to 1.14 million litres in the first quarter of 2020.

World Bulk Wine Exhibition ASIA Website wbweasia.com

Good News: South Africa wine exports go-ahead during lockdown

The South African wine industry has been given authorization to export wines during the country’s current lockdown.

Following intense lobbying of the South Africa government by an Industry Exporters Task Team, the Minister of Transport stated in a release yesterday, April 7: “During the lockdown period, the transportation of the wines and any other fresh produce products at the seaports and international Airports Designated as Port of Entry for export is allowed.”

“Agricultural Cargo is allowed to be transported to seaports and International Airports Designated as Ports of Entry and exported to the relevant destination.”

The move is important for South Africa’s wine producers and fruit farmers as much of their produce is exported, and 50% of all wine produced is exported.

Rico Basson of Vinpro, which represents 3,500 members of the South African wine industry, tweeted, “We are very grateful for the dispensation to allow the exports of South African Wine”.

A statement from The Exporters Task Team also praised the decision: “Government and all the respective role-players [have shown] an understanding for the industry’s challenges through this concession, as nearly half of South Africa’s wine production is exported and a restriction on exports would have a severe effect on wine-related businesses, but most importantly the livelihood of close to 300,000 people employed by the wine industry value-chain.”

The Task Team emphasized that it recognized “the severity” of the Covid-19 pandemic, asking all businesses and people to “strictly adhere to the regulations” set out by government to ensure the safety of all employees during the lockdown.

Describing the development as “very good news for the industry”, Wines of South Africa‘s (WoSA) UK market manager Jo Wehring clarified that, “this exemption only relates to finished product that is ready for shipping in either bulk or packaged format”, adding it is “a massive step in the right direction and will bring much relief”.

WoSA recently announced that the 2020 vintage would deliver ‘exceptional wines’, after a last minute concession from government allowed harvesting to take place.

Ontario Adopts Temporary Measures to Support Bars, Restaurants and Alcohol Retailers During COVID-19 

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has announced a number of temporary measures to support local businesses in Ontario that have been significantly impacted by the spread of COVID-19.

Effective immediately, licensed restaurants and bars in Ontario will be allowed to sell alcohol with food takeout and delivery orders between the hours of 9:00 am and 11:00 pm. All active liquor licensees may immediately begin offering this service if they choose and there is no application process or fee required. Liquor may be sold for takeout or delivery through a third party, such as a food delivery service or ordering platform, provided they are acting on behalf of the licensee.

Additionally, the AGCO is temporarily allowing authorized grocery stores and liquor manufacturer retail stores to begin selling alcohol as of 7:00 am in order to support early shopping programs for vulnerable people and to provide greater flexibility to retail stores. The temporary extension of hours also provides greater flexibility for all alcohol retail stores to choose their hours of sale to meet public health objectives. Consumers are encouraged to confirm operating hours with retailers.

The AGCO is also extending by three months the term of all active liquor, gaming and cannabis licences, authorizations and registrations during this extraordinary situation. In all cases, licensees do not need to do anything. Existing licences will simply remain in effect for the extended period, at no additional cost.

“Everyone at the AGCO is concerned for the individuals, families, businesses and communities affected by this virus. We are working closely with the Government of Ontario to find ways of supporting Ontarians and the sectors we regulate during these challenging times” states Jean Major, Registrar and CEO, AGCO.

Zorzettig Releases a Limited-Edition Bottle to Sustain Local Hospital Amid Covid-19 Emergency in Italy

Zorzettig a winery in Friuli, is not new to challenges, having survived World War II before becoming an ambassador of regional viticulture, in Italy and abroad. Now, the winery has taken another important step in sustaining the local community and its well-being. The Zorzettig family has organized a fund-raising project aimed at economically supporting the intensive care unit of Ospedale Universitario Santa Maria della Misericordia in Udine which is fighting at the forefront of Covid-19 emergency.

The winery will be selling a limited edition of Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, a native red variety, on Tannico.it. The proceeds will be used for buying necessary equipment. The limited-edition will display on the label the sentence Andrà tutto bene (everything will be alright) in eight different languages. Eight is a lucky number in China, where the emergency has started, and which is now experiencing the first positive signals. The disposition of the sentences aims at representing a hug, a familiar gesture we cannot share right now. The bottles will be on sale, on their website at info@zorzettigvini.it and on Tannico in the next few days for €35 per bottle.

Zorzettig has produced 720 bottles of red wine made with the grape variety Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, grown predominantly in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northeast Italy, which has been one of the regions of Italy most affected by the outbreak.

“Andrà tutto bene is a good wish for the future that needed to be translated in a practical action right now” explains Annalisa Zorzettig, who runs the family business. “We love our land and our community and we asked ourselves how we could help. This is how we came up with the idea of a limited edition with a good wish aimed at going beyond space and time. We love the idea that families will buy this bottle to share it with beloved ones seated around the same table. In the future, this will be a reminder of a challenging time we were able to overcome and of a moment which has taught us, once more, how precious are little joys and beloved ones”.

info@zorzettigvini.it
https://www.tannico.com/