Interview: Vias Imports Chairman Fabrizio Pedrolli

New York-based Vias Imports boasts a portfolio of 91 wineries, including its core upscale Italian stable as well as labels from the U.S., France, Spain, Austria, Argentina and Lebanon. The 32-year-old company also serves as a wholesaler in New York and New Jersey. With annual import volume of 425,000 cases and sales projected to rise 5% to above $40 million this year, Vias is led by chairman Fabrizio Pedrolli. SND senior editor Daniel Marsteller recently caught up with Pedrolli to discuss trends in imported wine, as well as the launch of Vias’ first proprietary wine brand, Acinum.

SND: What price points and categories are doing well across the Vias portfolio? What areas have been more difficult?

Pedrolli: The 2010 Brunello is hot as a result of all the buzz around the vintage, but Ca’ Viola, Pecchenino and Damilano Barolo Cannubi, as well as our Produttori del Barbaresco wines from Piedmont, are also very strong for us. Over the past couple of years our rosé and Prosecco brands have performed very well and that’s continuing. Perhaps the most interesting development this year is the emergence of northeastern Italian aromatic wines like Riesling, Kerner, Müller-Thurgau and Nosiola. Our biggest challenge is in the value categories from $8.99 to $14.99, where the majority of the competition lies.

SND: How is the on-premise environment so far this year?

Pedrolli: About 60%-65% of our business plays out on-premise, and overall it’s the most stable arena for us. The first quarter was challenging due to the intense snowstorms in New England, as well as the port strikes out west, but June and July indicate that we are fully over those humps.

SND: You’ve just launched Vias’ first proprietary wine brand, Acinum, including a Prosecco ($11), Soave ($11), Valpolicella ($16), Valpolicella Ripasso ($23) and Amarone ($55). What are your objectives there?

Pedrolli: My goal with Vias, and especially with Acinum (Latin for “grape”), is to present Italy’s greatest indigenous varietals at a competitive price to American consumers. I have a personal connection to and investment in Acinum, having researched micro-areas of the Veneto region, such as Negrar in Valpolicella and Monforte d’Alpone in Soave, to select superior sites for these wines. We’re presenting them at a very competitive price point for each style, and our goal is to reach more than $500,000 in sales of Acinum within the first year. We’ve been working on the project for several years and now feel we have optimum market conditions to succeed.

Tagged : Vias Imports, wine

GET YOUR FIRST LOOK AT 2025 ESTIMATES AND 2030 PROJECTIONS FOR THE WINE AND SPIRITS INDUSTRIES. ORDER YOUR 2025 IMPACT DATABANK REPORTS. CLICK HERE.