I was a little surprised that, during our “emerging wine regions” pitches, no one presented about Turkey. I lived in Istanbul for 5 years, and while I didn’t partake in the wine culture (I was in high school), I know that the wines were of good quality compared to some other regions. Here are a few reasons that Turkey can be considered the next emerging area for wine:
- Turkey has the fifth-largest vineyard growing acreage in the world, and for good reason: the climate is perfect for grape-growing [1]. It is hot but also humid, and particular regions in Anatolia are well-suited for grape growing. There are mostly Turkish native grapes used, such as Kalecik Karasi, Okuzgozu and Narince, but growers are gradually switching to European varietals because of market demand [2]. Some of these regions have been growing grapes for 7,000 years! Most of the grapes today are either sold fresh or as raisins. The infrastructure for growing high-quality grapes already exists, it’s just a matter of using them for wine.
- Only 2% of wine is being exported right now, but this could change with the downturn in the economy [4]. Because of Erdogan’s 2013 restrictions on selling in the domestic market, major producers have been looking to sell abroad. The value of the Turkish lira is in their favor too: a 40% drop in the past year means, even with additional tariffs and taxes, Turkish wine is a price-attractive option.
- Turkish wine producers and exporters are working hard to put their wine on the map [4]. Wines of Turkey is an organization which is working to build the brand value of Turkish wines, both domestically and abroad [5]. They want to put Turkish wines on the map for their high-quality unique varietals. One wine begin promoted right now is the Kalecik karası, which is similar to a Pinot Noir. Currently, they are working on popularizing these wines in non-Turkish premium restaurants abroad to put them on the map. Corporate partnerships are also promoting Turkish wines. For instance, Turkish Airlines, a highly-rated airline that flies to 120 countries, serves a variety of Turkish wines on board. Not only is there brand potential with a historically rich region— people are putting in the work to build the Turkish wine image.
Challenges
The economy in Turkey hasn’t been doing well because of the regime change. Tourism has plummeted, which accounted for a lot of alcohol sales. Turks, on average, drink only 1L of wine per year, as opposed to Italians with 80L [1]. Oftentimes, the people producing the wine will never even taste it!
Additionally, Turkey is a Muslim majority country and quite conservative, which means there is reluctance to grow alcohol production as a sector. Under Erdogan, alcohol produced + sold in Turkey is subjected to an additional tax [2].
[1] https://www.foodandwine.com/wine-regions/turkey-wine-future
[2] https://phys.org/news/2017-10-strains-turkey-wine-industry-wither.html
[3] https://theculturetrip.com/europe/turkey/articles/a-brief-introduction-to-turkish-wines/
Being from the country, I was also wondering if Turkey could be considered as an emerging wine regions. I think there are a number of challenges that face the wine industry in Turkey which I am not sure could be addressed without political will and investment in branding Turkish wine:
ReplyDelete1. Domestic consumption of wine is weak, beer and local spirit Rakı has gained significant traction behind changes in local dining culture. A good portion of alcohol consumption in Turkey happens outside of home, and in the recent years Beer and Rakı have carved niches for themselves in the local dining culture by popularizing local brewery/entertainment complexes and the Rakı-Meze culture. (Meze is similar to tapas and consumed almost exclusively with Rakı. It has become very popular in the last couple of years as more friend "catch-ups" and business dinners happen around the meze table.)
2. Even though there is a long history of making wine in the region, most of the wineyards have been idle following the population exchange during/after WWI. This means that there is a significant Capex requirement to bring historical wineyards back to life.
3. The varieties of Turkish wine that is distinct and interesting are notoriously hard to pronounce and not well known. (Öküzgözü, Boğazkere, Kalecik Karası, etc.)
Would be curious to hear how you think these would be adressed.