Ian D’Agata leaves VIA and is considering a new role at Vinitaly
In the words of Giovanni Mantovani, director general of Veronafiere, (extracted from an interview in Winenews recently) “Ian D’Agata’s role with Vinitaly will be further increased with a brand new set of objectives to reach and projects to work on”.
In fact, Ian D’Agata is in the process of deciding whether to continue collaborating with Veronafiere/Vinitaly but only in a new role, and discussions are still under way to finalize the deal. During a lunch meeting in Rome recently, Giovanni Mantovani, Gianni Bruno (area manager food and wine of Vinitaly) and Ian D’Agata discussed this new vest for D’Agata, that of Scientifc Advisor.
“Of course I am happy to continue working with the fair” says Ian D’Agata “…but I wanted to change a number of things, such as to no longer be associated with Stevie Kim, Vinitaly International and the VIA, and this for a number of reasons. However, if possible, I will be happy to work with Vinitaly and Veronafiere as it is an honour and am happy to contribute to Vinitaly’s growth and hopefully future successes”.
Therefore please note that Ian will therefore NOT be participating and is not involved in any way in the upcoming Hong Kong fair in November or at W2W in December.
The ACCADEMIA DELLA VITE E DEL VINO nominates IAN D’AGATA “ACCADEMICO ORDINARIO”
“A huge honour, like nothing that’s ever happened to me before” was Ian D’Agata’s first comment upon hearing the news of his being named in 2018 as a new member (Accademico Ordinario) of the prestigious Accademia della Vite e del Vino. Founded in 1946 by decree of then President of the Republic Luigi Einaudi, the Accademia della Vite e del Vino has its main office in the beautiful historic building in Florence that houses the Accademia dei Georgofili. Ever year, at the beginning of the new school year, the Accademia announces its new soci emeriti (emeritus mebers),soci ordinari (ordinary members) and corrispondenti (correspondents). L’Accademia della Vite is the most important association of researchers, university professors and scientists in the field of wine in Italy. In his welcome speech, President Antonio Calò noted that the Accademia“… distinguishes itself from all other so-called Italian wine academies as it was founded thanks to Italy’s president and has sixty years of history under its belt. Another distinguishing feature we are proud of is that numerous Nobel prize winners have held talks and presentations within its walls”. The new academicians were welcomed into the fold at the opening of the academic year on June 9 in the main lecture hall of the Centro di Ricerche per la Viticoltura e l’Enologia di Conegliano. “I will do my absolute best to be worthy of this new title” said D’Agata.
A new award from Canada to Ian D’Agata
From Ontario the prestigious VQA PROMOTER AWARD, Out of Ontario section
2018 VQA Promoters award winners (from left to right): Tim Coons, retail; Andrea Kaiser per la famiglia di Karl Kaiser’s, lifetime achievement; Jim Willwerth, education; Magdalena Kaiser, promoter-at-large; Brittany Gregory, LCBO; Sarah Scott, hospitality. Absent from the photo: André Proulx, media, and Ian D’Agata, out-of-Ontario promoter. (photo courtesy of Kaitlyn Little)
On May 2, 2018, Ontario’s Vintner’s Quality Alliance assigend the VQA Promoter Awards that have been honouring Canadians who have helped forward the knowledge and culture about Ontario’s great wines in Canada and the world. This year, Ian D’Agata was awarded the “Out of Ontario” section award, reserved for those who live outside of the province. “I absolutely love Ontario’s wines and have been following them closely ever since my adolescent days. Thanks to John Macdonald, Don Ziraldo and Karl Kaiser, I was one of the first individuals in Canada lucky enough to taste the very first Icewines ever made by Inniskillin back in the late 70s and early 80s and have held a deep love affair with Niagara’s and Ontario’s wines ever since. From the first great Rieslings, Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs made by the likes of, for example, Angelo Pavan, Tom and Len Pennacchetti of Cave Spring, by Jim Warren at Stoney Ridge and then other wineries, or the unforgettable early Gewurztraminers of Malivoire, moving right through the great wines of the Lenko family to the world class wines made by Hidden Bench, Henry of Pelham and so many more today, I am a true and huge believer in We the North’s great great great wines, the producers have faith in me and I in them”.
This is the second year in a row D’Agata wins an important wine-related award from Canada; last year he was awarded the Cuvée Award of Excellence 2017 for his work on behalf of Canada’s wines
Ian D’Agata and Michele Longo new co-redactors of the Italy section of the Pocket Wine Book 2019 by Hugh Johnson
JANUARY 03, 2018
From: www.wineducationalboard.com
The most read pocket guidebook in the world will have two italian voices to …
Ian D’Agata (Collisioni’s Wine&Food Project Creative Director, VINOUS Senior Editor, Vinitaly International scientific Consulant and Vinitaly International Academy scientific Director) and Michele Longo (Wine Educational Board and Barolo&Co redactor) will edit the Italian section of the 42nd edition of the “Pocket Wine Book” written by Hugh Johnson (General Editor: Margaret Rand) that will be published this summer; an absolute global Best Seller, still nowadays the most sold guidebook in the world and highly considered beacouse of its recognized reliability. It is a great privilege that two italians will write about Italy and its wines.
Ian d’Agata: “I read the Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Book since I was a teenager; it is the world best seller concerning books about wines. Still today, for example, I preserve my old copies of 1988 and 1993; those are memories that I don’t want to lose and furthermore are useful to remember how much the wine world has changed with time. To be the editor of the Italian wine section is a great honor and a goal of my wine writer’s career. As an italian that lives in Italy, furthermore, it gives me the possibility to write a lot about little realities and wine producers that maybe some foreign writers could miss. By this way, instead, I can keep doing good things to the italian wine, to its vines and its territories, makeing it become more and more famous, better and better.”
Michele Longo: “It was the first “guidebook” that I have bought when I started to approach the wine world, and today as at that time, you can keep taking it with you in your eno-travels, beacouse it manteined the same dimensions. It is considered since always, by fans and experts, as a wine Gospel and, despite the material and information that we can found “on-line”, it keeps being a world best seller, that contemplates and condenses in a significant and very readable way, informations about wines all over the world and about theirs producers. I would have never guessed, when I bought my first copy more than 20 years ago, that one day, thanks to Ian, I would have been able to contribute to the wine section of my Country. It was an unique experience, funny and exciting; a manner to study in-depth and to tell with a different style the richness of our wine heritage”.
We can certainly say that the contribution of these two minds to the guidebook will increase even more the authoritativeness of both the italian wine world and the guidebook itslef. It will be illuminating for the readers to benefit of their knowledges and it is a pride having them as pillars in the Collisioni’s Wine Project.