Those of you who attended the UK’s first natural wine fair last May might have spotted that this year there are not one but two events: RAW, aka the Artisan Wine Fair fronted by MW Isabelle Legeron and The Real Wine Fair which is being co-ordinated by the UK’s largest natural wine importer Les Caves de Pyrène.
Both parties are taking care not to slag each other off but the truth appears to be that a messy divorce has taken place due to the main protagonists inability to work together.
Legeron who styles herself That Crazy Frenchwoman maintains that hers is the real successor to the Natural Wine Fair (though both parties have agreed not to use the N word) in that it’s independent of any importers and open to producers who are not represented in the UK. She also claims that her conditions for entry are more transparent. As well as meeting a number of conditions (e.g. no fining, no filtering, only natural yeasts) exhibitors must indicate how much sulphur, if any has been added in their wines. She has also succeeded in getting the backing of two European bodies, La Renaissance des Appellations and Vin Natur.
Douglas Wregg the front man for Les Caves suggests that because consumers will be able to buy wine, their event is more consumer friendly (though Legeron counters that her fair will have a pop-up wine shop too). He also points out that because it is funded by the importers (several other leading wine retailers and distributors such as Vine Trail, Indigo Wines and Roberson are involved) it’s free to producers and that they take a less draconian line than RAW about the wines that can be submitted.
Given that event will take place over the same May weekend (20th/21st although the Real Wine Fair goes on for a third day) the situation must be pretty confusing for the natural winemakers out there. Which do they attend? Les Caves de Pyrène can presumably pull rank with their producers and members of Renaissance and VinNatur will, I imagine, throw their lot in with Legeron but if a producer falls into both camps as I guess several will, which way will they jump?
In the end I suspect it will come down to who can win the public relations war. Legeron, an energetic self-publicist, has hit the ground running with a fully fledged website and Facebook page whereas The Real Wine Fair only has a holding page to date though they are apparently due to publish more details next week. They've also taken on one of London’s most journalist-friendly PR companies, R & R teamwork.
Given the intense rivalry between the two camps it should be a pretty good couple of days for natural winelovers in London. But feathers will be ruffled, mark my words.
The Real Wine Fair is taking place at B1, 6 Victoria House, Southampton Row, London WC1B 4DA (nearest tube Holborn) and RAW at The Old Truman Brewery in Brick Lane,
London E1 6QL
Hi Fiona, Thank you for covering both events that are happening this May. Just to clarify for all your readers: the Natural Wine Fair was co-founded by myself + 5 importers so I certainly do not "maintain that [RAW] is the real successor to the Natural Wine Fair". Both fairs are new events, new set-ups, each building on last year's success. I am sure both will be great events. Also, at £20 a ticket each for 100s of phenomenal wines, why not go to both? In fact, a few growers are doing just that. Hopefully no need for ruffled feathers! Look forward to seeing you all at the fair.
ReplyDeleteSorry Isabelle if I gave a misleading impression. It's just that your publicity does tend to suggest that your event is the successor to last year's natural wine fair.
ReplyDelete"Organised by Isabelle Legeron MW (left), co-founder of last year’s Natural Wine Fair at Borough Market in London, RAW aims to build on the success of the Natural Wine Fair by acting as an independent event open to all producers, importers and official bodies."
But yes, it's a good idea to go to both and I will!
Thanks for the coverage of both fairs Fiona. Our ticketing site has just gone live (http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/2982405455?utm_source=eb_email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=new_eventv2&utm_term=eventurl_text) and more details will be going onto our website very soon. Look forward to see you there!
ReplyDeleteOnly thing is it says the fair is taking place in Londonderry!
ReplyDeleteWhile one with an interest will endeavour to go to both as there are benefits, it seems that both parties are underestimating the purchasers most diminishing resource ...... time. Not everyone can afford time for both as people or suppliers need to finance their purchase.
ReplyDeleteSure the rapidly growing pie is probably big enough for both events to survive, I think the consumer/purchaser will be the one to suffer with fewer wines than a combined show.
£40 to go to both? Sorry, but as someone who very much enjoyed last year's events and who buys quite a few of these wines, I'm bailing out. Poor show!
ReplyDeleteIt really is ridiculous - before the natural wine movement has even really begun, already there are commercial disagreements that will make it hard for customers to get involved. Very childish.
ReplyDeleteWhat exactly is the theme of the Real Wine Fair? If it isn't about reduced sulphur, what is it exactly?
Spontaneous fermentation? One fair in 2011; 2 in 2012; 4 in 2013; 8 in 2014; 16 in 2015; 32 in 2016; 64 in ...
ReplyDeleteunpredictable with natural yeasts but you never know . . .
ReplyDeleteIs there enough to go around, and what if the whole lot's corked. also, can anyone really bring themselves to pay £40, which is around the Brit retail price for Octobre. It's sort of rude, even though the wine's a charm, the price is like a slap in the face with a sloppy cowpat (a bit like the nose, as it goes).
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ReplyDeleteI am looking forward to attending both events. Should be interesting.
ReplyDeleteHard to predict what will happen. Will the added noise around the two events result in a bigger audience? Will existing natural wine fans just go to one event (suspect so). Will some people be so brassed off they go to neither? Possible. It does seem strange when it's such a new and niche area of wine anyway that this schism should have taken place (stoutly though both parties deny it).
ReplyDeleteAnd do tell us who you are anonymous. Doesn't sound like you're much of a fan anyway ;-)
Maybe with the growth in the segment there will be plenty of room for two. Just like there is more than one French wine fair per year... Perhaps unfortunate this year as we are still in early stages, but for someone flying in from abroad to participate it's kind of a bonus instead. Hoping people can keep an open, non-dogmatic approach to natural wine, and that these kinds of events will help in facilitating understanding and education of consumers so they can decide for themselves, instead of unwarranted attacks from one side or another (ahem, Anonymous? ;) )
ReplyDeleteLast year it cost the public £18 to taste the wines. This year it will be £40. By 2016 it could be £2457.60 but I'm no mathematician so it could be much higher if spontaneous combustion – er sorry – fermentation continues!
ReplyDeleteThanks Fiona
ReplyDeleteYes it's confusing. It must be more so for the producers.
From the other side of the pond in NYC, it's interesting and silly. The dueling events. The dueling words of what to call it.
Over here it's all goodness. Call it natural. Call it artisanal or organic or Bio-D. More and more great wines are making their way into shops, bars and restaurants.
In the end individual brands will define what they mean to their customers but as a web term, Natural, will prevail IMO.
I may try to come although this honestly feels more and more like a UK battle not a global one. It would be smart to bring over consumer bloggers from the states to engage in this discussion.
I believe Alice Feiring is talking at the Real Wine Fair, Arnold but yes, the more the merrier. Perhaps you can knock some sense into us ;-)
ReplyDeleteAnd let's hope your more optimistic scenario is the outcome, Erica.
@Jim, nice try but I'm sure you're aware of the "static analysis fallacy" ;) (isn't everyone?). The Economist magazine a few years ago did a satire of this idea with safety razors, ie, after they were invented they only had a single blade for generations and then a second blade arrived. Only 10 years passed before a third blade was added. Then the fourth and fifth blades came after only a few years. If you join up the line of this 'curve' it would predict that by today we should be using safety razors with 40 or 50 blades!!!! Anyway, hope to see you there, at one or both the fairs!
ReplyDeleteNice one, Fabio. As someone who might be exhibiting what do you think of the situation? Will you have a presence at both?
ReplyDeleteHaving two such events in London that are accessible to consumers is welcome, it's just a pity they aren't scheduled 6 months apart - a year is a long wait.
ReplyDeleteThey have agreed not to use the word 'natural', then they go and both use the word 'real' and choose the same date. No 'ruffled' feathers! Be great to know who decided to sabotage the other's event or did they just come up with the same idea on the same day over a glass of 'real', 'natural', RAW wine?
ReplyDeleteTanya
ReplyDeleteIt's such a shame that the original intention of the event(s) seems already to be overshadowed by an internal politics issue which is most likely to be blown out of proportion by over-enthusiastic media coverage. I became interested in this appraoch to wine because of the passion and genuine (not PR) enthusiam with which it was portrayed and brought to public awareness, especially by Isabelle Legeron. The 'natural' wine movement has been very fragile from the start, due to resistance from the wine industry as well as due to the lack of a clear definition as to what it is. I see these new events as an effort to improve on that. Ultimately they are fighting for the same cause - to let the wines speak for themselves, without unnecessary intervention, and hopefully the movement will be known for that concept rather than for PR, marketing and general commercial greed.
Fiona,
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm hoping to go to both. I'll be at RAW on Sun 20 and Mon 21, and at RWF on Tue 22.
I'm very sad that this division has happened; it would have been a lot simpler and more harmonious for everyone with just one fair, or at least not two on the same weekend. I don't know any of the details of the reasons for this division, nor do I want to. I hope both parties will remain respectful and polite in public and work to ensure the success of both events, despite whatever differences they may have. I also hope that journalists won't focus exclusively on this split, to the detriment of the many interesting topics that could be covered in relation to natural wine, though no doubt some will have a field day :(
Anyway, I hope to meet you in real life at last, at one or both fairs :)
That would be great, Fabio. Will look out for you!
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