A delegation of Macedonian winery representatives, wine experts and a representative of the Ministry of Agriculture attended a study tour in Tuscany, Italy from 14 to 18 April 2013. The study tour, supported by FAO and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), was an opportunity for the Macedonians to exchange information and learn from Italy’s long history of Geographical Indications (GIs) in the wine sector. The study tour was developed in the context of a FAO/EBRD project aiming to add value to wine, Macedonia’s second largest export.

Macedonia: Technical Assistance to the Wine Sector

The study tour commenced with a seminar at FAO Headquarters in Rome, where in-house experts and representatives of the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, Italian Union of Wine, and Italian Trade Commission shared experiences and information with the group.

The first GI Association visited was the Consorzio del Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. The Consorzio was founded in 1965 and comprises 230 members representing 90 percent of the local vineyards. The Consorzio’s activities, membership structure, marketing techniques and methods of control were discussed. The Macedonian delegation was able to understand specific aspects of the Consorzio’s role that can be applied to the Macedonian GI Association Vardar River Valley.

The following day the group went to Bindella Winery, which is one of the members of the Consorzio del Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. The winery shared information about its relationship with the Consorzio, benefits and limitations, membership fees and its experience as a primarily organic winery.

The next visit was to Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino. The Director of the Consorzio presented the territory, the specificities of membership in the Consorzio, and its relationship with its members. It began in 1967 and covers three protected GIs, or Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) in Italy, and one protected designation of origin (PDO), or Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita, which has stricter standards of quality and production practices.

In Chianti, Terreno Winery hosted a working dinner where its oenologist shared his thoughts on winemaking and wine production within a controlled GI system with an emphasis on the benefits and limitations of the GI requirements and controls.

The last GI Association visited was the Chianti Classico Consorzio, which has more than 600 members representing 95 percent of the region. The Consorzio provides services for promotion, through marketing and valorization, and for protection, through laboratory services and legal support.

The final institutional meeting was with Valoritalia, a control body that was founded in 2009 and controls more than 70 percent of Italian wine that has protected designations, or GIs. This meeting was of particular interest as no control body currently exists in Macedonia to monitor and certify the new GI.

The last winery visited was Vignamaggio, an estate in Greve in Chianti that produces DOC and DOCG wine and high-quality olive oil. The winery also has a successful agritourism business with a restaurant, winery tours and guest lodging, which was useful for the Macedonians to see as they develop a marketing plan around their GI.

A final wrap-up meeting was conducted in the open Tuscan air to recap the study tour and define next steps including the development of a GI Association marketing plan and logo, the selection of a control body and the organization of a final project workshop to be held in Skopje.

The study tour was an important and timely activity for the group to obtain specific information and learn from the extensive experience of Italian wineries and consorzi. They will now be able to apply what they learned in the development of their new GI association and the promotion and protection of the GI Vardar River Valley.