2 de 4 WHITE & ROSADO EVENT MALAGA
AJ Linn
Recent press reports indicate that about 15% of world air traffic consists of business and professional people travelling to and from conferences and congresses. Clearly any opportunity to get out of the office and eat at good restaurants and stay at top hotels without charge is a welcome escape.
When video-conferencing was introduced the airlines were the first to start worrying. These travellers usually pay full fare and do not look for cheap flights. But the airlines need not have been concerned and the business goes on as before, although with less Business Class travel than previously. Why is it so difficult to stop people travelling to conferences with their boring Power Point presentations and dreary speakers? Quite simply because it is usually the only chance they get to meet colleagues from other countries and other companies personally. What goes on at official level is of secondary importance. The networking and late-night drinking sessions are the stuff congresses are made of.
Wine fairs, of course, are the most unsuitable candidates of all for video conferencing, as was clearly demonstrated this week at the First White & Rosado Show in Málaga. Held at the impressive Pórtico de Velázquez restaurant centre, exhibitors from all over Spain strutted their stuff with some really remarkable offerings. Odd thing is that ten years ago Spain was known as a land of tinto-drinkers, and it was even less than macho to order anything else. Now, mainly due to the impressive quality of the outstanding selection of white wines available on the market today, and rosados, Spain, like France has increased its consumption of both by 10% in the last few years. In fact in France, while wine drinking is less popular by the year, rosados go from strength to strength.
There were several competitive tasting events for the purpose of classifying some of the wonderful whites from Somontano, Rías Baíxas, Rioja (surprisingly), and of course Navarra, that made this event truly notable, and undoubtedly the second edition will be even better. Many thanks to Enrique Bellver and his team for organising such a notable event.
