Filipinos are a beer drinking lot. We drink them almost anytime—on special occasions or on days when we simply want to decompress. And, boy, do we love them served cold.
The numbers don’t lie. According to the 2019 Euromonitor International, majority or 62.6 percent of alcoholic beverage consumed by Filipinos is beer. Spirits—like brandy, gin, tequila, rum, whiskey, vodka—come at second with 33.7 percent. And wine? It only takes 3.6 percent of the pie.
More than two decades ago, bottles of wine during special occasions are only found on the tables of the rich and famous.
A Filipino businessman then had the idea to introduce wine to more Filipinos, to convince them that fermented grapes are great when celebrating milestones, too.
“Wine has an aspirational appeal—romance, sophistication,” said Nonoy Quimbo.
Twenty years ago, he thought of building a wine drinking culture in the Philippines. But his plan was met with skepticism, especially among other businessmen.
“When Nonoy told me about his plans, I was hesitant. Mainit dito sa Pilipinas, [it seemed impractical] to venture into the wine business,” related real estate tycoon Manny Villar.
“Thank God, Nonoy did not listen to me,” enthused Villar, “otherwise we wouldn’t have the no. 1 Filipino wine-producing company in the Philippines.”
A leap of faith
Quimbo admitted it wasn’t easy entering the business. “The task was to convert non-drinking Filipinos to take a leap of faith to try wine,” he shared.
Hence, in the early stage of their business, Novellino offered its wines to public for free taste, and yet, Quimbo said, “That was not easy to do; no one wanted to drink it.”
“People had doubts that the kind of wines we were selling was the kind of wine they wanted to drink.”
The founder and chief executive officer considered, and still does, the spreading of the wine gospel as a missionary work. “Every missionary work is a leap of faith.”
His hard work, fortunately, paid off. The goal has been achieved: to bridge the gap between aspiration and consumption.
The local wine brand was able to appeal to more Filipinos by offering what Filipinos want.
“Filipinos want sweet, chilled, sparkling,” said president and general manager Chris Quimbo.
Through partial fermentation, the company is able to turn the grape juice it imports into sweet-tasting wine with only 4.5 percent alcohol by volume.
Novellino, with its 15 wine varietals, has helped grow the consumption per capita in the Philippines from 0.1 liter to 0.2 liter per year, albeit still considered small when compared to the 40-liter wine consumption per capita of most European countries (France consumes 45.33 liters, Italy 42.71 liters).
Quimbo knows they still have a long way to go. “So far we’re not doing badly, but we still have a lot of people to convert.”
And there’s a huge opportunity ahead of them, as wine consumption in the country continues on its growth trajectory—increasing 15 percent in 2018 compared to the previous year.
Geared for the future
Quimbo has enlisted his son Chris to help take the company to the next level.
As it celebrates its 20th year in the business, Novellino vows to continue innovating its products, with the prospect of introducing the Novellino Wines on Tap. The company aims to bring its products to bars and restaurants through this format.
“We believe that by constantly implementing fresh ideas on products and processes, Novellino Wines will continue to be relevant in the fast-changing Philippine market,” said the younger Quimbo.
Backing their vision is a state-of-the-art winemaking plant in Canlubang, Laguna. Built on a 1.3-hectare land, it is equipped with the latest Italian winemaking technology, which is responsible for the fermentation, centrifugation, clarification, filtration, chilling, and bottling.
The plant, Quimbo said, is future-proofed for the next five years, with excess capacity ready to meet the demand for more Novellino products in the coming years.
“Our plant employs a sophisticated technology that is unparalleled in the country. We are even considered by foreign wineries as a thought leader in wine production, given the intricacies of producing sweet wine,” shared the older Quimbo.
From a small scale business in a 300-square-meter space in Metro Manila, Novellino Wines now produces millions of bottles of wine per year, exporting to countries where Filipinos are, such as the United States of America, the Middle East, and other Southeast Asian nations.
As the family-owned company grows, its officials vow to continue bridging the aforementioned gap, fulfilling Nonoy Quimbo’s vision of turning more Filipinos into wine drinkers.
“We are not trying to make wines for the wealthiest wine drinkers, we want to fulfill aspiration so we want to be accessible,” said Chris Quimbo.
