Last week saw the official kickoff of a new and revolutionary campaign to build the Greek wine category in China. Nimbility, in partnership with Tselepos Wines, and with the backing of the Greek Government and the EU, hosted a stunning Gala event - ‘Glorious Greece – A Lifestyle Odyssey’- at the spiritual home for Greek culture and lifestyle, the esteemed Hellas House in the Old French Concession district in the heart of Shanghai.
The event charted a journey through Greece’s history, culture and hospitality, featuring the opportunity to discover Greece’s historic wine regions and their noble, indigenous grape varieties – PGI Arkadia and PDO Mantinia for the Moschofilero grape and PDO Nemea for Greece’s most noble red variety Agiorgitiko.
Bringing these regions and grapes into the global wine industry limelight has been the lifelong mission of one man, one of Greece’s most esteemed winemakers, Yannis Tselepos. Through his two estates – Ktima Tselepos in Arkadia and Ktima Driopi in Nemea - Tselepos is raising the quality of Greek wines to new levels and highlighting the undeniable fact that these wines deserve to be alongside their global peers among the best wines in the world.
As Plato said, ‘Nothing more excellent or valuable than wine was ever granted by the gods to man,’ and as such, guests at the Gala, dressed up in white, were led through the beautiful rooms and garden of Hellas House, glass in hand, experiencing Tselepos wines paired with dishes inspired by the diversity and exceptional quality of Greek cuisine.
Pavlos Kontomichalos, founder and CEO of Hellas Group, first addressed the 200 strong crowd to express his gratitude to everyone for coming and taking part in what was a first for Greek wine in China. He went on to say that Greece is a country filled with treasures just waiting for people to unearth and that Hellas House is the place in China where that discovery can begin to take place. “It is the mission of Hellas House and this campaign to increase the awareness of the excellent quality of Greek wines amongst Chinese consumers,” he said. He emphasized that Greek wines could be a propelling power to push the Chinese wine market to be more diverse, more multi-faceted and more quality oriented and as such, Hellas House has a big responsibility on its shoulders to showcase the very best that Greece has to offer.
Sophia Kontomichalou, Co-Founder and President of Hellas Group mentioned that the history of Greek wines can be traced back to 6,000 years ago. Wine is inseparably intertwined with the Greece’s ancient civilization and is one of the factors of a healthy and joyful lifestyle in Greek culture. Dionysus, the god of wine created the wine civilization, and Greece, was in fact one of the earliest countries to develop winemaking technology. Until now, Greek wines have been a ‘lost treasure’ and part of Hellas House’s mission is to shine a bright light on the exceptional quality and diversity that Greek wines have to offer.
Vassilis Koniakos, the Consul General of Greece in China, also spoke to the long history of Greece and the fact that although Chinese consumers may know about Greece’s rich mythology, they may be less aware of Greek wines, their quality and diversity. This campaign, with Hellas House and Tselepos Wines as cornerstones of the effort, would be aiming to change that and to elevate Greek wines and the unique and distinctive stories of Greece to a new level not seen in China, or indeed the world.
Although the Greek wine industry had setbacks in the 1960s and 1970’s, since the 1980s Greek wine has been modernizing and innovating, pushing to the forefront of quality production, exemplified by the extraordinarily high scores and accolades that Greek wines, such as Tselepos’s Nemea Ktima Driopi Reserve 2017, have recently won at internationally renowned competitions such as the Decanter World Wine Awards 2021.
Ian Ford, Founding Partner of Nimbility, and Nichole Mao, Partner and Director of Sales and Marketing North Asia at Nimbility, delved into more depth about the historic regions of Greece being featured in the campaign and their indigenous varieties, namely PGI Arkadia and PDO Mantinia for the aromatic ‘Chameleon’ white grape Moschofilero, nicknamed as such because of its pinkish hue, and PDO Nemea and the famed Agiorgitiko or ‘blood of Hercules’ as it is also known.
Ford pointed out that Greek wines are unique in the wine world because of their link to such ancient history and mythological origin. According to legend, Hercules drank a glass of Agiorgitiko wine to give him the strength he required to confront the lion of Nemea which he finally managed to defeat in an epic battle. The mythological stories that surround Greek wine are powerful and fascinating and bring a unique element when enjoying a glass of Greek wine as people are immediately immersed in the rich history of Greece. Hellas House has created a unique haven where these stories can be brought to life and resonate in people’s hearts, creating a bond and a bridge to promote Greek wines that will push the forward momentum of the Greek wine category in China.
Guests stayed drinking and discussing Greece in all its glory until late, with many commenting that the event had opened their eyes to the stunning quality of Greek wines, their diversity and charm.
For more information about Tselepos Wines in China and the ‘Glorious Greece – A Lifestyle Odyssey’ campaign in China, please contact info@nimbilityasia.com