The United States Trade Tasting event is one of the largest events of its kind in the nation. Within the Metropolitan Pavilion of New York City, buyers and sellers meet to discuss new partnerships and new deals. Domestic and international brewers, distillers and wineries showcase their newest and most innovative products to importers and distributors, who are looking for new products they can bring to the U.S. market.

Importers and distributors receive tons of emails and pitches by brands on a daily basis. The hard part for them is to figure out what brands would actually fit into their portfolios. Having a great product is one thing, but one of the major aspects importers and distributors look for in a brand is if the brand is educated enough for the US market. Does the brand know what the US market consists of? Is the brand ready to offer full support to the importers and distributors in terms of marketing, merchandising, and sales?

If a brand is just going to send their cases to the warehouses and step back from there, then the importer and distributor will most likely not work with the brand.

As an importer or distributor, out of hundreds of brands approaching them, it can turn into a hassle to find brands that would be ready to go all in, are educated about the US market before even pitching to enter, and would they be ready to give all the support the importer and distributor is looking for?

The 5th edition of the annual USA Trade Tasting (USATT) is set to focus on these exact needs of importers and distributors. Taking place in New York, USA Trade Tasting is set to offer importers and distributors a widespread platform to connect with brands that are exactly what they are looking to fill the gap in their portfolio.

This event will bring fast growing and emerging wines, beers and spirits brands that want to grow their distribution in the US market. There will be new brands looking for import partners, there will be local brands looking for distributors in other states, and there will be some in-state brands looking to get into more restaurants and retail accounts.

Brands exhibiting are all set to enter the US market

The main thing which makes brands exhibiting at USATT stand out amongst others already in your emails, is that all brands exhibiting at the 2020 USA Trade Tasting are well versed about the US market, and are ready to enter - proving all the support you as an importer and distributor could need from them.

There is plenty of business activity that goes on right on the exhibition floor, making the USATT event the premier event of its kind for getting your alcohol beverage products in front of potential buyers. The highlight of the entire show is the Grand Tasting Hall, where more than a hundred exhibitors set up demo booths and conduct live tastings for potential buyers.

USA Trade Tasting invites all small to medium sized importers and distributors to fly to New York City on May 26-27 and connect with brands that would be perfect to add to your portfolio.

“As many of you know I’m very passionate about helping open the doors of the U.S. market to new wine, beer and spirits brands. The main idea that brought up the birth of USATT 5 years ago was to match small and medium sized brands who are educated about the US market with small and medium sized importers and distributors” says Sid Patel, Founder & CEO of Beverage Trade Network, the organizers of USA Trade Tasting.

USATT offers importers, distributors, and retailers the perfect spot to single out new wines, beers, and spirits to fill the gap in their portfolio. Meet with producers and suppliers from across the globe, all in one place, whose wines, beers, and spirits could be the next addition to your list.

You will be able to taste, network with, and crack deals right there and then at the USATT Grand Tasting in New York.

USATT puts SCA winners in the spotlight

Competitions are a huge part of the alco-bev industry, especially for importers and distributors. This year, USATT will also be shining the spotlight on wines that grabbed a medal at the 2019 Sommelier’s Choice Awards.

Importers, distributors, and retailers will be able to taste the winners of the 2019 Sommeliers Choice Awards and grab a chance to expand their portfolios with the wines that are assessed by the leading trade buyers from the industry.

Wines entered in the 2019 Sommeliers Choice Awards were tasted and assessed by over twenty wine industry professionals. An all-star judging panel consisting of leading sommeliers, on-premise wine buyers, wine directors at the U.S. restaurants, bars, pubs, and clubs gather in San Francisco to judge wines coming from across the globe. Wines are judged on the basis of Food Parability, Typicity, Value, Quality, and Package.

Sommeliers Choice Awards is the ultimate wine competition which aims to provide on-premise buyers and sommeliers a valuable benchmark for understanding which wines would make a compelling addition to a wine list.

The ABID Conference - designed for importers and distributors

Along with an exhibition floor, visitors will also have the opportunity to attend the Alcohol Beverage Importers and Distributors (ABID) Conference.

[Donna Hartman, General Counsel (US) at The Connacht Whiskey Company Ltd. presenting at the ABID Conference]

The Alcohol Beverage Importers & Distributors Conference has been designed specifically to serve the needs of small and medium-sized wine, beer and spirits Importers and Distributors of the USA.

The ABID conference will focus on discussing day to day challenges, network with fellow importers and distributors from all over the country, find new ways to grow and collectively address regulatory issues. The conference consists of talks from industry leaders with real insights and solutions to problems that the industry faces - and how those can be applied in business to achieve growth.

If you missed out on the 2019 ABID Conference, check out the highlights here

Don’t miss out on the 2020 ABID Conference. Register for your conference pass here.

About the organizers

Beverage Trade Network is a leading platform helping beverage professionals connect with peers and better understand the global business landscape will lead to overall long term growth of the independent alcohol beverage industry. Along with Sommelier’s Choice Awards, BTN has also organized other successful competitions such as the London Wine Competition, London Spirits Competition, London Beer Competition, China Wine Competition, and Bartender’s Spirits Awards. BTN also owns BevRoute, a magazine for Importers and Distributors and runs a lineup of trade shows around the world which includes USA Trade Tasting in New York, IBWSS UK in London and IBWSS China in Shanghai,  IBWSS USA in San Francisco, Cannabis Drinks Expo and are also the organizers of the upcoming Cannabis Food Show.