IIWFI PRESS ROOM

 

ANNUAL GALA ITALIA 2008
IN A NEW EXCITING FORMAT

New York City--The 23rd edition of Gala Italia 2008, the most important New York-based Italian wine and food event of the year,  has been completely  revamped and improved,  according to a recent announcement by Lucio Caputo, president of the Italian Wine and Food Institute.

    Caputo stated that after 22 years of great success, the scope of the event has been widened and adapted to new market and trade demands. “It will be a more comprehensive show, including additional aspects of the “Made in Italy” theme, with products reflecting suggestions made by trade operators. And it will present more wines, foods and  restaurants, all against a backdrop of fashion, art and some emblematic Italian industrial products, from the ubiquitous motor scooter to the quintessential Italian designer sports car.

    The exciting new features of Gala Italia 2008, scheduled  for February 21, 2008, at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square, New York City, will include a major role for premium Italian wine and food products presented within the framework of outstanding  “Made in Italy”  products: fashion, art and gastronomy.

    Caputo also announced that starting with the Gala Italia 2008, an American jury will each year award a Gold Medal to best wine presented by each participating winery. The medal, created for this special occasion by artist Renato Cipullo, will highlight the names of the selected wines.
    In addition, all participating wineries will receive a certificate of merit identifying them as the group of “Special Selections of the Top Italian Companies.” This should further enhance the level of participating wineries and encourage them to present their best wines to the more than 3,000 operators, industry professionals and wine press from the Northeast who attend this most important US wine show.
    Two sit-down guided technical wine seminars, reserved exclusively for wine media, will precede the traditional wine and food tasting.  The first seminar is dedicated to SuperTuscan wines with the theme, Super-Tuscan: Sangiovese and  Cabernet? The second is dedicated to Great Italian Wines of the 2003 Vintage and will feature the most qualified wines among the Italian producers.
    A special luncheon for the press, created by an Italian chef, will be served between the seminars. During the luncheon, the Gold Medal winners will be announced and presented by a well-known Italian personality.

    Gala Italia 2008 will also feature participation by Italian restaurants and leading Italian food producers, all to heighten awareness of the healthy advantages of Eating Italian and the array of genuine Italian products available in the U.S.

    And in another innovation, Gala Italia 2008 will offer a Fashion Show of a spring/summer collection by a well-known Italian designer. The collection will presented by models on platforms in the Grand Broadway Ballroom and will feature fashions for men and women, together with accessories and jewelry.
    Another special attraction will be an exhibition, Leonardo e il Divino Licore dell’Uva (the Divine Grape Juice), which will communicate, through a series of artifacts, how Leonardo da Vinci may be considered a preeminent wine expert of the 16th century. The exhibition, by La Fucina di Leonardo, will be on view on the large balcony above the Broadway Ballroom.

    To top off the novelties for the new Gala Italia 2008, there will be a dazzling display of Ferrari and Maserati, the ultimate driving machines, along with the iconic Italian Vespa Motorscooter, attractions that will add to the aura and luster of Italy's most celebrated exports.
    Gala Italia 2008 is organized by the New York-based Italian Wine & Food Institute, under the high patronage of the Italian Ambassador to the United States in Washington, D.C.

 

NEW RECORD FOR ITALIAN WINE EXPORTS TO THE U.S.

NEW YORK, JANUARY 2007—Italy, Europe’s largest exporter of wines to the U.S., reached a new milestone in 2006 with its wines sales exceeding $1 billion dollars in value and 2 million hectoliters in quantity, it was announced by Lucio Caputo, president of the Italian Wine & Food Institute. The achievement was celebrated at a January news conference and reception at the Italian Wine & Food Institute’s headquarters here with a toast to the future success of Italian wine and the unveiling of a commemorative plate to mark the new record.

    At the ceremony, Lucio Caputo recalled how in 1975, when he launched the first promotional campaign for Italian wines in the U.S., Italy exported only 360,000 hectoliters, an amount valued at less than $40 million.

    For seven years, Italian wines were vigorously promoted across the country with spectacular results: Italy passed France as the leading wine exporter to the U.S., and in 1983 Italian wines exports reached 2.4 million hectoliters with a value of $243 million. Put another way, the increases represented, respectively, 563% and 582% increases in quantity and value. The success of Italian wine has continued over the years in both value and volume.

    Caputo pointed out that with a 32.4 share of the imported market in value and 30.7% of the imported wine in value, Italy enjoys the preeminent position in the American market. With 2006 exports of more than $1 billion in value and 2.1 million hectoliters, Italy’s exports are now more than double those of France, four times more than Chile and seven times more than Spain.

    Caputo also underscored the huge changes in the American market in recent years, both in its standard of living, the popularity of Italian cuisine and the greater variety of Italian wines now available on the market. The ratio in quality/price offered by Italian wines are far greater than any one its competing wine-producing countries.

    Caputo noted with pride the role played by the Italian Wine & Food Institute in promoting the quality of Italian wines through its regular series of events here, notably the Italian Wine & Food Gala that for the past 22 years has been Italy’s leading promotional event in the United States, both in New York and on the West Coast.

 

INSTITUTE HOSTING ITALIAN WINE AND FOOD EVENTS

IN NEW YORK, LOS ANGELES, BERLIN AND PRAGUE

NEW YORK, MARCH 2007--The Italian Wine and Food Institute is once again hosting wine events in 2007 both in the U.S. and abroad. The events include the annual New York Super Tuscan & Other Great Wines of Tuscany and the Italian Wine & Food Gala, the Angeles Italian Wine Gala and Italian Wine & Food Galas in Berlin and Prague.

    More than 8,000 wine professionals and press are expected to attend the four events, which are a unique opportunity to taste and to discuss Italy’s premium wines with the producers.

    The Supertuscan & the Other Great Wines of Tuscany will be held Feb. 19, 2007, at the Marriott Marquis in New York, will include a seminar for the press on some of the best wines from Tuscany, with special emphasis on the Super Tuscan wine.

    A press luncheon, featuring wines selected by the producers to accompany a special menu, will follow the seminar. Afterward, a trade wine tasting, featuring more than 300 Tuscan wines, will be open to press, restaurateurs and wine professionals.

    The Italian Wine & Food Gala, to be held Feb. 21, at the New York Marriott Marquis, will feature a six-hour tasting for press, restaurateurs and the trade, offering a panoramic view of Italy’s diverse wine regions. Over 400 premium wines will be poured by producers from more than 30 wineries throughout Italy.

    The Los Angeles Italian Wine Gala will be held Feb. 25, 2007 at the renowned Valentino Restaurant in Santa Monica.

    All these important events will see the participation of the most qualified Italian wineries along with their owners who will travel to U.S. specially for the occasion.

    All four events will also feature a large array of Italian gourmet specialities by top restaurateurs and prestigious food companies, all selected to complement the extensive variety of Italian wines.

    The wine tastings are organized by the Italian Wine and Food Institute under the patronage of the Italian Ambassador to the U.S.

    For information or invitations, visit the Institute's online registration page.

    The Italian Wine & Food Institute, headquartered on 42nd Street in New York, is a non-profit organization, founded in 1983 for the enhancement of the image and prestige of Italian wines, gastronomy and food products in the USA.