Training and mobilizing trade networks and decision-makers.

Japanese sommeliers and Chinese chefs are adopting wines from Alsace, the Rhône Valley and Tavel.

Chinese cooking, the most widespread - and currently highly fashionable - foreign cuisine in Japan (with 100,000 Chinese restaurants), is giving rise to a number of new restaurants in quality hotels serving wine. These restaurants are looking for new gastronomic ideas to offer their customers which combine dishes and wine.

In addition, with wine becoming increasingly popular in Japan, opportunities for the French product are opening up, particularly in the restaurant sector. Nevertheless, basic training is not yet available to professionals in this field.

Sopexa's solution

• Position the three partners - wine appellations from Alsace, the Rhône Valley and Tavel - as wine which are a perfect complement to Chinese cuisine by promoting an innovative training programme which will become the benchmark on the Japanese market.
• Form a partnership with the National Association of Chinese Restaurants (8,000 leading restaurateurs) and the Association of Japanese Wine Waiters (7,000 members) so that all those concerned in Japan can discover the best associations between recommended wines and Chinese food.

Results

• Seminars and wine and food tasting operations co-organised and co-financed by the two associations in 15 cities.
• 1,500 professionals tasted 10 wines and an assortment of 12 dishes representing the different styles of Chinese cooking.
• The success of these events among Chinese chefs in Japan has enabled Sopexa to extend the programme from 2002 to 2004 in partnership with wines from Jerez following co-financing from the European Union.