Vinexpo — the trade show of the wine and spirits industry held biannually in Bordeaux and biannually in Hong Kong — has just completed its 2009 edition. This year was again Bordeaux’s turn to host the event. The take-home lesson for those who attended was that the sheer momentum of the established benchmarks would probably sustain them through the downturn. It also confirmed the role of the Far East as the new market maker.

Most of the serious players had limited expectations because of la crise. By and large, they seem to have left surprised and gratified by what was achieved. While trade attendance was down, those who made the effort to pitch up were suitably focused. The result seems to have been less time-wasting and waffle, more give from the sellers, more compromise from the buyers. Budgets which hitherto never existed have suddenly been accessed. The Darwinian theory about the value of lean times was written all over the halls at Bordeaux-Lac.

The Chateaux — who always use the week of Vinexpo to remind the rest of the world that they are the longest-established players in the fine wine game — spared no expense. True, they have enjoyed an extraordinary run and very few are feeling the pinch at this stage. The dinners were more splendid than usual, the ancient treasures so rare they harked back to an era when old wines were still affordable. Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1988 was served to a banquet of over 1500 people at the Fete de la Fleurs, the traditional party which marks the end of the week of excess and indulgence.

SA has never really been a player in this game. The stands at Vinexpo are largely unaffordable for unsubsidised producers who work in fragile currencies. The bigger European houses claim that their space rental and accommodation costs for the week exceed R1m.

A history of equivocation about the show has had an effect on how South African producers are accommodated by the exhibition organisers. The few who do book are generally consigned to satellite spaces separated by the kilometre-long main hall. In the past it has also been these distant provinces which have suffered most when services fail. A few years ago the air- conditioning broke down. Temperatures around 35º Celsius are not conducive to a successful wine selling environment.

The South Africans who made the trip were either the multinational players or those who are dependent on international supermarket listings and whose brands are unknown to domestic consumers. Labels with lions, leopards and zebras abounded, leaving the casual visitor with an altogether erroneous idea about the current state of the South African wine market.

However, the value of strong balance sheets and worldwide partnerships was evident in the rest of the South African effort. Distell was there with its much improved local wine ranges, as well as its liqueur and spirits brands. So were the fine wine players, which have foreign shareholders. Glen Carlou (Hess Collection), Waterkloof/Circumstance (Paul Boutinot) and Glenelly (May-Eliane de Lencquesaing/Champagne Louis Roederer) represented this increasingly important segment of the Cape wine business. If SA is to be seen as something more than a source of bulk wines for the discount supermarkets, we need these foreign investors producing premium products to bring them to the attention of discriminating customers.