Italy's premier wine showcase Vinitaly is hitting new heights this year with the best Italy has to offer plus a record number of buyers and exhibitors from around the world.
The five-day fest brings the excitement of deal-making, competitions, tasting sessions and the latest wine news, making Verona the world capital of quality wines.
"California and Hungary are coming back in a big way and Georgia, Russia and India will be here for the first time" said Giovani Mantovani, head of the Veronafiera trade fair that organises the annual event.
Other countries represented include France, Spain, Chile, Argentina, Australia and South Africa.
But of course the event's main goal is to spotlight the latest and greatest in Italian wines from all over the country - not just the well-known regions like Piedmont, Veneto and Tuscany but also up-and-coming regions such as Campania, Puglia, Sicily and Sardinia.
What makes Italian wine special, organisers say, is the "huge range of grape varieties with strong territorial bonds that make Italy a storehouse of unique flavours".
This year's Vinitaly will unveil a special train, the Montalcino Express, that will take wine lovers into the home of top wine Brunello di Montalcino, leaving Siena for Montalcino every weekend starting this summer.
One of the other novelties will be Taste Italy, a special area where wine stewards can help buyers make the right Italian choices.
Aside from exhibiting wine and spirits, Vinitaly hosts the international olive oil trade fair Sol, now in its 13 edition, and Enolitech, which showcases the latest technology for the production of both wine and olive oil.
In another novelty, Japan's major sake' producers will be giving their own flavour to the event for the first time.
Vinitaly, now in its 41st year, will be preceded by the 15th edition of its International Wine Competition, which will see almost 3,500 wines from over 30 different countries competing in a variety of categories.
Prizes will be handed out at Vinitaly's opening gala night on Thursday.
The extravaganza ends Sunday with non-stop tastings - and an all-day buffet to help keep participants on their feet.
For the first time, all the corks popped at this year's event will be recycled.
