An almost boundless and fascinating world to discover: the wine and oil of Southern Italy. Puglia, Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Molise, Sardinia and Sicily: eight regions with a great oenological and oil-making tradition (the vines of Magna Graecia alone amount to around 300 varieties) protagonists of the "Radici del Sud" Exhibition, which also returns this year - in its eighteenth edition, from 2005 to today - to take stock of wines and oils from southern Italy and compare insiders and enthusiasts.

An appointment that for eighteen years has been telling the ampelographic field of Southern Italy to insiders and the press from all over the world by virtue of the press tours and buyer tours in the territories of the Southern regions, but also thanks to the Exhibition set up at the Castello di Sannicandro di Bari, where the new vintages of wines and oils from companies from all over the South will be presented to the press, importers and the general public on Monday 12 June from 3 to 9 pm. There is also a food area where the protagonists will be the manufacturing and processing companies and the chefs of Southern Italy. From 9 pm onwards in the courtyard of the Castle, on the other hand, a big party is scheduled, animated by pizza makers and chefs and dedicated to the one hundred wines of Southern Italy that have won this year's competition.

However, it will also be an opportunity for a discussion between experts on current winemaking topics: Monday 12 June from 11 to 12.30, during the final conference which will reward the best wines selected by the four juries of the competition - which since last year has returned to the categories of natural sweet wines, raisin wines and oxidative wines - in fact, a lot will be discussed, among other things, with the contribution of the institutions and experts present, of the experiments adopted already thirty years ago by southern agriculture and today the subject of comparison also in the oenological Italy of the North due to the current climate crisis.

A true feast of taste: in fact, more than 130 companies have already decided to participate again this year in Radici del Sud, which, thanks to the "Propapilla" association, led by Nicola Campanile, continues over the years to give visibility and authority to the viticulture of southern Italy thanks to the network of "friends" of the Salone, which has grown over eighteen years in step with the global attention towards southern Italian wines. This is thanks also and above all to the prestigious presences which - in terms of journalists, tasters, Masters of Wine, operators and buyers from all over the world - have increasingly characterized the editions of the Show, equally contributing to the overall enhancement of the territories of Southern Italy, guaranteeing opportunities to discover the beauties of the territories also thanks to the organization of convivial moments designed to strengthen the relationships between the protagonists and users of the event.

The list of the four international juries in charge of testing and evaluating the labels of wines and oils from as many as 140 companies from the southern territories present is also complete. These are two international and two national assemblies that will have the task of testing and evaluating the wines present from two different points of view: that of a broader perspective, that of a more "glocal" perspective.

The first international jury, Group 1, is chaired by Luca Matarazzo (20italie.com), and includes among its members Anais Cancino (Wineteller, Mexico), Liz Palmer (wine journalist, author and influencer, Canada), Torge Thies ( TRCT MEDIEN GmbH, Germany), Anthony Rose (Decanter, freelance wine journalist and author, UK). The second jury, Group 2, is instead chaired by Richard Baudains (Decanter, United Kingdom), and is made up of  Young Shi (TS Wine, www.tastespirit.com, United Kingdom), Robert McNulty (Wine Academy Italy, Usa ), Jeff Barrows (Food Wine Click, Usa), Ben Little (Thenativegrapes.com, Ireland).

As for the national juries, the first - Group 1 - is chaired by Maurizio Valeriani (Vinodabere.it), and composed of Franco Santini (Acquabuona.it), Luigi Salvo (Vinup.it) and the oenologists Francesco Fortunato and Salvatore Digiacomo; the second, which is led by Andrea Terraneo (President Vinarius), includes Francesco Bonfio (President AEPI) and Katarina Andersson (Grapevine Adventures), and oenologists Matteo Esposito and Tiziana Micelli.

The group of importers present at Salone 2023 was also large (and planetary):  Alia Reniers (Abfoodwines, Texas), Inese Vicupa (Whitehousesrestaurant, Latvia), Jung Yong Cho (Curious Wine Seoul, South Korea), Marija Stramkale (Noblewine, Latvia ), Meiquin Kuang (Die Weingaleristen GmbH & Co. KG, Germany), Ryan Lewis (Hidden Vines UK, United Kingdom), Duy Tuan Nguyen Toan Quoc Trading and Service Import Export Company Limited (TopWine.Vietnam), Alessandro Furlan (Saper Divino Selections, Usa), Yuanjun Zhang (COMPTOIRS ET CIES SAS, China), Carlo Zuccherini (Chef wine truffles, Holland), Anders Bizzozero (Great Wines & Spirits, Sweden), Luigi Pucciano (Terre Lente, Holland).

The event is organized thanks to the patronage of the Regional Council of the Agriculture Department and the Municipality of Sannicandro di Bari, and the collaboration of Assoenologi Pbc, Vinarius, AEPI, the technical partner AIS Puglia and the partners - sponsors: Mondelli Agrifarma, Caffè Cavaliere, Sistemi Taranto , Lgs Label, Tonnellerie Saref, Asfodelo, the Fieschi Pastry Shop, the Jesus Bakery, the Cecca Dairy and the SemeAntico artisanal pasta factory in Altamura, the “Il Pan… Zeun” Bakery in Sannicandro di Bari and the two “Lievita 72” pizzerias of Gallipoli and "Senti la pizza" of Bari and Trani.

Tasting kit including glass, glass holder bag and tasting book 20 euros; entrance to the Corte del Castello with about 80 wines for free tasting and tasting of dishes served buffet-style 20 euros; admission to the show and access to the final evening 35 euros.

Radici del Sud