ProWein 2022 – The Leading Wine Industry's Impressive Comeback

ProWein 2022 marked the leading trade fair for the wine industry’s impressive comeback. The edition was held as a live event amidst the absence of Covid-19 safety measures. It took place at Messe Düsseldorf within 13 exhibition halls. It featured an impressive 5,700 exhibitors from 62 countries. Over 38,000 visitors from 145 nations attended the event as well. The atmosphere of the edition was highly positive.

ProWein 2022 was held between the dates 15.05.2022 and 17.05.2022. The comeback edition took place at Messe Dusseldorf as a face-to-face trade fair. The venue did not have a strict Covid-19 safety plan in place. This is due to the removal of Germany’s domestic restrictions in April 2022. The lifting of such limitations was possible due to the improved epidemiologic situation. Such a change contributed significantly to the positive atmosphere of the event.

The event featured a diversified and intensive event schedule, including two new sub-events. Among the trade fair highlights were the Organic World, the Champagne Lounge, and the Urban Gastronomy by #asktoni. They furthermore included the Trend Tour Tastings, the Caravanning & wine, and the Trend Show “same but different”. A book presentation was also among the event's distinguishing features. The highlights reflected the central themes that, in turn, reflected the ongoing industry trends. These were sustainability, 0% alcohol content, hybrid drinks and innovative packaging.

The Organic World exhibition area, as mentioned, was among the trade fair's highlights. It presented various vintners and international associations such as Biodyvin and Bioland. The exhibiting vintners represented European countries like Italy, Greece, France, and Spain. This included many winemakers that premiered for the first time, such as A BISTO DE NAS SARL and A.E. TZIVANI BIO WINES S.A.

The Champagne Lounge was likewise a highlight within ProWein’s support programme. It was an exhibition area that presented a total of 150 exhibitors. The selections ranged from traditional champagne to biodynamic variants. The exhibiting companies also included suppliers for the HoReCa and retail industries. Specialist wine merchants also participated in the Champagne Lounge. Among the leading exhibitors of the Lounge were:

• Taittinger
• Pierre Mignon
• Pierre Brocard
• Aspasie
• Champagne Ayala
• Collard Picard
• Alexandre Bonnet
• Deutz
• Heidsieck

The area also premiered many new additions, such as:

• Barton & Guestier SAS
• Champagne Boizel SA
• Champagne Guy Charbaut SARL
• Château de Parenchère SAS
• Château Petit Val
• FSP SAS
• JCP Maltus / Château Teyssier SCE

The Champagne Lounge was presented in Hall 9.

The Urban Gastronomy by #asktoni was a novel sub-event that premiered in Hall 4. It was a networking micro-event that targeted the hospitality sector. It featured as its speakers Toni Askitis, a leading gastronome, sommelier, and influencer. The premiere Urban Gastronomy consisted of daily workshops with tastings. These were oriented towards the different knowledge levels of hospitality staff. The schedule included the sessions:

• "How to ProWein"
• Gastro Workshop for advanced
• "Music in a glass" with winemaker interview
• Gastro workshop for professionals
• Open Wine.Bar at the #asktoni stand

The Trend Hour Tastings were among the leading sub-events. It took place on 15.05.2022 and 16.05.2022 in Hall 1 and featured the event’s trend scouts. Stuart Pigott and Paula Sidore were the two speakers who discussed leading topics such as vineyard climate change adaptions. Each speaker presented wines and spirits that reflected the key themes, such as Meininger Verlag’s selection. This allowed participants to learn about wares and trends that can aid them in adapting to the industry’s latest needs.

Among the new sub-events to debut was the Caravan Salon Düsseldorf/Caravanning & Wine. It occurred in Hall 1 and was held as the result of cooperation. The cooperation was between Caravan Salon Dusseldorf, Caravaning Industrie Verband and ProWein. The importance of wine tourism inspired the sub-event’s concept. Additionally, wine tourism has registered an increased demand. Complementing the sub-event was the attendance of “roadsurfer sports”. This is the leading individual motorhome pitch booking platform. The sub-event enabled the participants to learn about setting up/expanding motorhome parks. According to organisers, the sub-event was quite successful. For instance, Michael Degen has stated that they were delighted to combine two contrary themes.

The Trend Show “same but different” was also among the highlights of ProWein 2022. The sub-event is among the central exhibition areas and took place in Hall 7.0. It was a Show dedicated to trending craft beverages such as spirits, beers, and ciders. The Trend Show featured three subsections: Craft Spirits, Craft Beers, and Craft Ciders. Craft Spirits was the largest of the three sub-areas, as it featured approximately 106 exhibitors. Among the trends represented at the Trend Show were zero or low-alcohol content and sustainability.

Several exhibitors served as the highlights of the Trend Show. One of them was Siegfried Rheinland Dry Gin and their Siegfried Wonderoak. The product is a non-alcoholic distillate with high mixability that enables combinations with aged spirits. One of the leading exhibitors was Dr Jaglas GmbH. They presented the Hibiscus Aperitif, an alcohol-free alternative to the Spritz. This allows it to be consumed in combination with tonic, soda, and non-alcoholic sparkling wine. Alfred Schladerer GmbH likewise acted as a highlight of the Trend Show. They presented their zero-alcohol herb-based apéritif with ripe raspberry refinement, “Vincent”. The product has a bittersweet taste of natural herbal extracts refined with ripe raspberries. HEIMAT Distillers also presented a highlighted product. This was the vogelfrei SUGAR CANE that recreates to perfect the taste of rum yet does not contain alcohol. The product is created using sugar cane molasses as the base and limousine oak and chilli macerates for the spiciness and wood flavours. High-quality agave syrup aids in providing natural sweetness to the vogelfrei. This allows the beverage to be used for alcohol-free Dark and Stormy or classic Rum Cola.

Another distinguished exhibitor was Berlin Distillery and its Urban Garden Gin. It is a sustainable gin that features floral and herbal aromas with fresh sea wormwood as its central ingredient. The plant is grown in Berlin Distillery’s roof garden. The wormwood is harvested at the end of September when it is in bloom. It is immediately distilled into a 40 l still located two levels below the garden. The destillate is blended with a distillate created from organic juniper. The juniper has been harvested from Northern Bosnia. The combination also contains a distillate from fresh lemons that have been collected on an organic farm in Mallorca. It also is blended with a small amount of lavender distillate. The Urban Garden Gin is suitable for neat consumption, combined with dry tonic water and gin cocktails.

One of the notable sub-events was the Press Talk: book presentation by Fair and Green eV. It presented the book “Holistic Sustainability in the Wine Business”. The book overviews viticulture’s current state of sustainability. It also provides an outlook on further developments. Various recognised practitioners and proven experts aided in the anthology's creation. The readers will be able to gain insights into sustainability’s different areas. Such include its economic, ecological and social aspects. The presentation took place at Stand A60 in Hall 4 on 15.05.2022.

ProWein marked the successful comeback of the leading wine industry trade fair. It featured 5,700 exhibitors from 62 exhibitor countries. It also received over 38,000 trade visitors from 145 nations, representing six continents. These were Europe, the two Americas, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Many attendees represented the specialist retail, import/export and HoReCa industries. For instance, according to the statistics, 28% of the visitors were from the specialist retail sector. Ten per cent of them were importers/exporters. Seventeen per cent were restaurant, cafe or bar management. Participants were quite satisfied with their attendance. The exhibitors, in particular, praised the opportunity to complete many business deals.