Gastronomy and Wine Portal

At a special ceremony organized by the Bulgarian Winemaking and Export Association (BWEA) and the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), a plaque for “Ambassador of Bulgarian Wine” in Ukraine was presented to Anastasiia Sydorenko.

The title “Wine Ambassador” of Bulgarian wine will be awarded annually to individuals who have proven themselves in the promotion of Bulgarian wine abroad.

Last year BWEA launched a large-scale project to promote Bulgarian wine in Ukraine with a number of activities, thanks to the consulting company of Anastasiia Sydorenko “Tempus Vino”, engaged in consulting for new wines on the Ukrainian market, training, and presentations for professionals and for end customers.

The Bulgarian Winemaking and Export Association managed to impose Bulgarian wines and awaited the first orders just before the start of the war in Ukraine.

“The project is frozen for one year, and we all hope to start again our planned activities from 2023″, said Galina Niforou, President of BWEA. “By awarding Anastasiia Sydorenko the title of “Wine Ambassador” of Bulgarian wine in Ukraine, we want to express our gratitude for the great work done by her company over the past year and show the commitment of the Bulgarian wine industry to the inhuman invasion of Ukraine. We want to convey a positive message and assure our Ukrainian partners that we all hope that the war will end soon and that the Ukrainian people will return to their normal way of life”, Niforu concluded.

“It is a great honor for me to be the voice that will spread the word and knowledge about Bulgarian wine in Ukraine. Special thanks to Galina Nifooru and the Bulgarian Winemaking and Export Association for choosing me to be part of the Europe Shares program and giving me this incredible opportunity”, said Anastasiia Sydorenko excitedly during the award ceremony.

At the cocktail party after the official part, the guests of the celebration raised a toast with the wines of Katarzyna Estate, Aya Estate, Château Copsa, Bononia estate, Zlaten Rozhen winery, Via Vinera Winery and Rupel Wine Cellar –  all members of BWEA who actively participated in the promotion of Bulgarian wine in Ukraine last year.

Galina Niforou is the Managing Director of the Balkans International Wine Competition, whose media partner is Communication Media Group Drinks+. Drinks+ invites Ukrainian winemakers to take part in the most prestigious Balkan wine competition. Participation of winemakers from Ukraine is free of charge. At the Balkans International Wine Competition, the Wine Travel Awards team will hold a tasting of our nominees’ and sponsors’ wines, as well as present Ukrainian wines. The competition will take place from 1 to 3 June in Salamis (Greece).

At a special ceremony organized by the Bulgarian Winemaking and Export Association (BWEA) and the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), a plaque for “Ambassador of Bulgarian Wine” in Ukraine was presented to Anastasiia Sydorenko.

Tbilvino, one of the largest producers and exporters of Georgian wine, has made a strategic decision to suspend economic activity in Russia. It should be noted that the Russian market has so far accounted for 21% of the company’s annual sales.

“Recent events and subsequent global pressure on the Russian economic system have a major impact on business expectations, long-term prospects and, in general, will bring changes in the logistical chain. At the same time, imposed sanctions on the Russian banking and financial system and currency devaluation process would further complicate transactions. Since the beginning of the military conflict in Ukraine, we have been thoroughly examining all the risks or changes, including the reputational risks, that may affect our commercial situation in this respect.” – says Zurab Margvelashvili, Founder of Tbilvino.

Ongoing hostilities in Ukraine have made the situation stressful and unpredictable in Russia and the region in general, which, along with the reputation risk, creates an unfavorable outlook for doing business. Company’s long-term strategy has always been to produce high quality products, diversify markets and promote Georgian wine around the world.

As George Margvelashvili, Founder of Tbilvino, states, “We have always strived to let customers around the world discover and appreciate Georgian wines and we are proud to be present in 30 countries today. However, expansion and growth in the emerging and existing markets is even more important now and we plan to increase our efforts to find new partners and grow sales with the existing ones.”

Despite the crisis in the region, the company continues to work on expanding production, introducing better methods of corporate governance and quality control, and integrating modern technologies into the business process. At the moment, Tbilvino is conducting negotiations with a large international financial organization that will provide remarkable investment opportunity and will be an important step for the development of the company. In this process, minimizing unstable and risky operations becomes even more important.

Since the beginning of the conflict, Tbilvino has been in regular contact with partners in Ukraine to obtain firsthand information about the humanitarian needs and address them in an urgent manner. The company shipped humanitarian cargo to Ukrainian partners in the first week of the war.

Zurab Margvelashvili, Founder of Tbilvino: “The main thing we can do now is to support and help Ukrainian people. We send humanitarian cargo to Ukraine, donate on behalf of the company and our employees to specially created funds and strongly believe that in the near future we will be able to resume operations with our Ukrainian partners.”

To date, TBILVINO products are represented in 30 countries. The company’s wines have received prestigious awards at well-known international competitions, including the Decanter World Wine Awards, the International Wine Challenge and the International Wine & Spirit Competition.

Besides, we would like to remind that TBILVINO is a nominee for the new Wine Travel Awards.

Tbilvino, one of the largest producers and exporters of Georgian wine, has made a strategic decision to suspend economic activity in Russia. It should be noted that the Russian market has so far accounted for 21% of the company’s annual sales.

In hopes of the war’s imminent ending, the Consortium of Brunello di Montalcino DOCG in collaboration with the Consortium of Chianti Classico DOCG and the Consortium of Bolgheri and Bolgheri Sassicaia DOC will join forces at VINITALY, bringing to life a charitable auction for the people of Ukraine.

Just one single, profound message from the Tuscan wine world, as the three most important Consortiums of Tuscany join in a unified mission for the Ukrainian people, victims of the ongoing war.

The Consortium of Brunello di Montalcino together with the Consortium of Chianti Classico and the Consortium of Bolgheri and Bolgheri Sassicaia DOC will each effectively contribute to a special auction taking place at Vinitaly 2022, with proceeds going towards the support and relocation of families and refugees escaping their home country.

Over 30 impressive lots of prized bottles and vintage wines offered by the member producers of each Consortium will be auctioned off on Monday, April 11, 2022, at 4:00pm in the Auditorium Verdi of the PalaExpo at Veronafiere. The auction will be conducted thanks to the technical collaboration Sotheby’s, while funds will be collected and distributed by the Caritas Diocesana of Siena-Colle di Val D’Elsa-Montalcino, destined to a series of structures in place for families of Ukrainian refugees:

“From three brands of excellence in the Italian wine world – declares don Ronato Rotellini, General Secretary of the Arcidiocesi of Siena-Colle di Val D’Elsa-Montalcino – comes this incredible sign of great mercy and solidarity towards the Ukrainian population, deeply scarred by a war that has been ravaging the country for over a month. Three symbols of Made in Italy which, together, represent a boundless charity so much desired by Pope Francis.”

“Both the Arcidiocesi and I would like to extend our thanks – adds Don Rotellini – for choosing to support Caritas, which has been involved in the relief efforts of the Opera Don Orione in Leopoli, Kiev and Charkiv since the beginning.”

The auction is organized in collaboration with Sotheby’s Italia, and it will be possible to participate live in person or online through the platform Bidinside (viniperlapace.bidinside.com), technical partner in the auction. The realization of the auction is also made possible thanks to the support of FieraMente, specialized in the promotion and logistics of Italian wine on an international scale, with headquarters in Montevarchi (AR). A special thanks goes to Veronafiere for the precious support to this unique event.

In hopes of the war’s imminent ending, the Consortium of Brunello di Montalcino DOCG in collaboration with the Consortium of Chianti Classico DOCG and the Consortium of Bolgheri and Bolgheri Sassicaia DOC will join forces at VINITALY, bringing to life a charitable auction for the people of Ukraine.

The terrible war that came to our land, taking lives, breaking destinies, destroying homes, unspeakable pain and bloody wounds is etched in the heart of every Ukrainian. But we believe in our Victory! And every good news brings us closer to this bright day.

In March, the Château Kurin winery was barbarically destroyed by invaders in the Kherson region. Fortunately, its owners, the Khalupenko family, were lucky to survive. But you can imagine how people who saw the ashes on the site of their home and mutilated the fruits of their many years of inspired work felt…

Denys Khalupenko dreamed that tourists from all over the world would come to the hotel they built at the winery, taste wonderful wine and admire the endless steppes of the Kherson region. That’s why he took part in the Wine Travel Awards (WTA) project.

The first good news after the terrible tragedy – Château Kurin was recognized as one of the winners of our award by public vote. So, we are confident that the winery will be rebuilt later, and all the ambitious plans of its owners will be implemented. May the boldest dreams come true!

The second great news we learned from Denys’s post on his FB page: there was a donkey Asiyat – a pet that adorned the wine label Chateau Kurin.

“When the fighting began, he was in the barn. And when we left the winery, we opened the way for him. He wandered through the vineyard with the goats for a few days, and then came to Chornobayivka to our neighbor-farmer, where he is now,” said the owner of Château Kurin.

Imagine, the donkey did not return anywhere, but to the legendary Chornobayivka! Therefore, the wine with Asiyat on the label should enter the history of Ukrainian winemaking – as a symbol of our stability and victory.

Life goes on. And it is stronger than ruin and death!

We are convinced that the Khalupenko family should not be left alone with their misfortune: Chateau Kurin winemakers have already received many words of support from colleagues and winelovers. Denys Khalupenko posted the monobank card number 5375419907212102 on the social network: everyone who wants to help revive the Kherson winery can join in this way.

The terrible war that came to our land, taking lives, breaking destinies, destroying homes, unspeakable pain and bloody wounds is etched in the heart of every Ukrainian. But we believe in our Victory! And every good news brings us closer to this bright day.

The Communication Media Group Drinks+ received the invitation to participate in the Concours Mondial du Sauvignon before 24.02.2022 and, of course, was very delighted about participating in such a significant wine event, and the opportunity to meet wine professionals from around the World. However, 24.02.2022 happened and the Ukrainian flag on the degustation table, among all other international flags, symbolized much more than a country’s representation in a wine competition. And we wore it proudly.

Honor and Praise Sauvignon Blanc Wines, Contest Significance

Sauvignon Blanc, being in the top 3 most widely planted international white grape varieties in the world, attracted so much attention over the last decade, and conquer the global wine scene in such a way that winemakers from around the world started to experiment much more in their cellars in order to make the offer more diverse and to meet the needs of the most fastidious consumers.

The 13th Concours Mondial du Sauvignon was the newest edition of this internationally renowned wine competition that aims to honor and praise wines made from Sauvignon Blanc grapes and showcase the diversity of this varietal. This contest is the largest and most significant international competition entirely dedicated to Sauvignon Blanc wines.

The objective of the contest is to promote the quality and diversity of the Sauvignon variety wines and the most outstanding styles of it and to popularize it to consumers and markets.

In 2022, 1120 Sauvignon Blanc wines from 23 producing countries, including France, Italy, Austria, New Zealand, South Africa and Chile were submitted. The increasing popularity of the Concours Mondial du Sauvignon in Eastern Europe is substantiated in the rising number of entries from the Czech Republic, Romania, Hungary and Croatia.

Over the past decade, the competition has taken place in Sauvignon producer regions all over Europe including Bordeaux, Touraine, Styria, Rueda and Friuli. In 2022, Concours Mondial du Sauvignon took place from the 17th to 20th of March in Torres Vedras, a small beautiful town situated about an hour north of Lisbon, Portugal. Because of the recognition of the diversity of wines of this wine region, Torres Vedras was awarded by RECEVIN as the ‘European Wine City’ in 2018.

Judges and Evaluations

To guarantee the impartial and balanced approach, as well as the diversity of expertise, the evaluation process of Concours Mondial du Sauvignon was held by top-class judges from over twenty nationalities, including the Ukrainian representative. The judging panel consisted of masters of wines, producers, winemakers, sommeliers, distributors, wine writers and journalists and other opinion leaders of the industry with rich tasting experience.

Blind tastings of more than 80 samples were divided between 2 contest days. During the tasting sessions the wines are grouped taking into account their origin, category, blend proportions and price.

To achieve the correctness of evaluations and to secure consumers, after the competition the organizers conduct subsequent checks on award-winning entries, by comparing a selection of those products with anonymously bought samples from the same batch.

This year with the assistance of new technologies all evaluations were submitted digitally, each judge had a gadget – an evaluation tablet with pre-established wine characteristics to highlight, as well as a free form to justify the judge’s personal evaluation. Each group of judges had their leader to clarify doubts and achieve a common understanding on whether a wine is worth special recognition.

Medals and Recognition

Gold and silver medals in certain categories became the main indicators of success at the contest. Additionally, the jury awarded special trophies to entries achieving the highest scores in special categories such as Sauvignon Blend, Sweet Sauvignon, Oaked Sauvignon and Best Sauvignon in the Competition.

Medals Ranking in 2022: France became a leader with 143 medals, with also the most awarded region this year, Loire Valley, with 100 medals. Followed by Austria with 75 medals (worth noting that 39 Gold and 32 Silver medals and 2 trophy winners were all given to wines from Styria). The third most recognized wine country for Sauvignon Blanc was Italy with 31 medals.

Over 96% of the Austrian wines in the competition were from Styria, a Sauvignon wine region that has garnered increased global recognition over the past few years. And even though the tastings were done blindly, I soon realized, as the results were revealed, that the highest scores that I gave all coincided with Styrian wines.

Austrian Discoveries

Having tasted so many Sauvignon Blancs blindly, my personal breakthrough was to confirm the idea about the great terroir, particularly for this grape variety, that is the Austrian region of Steiermark. Sauvignon Blanc is one of Steiermark’s specialties, where wines often demonstrate freshness, powerfulness, good balance, volume, spicy or salty minerality, ripe fruits and, above all, good ageing potential.

Steiermark, Bundesland, known in english as Styria, is on southeastern and central Austria, bordering Slovenia on the south and bounded by Bundesländer Kärnten (Carinthia) on the south, Salzburg on the west, Oberösterreich und Niederösterreich (Upper and Lower Austria) on the north, and Burgenland on the east.

Styria collected the most awards in the oaked category – 42 (and nearly 60% of awarded Styrian wines were oaked), as well as the 2022 Revelation Oaked Sauvignon trophy awarded to the Peter Skoff Sauvignon blanc Ried Kranachberg Reserve 2015.

The Sauvignon Blanc variety produces world-class wines across all 3 wine regions of Styria with DAC indication (“Districtus Austriae Controllatus”). When so many top winemakers focus on one variety, success is inevitable – also very important: the terroir of the Styrian wine-growing region is predestined for this variety, and the Styrian Sauvignon Blanc variants matured in wood were particularly successful at the Concours Mondial Sauvignon.

Styrian wines play an important role in the great global Sauvignon arena, regularly showing themselves at the major competitions such as Concours Mondial Sauvignon. Some of the world’s most respected wine experts have included the Sauvignon Blancs from Styria in the ranks of the best dry white wines in the world.

The program

Besides the two days of official tastings, the members of the jury visited a masterclass on Sauvignon Blanc and a workshop on the host town regional wines. Finding some time as well to visit 4 local wineries with wine tourism facilities such as the very renowned Adega Mãe Winery, Quinta de Almiara, Quinta da Boa Esperança and Quinta da Folgorosa. And all 4 wineries revealed high quality of hospitality, service and authenticity.

With level of excellence, the organizers tried to exhibit some Portuguese heritage and traditions using authentic Fado music, delicious local food and wines, all of this crowned with multiple breathtaking viewpoints to observe the beauty of the Portuguese land such as meditating over the sunset at Santa Cruz – part of the municipality of Torres Vedras.

All cultural activities were organized in a way to know Portugal better and to develop some special connection with this gorgeous wine producing country.

2022 Concours Mondial du Sauvignon Revelations

The final remark of the judges was the unprecedentedly high number of oaked Sauvignon Blancs that entered the competition this year: 225, or a fifth of total entries. Most of the oaked Sauvignon wines came from Styria and Bordeaux. And they performed extremely well, with 35% of them receiving medals.

The results of the Concours Mondial du Sauvignon 2022:

Dubourdieu Trophy (Best Competing Sauvignon)
Domaine Jean-Christophe Mandard Blanc 2020
Touraine Chenonceaux, Loire Valley, France

Tonnellerie Sylvain Trophy (Oaked Sauvignon Revelation)
Peter Skoff Sauvignon blanc Ried Kranachberg Reserve 2015
Styria, Austria

Sauvignon Blend Revelation
Ktima Biblia Chora White 2021
Mt Panego, Macedonia, Greece

Sweet Sauvignon Revelation
SKALÁK Sauvignon Slámové Víno 2015
Slovacka, Moravia, Czech Republic

Loire Revelation
Caillottes 2020, Joël & Sylvie Cirotte
Sancerre, Loire Valley, France

Austria Revelation
Wruss Sauvignon Blanc Gamlitz DAC 2020
South Styria, Austria

New Zealand Revelation
Saint Clair Wairau Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2021
Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand

Italy Revelation
Cantina Rauscedo Sauvignon 2020
Venezia Giulia IGT, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy

South Africa Revelation
Diemersdal The Journal Sauvignon blanc 2021
Cape Town, Coastal Region, South Africa

Complete list of results: https://resultats.cmsauvignon.com/en/results

The Communication Media Group Drinks+ received the invitation to participate in the Concours Mondial du Sauvignon before 24.02.2022 and, of course, was very delighted about participating in such a significant wine event, and the opportunity to meet wine professionals from around the World. However, 24.02.2022 happened and the Ukrainian flag on the degustation table, among all […]

At the Berliner Wine Trophy, one of the most famous and ancient estates in Ukraine, which is a nominee for the Wine Travel Awards, received prestigious awards.

Prince Trubetskoi Winery, like many other wineries in Ukraine, has suffered from the Russian military aggression but our winemakers do not give up, they continue participating in prestigious wine competitions and receive high awards.

At one of Germany’s most influential wine competitions and the world’s largest international wine competition under the auspices of the OIV and UIOE – Berliner Wine Trophy (BWT), Prince Trubetskoi Winery wines won three gold medals:

• Prince Trubetskoy 2018, (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon). Alcohol% 13.7;
• Cabernet Franc 2017. Alcohol% 13.4;
• Velvet of Ukraine 2016, (Cabernet Sauvignon). Alcohol% 12.3.

In the category BWT Special Awards 2022 Winners Prince Trubetskoi Winery received the title of Best Producer Still wine of Ukraine.

BWT gathers well-known manufacturers and distributors from all over the world every year, and the number of samples submitted is constantly growing and amounts to almost 15,000 applications per year (winter and summer competitions).

The winners of the Berliner Wine Trophy receive not only medals, but also a full package of offline and online marketing for the promotion of award-winning wines, namely: a free medal in digital format for the promotion of award-winning wines; free set of marketing tools and tips; promotion of the winner’s wines through social networks; announcement of winners at BWT events in Asia for industry professionals, etc.

We remind you that Prince Trubetskoi Winery is a nominee for the Wine Travel Awards. The D+ and Wine Travel Awards teams wish to all Ukrainian winemakers a peaceful sky and victory – both our common over enemies and personal in the award. Voting for WTA nominees lasts until March 31.

Photo: results.wine-trophy.com, facebook.com/BerlinerWineTrophy

At the Berliner Wine Trophy, one of the most famous and ancient estates in Ukraine, which is a nominee for the Wine Travel Awards, received prestigious awards.

The 11th Balkans International Wine Competition will take place in Salamina from 1 to 3 June, and the Balkan Wine Festival will take place in Bulgaria from 16 to 18 June. Both events are united under the common name Balkans International Wine Competition and Festival (BIWCF) and aim to promote Balkan wines in the region and the world.

Following the success of last year’s 10th Anniversary edition in Skopje (Northern Macedonia), the BIWC will begin its new decade on the beautiful island of Salamis. The purpose of the rotation of the most prestigious Balkan wine competition is the integration of wineries from all Balkan countries and their largest representation in the region and Europe.

The Balkans International Wine Competition is an event that brings together the world’s wine elite to see and taste the richness and diversity of Balkan wines. Producing 1.8 million tons of wine a year, the Balkans rank 5th in the world after such wine-producing countries as Italy, France, Spain and the United States.

“I’m so glad to execute the chairmanship for the new decade ahead of BIWC. The Competition proved itself as the most renowned and respectable Wine Competition in the region and the first assignment for me and the experienced BIWC team is to keep this reputation and upgrade it further,” – said the newly elected BWC Chairman Igor Lukovic from Serbia. “I would give my best to attract new winemakers from the neighbouring countries with the end goal to unite the whole Balkan wine producers and to make the reputation of the Balkan wines even bigger. Additionally, we’d like to expand the jury pool with even more relevant world wine judges, in order to make the Competition even more efficient. Good luck to the Balkan wines in the 11th BIWC 2022!”

The Mayor of Salamina, Giorgios Managopoulos, stressed that the municipality strongly supports such initiatives and welcomes the Balkans International Wine Competition as an opportunity to emphasize the island’s tourist identity.

“Special thanks to contributors and organisers who worked hard to render Salamina the best choice in order to be the Host city of such an important event,” said Giorgios Managopoulos.

The main mission of BIWCF is to promote Balkan wines and wine culture around the world. Honorary Chairman of the Competition is Konstantinos Lazarakis MW, he became the first holder of this title in Greece and the Balkans.

“The Balkan International Wine Competition coming to Greece! Feels like your favourite TV show comes to your city for shooting the next season! Deeply excited by welcoming the 11th edition of BIWC in Greece. It will be another amazing steppingstone in making Balkan Wines as famous as they deserve!” said Mr. Lazarakis.

Galina Niforou, BIWCF Managing Director, also emphasizes that making Balkan Wines even more recognizable and occupying an important place on the world wine list is a priority for the organizers.

“It is a great honor for us to have the possibility to carry out the 11^th edition of BIWC in historical island of Salamina. From the team of BIWC, I would like to thank to the Mayor of Salamina, Mr. Giorgos Panagopoulos for his warm welcome and his desire to host the Balkans International Wine Competition 2022!”

The Balkans International Wine Competition jury consists of five MW and world-renowned regional and regional wine experts.

The awards ceremony and gala dinner Balkan Wine Oscars will take place on June 3 at Ktima Filippikon Restaurant. The special Golden Dionysus Award will be presented by the mayor to the best Greek wine of 2022. Last year, the trophy in the nomination “Best Wine in the Balkans” went to Argyros winery (Santorini) for the Vinsanto Late Release 2001.

On June 4, after the competition, an exhibition will be held in the courtyard of the City Hall, to which business representatives, sommelier, distributors and winelovers from Greece and abroad are invited.

At the Balkans International Wine Competition, the Wine Travel Awards team will hold a tasting of the wines of our nominees and sponsors, as well as present wines of Ukraine. Condemning the atrocities of the aggressor in Ukraine and supporting Ukrainian winemakers, BIWC, like other international exhibitions and competitions, provides a number of preferences to participants from Ukraine.

We invite Ukrainian winemakers to take part in the Balkans International Wine Competition free of charge!

The 11th Balkans International Wine Competition will take place in Salamina from 1 to 3 June, and the Balkan Wine Festival will take place in Bulgaria from 16 to 18 June. Both events are united under the common name Balkans International Wine Competition and Festival (BIWCF) and aim to promote Balkan wines in the region and the world.

Bacardi, one of the world’s largest producers of alcoholic beverages, donates money to support humanitarian projects in Ukraine.

The Bacardi Limited group of companies, which owns more than 100 alcohol brands, has decided to provide $ 1 million in financial assistance to Ukraine at this difficult time for our country.

The funds donated to the Red Cross and the Mercy Corps will be used to purchase and deliver food, hygiene products, medicines and resuscitation equipment. In addition, the money will be used to organize first aid courses, as well as projects to help reunite war-torn families.

The group said in a statement: “Bacardi Limited’s priority is to ensure the safety and well-being of people, especially those directly affected by the ongoing war in Ukraine. We support the people of Ukraine with the resources and services needed in this time of emergency.”

In addition, Bacardi has joined a number of the world’s leading beverage producers who stopped selling in Russia after its armed aggression against Ukraine: the company suspended exports and froze advertising investment in the invading country.

Bacardi, one of the world’s largest producers of alcoholic beverages, donates money to support humanitarian projects in Ukraine.

The board of the Association de la Sommellerie (ASI) has announced initiatives to support Ukrainian refugees.

According to ASI President William Wouters “we are all concerned about the fate of our Ukrainian friends, their families and loved ones. The unprovoked war has forced the people of Ukraine to defend themselves against their Russian invaders. Many people have become homeless and millions, mostly women and children, have been forced to leave the country. ASI has prepared an initiative that we hope will help many Ukrainians find work in the hospitality, winery and wine retail sectors in Europe.”

As part of its commitment to support displaced Ukrainians, ASI will organize and promote a platform on their website which allows restaurateurs, vineyard owners, retailers, wine agencies and wine training and educational institutions from across Europe to post job offers exclusively for Ukrainian citizens. Every job offer will be verified by ASI and the job listings will be provided free to employers, wishing to take advantage of the program, for a 4-week period.

Wouters elaborates “the situation in Ukraine requires, first and foremost, financial support initiatives through authorised organizations which provide medicine, food clothing and organise aid for refugees. As such we (ASI) have asked our member associations and supporters to both promote the cause to its members but also to work with their partners to provide financial support for Ukraine. The association has identified proven, established organizations it feels can best provide immediate support.

Polish Humanitarian Action https://www.pah.org.pl/en/ukraine/
International Red Cross https://www.icrc.org
MSF https://www.msf.org

According to Wouters “we are already seeing our member associations rally behind this important cause, including hosting fund raising initiatives, and supporting Ukraine businesses via seminars and tastings highlighting Ukrainian beverage alcohol products.” To support its members ASI will be utilizing the strength of its social media to support efforts.

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The board of the Association de la Sommellerie (ASI) has announced initiatives to support Ukrainian refugees.

The Decanter World Wine Awards cancels applications from Russian wineries, and the Balkans International Wine Competition and Balkan Wine Festival give preferences to participants from Ukraine.

The organizers of the Decanter World Wine Awards have stated that after the recent military invasion of Ukraine, DWWA cancels applications from Russian wineries, their wines will not participate in the evaluation.

By supporting Ukrainian participants, DWWA exempts them from the mandatory financial levy. “And although winemakers around the world have much more in common than what separates them, we feel we need to stand up for ourselves now. DWWA organizers believe in peace as soon as possible and send best wishes to all victims.”

The organizers of the Balkans International Wine Competition and the Balkan Wine Festival, wine competitions that will take place on June 1-3 in Greece (Salamis) and June 16-18 in Bulgaria (Sofia), respectively, condemn the atrocities of the aggressor in Ukraine.

“We care about the people who are at the epicenter of this horror and express our support to them, we want Ukrainians to return to their normal lives and work again, laugh, love and live in peace,” said the organizers of the Balkans International Wine Competition and Balkan Wine Festival.

The organizers of both Balkan events emphasize that Ukraine has demonstrated the rapid and unique development of its wine industry and, supporting Ukrainian participants, will provide:

• opportunity to submit your samples free of charge at a competition in Greece;
• free stand for the Association of Winemakers of Ukraine “Wines of Ukraine” at the Balkan Wine Festiva;
• opportunity to organize a master class on Ukrainian wines during the festival in Sofia.

London Wine Fair, which decided to support the Wine Travel Awards and became the Official Exhibition Partner of the new format of the wine tourism award, announced that it is ready to provide an opportunity for Ukrainian wine producers to be presented free of charge at the event at a joint stand. Our winemakers only need to deliver their samples to London on their own.

“Our hearts are with Ukraine. We stand in solidarity with our information partner Drinks+ and the organizers of the Wine Travel Awards,” said LWF representatives.

Prepared by O. Bantysheva based on materials from decanter.com, facebook.com/galina.t.niforou

Photo: decanter.com, facebook.com/londonwinefair

The Decanter World Wine Awards cancels applications from Russian wineries, and the Balkans International Wine Competition and Balkan Wine Festival give preferences to participants from Ukraine.