The Be Spirits hall will make room for spirits from all backgrounds, including craft distilleries to household brands, and shed light on industry trends for professionals.
Rodolphe Lameyse, CEO of Vinexposium, said: “In 2023, spirits, craft and alcohol-free beverages are becoming even more significant with 20% extra floor space compared with the 2022 event and 44% new exhibitors. Alongside the many French exhibitors, international attendance will be very strong with the return of Belgium, Canada, the United States, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Romania, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Alongside them will be Uzbekistan, the Czech Republic and Vietnam as newcomers to the exhibition in 2023.”
27 categories of spirits will be represented: anise-based drinks, armagnac, cachaça, calvados, cognac, cream liqueurs, brandies, gin, mezcal, RTDs, rum, rum infusions, saké, alcohol-free, tequila, tonic, vermouth, vodka and whisky.
New alcoholic drinks will enter the Be Spirits repertoire: absinthe, liqueurs, bitter, pisco, hard tea and shochu, along with ciders and beers.
Be Spirits will also include a 40-metre-long Infinite Bar, a focal point in the Be Spirits Hall, welcoming European bars to showcase top mixologists or up-and-coming personalities in the bartender scene.
The Craft Pavilion, a new area, will be reserved for the upcoming generation, with young producers of spirits, RTDs, alcohol-free drinks, ciders and beers.
As part of the ON! programme, the new 'Speakeasy' area, will be the venue for masterclasses, conferences and panel discussions devoted to new trends and challenges in the global spirits market.
The line-up already includes:
· A masterclass on brandy curated by Lucien Bernard
· A ‘Spirits’ masterclass by the WSET
· A ‘Sowine’ conference hosted by Marie Mascré: ‘Z (for zebra?): younger generations and their relationship with wines and spirits’
· A masterclasses by the Japan Sake and Shochu Association
The French Federation of Wine & Spirits Exporters (FEVS) will also reveal figures for French wine and spirits exports at its annual press conference on Tuesday 14 February at 10am in the ‘LET’S SPEAK WINE!’ area.
