Vinitaly, Italy's prime showcase for regional and national wine production, which took place between 7 and 11 April, closed its gates with a sigh of satisfaction.
Foreign visitors numbered over 30,000, in a grand total of 143,000, during the five days.
Once again Vinitaly has shown itself to be a successful vehicle for business,' said Luigi Castelletti, president of VeronaFiere. Our commitment does not end here. Vinitaly will be in Moscow in May, in the US in October, in China in November and, for
the first time, in India in January 2006.'
Producers were satisfied with an increase in business. According to Angelo Valentini, of Cantine Lungarotti, there seemed to be particularly good vibes from the Scandinavian countries. Anna Abbona from Marchesi di Barolo in Piedmont was very complimentary on the organisational aspects of Vinitaly 2005, commenting on the noticeable increase in business from Russia, China and Hungary.
By Michele Shah