Travel has been a major contributor to the spread of beverage culture around the world since antiquity. Around 1500 BCE, the Phoenicians, who followed them, began to produce wines around the Mediterranean and spread winemaking across all of Europe and as far north as Germany. Through colonization and trade, grapevines and wine were introduced to the New World, and today there are a number of “flying winemakers,” foreign consultants who travel the world to share their expertise and style with winemakers from far and wide. As individuals returning from trips abroad request the wines they’ve found on holiday in the restaurants they frequent back home, the increase in post-pandemic journey has turned the tables on the experts and winemakers at the same time.
According to a study of international traveler’s purposes published soon last year by Visa,” journey has surged article- Covid and there are no signs of retreating”. We may say from personal experience that Americans are preparing for avengeance on international flights, whether it is evil journey or bounce travel. The good news for liquor enthusiasts is that more and more powerful travelers are influencing the decisions sommeliers make when creating their wine lists. People who have been exposed to wines from countries like Croatia, Greece, Portugal, and southern Italy are taking note of their consumption and asking for containers back home as direct air pathways open up to exciting destinations besides the royal tour stops. While a recent survey of adult Americans found that 36 % of respondents preferred red wine and 36 % preferred white, the trend for wine lists to be on the white side of the menu may have something to do with the season of travel and the type of food eaten in the Mediterranean, Aegean, or Adriatic.
Croatia is one of our regular travel destinations, and we’ve absolutely noticed a rise in the availability of white wines like Poip from Dalmatia and adjacent islands, which is undoubtedly driven by journey to Dubrovnik in the vein of Game of Thrones. After visiting near Venice, travelers who travel to Croatia also come across Malvasia Istriana, another local white variety that has been exhibiting here since returning. Assyrtiko from Santorini has emerged from obscurity to become a staple at wines bars and restaurants, and much of the credit is probably due to the island’s white walls, which are topped with blue domes, as well as the incredible seafood it serves.
Tourists are returning from Santorini with a preference for Assyritiko
Santorines/iStock/Getty Images Plus
Due to guests being introduced to Greek wines during holidays, according to Kristen Goceljak, beverage chairman at Saga Hospitality Group in Manhattan. The beverages overdeliver for their value, she explained, particularly as compared to more traditional regions. When James Fairbrother, a beverage and tea consultant who was formerly the associate chairman of company strategy and procedures at Ardesia Wine Bar, noticed an increase in interest in the cool, mineral-driven pale as a” Sauvignon Blanc alternative,” he views it as a” Sauvignon Blanc alternative. The trend for Assyrtiko has also been noted by Toni Calderon, CEO of O. N. E. Hospitality Group in Pennsylvania, who pointed out that customers are asking for the vineyards they’ve tasted on moves aboard, Assyrtiko included. ” The dialogue is different at furniture, you can show that people are getting over it”, she told us, adding,” When they are looking at beverage addresses, since they have traveled, they are asking about various parts”.
Portugal is another country deep on traveler’s bottle lists and sommeliers ‘ buying names. The tea director at Essential by Christophe in New York’s Upper West Side, Andrea Morris, shared her knowledge of Portugal’s whites, which she claims are the ideal pairing for a lot of the seafood on the menu at Essential. She attributes her ability to expand her Spanish services to the rising number of manufacturers, which has resulted in excellent wines, as well as client involvement in the vineyards, saying that “every New Yorker with an Instagram accounts has vacationed in Portugal since 2021.” The restaurant chain Press Club Grill and Point Seven is run by the corporate wine director of Hospitality Department, which also deals with Portuguese whites. Point Seven is now offering a few variations of the white variety Arinto, which comes from the Azores, in addition. With a dash of sea salt added, Boland claims,” This grape drinks almost like a bone-dry Riesling.” We have also seen a wider range of high-quality Vinho Verde and single-variety Alvarinho on wine lists on both coasts, again driven by the Portugal travel craze. It is refreshingly high in acid, textural, and citrusy, but it has that coastal sea spray kind of minerality.
We’ve seen a lot more Sicilian wine recently, especially from Mount Etna’s volcanic soils, on by-the-glass and bottle lists in New York and across the nation. Perhaps it’s the White Lotus effect. Made with Carricante, Etna Bianco is known for its high acidity, citrus flavors, and strong minerality. The food and beverage director at McCleary’s Public House in Marietta, Pennsylvania, Kristine Grey, reported that she has received a lot of inquiries for wines from southern Italy’s Mount Etna and other locations. She attributes the rise to the number of visitors who have recently returned from that region of the world. It’s been said that travel makes you more interesting, and while that may depend on the individual, it is certainly adding a whole new dimension to wine lists. We’re eager to find out what the next travel hotspot will be and how it will impact our choices for beverages.
Mike DeSimone and Jeff JenssenMike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen, also known as the World Wine Guys, are wine, spirits, food, and travel writers, educators, and hosts. They have been featured guests on the Today Show, The Martha…
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