OI VIETNAM 53
de la Sommellerie Internationale 1978. He
helmed the organization as president from
1996 to 2004.
But “it’s hard to learn if you don’t
have the wines, obviously,” Vacarrini
said. The wine consumption of Vietnam
pales in comparison to beer. A free trade
agreement between Chile and Vietnam
from 2011 resulted in an abundance of
Chilean wines in Vietnam, Forbes data
shows, the leading country of imported
wine. A free trade agreement, which will
gradually reduce tariffs on European
goods inbound to Vietnam, has recently
been ratified by both parties. Could
Italian wines claim a greater place?
The International Organization
of Vine and Wine data show that the
US is a leading consumer of Italian
wine, but a taste for the drink has also
emerged in other less obviously wine
wanting parts of the world, like Japan,
Vacarrini said. The country is today a
well respected home to an emerging
sommelier community. The country’s
wine consumption per capita increased
to 2.48L in 2016, a nearly 50 percent
increase from five years prior, according
to a report authored by Japanese
beverage conglomerate Kirin.
Asked what it would take to create
a similar phenomenon like that in
Vietnam, Vacarrini said particular
challenges stand in the way, namely
Vietnamese cuisine. Food and wine are
two actors that work in harmony, and
Vietnamese food—it’s preference for
sometimes aggressive, intense tastes
and the a la carte nature of the typical
meal—can sometimes be a difficult
dance partner for a wine typically served
with a Western-style meal. He said that
traveling played an important role in
the integration of wine in more places
in the world, both in inbound travelers
visiting from other parts of the world
and in outbound Vietnamese tourists
experiencing foreign food traditions.
Undoubtedly, some of the work
of engendering a taste for Italian
wine is about developing a technical
understanding and knowledge of the
fluid, a knowledge of regions, vintages,
etc. But for Vacarrini, a man who’s
spent his career living inside the world,
wine knowledge seemed to be about
something different than just knowing
the information. The sommelier's
explanation of wine centered on visceral
sensations and feelings, fuzzier things
than region or year.
Vacarrini said wine is part of a total
experience that also calls for high quality
food and service, and that the sommelier
is like an orchestra director. The wine is
an important part of the composition,
but a supporting actor nonetheless
in a broader, more visceral, felt thing.
“Everytime, the sommelier has to decide
an emotion, a new emotion for the
customer,” he said. Seen that way, Italian
wine’s some 500 different grape varieties
are like 500 different kinds of ways to
feel, and there are probably a few more
ways to feel than even that. THROUGHOUT THE 2010S,
three countries have been key to serving
the world’s wine: Spain, France and
Italy. Together, the three of them
represent well over half of the world’s
wine consumption by value and volume,
according to data from the International
Organization of Vine and Wine. Italy
occupies second place in both rankings.
Spain’s 21,000 hectolitres of wine
outsized Italy’s 19,700 hectolitres in
- Pricier French wines generated 9.3
million euros, eclipsing the Italian wines’
6.1 million euros, which tend to be sold
for around half the price of their French
competitors, according to European
Supermarket Magazine.
The French “have to fight Italy
sometimes, but they’re good cousins,” top
Italian sommelier Giuseppe Vacarrini
explained congenitally to a gathered
audience. The holder of the “1978 Best
Sommelier of the World A.S.I.” title
spoke at an appearance organized by
Italian consul Dante Brandi at the
diplomat’s home.
Italy’s presence at the top of these
rankings is surprising for a country with
a land area of about 300,000 square
kilometers, about 60 percent of the size
of both Spain and France. The country is
also home to nearly 500 different wine
varieties produced in the country. There
are some 50 different French grapes,
but France produces just 15 varieties
in quantities over 10,000 hectares.
Similarly, Spain has about 400 native
grape species, but only about 20 are used
for commercial production.
But there’s only so much wine one
can drink in a single life. Is more choice
really better? Or as Brandi put it, “Are
these an asset or a liability?” he asked
Vacarrini at the event. “An asset. I’ll
explain why,” Vacarrini responded. He
said some would describe the sheer
number of varieties as “crazy” compared
to peer wine-producing nations, but
he asserted that the wines make taste
statements about the regions from
which they hail. The experience of
each is distinct and understanding can
be taught, he said. “It’s not difficult to
learn. You have to memorize sensations,
aromas and taste.”
The sommelier said understanding
enhances joy. The pedagogy and puzzle are
part of the pleasure, he added. Vacarrini
was awarded best sommelier in a global
ranking by standard bearer the Association