This week Im in Rome the eternal city, with 1000 other influencers, most of whom will be in heels.
As we gather to make a difference in the world, and each others lives. Follow along for the news and photos.
The highlight so far: seeing the faces of the Italian taxi drivers as they saw 1000 women emerge from the conference centre! Imagine the buzz, the sheer energy , the buying power. THE FUTURE.
I will be posting photos on flicker here as they are loaded.
Donna Jackson Online Marketing specialist opens the workshop.
Zev Robinson talks about his about-to-be-released Douro film. Which will premiere at Douro film festival 5-8 September
Count Francisco de Calheiros speaks on Solares du Portugal and the Lima valley.
Adrian Bridge, CEO of the Fladgate group, speaks on the Yeatman five star Hotel and projects.
A hands on interactive Media workshop.
followed by five star tasting of Port wines.
Power networking with business leaders.
Vamos começar com o realizador Zev Robinson a falar sobre como tem utilizado as rede sociais para promover o seu filme Life on the Douro, o qual vai ser apresentado no Douro Film Festival entre os dias 5 e 11 de Setembro.. O workshop intensivo sobre capacidade de interacção vai ser liderado pela especialista em tecnologias de comunicação e marketing, Donna Jackson, que incluirá a oferta de uma livro dos escritores especialistas em marketing e personal branding para BtoB e BtoC de hoje em dia: NYT bestsellers
Quem deverá participar? Pessoas com equipas a seu cargo, empreendedores e responsáveis de marketing que tenham conhecimento que as regras mudaram, mas não estejam certos sobre o que fazer. Produtores de vinho, responsáveis de turismo ou enoturismo ou hotelaria e todos os que queiram por Portugal no mapa! O workshop da tarde será seguido de uma prova de vinhos cinco estrelas e networking no Yeatman Hotel, com alguns das mais importantes e inovadoras mentes em Portugal
Video of a wine tasting with dinner in the Yeatman.
My post from February, on the " Brand of Portugal - Its People" , is below
The fabulous Yeatman accomodations...
I did a wine review there at the Yeatman over dinner with Ana from the wine family Fonseca Reis.
We then had a fabulously fascinating cellar tour and gracious dinner.
Our conference venue and the hotel looked after all of us and the many delgates and tour operators very well. A few of us chose to dine at DOP restaurant with renouned chef Rui Paula, where I returned in Spring, to share the 1st anniversary of the resturant with him on this video ....... and as I say Smiles and all round. follow the photo stream here
SO for ME Portugal stands for hospitality and warm smiles.
Everywhere we went, and tomorrow we leave the conference venue to do a Douro wine tour, we encountered fabulous hospitality and warm smiles.
When I saw this on twitter I have to say I agreed 100%! Portugal has great people and I'm glad you are getting a chance to meet them too. Portugal has great peeps!
So wine lovers and lovers of Portugal! This month really exciting news! Im teaming up with my friend and well known wineiyak @garyvee on his new show Dailygrape to bring to you a prize of a lifetime focusing on an area that we both agree has the most amazing quality to price ratio in the wine world, thats right, Its Portugal!!
Here is the latest Portugal episode announcing the trip!
The west coast of Europe, Portugal white sand beaches, stunning 5 star golf estates beautiful wine estates and amazing wines, warmhearted people who offer the best hospitality and food anywhere.
Our sponsors are Quinta do Sanguinahal and 100% cork please visit their sites below.
Theres More! Wisequeen will take on a wine blogger/vlogger apprentice to enjoy the winetasting experience, please email Donna on her contact page if you want to be in line for this chance of a lifetime. The result will be announced In August.
In collaboration with Tourism PORTUGAL
Portugal will delight and surprise you, so come along with us on the ride
Portugal’s biggest wine evangelist, “Wise Queen” Donna Jackson, and Gary Vay-ner-chuk have teamed up to send one lucky “VIG” to experience Portugal’s vibrant wine culture first hand, on an adventurous, all expenses paid 5-day trip for two to Lisbon’s Óbidos region from September 5-9th, 2011.
Things get kicked off with a red carpet welcome from the “Wise Queen”, taking the winner from Lisbon airport to one of the oldest, most charming neighborhood streets in Lisbon, “Principe Real”. Enjoy the town’s famous Belem tarts, followed by a wine tasting in Portugal’s greatest wine shop which stocks wines from the country’s very best estates.
The winner will then be treated to an intimate taste of more than 100 years of winemaking tradition, when they visit the Fonseca family’s award winning Quinta do Sanguinhal estate winery, which includes the buzzed-about Cerejeiras brand that blew Gary V. away in episode #476 of Wine Library TV. The lucky couple will meet the family and faces behind the wines, as they tour the picture perfect estate vineyards and buildings, where Ana Fonseca has hosted weddings, wine tastings, and other special occasions in four different languages.
While its wine culture is unsurpassed, Portugal has also established itself as the premier source of 100% all natural cork wine closures. Tour a cork producing facility and learn what distinguishes cork as the world’s most sustainable, traditional, and efficient wine closure.
This is just a small glimpse at what this priceless, week-long adventure has to offer. Portugual’s history, tradition, food, wine, and hospitality are arguably second to none. Now experience it for yourself by entering to win the wine vacation of a lifetime.
Special thanks to lead sponsors, 100% Cork and Vinhos do Sanguinhal, in cooperation with Tourism Portugal. Learn what makes each of them so special by:
About Wise Queen: Donna Jackson, brand strategist and founder of winesocialclub, is a wine, travel, marketing and new media specialist. Her passion for wine, and a love for Portugal, its amazing people and places, has made this epic sweepstakes possible. An avid collector and reviewer of wine, Donna assists wineries with their use of social media to connect with fellow wine lovers. Learn more about Donna by visiting her wine blog/vlog at www.wisequeen.com and follow her on Twitter:www.twitter.com/wisequeen
On a recent visit to Lisbon Portugal for Vinocamp Lisbon, I was fortunate enough once again to be included in a trip organised by Amorim, this time to watch cork being harvested from the forest near Alentejo, and then to visit the factory to watch the entire process from when the bark is stripped from the trees, hand-sorted and expertly trimmed by men with knives in the factory, right down to that branded cork that we take out of the bottle without much thought - something I will never do again, I now have great respect for the journey
So twenty or so of us Winos from around Europe, set out early one morning from Lisbon with Carlos and Joana our hosts on a bus that had gathered us up from our hotels and so we were soon heading for the countryside. After watching a facinating cork harvest, something that will stay with me forever, we drove further on down dust roads to a lovely picnic spread for us under the trees at a lake. The fantastic spread was in true Portugese style, we feasted like Royalty and enjoyed the fabulous Quinta Nova wine * my video review on Quinta Nova Wine with Rui Paula here, that is part of the Amorim stable. This year Amorim celebrated 140 years in cork.
What I learned about Cork
THE STORY OF CORK
Cork is a renewable commodity that is havested from evergreen Oak trees.
The cork oak in Latin .. Quercus (oak) Suber (cork)
The first stripping occurs when the tree is between 15 and 20 years of age.
Subsequent yields follow at 8 to 10 year intervals.
The world's cork oak forests are concentrated in Southern Europe; Portugal, Spain, Italy & France, which accounts for 67% of the cork oak production. North Africa has the remaining 33%.
The total land surface occupied by this oak is 2.2 million hectares (5.434 million acres) of which Portugal and Spain represent 56%.
The industry employs more than 15,000 workers in factories and commercial departments!
The industry also employes 10,000 seasonal workers for the cork harvest and the maintenance of the oak forests.
The sale of cork and cork products by producers, to the European and United States market, exceeds $1.5 Billion U.S. Dollars annually.
Of this value, the cork stopper is $1.1 Billion U.S. Dollars.
The sale of agglomerated cork, cork flooring, and other related products approx $400 million U.S. Dollars.
Media Release: 3 March 2011
AMORIM ACHIEVES WINE CORK SALES RECORD
Amorim, the world’s leading cork producer, has announced record annual
sales, with more than 3 billion wine stoppers sold in 2010.
The outstanding sales volume figure was included in the company’s 2010
financial results released last week.
Amorim’s Cork Stoppers Business Unit — the company’s core business —
posted a sales volume increase of 13.8 per cent, further consolidating its
position as the world’s largest supplier of wine stoppers.
So back to Amorim in Portugal and this particular cork Harvest.
Who does the harvesting?
The same familes that have worked for generations in this highly skilled field.
It is seasonal work, and more than one of our party (myself included were comtemplating doing this job which pays well ) . We quickly realised that climbing tees while deftly cutting the bark free for it to fall to the soft earth below without scaring or cutting the tree, is not so easy.
So we watched and filmed and listened to Carlos and Joana in rapt attention and learned a lot.
What happens to the tree once the cork is stripped?
It is marked with a number and left for another 9 years to grow new cork.
It's a renewable resource
Does the cork being stripped harm the tree
It's a bit like removing the hard skin on your feet it will leave your feet exposed and tender for awhile, and then re-grow to protect you.
What about the alternatives to cork like plastic and screw caps are they not more sustainable?
Well this is along going debate. I personally prefer cork and always will, because its part of the tradition of wine, its more romantic, does a real good job of protecting the wine, and may even impart something to the wine, and with recent improvements in technology will go on doing its job for centuries to come as a renewable resource.
TAKE PART IN THE DEBATE HERE LEAVE US A COMMENT BELOW ON HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT CORK, GOOD BAD?
What else is cork used for?
Cork has amazing properties and has been used for centuries in so many applications. Today cork is used for insulation, flooring, shoes, handbags, fashion garments, and to manufacture so many other products.
Is Amorim a stakeholder in the sustainabilty issue?
Very much so, and as I discussed with CEO Antonio at the factory, they take the future of cork and its protection very seriously, they also employ thousands of people across the worldin this labour intensive manual work, in all their international and regional facilites. They are also constantly improving their facilities. Every tiny piece of the cork is used even the cork dust which is burned to fuel the factory. Water used in the factory is also recycled.
Some Reader Comments
When I saw this on twitter I have to say I agreed 100%! Portugal has great people and I'm glad you are getting a chance to meet them too. Portugal has great peeps!