Take a palatal tour from the ancient volcanic sands of Campania to the quiet medieval town of Montefalco to the high Alpine foothills of Piedmont. Taste the expressive fruit and earth notes of a Barolo (the King of Wines), the complex nuttiness of an aged white Pecorino, the bright minerality of a Prosecco from the hills north of Venice, or the luxurious full body of Amarone della Valpolicella from Veneto. You can taste all of these expressions and more without ever leaving New York City.
On October 26 and 27, Vinitaly.USA will return for its third edition, and its first in New York. Organized in collaboration with the Italian Trade Agency, the event will bring 300 Italian wine exhibitors, and roughly 2,500 labels, to Manhattan’s Pier 36. The 11,000 square meter space will host more than 600 wine buyers and hundreds of enthusiasts, sommeliers, and journalists. Between the business sessions, masterclasses, regional collectives and wineries, there will be plenty to occupy even the most seasoned of Italian wine connoisseurs.
An Extra-Large Taste of Italy
The event’s lineup is full of exhibitors representing a wide range of regions and consortia including Asti DOCG, Brunello di Montalcino, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Lugana DOC, Prosecco DOC, Sardinia, Vini delle Venezie DOC, and Vini dell’Elba.
For attendees, the options are endless – not just when it comes to a chance to taste the wines themselves, but also when it comes to the choice of approach. Spend the day on a full tour of Italian wine by hopping between regions, tasting the variations between coastal, volcanic, and mountainous regions. Or, pick a particular region or grape and follow that thread through the tasting floor.
Take A Deeper Dive
The Italian wine landscape is famously complex, and 2,500 labels might feel a bit daunting, in theory. But at the event, there will be opportunities for a little guidance through navigating it all. For instance, the event’s educational program includes the sessions “Sardegna: An Island Apart,” on Sardinia’s island identity, and “More than Meets the Vines: Metodo Classico Today,” on the traditional Italian winemaking method. A session called “Beyond Nebbiolo & Sangiovese” will highlight the Italian grapes that don’t always get the attention they deserve, which could appeal to sommeliers looking for distinctive additions to their wine lists. Other seminars include “Worth the Wait? Italy’s White Wines and the Case for Collecting” and “Italy’s Regional Character: Award-Winning Quality With a Sense of Place.”
There’s even a chance to put your tasting instincts to the test in “Can You Taste Italy Blind?”The tasting, in which attendees have no prior knowledge of what’s in the glass, is designed to explore how different tasting frameworks approach grape recognition, regional identity, structure, and typicity. More refined than a “name that wine” party trick, the tasting will examine how to actually make sense of what’s in the glass.
Friuli-Venezia Giulia, a northeastern region that’s home to the Dolomites and known for world-class white wines, gets a strong showing across the program. One session, titled “On the Border: Sauvignon, Ramato, and the Wines That Defy Expectations,” looks at wines from Friuli’s eastern edge, where Italy meets Slovenia. “The Lagoon Road: Friuli Venezia Giulia, from the Adriatic to the Marl of the Hills” examines the differences between Pinot Grigio from the plains versus the hills. Another session heads toward the Prealps, exploring altitude, extreme conditions, and the region’s sweeter side (“At the Edge of the Alps”).
The Business of Wine
For all the tasting, Vinitaly.USA is ultimately a trade event. The wine2wine Business Forum gives the two-day program a practical edge.
These sessions will tackle questions that are less about what’s in the bottle, and more about what happens after it leaves the winery. “The Future of Wine Tourism in Italy: Who Decides Where American Wine Travelers Go Next?” explores how Americans choose which Italian wine destinations to visit. “Italian Producers and America’s Master Sommeliers Ask Each Other the Questions That Matter” investigates how sommeliers influence wine lists. “Texas Is Not One Wine Market” zooms in on the differences between wine cultures in Austin, Dallas and Houston, while “From Importer to Shelf” takes a closer look at how Italian wines actually make their way through America’s three-tier distribution system.
That last subject may sound somewhat less romantic than a dialogue on native grapes in Sardinia, but for producers hoping to expand their presence in the U.S., it’s a valuable component of the show. For those who really want to get into the weeds, or into the vines, the final afternoon offers perhaps the most serious tasting of the program. On October 27, Master of Wine Sarah Heller will lead the two-hour Vinitaly International Academy Advanced Tasting Sessions featuring 22 wines to be tasted in comparative flights,open to Italian wine ambassadors and experts “ready to refine the way they taste, read and discuss Italian wine.”
There’s also the less structured, but no less valuable, business of meeting people. With more than 600 importers, distributors, and buyers already registered, the event is built around making connections as much as tasting wine.
Ultimately, Vinitaly.USA will showcase the fact that “Italian wine” is not so much a single category as it is a complex collection of wildly different grapes, regions, climates, traditions, and drinking cultures. You’ll leave the experience with new favourite wines to seek out, new questions to ask and a thirst to keep exploring. Click here to register today.
This article is sponsored by the Italian Trade Agency.
