Australian wine had its largest-ever stand at the ProWein trade show in Germany from 19 to 21 March, featuring 61 producers, six regional booths, an Australian wine bar and a suite of master classes.

The three-day event held in Düsseldorf is the world’s biggest trade fair for the wine and spirits industry. The fair attracted 49,000 trade guests from 141 countries – including major buyers from Europe, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Asia.

Key highlights from this year’s Australian wine stand at the trade fair included: 

• 61 exhibiting wineries represented by 147 winemakers, winery owners and winery principals (see the website below for a full list of exhibitors)
• 6 regional booths – South Australia, Riverland, Victoria, Yarra Valley, New South Wales and Margaret River, which were represented by regional heads including Lyndall Rowe (Executive Officer, Riverland Wine), Stephanie Duboudin (Chief Executive Officer, Wine Victoria), Caroline Evans (Chief Executive Officer, Wine Yarra Valley) and Amanda Whiteland (Chief Executive Officer, Margaret River Wine Association)
• more than 700 wines from 47 regions across Australia
• 46 varieties, from the classics like Chardonnay, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon to alternatives such as Assyrtiko, Barbera, Saperavi, Vermentino and Zibibbo
• 11 master classes attended by approximately 500 trade guests and covering topics such as Great Southern Syrah, South Australia’s Mediterranean whites, the Riverland’s diverse and experimental wines, Clare Valley Riesling, Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon, and

Wine Australia Chief Executive Officer Dr Martin Cole said it was great to see Australian wine exhibitors back at ProWein generating so much excitement for the category.

“This year’s stand was double the size of previous years with 200 brands hailing from 47 regions across Australia. And the meeting space was buzzing as producers juggled a steady stream of appointments with buyers from around the world.

“We also had a fantastic partnership with the states and regions, which saw six regional booths on the stand for the first time celebrating their unique differences and highlighting the quality and diversity from the length and breadth of our continent of wine”, said Dr Cole.

General Manager of Sales and Marketing at d’Arenberg Philip Jeffries saidL “It was exciting being back at ProWein after four years, catching up with distribution partners and making new connections. I had very positive conversations with buyers from across the world including the Nordics, Iceland, Greece and Thailand. There’s renewed energy and a new mindset to Australian wine, trade were open to explore new opportunities and more premium offerings.”

Head of Sales at Voyager Estate Fiona Findlay said: “ProWein is one of those fairs we keep coming back to. A way of showcasing our wines on the global stage, meeting existing partners and finding new relationships and opportunities. It’s been a fantastic fair for us – excellent quality visitors, valuable meetings and a buzzing atmosphere on the Aussie stand.”

Next in the trade show calendar, Australian wine exhibitors will join Wine Australia at Vinexpo Asia (23 to 25 May) in Singapore, as part of the Australian Pavilion.

Kylie Minogue heads to ProWein

Kylie Minogue brought her award-winning wines to the world’s most prestigious wine show ProWein in Düsseldorf.

Walking the prestigious Düsseldorf trade show, Minogue met with fellow winemakers and hosted tastings for many of the world’s leading wine buyers.

Kylie Minogue Wines has sold over 8 million bottles (that’s over 40 million glasses of Kylie Minogue Wine poured) and is available to purchase in 31 countries in well-known stores such as wine.com, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Harvey Nichols.

Kylie Minogue Wines’ Prosecco Rosé is the number one selling branded Prosecco Rosé in the UK, with £8.9 million of sales, 46% more than its nearest competitor.

Challenging year for Australian wine exports