Exporting the King of Wines w/ Valentina Abbona, Marchesi di Barolo

Growing up in a small town of ~700 people made Valentina Abbona, 6th generation vintner and Export and Marketing Manager for her family’s winery, Marchesi di Barolo, want to explore the world.  Stints in the US, India, and China ultimately led her back to the family business and managing wine exports.  Valentina talks about the history of Barolo exports, including becoming “The King of wine, wine of Kings,” how she approaches new markets, and the differences between markets around the world.  Explore the world through the lens of Barolo in this episode of XChateau! Detailed Show Notes: Marchesi di Barolo backgroundFounded by the last Marquis di Barolo Carlo Tancredi Falletti and French Noblewoman Giulia Colbert di MaulevrierThomas Jefferson noted that the juice from the Barolo area had potential (which was not the same as the current dry wine)The Marchesa Giulia built the cellars based on the potential of the Nebbiolo grape underground in the 1800s to create a still wineMarchesi di Barolo, and subsequently Barolo, became the “King of wine, wine of Kings”Abbona family bought the estate in 1929 (Valentina’s great grandfather)Valentina’s backgroundShe grew up in the town of Barolo (~700 people)Traveled and explored the world before coming back to the wine industryAfter 1 year in China with a consulting company, she missed the winery and wine industry and came back to work with the familyBarolo export historyBarolo was part of the Kingdom of Savoy - the King of Savoy in Turin requested wine from Marchesa Giulia, who sent 325 barrels to the King’s Court - 1 for every day of the year except the 40 days of LentTraveled to royal courts around EuropeThere is correspondence from the 1930s showing the wine went as far as Kabul and JavaExportation of wine55% of wine exported, 45% sold in ItalyVery proud that Italy is the largest market for the wineThe entire portfolio is sold in ItalyExport to >60 countriesA selection of wines are sold to various marketsTop export markets - US, Germany, Norway, DenmarkThe US has more “geeky” wine knowledgeAsia is an emerging market - India (a historical market for Marchesi), China, Thailand, JapanHigh growth was seen in Southeast Asia (Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam) - especially for the different single-vineyard wines (which is a similar trend for Barolo in general)The general trend for demand shifting to higher-end, single-vineyard bottlings vs. general Barolo (even in markets like Germany that historically bought more “classic” wines at the low - medium price points)Expanding to new marketsStrategy based on the size of the market and knowledge of the wine consumerE.g., Uzbekistan is a new market - “easy” as buyer contacted Marchesi Bigger markets, which have more diverse consumer bases - often need more education and background knowledge before market launchItaly tends to do things solo vs. as a group, though the local Consorzio is starting to promote the territory moreStrategy for larger marketsCanada - each province has a different partner, particularly with the nuances of the local government monopoliesUS - one importer with local distributors for the different states; need to have a lot of regional meetings with people in each areaItaly has >100 agents for different marketsTrade Fairs (e.g., VinItaly, Vinexpo, Prowein)Give an opportunity to change people’s opinionsCan have a view of what’s happening globally in 1 day“Vital for our business”VinItaly is different because of its Italy focus - also a place to bring the wineries of the country together and connectIndiaSold mainly through hotelsEvery region has its own dynamics and own taxesAverage knowledge of sommeliers is very highChinaThey had no exposure to wine on a daily basis when Valentina lived there (2011)Living there helped her understand consumer choices and preferences but did not lead to contacts for market entryDiscovered wine clubs, where there are people with great knowledge of wineBarolo/Barbaresco wines are more challenging to the Chinese palate as they don’t have fruit/sweetness that Chinese palates likeIn-person vs. technology for selling wineVisiting in person is key to building and establishing relationshipsTechnology can help maintain them Tool to help importers ell wine“Have to have a glass of wine in hand” - makes the experience as concrete as possibleSometimes brings soil samples, maps (“very useful”), video, and pictures - allow people to imagine being there and have more conversationsFor business meetings - video calls work wellPreference for a combination of in-person and virtual toolsWine Allocations - some single vineyard and Barolo di Barolo may run out, trying to do more scheduling and programming of allocations by countryWomen in the wine industry - “always be yourself, don’t be scared of that”The future for Marchesi di Barolo - recently purchased Cascina Bruchiata in the Rio Sordo area of Barbaresco Get access to library episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.