By Sunday Oyinloye
The Embassy of Italy in Nigeria says the country is committed to the promotion of quality wines in Nigeria even as it commends a Nigerian in diaspora, and Chief Executive Officer of Vines By Rosa, Mrs. Chinedu Rita Rosa for her efforts in creating interface between wine producers and direct consumers, and promotion of wine culture in the country.
Speaking at the ‘Meet the Wine Producers’ in Abuja yesterday, the Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Italy in Nigeria, Iacopo Foti said ”Italy and Wine are two words that go hand in hand”
According to him, Italy is world’s largest wine producer stressing that the country has the widest variety of indigenous grapevine than any other country in the globe.
In his words: ”According to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine, Italy has been the largest wine producer for 9 of the past 10 years with an annual production of roughly five billion liters.
“Wine is embedded in the Italian culture and strongly brands the Italian way of life as it is cultivated and consumed in every region of Italy; Italians are masters in producing high quality wine”
Iacopo who described Nigeria as the heartbeat of Africa commended Chinedu Rita Rosa , Mauro Bricolo of Centoteree and Roberto Cardinale of FINA “ for the tremendous amount of work done in preparing for the event”
In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer of Vines By Rosa, Mrs. Chinedu Rita Rosa explained that her company was established to fill the void of communication between wine producers and direct consumers creating a lasting partnership based on mutual respect and understanding.
Rosa who is also the co-founder of Bordeaux Mentor Week that advocates for equity and recognition of people of colour in the wine industry said the event was organised to promote good wine culture in Nigeria and as part of her contributions to the economic development of the country.
She said: “Nigeria is my country and i have a burning passion for her development and to add to our knowledge of wine. The best way to do that is to come and show people how easy it can be to understand things that we think is for a certain group of people. Wine drinking and tasting is for everybody, no matter your social class.
“Learning about a thing like this is not rocket science and buying of wine is not something out of this world because we have wine that its price is as low as one Euro. This event is to make Nigerian consumers to meet Italian wine producers and also for wine tasting. We did it in Lagos before coming to Abuja. We also had training sessions for some Nigerians here in Abuja, all in a bid to have a sound wine culture and also contribute to the nation’s productivity and economic development.
At the wine tasting session, Chinedu Rita Rosa, Mauro Bricolo ,and Roberto Cardinale educated the guests which include former Nigerian Minister of Finance, Senator Nenadi Esther Usman, Managing Director of Waymart, Abuja, Uche Waymaker and others on different brand of wines and tastes.
