‘Elegant and refined’ table grape launch for Italian specialists
Jul
As the Italian table grape season kicks off, leading supplier Agricoper di G. Liturri S.R.L sales and marketing manager Domenico Liturri speaks with www.freshfruitportal.com about the company’s campaign and launch of the new premium Lavinia brand.
Agricoper continues to expand its table grape portfolio with a wider range of seeded and seedless varieties, complemented by good production volumes for this season. 
Last year, bad weather hit yields of Puglia-grown grapes, but volumes are back up for 2015 with both exceptional quality and a longer forecast for availability.
“The expectations about this table grape season are very positive as the quality of the grapes is very high,” Liturri tells www.freshfruitportal.com.
“We had favorable weather conditions that allowed us to offer tasteful and exclusive products for all of this season.
“Our grapes will bring our Pugliese tastes and scents to the most important worldwide markets.”
The campaign begins with Vittoria (white seeded) and Black Magic (black seeded), while seedless premium varieties includes Sugraone, Sweet Sunshine, Cotton Candy, Sweet Globe and Sugar Crisp. In addition, Agricoper is also marketing oval-shaped Sweet Celebration and Jack’s Salute.
The marketing ethos behind Lavinia is to create a stylish, refined and elegant brand with a slogan that translates to ‘the essence of taste, the harmony of pleasure’.
“The main aim of the new brand Lavinia is to create a new gustative experience. The ad hoc logo is characterized by a timeless and elegant style but with a modern and dynamic approach.
“Lavinia gathers the most tasteful and precious grapes of Puglia that, thanks to a wide and complete selection, are able to satisfy all the market requirements and delight every palate.
“The Lavinia brand also includes the creation of innovative packaging solutions which are able to satisfy new food trends and habits as well as providing consumers with precise, clear and easy to understand information.”
Agricoper’s export schedule includes shipments to Austria, Germany, France, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Scandinavia and the U.K.
Liturri explains the Mediterranean climate and growing conditions in southern Italy’s coastal area contribute to the taste profile and premium quality of the fruit.
“Lavinia grapes are special because the vineyards are in their ideal habitat in Apulia (Puglia) and through their colors and aromas, they perfectly embody the essence of the Mediterranean area.
“The sea, with its constant ventilation…and provides an ideal temperature range between day and night which is essential for the perfect ripening of the grapes.
“The soil, generated by limestone rock dissolution, provides the ideal substratum for the cultivation of different grape varieties thanks to its high level of potassium and very low organic matter level.”
A combination of sea and land breeze are also elements, Liturri describes as ‘the secrets’ to Lavinia’s superiority.
“The wind is a precious ally. During the daytime the air over the sea gradually moves towards the land and replaces the air rising in the thermal low. This localized air flow system is the sea breeze and reaches its maximum strength in late afternoon when the greatest temperature and pressure contrasts exists.
“It dies down at sunset when the air temperature and pressure once again become similar across the two surfaces.
“At night, the land surface is cooler than the water and the wind flow now moves from the land to open ocean. This localized air flow is the land breeze.”