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Soave puts spring in step with summer campaign

On offer to participants will be free resources such as POS and the incentive of a study trip to the Soave region, backed by a PR campaign and new website where outlets can sign up: summerofsoave.com.

Kicking off at the beginning of May, the activity comes at a time when Italian whites - still driven by the runaway success of Pinot Grigio - remain in significant growth, with Soave looking to tap into that thirst for fresh white styles from Italy, plus the growing trend for consumers to expand their repertoire.

There is much to play for, especially in the all-important trend-leading restaurant world. Liberty’s recently released Premium On-trade Report revealed that average bottle spend on whites is up 5%, with Italian whites up by 7% volume and 10% value, well ahead of New Zealand and Spain, the only two other major white wine categories not in decline at a more premium level of dining.

Madeleine Waters of The Co Company, the PR partner of Swirl Wine Group which is managing the project, believes that the timing is ideal to engage a new generation of both trade and consumers with this once well-recognised region.

“We started working with Soave in 2017, raising awareness, with more events and a press and trade trip in 2018,” said Waters, adding, “we really want to engage the trade with Soave and get them excited about the region, because it has a lot to offer.”

Unlike Pinot Grigio, which suffers from something of a split personality, with more serious and complex styles typically made and labelled as Pinot Gris, the name Soave offers a clear ladder to the consumer, ranging up from fresh, easy-drinking whites to more intense, minerally styles that can be world class wines.

As Guardian wine columnist Fiona Beckett put it: “Soave is back and it’s raised its game. The best Soave can taste like white Burgundy”.

• wine
• Italy
• UK market
• campaign
• Soave
• summer of Soave