Some girls do fashion week. I do the wine trade floor — and let me tell you, when 1,500 exhibitors from 36 countries and 20,000 of the sharpest buyers in Latin America descend on Expo Center Norte, the energy is electric. ProWine São Paulo (October 6–8, 2026) is the largest wine and spirits fair in the Americas, and this year I traded my vineyard wander for a blazer over silk, a flute in hand, and three days of pure business-chic seduction. From Brazilian sparkling royalty to a private pour of Dom Pérignon, here's how a brand ambassador owns a trade show.
Sleek charcoal blazer over a champagne silk slip, low chignon, and my best "I know exactly what I'm doing" smile. I leaned into the Casa Valduga booth — five generations of the Valduga family, straight from Rovereto to the Vale dos Vinhedos — and talked traditional-method sparkling with a winemaker who's been making bubbles longer than I've been alive. Bright convention light, warm handshakes, and the first glass of the morning. This is where business begins.
Midday, the noise of the hall faded into a soft-lit private suite. Chef de Cave Vincent Chaperon — the man behind Dom Pérignon since 2019 — poured the legendary Vintage 2013, the cuvée they're calling "the last pre-climate-change vintage." I swirled, inhaled stone fruit and tangerine oil and buttered toast, and let the quiet do the talking. Ivory silk, soft window light, eyes closed. Some conversations need no words — just a perfect wine and complete presence.
When the booths closed, the real magic began. Floor-length midnight blue, a thigh-high slit, diamond drops catching the chandelier light, and a champagne flute that never emptied. I moved through a room of importers and distributors, couture and cufflinks, laughing and toasting the deals made and the friendships sealed. The glamorous after-hours side of the wine business — where a well-timed smile is worth a thousand cases.
💋 The wine world's a small room, and I just made it smaller. São Paulo taught me that charm and a good vintage open more doors than any business card. Next stop? I'll never tell — but keep your passport ready.
All brands, winemakers, and vintages referenced are real and fact-based.
