Making a case for locally-produced wines

Wine connoisseurs and players in the distribution market are being urged to give locally produced wines a chance.

Sector consultant for the Wines and Spirits cluster of the Barbados Trust Loan Fund (BTLF), Oneka John, believes that is really what the growing local industry needs most at this time. Her comments were on the sidelines of the first in the series of pop-ups under the Fund’s Ace Business to Business (B2B) programme, at Shopsmart, Holders Hill, St. James, on Saturday,

Speaking to Barbados TODAY, John noted that once that support is given, she was sure that wine specialists would realise Barbadian-produced fruit wines could rival many of the American and French brands that currently flood the market because their standard was just as good, if not higher.

“There are great wines that are locally made that fit within that taste profile. So if it is an opportunity for people to actually taste them, when they do they will like them because it is in the palette of what they like … It is a matter of giving locally-produced wines a chance because they are very well made and they are made with a lot of love and determination and wanting to put forward a really good product to the local market. Our quality is of a high standard, our presentation is of a high standard and we really believe that the locals will enjoy it as well as the tourists. I don’t think there are too many places where you can come and get a banana wine or a jamoon wine and [other wines that] really represent what it is to be in Barbados,” she said.

As it relates to representation of locally-made products, John said that one of the aims of the cluster was to get some of the products onto the cocktails menus of restaurants and also available within the tourist belt.  John hopes this will be achieved soon but noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenge as it has slowed the process.

At Saturday’s pop-up, there was a sampling session for a range of wines from the family-run business Valeria Vintage Wines. It was revealed that Shopsmart Inc. has agreed to be the first local retailer to give the brand shelf space in its main outlet at Holder’s Hill.

Manager of Valeria, Eunice Elliss-Barker was proud of the achievement, expressing her gratitude to the BTLF which she said has enhanced her product in many ways since it came on board.

“Valeria really was a family business where we were just doing it as a hobby. I took it up in 2017 to start to market it and get it out there. I started pop-up shops in corporate businesses – credit unions, etc. So, it started to get a name for itself then I approached the Barbados Trust Loan for funding for certain equipment concerning the business. It has been very instrumental in our going forward as we do day-by-day things. Changing labels and sourcing different bottles; fine tuning and making the stuff more international … Financially also marketing, accounting- all aspects of a business they were able to put in their expertise,” Ellis-Barker said.

Valeria, which dates back to 1895, currently offers seven flavours of wine: jamoon, tamarind, donks, gooseberry, banana, rice and the latest, bay leaf, which was introduced last year. Ellis-Barker said their next goal was to tackle the export market. (KC)