The 21st edition of the event created by Assovini Sicilia ended in Modica
100 journalists from all over the world participated in the press tours and the conference that focused on the current debate and the importance of wine culture as responsible consumption, wine tourism and sustainability
“The Sicily of wine, tirelessly resilient, reflects on the past and projects itself with determination towards the future, finding in associationism the strength to advance and grow incessantly”. The message of Mariangela Cambria, president of Assovini Sicilia, closed the 21st Edition of Sicilia en Primeur, underlining the central role of the association in the global debate regarding the world of wine, defining a programmatic manifesto that leverages the cultural value of wine and the main factors that determine it today: wine tourism, sustainability, responsible consumption, production quality.
It was the town of Modica and its baroque setting – from the Castle of the Counts to the Garibaldi Theatre – that hosted the most important itinerant showcase of Sicilian wine, devoted to previewing the latest vintage, conceived and organised by Assovini Sicilia since 2004.
A journey into the heart of the Sicily of wine: the eleven wine tours that led the international press to explore the island’s diverse winemaking souls have confirmed the success of a format that makes the territory its protagonist. Over three hundred labels, presented in a technical tasting guided by the AIS (Italian Sommelier Association), have offered vibrant evidence of the dynamism and quality that animate Sicilian producers.
More and more attention to content, with the new formula of four talks that made it possible to delve deeply into current issues such as communication in the new generations, neuromarketing, protection and enhancement of wine production thanks to the new State labels.
With the conference “The Culture of Wine in Sicily: A thousand-year Story that Looks to the Future”, hosted at the Garibaldi Theatre in Modica, Assovini Sicilia focuses on the current wine factor in the economic-political and social context, offering new ideas and considerations. Chaired by Luciano Ferraro, deputy director of the newspaper Corriere della Sera, the conference opened with institutional greetings from the Councilor for Agriculture, Salvatore Barbagallo, and Felice Assenza, head of the Central Inspectorate for Quality and Fraud Repression, department of Masaf, who underlined the importance of “strengthening traceability and control systems to protect the identity and competitiveness of our wine throughout the world. These controls – stated Assenza – not only protect the consumer but also guarantee fair competition among producers, helping to eliminate imitations from the market and to combat the phenomenon of Italian sounding, which is particularly widespread abroad”.
Starting from the pay-off of this 21st edition, The Culture of Wine in Sicily: A Thousand-year-old Story that Looks to the Future, culture is the leitmotif and underlying thematic factor of the conference, expressed in the various contributions of the speakers, who discussed possible solutions and scenarios, each according to their own area of expertise and activities.
In her introductory keynote speech, Mariangela Cambria, president of Assovini Sicilia, emphasised that “today, faced with global challenges that see wine at the centre of a heated debate, it is essential to return to our roots to reflect on and respond to future challenges. The next challenge for Assovini Sicilia is not only to maintain the high quality of wine production and invest in sustainability, but also to protect cultural value against restrictive international dynamics, against a way of thinking that criminalises a product of civilisation, knowledge, beauty and tradition”.
Master of Wine Andrea Lonardi laid the foundations for a programmatic manifesto entitled The “S” Factor: The Uniqueness of the Sicilian Wine Continent, and explored the future of Sicilian wine through twelve keywords that, in Italian begin with the letter “S” – from scenario to dream (sogno in Italian), offering profound considerations on identity, sustainability and strategic vision.
“It is necessary to retain young people, enhance the identity sites beyond Etna, create contemporary wines and narratives, and train a new generation of winemakers to face the challenges. Sicilian wine can still remain a cultural symbol and a shared dream, if guided by vision and responsibility, but with preparation, method and discipline“, commented Andrea Lonardi.
It’s written wine tourism but is to intend wine, travel and territory culture. From the vineyard to the digital showcase: the South that innovates through events, e-commerce and new hospitality models for wine tourism, was the title of the speech by the professors of Lumsa University, Dario Stefàno and Antonello Maruotti, who illustrated and commented on the results of the focus on Sicily of the research conducted by the new Wine and Oil Tourism Study Centre of LUMSA University, led by Dario Stèfano himself.
“The wine tourism offer in Southern Italy, and in particular in Sicily, that emerges from the CESEO survey, draws a dynamic model, firmly rooted in tradition but capable of combining innovation and experience. Direct sales and e-commerce export are increasingly characterised as strategic channels of economic growth, with the online channel taking on ever greater importance in turnover,” declared Dario Stefàno, president of the Wine and Oil Tourism Study Centre of LUMSA University, and Antonello Maruotti, professor of Statistics (LUMSA University).
The debate was enriched with the topic Awareness and wine culture: for an informed and responsible consumption, i.e. the relationship between wine and health, discussed by Sara Farnetti, a specialist in Internal Medicine and in the Physiopathology of Metabolism and Nutrition. ‘Wine is a unique, genuine, cultural heritage and, as such, should be preserved. It makes no sense to present a ban on alcohol consumption; it would be logical and effective to make people responsible consumers, to deliberate on a review of habits. In this way, we would bring about a cultural change, teaching respect and care for the individual,’ Sara Farnetti added.
Finally, commented Alessio Planeta, wine culture in Sicily today cannot ignore the role of sustainability and the SOStain Sicilia Foundation, ‘which is proving itself to be more and more a fundamental tool for the present and future of Sicilian wine.” On the stage of Sicilia en Primeur, Alessio Planeta, SOStain Sicilia Foundation board member, presented new projects such as ‘Honeybees and vineyard’ on bee repopulation and bee biomonitoring, and the ‘Bottiglia leggera – CentoperCento Sicilia’, (the lightweight bottle – One hundred percent Sicily”, which is aimed at reducing the carbon footprint. The SOStain Sicilia Foundation, born from the will and synergic cooperation between Assovini Sicilia and the Consortium for the Protection of Sicily DOC Wines, now has forty-four member companies and 23.6 thousand SOStain Sicilia certified bottles.
The Grand finale at the Castle of the Counts of Modica with the itinerant tasting featuring 57 member wineries at the press meeting, as well as the excellences of wine production with 300 wines for tasting.
Sicilia en Primeur was also the occasion for the collaboration between Assovini Sicilia and La Sicilia di Ulisse, the association that brings together Sicilian excellences in the hospitality, food-and-wine and wine-growing sectors, which organised the event’s closing dinner.
“ ‘Sicilia en Primeur is another important part of the collaboration project between Assovini and La Sicilia di Ulisse to promote our region through its outstanding food, wine, and hospitality. Offering guests the experience of Sicilian haute cuisine, combined with the region’s superb wines, was undoubtedly the most authentic form of promoting our island, a living expression of its culture and identity,’ commented Tony Lo Coco, president of La Sicilia di Ulisse. Another joint initiative held during Sicilia en Primeur, was the event organised together with the Enoteca Regionale Sicilia Sud- Est (Southeastern Sicily Wine Shop) and the Ats Roads of Cerasuolo di Vittoria wine, dedicated to a delegation of national and foreign journalists, guests of a winetasting initiative to discover the wines of the territory.
Wine,’ Mariangela Cambria concluded, ’cannot be deprived of its purest essence: its cultural value. Our wine culture promotes the Sicily brand in markets worldwide, enhancing its history, diversity and uniqueness.