Tirana hosts first Balkan Wine Expo

TIRANA, June 25 – More than 100 regional and European companies promoted their wines in the first Balkan Wine Expo held in Tirana from June 24 to 25. Wineries from Italy, France, Greece, Croatia, Macedonia, Albania and Kosovo participated in the first and the only event dedicated to the wine market towards the professionals (importers, distributors, restaurants and catering, wine shops, retail chains, opinion leaders and media) in the Balkans.
Visiting the fair at the Palace of Congresses, Prime Minister Sali Berisha guaranteed Albanian wine producers government will do everything to support the increase of wine production and quality. “Government will do anything to identify the best wines and finance their spread so that Albanians decently compete in the regional wine market and beyond,” said Berisha, adding that domestic wine making had grown by four to five times in the past few years.
Balkan Wine Expo was the meeting point for Italian, French, Greek and Croatians, who presented their best production of wine in a context of absolute exclusivity.
In the Balkans the cultivation and wine production is highly fragmented, there are many small farmers who sell their grapes to wine producers, organizers said. The overall quality is low-level because of the different grapes coming from different vineyards, while there is a growing demand for good wine quality: that’s why there is a strong focus on Italian production in the first place.
The performance of the wine market in Albania in 2010 recorded in terms of value of wine imported, lek 6.6 billion, with an increase of 16% compared to the year 2009. In Albania, Italy has the highest proportion of imports (with 77%), followed by France, Montenegro (respectively 6%), Macedonia, Spain (with 4%), Greece (2%).
The wine exported from Albania to the Balkan countries is oriented mainly towards Kosovo, Macedonia and Bosnia.
The Albanian government is investing to bridge the technological gap existing, encouraging farmers to plant new vineyards with $ 5,000 per ha, this will become the new frontier of the wine market, in itself, and also to open up to the immense Russian basin, reducing costs of customs charges through Serbia.