The Spanish-only wine show concluded at Ciudad Real last week with a performance that few others  can match. The fourth edition of the bi-annual show is perhaps the only one of its kind in the world for international buyers and is sky-rocketing towards unprecedented heights in a short span..

The 70,175 business contacts reported made this time were more than three times  those of 2005 at 21369 . These were in turn, more than 10000 developed in the second edition of 2001.

The figures are in line with the growth in the number of exhibitors. With 300 participating in the inaugural edition in 2001, this year's number was about 1000, with about 200 still waiting in the wings to participate. Despite the number of pavilions increased to 7 from 6 in the previous edition, all the wineries could not be accommodated. due to space considerations. 

'We do not want to compete with any other wine shows. We want to improve the performance of our Spanish wine sector and we are very satisfied,' said Nemesio de Lara, President of Fenavin, at the concluding ceremony on May 10th.'It is only human to compare with other shows, but they should not forget that it is actually good for wine to have more of these shows.'

'I am happy that the name of our Capital ( Ciudad Real ) of the province (Castilla la Mancha) has been shown in the best light at this Fair,' he added. According to sources, the wineries of the province are heavily subsidised for participating in the Show. The region is the biggest in the world in terms of acreage and is suffering the most due to surplus inventories.

The Wine Gallery opened for professionals daily for four hours was the highlight at the Fair. 941 wine labels from 375 bodegas were enough to keep you busy tasting for a month. The specific tasting of wines helped you decide before meeting your business contacts. Comprehensive information on each wine including the grapes, alcohol level, price and the location of the wineries in the Show was really superb. With a tasting glass and the tasting note book could keep you enthralled with nothing between you and your wine glass. No wonder, 8000 professionals made use of this Gallery.

Some exhibitors were not too happy about this arrangement though. They felt that tasting one-to-one brought them closer to the client and made it more enjoyable. They had a point, but tasting in privacy has its own merit. Most of the Indian importers made a judicious use of this facility.

The show had more than its fair share of the parallel activities – a usual feature of such shows. But what was attractive was some unusual topics for the 47 Activities that took place.

Many were typical, of course, like The Wine Market in Japan , Globalisation in the World of Wine, The Wine Market in China , The Indian Paradox, Andalucian wines and Tapas and The Vineyard in Castilla La-Mancha.

What seemed like unique or interesting were topics like Wine and Women, Wine and Sports, Different Strokes for Different Folks, The Soul of Wine, a matter of Noses.

That the Show was extremely well organised was not denied by any exhibitor, importer or visitor. The Business Center which brings in the importers and gets them in touch with the producers was well staffed with English speaking and charming hostesses, on the right side of thirties, ever willing to help the international delegated. The courtesy extended at least till Madrid , 188 kms, and 50 minutes away to the North by AVE-their fast train.

The 1157 importers were almost 3 times the 400-or so that were invited the previous time. The 58,459 visitors were about 22,000 more than the previous editions.

The statistics do not reflect the absence of many of the known biggies who prefer to be at the biannually held Vinexpo next month  (17-21 June in Bordeaux ). Their logic, apparently is that the international and domestic buyers all are at the Show and they might not come only for the Spanish wines which this show showcases exclusively.

For instance, Torres, the only global brand from Europe, which has a strong presence in Vinexpo, Alimentaria in Barcelona and even in Vinoelite in Valencia (as a member of the participating PFV) was conspicuous by its absence at the Fair.