At Wine Paris 2026, one of the most important European wine fairs, Romania ticked off a rare performance: to be present and, at the same time, not to matter. I'm not saying it! A witness quoted by journalist Cezar Ioan , a professional in the press since 1993 (Mediafax, Ziua, Ziarul de Cluj, Connaisseur, Vinul.Ro), co-author of several volumes dedicated to Romanian wine and gastronomy, explains it.
Here is what he wrote, quoting a direct participant:
"ARICE (Romanian Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade) and the Ministry of Economy, Digitalization, Entrepreneurship and Tourism are the main ones responsible! A counterperformance so serious that it would have been better if that stand had NOT EXISTED AT ALL"
"They contracted a large space and, in the end, came up with a small stand, with only a handful of producers and an awkward presentation, which ruins the atmosphere of the fair"
And now all the information is coming so that the picture is complete. According to the journalist who spoke with the Romanian wine producers:
“The Romanian state approved the budget on Friday, and the fair started on Monday: people worked on Sunday to make a stand out of scraps (…) The state is an obstacle to our industry and there is no way it will help with anything.”
"The Romanians made fun of us," said one of the Fair organizers.
Romania is a topic of discussion at the wine fair not because of the large number of producers brought or the queues formed to sign export contracts, but, of course, for the problems it has created for the organizers of such events.
"They contracted a large space and, in the end, came up with a small stand, with only a handful of producers and an awkward presentation, which ruins the atmosphere of the fair"
Now, look at this picture. Does it seem worthy of a world fair in Paris?
Let's add some salt and pepper to the wound because the image of the glasses left in the corner of the white stand is not enough to make you think you're going to a hospital ward.
"There are debts of approximately 30.000 euros for several years (from a previous similar situation), plus outstanding amounts to stand builders, which amount to hundreds of thousands of euros"
Journalist Cezar Ioan also notes that there is "SILENCE on the page of APEV Romania (Association of Wine Producers and Exporters of Romania), a body that has assumed the role of curator of the wine-growing country brand both externally and internally."
And to close this chapter, here is some information about the wine sector in Romania and how such a fair should be treated.
Romania, country with:
over 180.000 hectares of vines
unique indigenous varieties
one of the oldest wine-growing traditions in Europe
...it looked like a village tavern filled with mud.
At a fair where the competition is not just about wine, but about image, emotion, strategic positioning. Wine Paris is not a festival with tastings for the general public. It is a B2B fair. That's where contracts are negotiated. That's where distributions are established. That's where commercial relationships are built for the coming years. An improvised stand sends a simple message: lack of organization. In a competitive market, image is not a detail. It is a business tool.
Moldova's stand: the branding lesson that Romania has been refusing for 20 years
In the same exhibition space, the Republic of Moldova. The images speak for themselves.
Bright red lighting.
Clear brand: "Wine of Moldova".
Big message, visible from afar.
Visual unit.
Stand coherent.
Tasting areas.
Masterclasses.
Story.
Moldova has understood that you don't go to such fairs to "check your presence". You go to win markets. Romania seems to go to check off actions in a dusty dictation notebook, thrown into a drawer of the Ministry of Economy.
At Wine Paris 2026, Moldova demonstrated that country branding is not a slogan. It is a strategy.
In turn, Romania decided to do it... Again.
