ITALY. Following the opening of the first Bottega airport shop for grappa and wines in Bologna on 24 December 2003, Distilleria Bottega has unveiled a raft of initiatives for 2004. The company, whose brands include Alexander, Sapore, Bottega Club, Alambicco d’Oro and Succo Natura, is Italy’s leading grappa manufacturer and largely responsible for the drink’s increasing popularity worldwide.
Distilleria Bottega claims a 40% share of the worldwide export market for grappa. Innovation, eye-catching glass bottles and quality packaging have helped to propel the company to one of the top 50 best distributed brands in duty free, according to Generation DataBank.
After the opening of the new distillery in Pianzano in Tuscany, the company has started the building of a new distillery in Pietraia di Cortona (Arezzo) and has frozen its prices for 2004 (except for prosecco wine) as part of another assault on international export markets which are forecast to grow +15% this year.
Distilleria Bottega is adding a new staff member in the export department to provide better service, monitoring sales performance and to renew lapsed customers over the past three years.
For the Alexander brand, Alexander Jazz will receive a new bottle design made of dark blown glass, containing a blown glass saxophone; a gift for every age and culture. Alexander Spay will be launched as the grappa not only to drink, but also to aromatise coffee, cakes and cigars. A new collection of blown glass glasses designed by the Japanese sommelier Ryohey Sassagawa, have been conceived to enhance pleasure during wine tasting. The company is also studying a new line of blown glass bottles – Alexander Stars – which will be launched at the next Vinitaly.
A new promotional kit by La Cantina dei Poeti, also available for Petalo, called il Vino dell’Amore (Wine of Love) is composed of a blown glass heart and a neck-hanger reproducing an extract from “Romeo and Juliet”. New products from Bottega include the Grappa Barricata Spray in two versions – for sales and for tastings. The chocolate and hazelnut liqueur Giaduia Cream and Limoncino are to be available in a 75 cl variant for those markets where rules do not permit the 70 cl. Little wafer cups are also being launched to promote Gianduia sales.
In the Pronol line, some new products are being presented first to the Italian market and will be available also for export as an alternative when all other brands are already present in each market. Cachaca Ipanema is a new brand that will begin bottling at the end of this month.
Distilleria Bottega said it will be present this year at the IAADFS Orlando duty free show and TFWA Asia Pacific.
Travel retail enquiries to Sandro Bottega at email: sandrobottega@alexander.it
