March 2016 - Beverage Journal, Maryland and Washington, DC

Transcription

MARCH 2016
MARYLAND BEVERAGE JOURNAL
MARCH 2016
TUSCAN
TURNAROUND
REDISCOVERING THE WINES
OF MONTEPULCIANO
The Tool of The Trade for the Licensed Beverage Industry
+
IRELAND’S
DISTILLERY BOOM
WHY NÉGOCIANTS
STILL MATTER
ON CALL WITH JAMESON
Mar16 Covers_Final.indd 4
2/9/16 3:57 PM
FEATURES
March16
06 Stadium Size Service
Tim Graham Looks to Score With Beverage Service at M&T Bank Stadium.
10 Too Cool for School
What you don't know about ICE.
22Green Shoots on the Emerald Isle
Irish Whiskey is experiencing a wave of new distilleries.
30 The Case for Vino Nobile
New reasons to rediscover Montepulciano’s noble wine.
DEPARTMENTS
02 Pub Page:
Distilled Spirits Continue Growth in 2015
04 Industry News:
The Wine Group Purchases
Benziger Family Winery
14
Industry Recap:
Wine Market Council Finds Positive
Direction, Led by Millennials, Women,
and Upscaled Tastes
10
22
18
18 Brand Profile:
Teeling Single Malt Irish Whiskey
20 Trend Spotting: Like Book Clubs
in the '90s, 'Paint & Sip' Nights
Have Become Bonding Experiences
34 Retail Focus: Why Négociants Still Matter
04
38 On Call: At the Jameson-centric
Barrelman Tavern in Chicago, Irish whiskey
keeps getting reinvented
30
40 New Products & Promotions
MARYLAND ONLY
44 Bar Shots:
Julian Demiri of The Rusty Scupper
06
46 Wine Buzz
48 The Find
50 Market Shots: Local Promotions
44
1mdWholesaler Directory,
Brand Index & Price List
WASHINGTON DC ONLY
43 Market Shots: Local Promotions
1dc Wholesaler Directory & Brand Index
17a Supplier Brand Index
VOLUME78Number03
38
March 2016 Beverage Journal 1
PUBPage
nearly $72 billion in 2015, supporting 1.4
million jobs in the hospitality industry.
Additionally, the spirits sector achieved
a slight increase in market share relative to
beer for the sixth straight year in 2015. Total
market share gains by spirits compared to
beer since 2000 totaled 6.7 points, with each
point of market share equaling approximately
$680 million in supplier sales for a total of
$4.6 billion.
Several key factors contributed to the
spirits sector’s continued growth, including:
l Demand for American whiskeys –
Bourbon, Tennessee and Rye – booming
in the U.S. and abroad
Distilled Spirits Growth
Continued in 2015
Distilled Spirits in the United States
have enjoyed a gain in market share for the
sixth consecutive year. The Distilled Spirits
Council of the United States (DISCUS) has
reported another year of steady growth in
2015 with supplier sales up 4.1 percent and
volumes up 2.3 percent. Distilled spirits
suppliers and marketers also marked the sixth
straight year of increasing their market share
relative to beer in 2015.
“The positive performance of distilled
spirits is the result of many factors including
market modernization, product innovation,
consumer premiumization and hospitality tax
restraint,” said DISCUS President and CEO
Kraig R. Naasz.
DISCUS reported strong growth in every
whiskey category for the second straight
year, with revenues rising 8 percent. Super
premium whiskeys were particularly popular
among American consumers with luxury
Bourbon, Scotch, Canadian and Irish whiskeys all recording double-digit gains. Other
categories performing ahead of the distilled
spirits average growth included Tequila, with
another exceptional year of 9.4 percent sales
growth, and Cognac, with sales growth of
16.2 percent.
l Millennials of legal drinking age
interest in discovery driving innovation
and premiumization
l State legislatures showed
hospitality tax restraint protecting
jobs and consumers
l Modernized alcohol laws expanding
consumer access and choice
l Focus on craft-style, artisanal
products benefiting both large and
small producers
l Growth of micro-distilleries generating excitement in the spirits sector
l Cocktail culture continuing to define
nightlife in cities across the country.
Additional 2015 Top Performers
Both Irish Whiskey and Single Malt
Scotch continued their rapid growth with
revenues up 19.9 percent and 13.5 percent,
worth $664 and $732 million, respectively,
as reported by DISCUS Chief Economist
David Ozgo. Cognac sales were also up an
impressive 16.2 percent, generating $1.3 billion in revenue, and Tequila revenues grew
9.4 percent, generating $2.3 billion revenue.
Despite growing only 0.5 percent, Vodka sales
reached $5.8 billion. n
2 Beverage Journal March 2016
THE BEVERAGE JOURNAL, INC.
(USPS 783-300)
Over 75 Years of Continuous Publication
Web Site www.beveragejournalinc.com
Subscription / Advertising / Editorial Inquiries:
410-796-5455
PUBLISHER
Stephen Patten
[email protected]
410 796-5455
PRESIDENT
Lee W. Murray
VICE PRESIDENT
Thomas W. Murray
LOCAL COLUMNISTS
Teddy Durgin
[email protected]
Doug Mace
[email protected]
Robert Plotkin
[email protected]
Photography
Desiree Stover
[email protected]
Ana Isabel Martinez Chamorro
[email protected]
Member
THE BEVERAGE NETWORK
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Web Site www.bevnetwork.com • 212-571-3232
The Maryland Beverage Journal and the Washington, DC Beverage
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All rights reserved.
Periodicals postage paid at Baltimore, MD and additional mailing offices. Subscription rates: MD edition; 1 year $45.00 plus tax, 2 years
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The opinions expressed by guest columnists are their own and
not necessarily those of The Beverage Journal, Inc. The Beverage
Journal, Inc. is an affirmative action/equal opportunity corporation.
Copyright 2016 the Beverage Journal, Inc. No part of this magazine
may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Not
responsible for unsolicited material or advertising claims.
This magazine was mailed from Baltimore, Maryland on or before
the 21st of the preceding month. If there has been a delivery delay,
please contact your local postmaster.
Category Highlights for 2015
DISCUS estimated that overall retail sales
of distilled spirits in the U.S. market reached
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY
Stephen Patten
Publisher
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to:
The Beverage Journal, Inc.
P.O. Box 159, Hampstead, MD 21074-0159
www.BeverageJournalInc.com
FACEBOOK.COM/CROWNROYAL
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY.
CROWN ROYAL Regal Apple Flavored Whisky.
35% Alc/Vol. ©2015 The Crown Royal Company, Norwalk, CT.
Available in 50mL, 200mL,
375mL, 750mL, 1 Liter and 1.75L
IndustryNews
The Wine Group
Purchases Benziger
Family Winery
Wine Group and Benziger Family Winery recently announced that The Wine
Group has purchased the Sonoma Mountain Benziger Family Winery.
“We are honored to bring the Benziger
Family Winery and its team into The Wine
Group. We look forward to continuing to
build on Benziger’s reputation as a producer of some of Sonoma County’s best wines
while providing visitors with an unrivaled
experience at the beautiful and unique Sonoma properties,” said Brian Vos, CEO of
The Wine Group. “As we continue to move
into the Super- Premium category, we have
been thoughtful in our search for a winery
that produces exceptional wines while sharing our values of integrity, social responsibility, and innovation. The Benziger family is
not only celebrated for its outstanding wine
quality, but their strong team will be a great
cultural fit within The Wine Group.”
Founded by the Benziger family in 1981,
Benziger Family Winery is located on a biodynamically certified 85-acre estate adjacent
to Jack London State Park in the town of
Glen Ellen. Benziger produces a wide range
of Super- and Ultra-Premium wines sourced
from Sonoma County, with many of the
grapes grown in its six vineyards located in
the Sonoma Valley, Sonoma Coast, Russian
River Valley, Sonoma Mountain and Pine
Mountain-Cloverdale Peak AVAs.
"Thirty-five years ago my father and I purchased the Benziger site. I am proud of the
work our family has done to grow the Benziger brand and create a destination for consumers that is founded on Biodynamics and
green farming practices,” said Founder and
CEO Mike Benziger. “With the knowledge
that we’re selling the winery to a privately
held company that shares our values, now is
the perfect time for me to pursue other passions. We are certain that The Wine Group
will carry on the Benziger family’s legacy of
quality.”
In addition to winery staff joining The
Wine Group, key executives will also join
the company to help manage the winery and
provide valuable continuity. Chris Benziger,
brother to Mike Benziger, will assume the
role of VP Trade Relations at Benziger Family Winery, and Joe Benziger, also brother to
Mike Benziger, will maintain his position as
Imagery Winemaker. n
Andy Shehan, Bill Moeser, and Dan Zaccagnini, all with RNDC; at Social Pub and Pie in Federal Hill
for the Benziger sales presentation.
Here are Jenny Huston, Marc Ehrhardt, Greg Scott, all with RNDC; Michelle Bennett, The Wine Group; Jake Ward, Heather Ruleau, both with RNDC; Megan Casserly,
The Wine Group; John Wagoner, Bill Moeser and Diana Furmage, all with RNDC; at Social Pub and Pie in Federal Hill for the Benziger sales presentation.
PLAY RESPONSIBLY. 35% alc./vol. (70 proof) © 2016 Spirits Marque One, San Francisco, CA
See your RNDC Sales Representative for details.
S
tadium
IZE
ervice
Tim Graham Looks to Score
With Beverage Service at M&T Bank Stadium
By Teddy Durgin
I
f you've ever owned, operated, or
tended bar at a sports-themed restaurant or tavern, you know there is
always the risk that some customers
may get a bit out of hand if their team is
losing. Heck, even when the Ravens, Redskins, Orioles or Nationals are doing well,
the atmosphere can get rowdy. Chances
are, you only have to be concerned about
a few diehards getting too distraught over
a final score. Tim Graham, Beverage Manager at M&T Bank Stadium for concessionaire Aramark, has to worry about a few
6thousand!
Beverage Journal March 2016
Graham has held his current job since
last June, having previously served as Beverage Manager at Oriole Park at Camden
Yards. He wasn't there when the Ravens
had their Super Bowl run a couple of years
back. But he was there for this past season's injury-plagued, 5-11 disappointment.
"There are so many moving parts behind the scenes," he said, during a recent
interview with the Beverage Journal. "It's
how you carry yourself and how your staff
carries themselves in those moments that
can be the difference between a mob of
50 angry people or everybody just keeping
their cool. There are just a lot of things you
can't control in this particular business.
You can't control the on-field product. You
can't control the game day weather. But
anything you can't control, you still need to
be ready for. If it is a poor season on the
field like the Ravens have had this year, you
need to know what that brings. What that
brings is tension. The people aren't quite
as easy-going. They are a little quicker to
complain. So, you have to be prepared for
that. The same holds true for when they
are doing really well. We'll want to ride
that out and celebrate with our many fans."
Graham's responsibilities are many.
Chiefly, he is tasked with hiring and training the stadium's bar staff. One of the challenges, of course, is his hires may only be on
the job for eight days out of the whole year.
To train someone new for a live NFL event is
almost impossible. "You can't mock up what
they are going to continually see on game
day," he said. "But we constantly have a demographic of new staff who we try to pair up
with our veteran bartenders. We really rely
on some of our strong folks, some of whom
have been here since the stadium opened, to
make sure everybody's comfortable."
A lot of the bartenders and servers Graham employs do it "for the fun of it," he
noted. They have other full-time jobs. Others are so-called "lifers," career servers who
bartend wherever the proverbial fish are biting depending on the time of the year. A lot
of the suite attendants who work at M&T
also work at Verizon Center in Washington,
D.C., or at Oriole Park or at the Nationals
stadium, for instance. "Probably 60 percent
of the people are here for the extra income,"
Graham estimated. "It's good money for the
time spent. The other 40 percent, I would
say, are adding this to their food and beverage service jobs to fill out their year-round
schedule."
In training servers and bartenders, Graham is not shy about instructing such staff in
the knowledge that, sometimes, people just
need to be told what they want to drink. A
lot of customers, especially those standing
in lines with anxious people behind them,
get anxious themselves about the question:
'What would you like?" Graham and his staff
have found it much more effective to lead
with: 'Would you like to try?'
Graham remarked, "If you lead with
'Would you like to try our Purple Whatev-
www.BeverageJournalInc.com er, five or six times out of 10 they'll answer,
'Yeah, OK, I'll try that.' They don't have to
think about it. It keeps the line moving, and
it elevates the bartender from an order taker
into someone who has a suggestion, someone who has valuable input. You're always
walking a fine line between helping the customer decide and telling him or her what
they want. In the end, though, you can't
Graham remarked,
"If you lead with
'Would you like to try
our Purple Whatever?'
Five or six times out of
10 they'll answer,
'Yeah, OK, I'll try that.'
They don't have to
think about it. It keeps
the line moving, and
it elevates the
bartender from an
order taker into
someone who has a
suggestion, someone
who has valuable
input. "
really re-invent the wheel, especially when
you're serving thousands and thousands of
drinks."
He went on, "I also order all of the alcohol for the stadium, all of the wine and liquor and some of the beer. Most of the beer
portables and the stands that have drafts
come from our central warehouse. All of the
liquor, though, is controlled by me. I order
it, and I and my team issue it out to each of
the bars and monitor their yields and any of
other issues that might come up. We want
to always make sure we have almost exactly
the right amount of everything. I have 32
bartenders at club level. Probably my main
game day duty is to watch over them. Every
bartender has their own unique stock. So,
part of my role is to keep them accountable.
Also, we have the suites where there are a lot
of special orders and higher-end products going up there. I look over all of that."
But it's not just Ravens Game Day where
Graham and his staffers spring into action.
There are probably about 200 days where
there is something going on at the stadium
and catering is needed -- everything from
corporate events and holiday parties to
weddings and concerts."We do events year
round," he stated. "For example, we have
dozens of weddings every year. Some people
will get married elsewhere and then have
their reception on the club level in one of
the lounge areas. But a lot of the ceremonies are here, too, because the space is purchased for a block of time and some find it
both unique and cost-effective to use the one
space for the entire event."
If he has an operational philosophy that
he lives by and tries to impart to his staff,
it's this: "Under promise and over-perform.
Don't promise anything you know you can't
deliver on. That's the best way to get into
March 2016 Beverage Journal 7
Stadium Size Service
trouble. I am definitely not saying set your
bar low. But make it so you have room to
exceed people's expectations. Allow yourself
room to blow minds."
One way he does that is beverage selection. Under his leadership, M&T Bank Stadium has quickly garnered one of the best
reputations in the NFL as being a venue to
get really good drinks. One of the reasons is
something Graham likes to call "in-between
cocktails." He explains, "What it comes
down to is perceived value. Anybody can
make a rum and Coke. The key is to find
that little way that make drinks just a tiny bit
more than you would expect. The bartender
is in the driver's seat of the experience, because drinks are often what customers are
presented with first. ... People are coming
and paying a premium price for drinks; they
want to walk away from the bar feeling confident that they spent their money well."
He continued, "We may do a signature
cocktail, a Sangria or a punch, that utilizes
"... typically, there are
a lot of beers and dark
spirits mixed with cola.
It's really important that
you keep the female
consumer in mind, to
give them a reason to
come into the concourse
and spend money. You
have to give every
consumer a reason to
walk into your space
where you're selling
things. If they're staying
in their seats because
there's nothing inside
for them, then we've
lost out on residual food
sales and the like."
products already on-hand, while also managing cost. But it's also not something stadium
goers expect when they go to a bar. It also
crosses demographics. A lot of the stadium
experience is male-driven. So, typically, there
are a lot of beers and dark spirits mixed with
cola. It's really important that you keep the
female consumer in mind, to give them a reason to come into the concourse and spend
money. You have to give every consumer a
reason to walk into your space where you're
selling things. If they're staying in their seats
because there's nothing inside for them,
then we've lost out on residual food sales
and the like."
This creativity has extended to M&T's
catering events, its suite service on game
days, and other special gatherings. "With catering and in the suites, that's where we have
the opportunity to add a little flair. These
are people who are entertaining, and they
expect something upscale. We have a menu
that we've crafted, which is a great starting
point, but I love working with the suite holders who want to customize their bar area. To
be able to provide something way better than
they expected, that is the best feeling. They
get eight games a year, and they pay darn
good money for it. The same thing goes for
weddings. We have one chance to make a
bride happy. Probably the most rewarding part is when the bride and their family
comes back to us with an e-mail or a call and
says, ‘Wow, you guys knocked it out of the
park! That was awesome!"'
As for the most challenging part of his
job, Graham harkened back to his transition from working a Major League Baseball
season to now working pro football. He
concluded, "You don't have a 10-game home
stand where you can say, 'Hey, bartender.
Yesterday, you did this wrong. So, let's work
on it today.' Some people are gone for six
months, and then they're back for just eight
games. Basically, in foodservice at this scale,
the approach we live by is: 'Stuff is going
to go wrong behind the scenes. It's never
perfect no matter how much you plan. We
know that. But as long as the guest doesn't
see us sweat, we're fine!'" n
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®
Too Cool for School
What You Don’t Know About Ice
By Robert Plotkin
Shine a bright light in the eyes of an accomplished
mixologist and he or she will eventually admit that ice
is the most important ingredient in cocktails. It impacts
every aspect of mixed drinks and does so with little
cost and no marketing or packaging. In a time when
success behind the bar is measured one drink at
a time, outfitting your bar with the most
advantageous type of ice is essential.
Its contribution goes beyond lowering
the temperature of a cocktail to its proper
serving temperature of around 37-38˚F.
While only the genuinely obsessed would
stick a thermometer into the drink to ensure
it’s sufficiently chilled, the fact remains that
cocktails rapidly increase in temperature moments after hitting the glass. Ice plays a crucial role in postponing the inevitable.
“Equally important, ice introduces water
into a drink. It helps to balance the blend
and allows the various ingredients to meld
and harmonize,” says Debbi Peek, portfolio
mixologist for Bacardi USA. “The water also
softens the biting edge of spirits, as well as
accentuates their flavor.”
According to Jonathan Pogash, acclaimed mixologist and beverage consultant,
"The relative hardness of ice is an often overlooked attribute. A hard cube, lump cube
or block of ice will dilute a drink at a much
slower rate than your run-of-the-mill ice machine ice cube. If ice isn’t hard enough it will
melt too quickly and over-dilute the cocktail.
A “wet” ice cube is one that has been tarnished with excess water on its surface, thus
allowing it to melt at a much quicker rate
than desired.”
Another consideration is the nature of
the water used to make ice, the quality of
which will affect the taste of the finished
drink. For that reason it’s advisable to use
ice made from spring or mineral water.
Celebrated chef and mixologist Kathy
Casey thinks ice made with soft water produces better ice for drink making. “Many
operators fail to factor in the type of water
they use to make their ice. While spring or
mineral waters are preferable, they’re not
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What You Don't Know About Ice
necessarily a practical option at a bar. However, installing a water softener is relatively
inexpensive. And because the water is also
filtered, the ice comes out free of haze or
clouding. Crystal clear ice is more aesthetically pleasing.”
Size Matters
The size and shape of the ice you use
play a key role in how drinks taste. “Small ice
cubes tend to melt faster than larger cubes
and will therefore more quickly dilute mixed
drinks,” contends Bacardi’s Debbi Peek. “A
drink made with small cubes will taste best
when it’s first served, but becomes watery
and less flavorful in short order. Larger ice
cubes melt slower and release less water into
a drink. That means the first sip will taste as
good as the last.”
Ryan Magerian—mixologist and creator
of Aviation Gin— thinks large format ice
looks a whole lot sexier than standard bar
ice, especially when stacked in a Highball
glass. “More importantly, that using fewer,
large format cubes presents less surface area
and results in slower dilution. I recommend
making drinks with 1.25-inch cubes, especially those from Kold-Draft or Hoshizaki
machines. They’re produced to be dense
and slow melting.”
Casey also prefers working with larger
ice. “I think the square cubes from KoldDraft are superior. They’re perfectly clear,
uniformly shaped, and because of their density, they melt slower and cool faster.”
Long a staple in Japan, ice balls are gaining popularity behind American bars. ice
balls are seemingly the perfect marriage of
form and function. Made on-premise in
molds or carved individually, they look like
crystal clear spheres between 3-5 inches in diameter. Their singular shape allows them to
melt at a slower rate, thus reducing dilution.
Journalist Yuri Kato is the author of the
recently published book, Japanese Cocktails
(2009 Chronicle Books, San Francisco) “In Japan, we carve ice balls out of mineral water
using an ice pick or knife. In fact, to become
a member of the National Bartenders Association of Japan, a bartender must be able
to quickly carve a perfect ice ball. Japanese
people appreciate the
ice ball when sipping
whisky. It keeps the
whisky at a steady temperature about an
hour.”
Peek likes using
ice balls when serving
cocktails on the rocks.
“Since it is round the
corners don’t melt
leaving the first sip as
cold as the last. They’re
crystal clear, look sexy
and last a long time.
In a recent cocktail
competition, I presented my entry with
an ice ball to ensure it
wasn’t watered down by
the time it made it to
the judges’ table.”
Retro Chillers
Back in the day, cocktails were prepared
with chipped, cracked or crushed ice. Even
as late as the ‘70s bars typically carried both
cubed and crushed ice in the bartender’s
station. But as juleps, frappes and smashes
slipped from the limelight, so did the need
for stocking crushed ice behind the bar. The
Tiki revival underway has changed that.
“Tiki drinks are those popularized after
Repeal through the 1950s and 60s,” says Jonathan Pogash. “Luminaries such as “Trader”
Vic Bergeron knew that crushed ice created
a massively cold drink and that people in
the tropical South Pacific needed more help
beating the heat than anyone else.”
Its cooling abilities results from having
more surface area
than any other form
of ice, second only to
shaved ice. Adds Magerian, “That makes
crushed ice perfect for
making Tiki drinks.
Not only does it make
them cold, but they’re
potent drinks, so the
extra dilution is an
advantage.”
While the cocktail
may reign supreme,
ice appears to be the
power behind the
throne. As Pogash says,
“You’ve walked into a
place that cares about
their drinks when you
see the proper ice being plopped, dropped,
chipped or cracked
into your glass.” n
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indUstry reCAp
key Arrows Up
wine MArket CoUnCil Finds positive direCtion,
led by MillenniAls, woMen, UpsCAled tAstes
By sara kay
W
ine Market Council’s
much-awaited annual
report was delivered in
NYC in late January just
after a blizzard that blanketed the east
coast. But there was plenty of trending
data to warm up attendees’ spirits,
particularly with respect to Millennials
and women.
Total wine shipments to the U.S.
market continue to grow: from 371
million in 2014 to 380 million in 2015,
and posting gains annually since a level
of 216 million in 2000. To get into the
attitudes and trends within these numbers,
Wine Market Council and Nielsen team
up to look at both sales data and survey
responses, sorting it out by generation
and type of drinker.
Most significant this year is Millennials
(age 21-38) overtaking Baby Boomers (5169) as the most powerful wine generation.
Millennials, whose youngest members came
of legal drinking age in 2015, now represent
36% of the total U.S. adult wine-drinking
population; Boomers represent 34%. More-
over, taking a closer look at consumption habits, among High Frequency Wine
Drinkers (defined as those drinking wine
at least several times a week), 32% of Millennials report having wine daily, vs. 28%
for Boomers. And Millennials are averaging
3.1 glasses of wine per drinking occasion,
compared to 1.9.
Wine Market Council President John
Gillespie noted that the Millennials are
accelerating their wine consumption:
Looking at the net percentage gain/loss
when asked if they were drinking more,
less or the same amount of wine consumed
over the past two years, Millennials
were up a net 10%, Baby Boomers were
down 6%.
Gillespie also pointed to an “involvement gap,” via which the most active wine
consumers have come to lead the market.
The High Frequency Wine Drinker segment practically doubled, from 7.6% of
the U.S. adult population in 2000 to 13%
in 2015, the bulk of which happened by
2010. Of special interest within the High
Frequency segment: High End Wine
HiGH FreQUenCy And oCCAsionAl
wine drinkinG popUlAtion by GenerAtion
Source: Wine Market Council - ORC SEGMENTATION SURVEY, JUNE 2015
HIGH FREQUENCY
(Drink Wine At Least Once/Week)
OCCASIONAL
70+
70+
10%
12%
Baby Boomer
(51-69)
38%
Baby Boomer
Millennial
Gen X
(21-38)
30%
(39-50)
20%
Drinkers (who buy $20+ wine at least
monthly). More than half (54%) of High
End Wine Drinkers reported consuming
more wine in 2015 than they did the
previous year. In essence, these already
strong consumers are having even more
of an impact.
Market Movers
Danny Brager, Senior VP of Nielsen’s
Beverage Alcohol Practice, discussed
trends among specific products. The top
ten wines in the U.S. for 2015, in order,
are: Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon,
Red Blends, Pinot Grigio/Gris, Pinot
Noir, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Moscato,
White Zinfandel and Malbec. Sauvignon
Blanc was the big surprise: the crisp
white wine’s +13.3% value change and a
+10.7% volume change were the highest
in both categories for all varietal wines.
Sparkling wine is on fire at the
moment, showing an 11.7% value
increase from 2014, outpacing table wine’s
value increase of 5.2%. Brager credited
Prosecco specifically with bringing new
buyers into the category. When surveyed
about their Prosecco purchases in 2015,
31% of respondents said they were new to
sparkling wine, and had not bought any
the previous year.
31%
Millennial
Gen X
19%
40%
Youth MoveMent: By the end of 2015, all
Millennials had reached legal drinking age,
making their generation 36% of u.S. wine
drinkers compared to 34% for Baby Boomers.
And while more Boomers are currently high
Frequency Wine Drinkers than Millennials
are, the younger generation’s consumption is
increasing more rapidly.
It a l l a wa i t s
Better Beckons
Beringer Rhine House open daily.
Enjoy Responsibly. Beringer.com/visit
Introducing
Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
©2016 Beringer Vineyards, St. Helena, CA
indUstry reCAp
pAst tHree MontH pUrCHAsers oF
iMported wine by CoUntry oF oriGin
(BASE: HIGH FREQUENCY WINE DRINKERS - MILLENNIALS AND BOOMERS)
ITALY
women and wine
FRANCE
Danelle Kosmal, VP of Beverage Alcohol
Practice for Nielsen, discussed the increasing
importance of female wine buyers, who now
account for 57% of wine consumption in
the U.S. Offering insight into their buying
attitudes, Kosmal noted that 66% of women
pre-plan their wine purchases in general,
especially with wines priced $15+, boxed
wine and sparkling wine. Kosmal also
noted that 32% of females make their wine
purchases on “auto-pilot” (i.e., they know
what they want when they get there), but
also that 22% of women can be influenced
by in-store browsing.
Women surveyed were more likely to
view wine as “innovative” than men were;
and a remarkable 51% of females 21-34 said
it is “very” or “somewhat” important for
wine to be organic or sustainable. Marketing
methods used to attract women to wine
are also something to consider, according
to Kosmal. While male brains respond
to quick, direct messaging, declarative
statements, competitive situations and
seeing cost savings at point of sale, women
are more easily swayed by emotion-based
marketing, visual imagery, stress-free tactics
and social connections.
69%
48%
46%
42%
AUSTRALIA
SPAIN
53%
36%
CHILE
44%
28%
ARGENTINA
36%
21%
PORTUGAL
39%
18%
SOUTH AFRICA
31%
16%
34%
7%
AUSTRIA
■ Boomers
40%
22%
GERMANY
■ Millennials
46%
26%
NEW ZEALAND
GREECE
72%
61%
32%
9%
two More trends to watch:
 Alternative packaging: Not so taboo.
Nielsen tracked a 13.7% increase in
value and a 12.3% increase in volume
over 2014 for 3L boxes. Tetra Paks
registered a 21.9% value increase and
a 21.8% volume increase. Wine in
cans, both still and sparkling, showed
a 59.9% value increase and a 128.9%
volume increase.
Source: Wine Market Council
High Frequency Tracking Study, NOV 2015
MILLennIALS thInK/DRInK GLoBAL:
When it comes to buying imports,
Millennials appear to have more
adventurous tastes than Baby Boomers.
 People are spending more on table
wine. Brager noted a dividing line in the
table wine category around the $10/bottle
mark. Both volume and value in the $4$7.99 range are shrinking, whereas bottles
in the $8-$10.99 range saw an increase of
4.5% in value and 4.2% in volume over
the course of 2015. And wines tracked at
higher price points showed double-digit
growth in value and volume. ■
vArietAl GrowtH led by sAUv blAnC, tHen red blends,
pinot noir, CAb And pinot Gris/GriGio
Source: Nielsen Total U.S. All Outlets (xAOC + Liquor Plus + Conv + Military); 52 w/e 1/2/2016
SALES SHARE
VARIETAL/TYPE
VALUE %
CHANGE
VOLUME %
CHANGE
AVERAGE PRICE/
750 ML
VALUE
VOLUME
100%
100%
TOTAL TABLE WINE
+5.2%
1.8%
$6.90
18.9
19.3
CHARDONNAY
+3.7
+0.9
$6.76
16.4
19.3
CABERNET SAUVIGNON
+8.1
+5.2
$8.36
12.5
9.9
RED BLENDS (up to 3L)
+10.1
+7.0
$8.69
9.0
9.3
PINOT GRIGIO/GRIS
+7.7
+7.6
$6.66
7.1
4.9
PINOT NOIR
+9.2
+6.7
$10.01
6.5
7.8
MERLOT
-2.3
-4.1
$5.78
5.7
4.3
SAUVIGNON BLANC
+13.3
+10.7
$9.04
4.6
5.9
MOSCATO
+4.2
+4.2
$5.39
2.6
4.5
WHITE ZINFANDEL
-5.6
-7.5
$4.00
2.2
1.7
MALBEC
+2.0
+1.0
$8.75
2.2
2.0
RIESLING
-0.2
-0.1
$7.44
1.9
1.9
WHITE BLENDS (up to 3L)
-4.5
-6.2
$6.81
1.8
1.2
ZINFANDEL
+0.8
-2.9
$10.26
1.1
1.2
SYRAH/SHIRAZ
-10.3
-11.2
$6.70
42nd Annual
On-site Registration
$15 per person
Open to the trade only
with proof of industry
employment
Ocean City Hotel-Motel-Restaurant Association
March 6 & 7
Sunday: 11 am-5 pm
Monday: 11 am-4 pm
OC Convention Center
Ocean City, Maryland
Featuring Bryan Voltaggio
from Bravo’s Top CHef
& Top Chef Masters
At the show, you will find:
show specials
celebrity speakers
cost saving solutions
educational sessions
EXCLUSIVELY FOR THE TRADE
NO ONE UNDER 21 ADMITTED
newest & most innovative products
800-626-2326 x 2
craft beer & local wine
red, white & brew stage
one-stop shopping
(Business license or business card)
Must be over 21
BRANDPROFILE
Teeling Single Malt
Irish Whiskey
T
he Teeling Whiskey Company has expanded its premium
Irish whiskey portfolio with the launch of its award winning Irish Single Malt. This Single Malt, was recently
named World’s Best Irish Single Malt at the 2015 World
Whiskies Awards.
Teeling Single Malt is the third release in the Premium range of
Teeling expressions completing their full range to form the Teeling
Trinity of non-aged statement of Irish whiskeys. To add a unique
depth of character and flavor, Teeling Single Malt consists of aged
malt whiskey up to 23 years old that has been matured in five different wine casks including Sherry, Port, Madeira, White Burgundy
and Cabernet Sauvignon. This combination of cask maturation techniques has never been done before in Irish whiskey and creates a
truly innovative Irish whiskey bursting with personality. Like all the
Teeling whiskeys, it is bottled at 46% with no chill filtration allowing
for all the natural flavors of the whiskey to be retained.
Jack Teeling, founder of the Teeling Whiskey Company, commented, “We are delighted to be able to release another expression
of Teeling whiskey that helps expand consumer choice and challenge
existing perceptions of Irish whiskey. Our new Teeling Single Malt
proves Irish whiskey can have big bold flavors that appeal to Single
Malt drinkers without losing its distinctive Irish identity.”
The Teeling Whiskey Company was founded by Jack Teeling in
2012 to bring back an independent voice to the Irish whiskey category. The Teeling family whiskey heritage dates back to distilling in
Dublin in 1782 and Walter Teeling, who set up a distillery in Marrowbone Lane in the Liberties. Jack and his brother Stephen, Sales
and Marketing Director, are just the latest generation of Teelings
involved in the Irish whiskey industry and have just opened the first
new distillery in Dublin for over 125 years with their Teeling Distillery and Visitors Center in Newmarket, Dublin 8. n
T
trend
spotting
Paint
Nite based in
Boston, sets up
for both on- and
off-premise
licensees.
Like BOOk CLuBs in The 1990s, ‘PainT & siP’ nighTs
have BeCOme BOnding exPerienCes
By Jeff Siegel
S
tacy Miller knows exactly why
people come to her Paint & Sip
Studio on Manhattan’s Upper
West Side: “It works because
it’s an alternative to a night out that’s not
passive, that’s in a social environment, and
that’s kind of like a party,” says the Chief
Operating Officer, adding that a night spent
painting and sipping is rewardingly interactive and eminently
affordable compared
A group of friends with
to an evening at a
the fruits of their fun
club or a movie.
In this, occasions where customers
spend an evening drinking wine and
painting pictures has become a surprisingly
successful small business trend. There are at
least four national paint and sip chains, and
the two largest have almost 200 franchise
units each. And that doesn’t include
independent operations like Miller’s—all
of which should give any wine retailer who
has spare space, an inclination for
art, and the proper liquor licenses
canvas for thought.
The appeal? The paint and sip
labor at Wine & Design
demographic, which roughly parin Wilmington, NC
allels that of Pinot Grigio fans.
They’re women of a certain age
who want to get out of the house
but don’t necessarily want to be
hassled in a bar or deal with the
aggravation at the local cineplex.
Paint and sip lets them drink
wine, hang out with friends, and
do something creative. A souvenir you can actually hang on your
wall is icing on the cake.
 BYOB or retail? This depends not
only on whether you have the inventory,
and necessary employees but local liquor
laws. Does your license allow you to do
one or the other, if not both?
Paint supplies? Do you want to

provide them, or let your customers bring
their own? Or team up with a third party
that takes care of the paint part while you
take care of the other liquids.
Lessons or doodling? Most of

the chains have instructors who guide
customers through the process of creating a picture, but that’s not required.
Sometimes, it’s as much about the social
aspect—like-minded people getting together to visit, paint, and enjoy wine.
 When can you do it? Most paint
and sip events are held at night, which isn’t
going to help someone who doesn’t stay
open in the evening. On the other hand,
for a store with limited open space, opening
after hours may be the ideal approach.
 What to charge? The fee for an
evening’s painting class, depending on
the operator and location, is about $30 a
person. Is it worth the time and trouble
for the $400 in revenue to get a dozen
people in at night? It certainly is if the
event brings the participants back for the
wine, sans paint. ■
top photographs courtesy paint nite
The POWer Of PainT
So what do you need to know if you
want to let your customers paint and sip?
FROM
GRAIN TO
GLASS
westcorkdistillers.com
Produced, Distilled and Bottled in Ireland
by West Cork Distillers, LLC.
Imported by M.S. Walker, Inc. Somerville, MA. 40% Alc/Vol.
@WestCorkDistillers
Please Enjoy Responsibly
T HIS S T. PAT RIC K ’ S D AY
DIS C OV E R T HE T R U E
IRIS H S
PI R I T
SPI
GREEN SHOOTS ON
THE EMERALD ISLE
IRISH WHISKEY IS UNDERGOING AN UNPRECEDENTED WAVE
OF NEW DISTILLERIES
BY JACK ROBERTIELLO
I
mitation is the highest form of
flattery, the saying goes. But
investment is pretty high up there,
too. For years now, Irish whiskey
has been posting noteworthy gains on a
small base. Now the supply side of this
phenomenon has jumped in with real
capital, and big plans.
Here is most of what you need to
know about the growth trajectory of
Irish whiskey: In 2011, there were four
distilleries operating in Ireland, and
now, at least 14 are up and running
with nearly 20 more in various stages
of planning. And make no doubt about
where distillers expect most of their new
whiskey to be flowing: to the United
States, their number one market.
Irish has for decades been driven
by the success of Jameson, representing
TOP, LEFT TO RIGHT: Jameson has been the
leader of the Irish pack, not only in terms of volume
but also innovation. Kilbeggan, made at what
was once the Cooley Distillery, is now enjoying an
elevated profile as part of Beam Suntory. Tullamore
D.E.W.’s sparkling new facility went into operation
even before they had installed all the new stills; they
are now the only Irish distillery to have separate stills
dedicated to grain, malt and pot still production.
FAR LEFT & RIGHT: Teeling, located right
in Dublin, is one of the new distilleries taking
advantage of Irish momentum to gain a foothold in
the U.S., the country’s best export market.
about 75% of U.S. volume. But as other
brands—Tullamore D.E.W. and Kilbeggan, specifically—were purchased by
companies with a strong presence
in the U.S., more weight has been
put behind them. In some cases,
new iterations and brand extensions
have arrived, with companies—not
always the big ones—committing
greater resources. Even young, lesser-know labels are showing growth—
Castle Brands’ Knappogue Castle age-
statement single malts and value-priced
Clontarf, for example.
M a l i n i P a t e l , V P o f Wo r l d
Whiskies and Americas Innovation
f o r B e a m S u n t o r y, o w n e r o f
Kilbeggan, Two Gingers and three
other Irish brands, summarizes: “A
global boom over the last several
years has driven the interest of Irish
whiskey amongst consumers looking
for quality spirits with distinct flavor
profiles and unique stories. We are also
seeing a larger variety of Irish whiskey
available today than five years ago with
new brands coming to market at a very
fast pace and established brands releasing
new expressions.”
“Irish continues to gain momentum
in numbers and with bartenders with
its very approachable style and taste,”
says Sona Bajaria, Brand Director for
Jameson. “Jameson has opened the door
for Irish whiskey for American consumers
generally—they drink it and enjoy it,
even if they move along in their whiskey
journey to try other Irish products, which
is happening increasingly, as they move
to super and ultra-premium, and that has
benefited our higher-end brands Powers,
Midleton, Green Spot, Yellow Spot and
Redbreast.”
IRISH WHISKEY
“We’re seeing
more single malts
and single pot still
whiskies and will see
more of that coming
on, with a real
breadth of style and
price points.”
One of the few mysteries in Irish is the
next steps for Bushmills, Ireland’s oldest
registered distillery. In 2014 Bushmills
became part of the Proximo portfolio,
which has always been defined by the
Jose Cuervo brand. Bushmills is routinely
respected as an important Irish whiskey,
especially for its malt expressions, and for
having introduced the first flavored Irish
in the U.S. several years ago: Bushmills
Irish Honey. The trade is eagerly
anticipating what Proximo will do with
the brand.
Edge of the Irish
Irish whiskey is in general considered
lighter and smoother than bourbon
and Scotch, a more approachable and
a great entry point for newcomers to
whiskey. While most Irish whiskey
sold here is blended, many brands
now feature extensions in the
individual styles—single grain, single
SELLING POINTS
● Irish
whiskey is generally lighter and
smoother than bourbon and Scotch,
more approachable and a great
entry point for whiskey newcomers.
● New
expressions of Irish whiskey
have great appeal for whiskey
enthusiasts as suppliers are putting
the best material and effort into
specialized bottlings.
● Irish
whiskey is underrated as a
mixer; did you know that half the
cocktails on the menu at The Dead
Rabbit (recently named Best Bar
in America) are made with Irish
whiskey?
ABOVE: The Kilbeggan Distillery, formerly Cooley, has
a copper pot still that dates to the early 1800s. Barrel
management is a key component of Irish whiskey
production; seen here, a cooper at Jameson.
malt and single pot still—with more aged
expressions and, lately, cask-finished
types available.
Other innovations are taking hold.
Jameson last fall launched Jameson
Caskmates, finished in stout casks.Teeling
sells a small batch finished in rum casks
and a single grain matured in Cabernet
Sauvignon barrels. And Tullamore just
released Trilogy, a blend of triple-distilled
grain, malt and pot whiskies matured in
three cask types—bourbon barrels,
Oloroso Sherry butts and rum casks.
Tullamore’s oldest release to
date, Trilogy is part of the range
expansion that will roll out over
the next few years, a result of being
owned by William Grant, a company
with access to a broad variety of high
quality casks with which to experiment,
says U.S. Brand Ambassador Tim Herlihy.
“The real significant change in Irish
whiskey, beyond the growth of so many
new producers, is it’s no longer just entry
level,” he says. “We’re seeing more single
malts and single pot still whiskies and will
see more of that coming on, with a real
breadth of style and price points.”
Future Bright
“Irish whisky has definitely arrived and
the big brands continue to grow substantially, making this a very interesting and
exciting time,” says Jack Teeling, Managing Director of the Teeling Whiskey
Company. “Things are very much dominated by the big guys and the new whis-
kies are coming from a narrow production
base, but there’s a whole host of smaller
guys trying to get into the business, and I
believe over the next five to seven years,
as production comes on stream, the supply
will expand quite dramatically in terms of
GETTING GREENER
ALL THE TIME…
A
rguably a sign of the Irish
category’s continuing strength,
the U.S. market has seen a fair
number of new entries in recent years.
It’s no shock to see them put their
nationalism front and center, playing off
Irish history, geography and tradition. To
wit: West Cork and Donegal Estates both
evoke beloved counties on the Emerald
Isle. Claddagh Irish Whiskey honors
the traditional Irish ring design, whose
significance dates back centuries. The
Pogues is made in partnership with
the ever-popular Irish band.
The Irishman, produced at the
Walsh family distillery, leaves no doubt
as to its heritage; plus the recent
extension, Writers Tears, honors 19th
century Irish writers and playwrights.
Kinahan’s Irish Whiskey, with Dublin
roots dating back to 1779, was
actually the first ever whiskey to be
trademarked. Winebow is bringing in
the brand to the U.S., with a blended
whiskey (92 proof) and a 10-year-old
single malt.
With straightforward, authentic
appeal, the expansion of labels in the
Irish category has the feel of a family
getting bigger.
IRISH WHISKEY
THE POITIN FACTOR
RETAIL SWEET SPOT
The DISCUS 2015 numbers are
in; Irish whiskey grew more than
16% in volume and nearly 20% in
revenue. Interestingly, while Irish
overall accounts for 5.4% of U.S.
spirits volume overall, it accounts for
17.3% of high-end premium spirits,
priced $20-$30. This suggests
that Irish is well positioned for the
premiumization trend, with a retail
sweet spot that is not dirt cheap
and not too fancy.
flavor profile and expressions.” Teeling released a single malt last May and now has
a core range of three whiskies, as well as
some limited offerings, like a malt finished
in white port casks and 12 single casks to
be released in February and March.
The expanding supply hasn’t been
lost on on-and off-premise retailers. “We
came to realize that Irish has so much
versatility and diversity within it that
the many types can really be applied to
many different platforms in the cocktail
world,” says Jack McGarry, one of the
men behind The Dead Rabbit, currently
considered one of the best cocktail and
all-around drinking destinations in the
country. Their current menu, in fact, is
based half on Irish whiskey-based drinks,
and with more than 180 different labels
of Irish behind the bar, McGarry reckons
they stock the most of any operation in
the U.S. But it’s not just for show; the
Dead Rabbit pours more than 100 liters
of Irish each week, making it the biggest
category at their bar.
I
f mezcal and moonshine can
find a bigger market, why can’t
poitin? That’s the question some
Irish distillers are starting to ask
of spirit retailers.
Donal O’Gallachoir, U.S. Brand
Manager of Glendalough Distillery,
now promotes three poitins, and
compares its prospect to that of
mezcal in relation to tequila: “Like
mezcal, like pisco, poitin has an
appeal to modern drinkers looking
to try something different. This is
a time in which people are looking
to grow their knowledge of the Irish
category and anything that starts that
conversation is a positive thing.”
Traditionally, poitin (pronounced
“po-CHEEN”) was the precursor to
whiskey, made from malted barley,
sugar beets and potatoes. Glendalough
produces a premium expression at 40%
alcohol by volume; one aged in Sherry
casks; and one bottled at 60% or
“Mountain Strength.”
Other brands, including Bunratty,
have entered the U.S. market in the
past few years. Newer importers
feel the time is right now that any
and all spirits seem to have a
waiting customer base.
Mad March Hare, distilled in
pot stills from malted barley, is
pitching their poitin with a “craft”
angle. “Poitin plays a large role in the
history of Ireland and especially Irish
whiskey, with local distilling tradition
being similar to that of American craft
spirits,” notes John Ralph, co-founder,
Mad March Imports. “With the U.S.
market accounting for approximately
36% of Irish whiskey sales, and
craft spirits continuously growing in
popularity, we feel it is the perfect
opportunity to introduce the U.S.
consumer to the ancient craft of Irish
poitin.” Mad March Hare launches in
CA, MA, IL, NY and CT this quarter, at
SRP $24.99.
Lady
Gopher
at The Dead
Rabbit in
NYC
McGarry says showcasing the
properties of Irish is something they’ve
taken on at Dead Rabbit, but admits that
many operators and bartenders only know
about Jameson. “People don’t order if
they don’t know what it is,” he explains.
“Many people don’t understand what
single pot still whiskey is, for example, so
we train our staff on whiskey flights and
how to recommend the right style for
each guest, making it easy and accessible
to our guests.”
Donal O’Gallachoir, Brand Manager
for the 2011-launched Glendalough Distillery, says as the range of possibilities—
grain or malt, continuous or pot still,
peated or unpeated, as well as various
finishes—expand throughout the market, consumers will welcome the chance
to go beyond the blended style. Glendalough, for instance, currently bottles
three poitins (see sidebar), a 7-yearold and 13-year-old single malt, as
well as “Double Barrel,” aged in bourbon and Sherry casks.
Most of the whiskey currently being
sold by these brand new distilleries are
sourced from one of the major Irish
companies, as they wait for their young
whiskies to mature. As William Grant &
Sons’ Herlihy notes, there will be a flood
of new expressions once that happens, and
the real proof of what’s next in Irish will
emerge only then. “There’s a long long
way to go and it will be interesting to
see what this boom will have us talking
about in five years time,” says Herlihy,
“after the wave of new Irish whiskies
come over our way.” ■
I am going where streams of whiskey are flowing, we sang.
If you could bottle that, they said. So we did.
An undaunted blend of 10-Year single malt and the finest aged whiskey.
ThePoguesIrishWhiskey.com
Produced, Distilled and Bottled in Ireland by West Cork Distillers, LLC. Imported by M.S. Walker, Inc. Somerville, MA. 40% Alc/Vol. PLEASE ENJOY RESPONSIBLY.
FINALLY, A GOLD RUM
LUSCIOUS ENOUGH TO BE
ENJOYED NAKED.
Swirl it.
Shoot it.
U
nlike behemoth rum brands, we don’t push out a
constant flow of product variations to force distribution
and gain facings. No, when Gosling’s unveils a new
product it means something truly special is happening.
Meet Goslings Gold Seal Rum.
The perfect compliment to our flagship
Black Seal Rum, this is a premium gold
unlike the many others.
Blended using centuries-old
family methods, Gold Seal consists
of the finest distillates from both
Sip it.
continuous and pot stills, aged independently in
white oak for up to five years. The result is a rich,
luscious flavor with an unexpectedly smooth,
gentle finish.
Result: it appeals to any rum customer, from the
aficionado who sips it neat to the bar hopper who
shoots it straight. And of course, to the masses in
between who mix, shake and stir it.
With an aggressive marketing and POS program
about to launch, this versatile rum represents a lucrative opportunity to the savvy retailer. (We might
even say golden, but that would be too expected.)
Seal it.
For Seven Stubborn Generations
We make it slowly, stubbornly. Please enjoy it slowly, responsibly. 40% ABV. Product of Bermuda. Castle Brands, NY, NY. goslingsrum.com
the case
for
Vino nobile
new reasons to rediscover montepulciano's noble wine
By kristen bieler
I
n the Tuscan trifecta of great wines, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano
suffers from middle child syndrome—it’s largely ignored and often
passed over. It’s a dramatic role reversal for a region that once dwarfed
its neighbors—Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino—in both pedigree
and esteem.
Vino Nobile (Vee-no NO-bee-lay),
Montepulciano’s most important wine,
got its name in the 1800s from the Medici
family (it translates as “wine for nobles”);
and the small region in
Southeast Tuscany was the
Avignonesi, purchased by
Virginie Saverys, is one
first in Italy to attain the
of the largest producers
prestigious DOCG status,
of Vino Nobile—300,000
bottles annually—and
in 1980.
applies biodynamics to
all its vineyards.
During the second half of the 20th
century, however, Chianti and Brunello
di Montalcino ascended in fame and
fortune, a result of outside investment
and marketing savvy. Montepulciano
slid backward. Quality slumped and the
spotlight faded.
Yet a closer look at Montepulciano
today reveals a more dynamic landscape.
LEFT TO RIGHT: The Medieval town of Montepulciano from which the region takes its name.
The new Dei winery, built in the shape of a snail-like fossil, a nod to the shell fossils the Dei family
finds in their historic vineyards. The view from Salcheto’s winery.
“If someone wants a Brunello but has sticker
shock, they can still have the identity of great
Sangiovese with Vino Nobile."
Younger winemakers, new ownership and
a more international outlook are helping
Montepulciano reclaim its reputation as
one of Italy’s best sources for Sangiovese.
The challenge remains getting people to
recognize it.
— Jeff Porter, Beverage Director, BBHG
“I’ve always felt a little sorry for Montepulciano,” says Ed McCarthy, author of
Italian Wine for Dummies. “There are
tons of great producers there
the most important ambasare dirty, it mutes the fruit character that
and quality is better than
sadors for Vino Nobile. She
Sangiovese expresses.”
only 125,000 cases of
ever, but they suffer from lack
turned around the winery,
vino nobile are
of recognition.” There are
The Montepulciano
purchased scores of new vineproduced each year
only about a dozen producsignature
yards and converted the eners of Vino Nobile with good
Some describe Vino Nobile as less tannic
tire estate to organic farming.
distribution in the U.S. And it
and structured than Brunello and less acidic
Avignonesi is the largest producer in
doesn’t help, he adds, that the region gets
than Chianti Classico, and while this may
Italy practicing biodynamic viticulture toconfused with the grape Montepulciano
have something to do with the region’s parday (though not certified due to the use of
grown in southern Italy’s Abruzzo region.
ticular clone of Sangiovese (called Prugnomachine harvesters).
The bulk of Montepulciano d’Abruzzos
lo Gentile) it’s likely more a factor of terroir
With her goal of “marrying the best
are of the cheap and quaffable variety,
and climate. With high average elevation,
of the technology and biodynamic
and Vino Nobile does not benefit from
Montepulciano is more Mediterranean
techniques,” she hired Australian winethe association.
maker, Ashleigh Seymour. Ironi-
Fresh Twists,
Old Roots
Sometimes a sleepy wine region
needs a shot in the arm, and for
Montepulciano, that would be
Virginie Saverys. From a Belgian
shipping family, Saverys bought
the declining Avignonesi estate
in 2009 and has become one of
cally, the foreign approach has
restored an authentic Italian taste
profile, and Avignonesi’s wines are
some of the area’s most soulful and
terroir-driven. Thanks to organic farming and a clean winery,
the wines are more alive, says
Seymour: “Hygiene has been a
big problem in Montepulciano
historically. When wineries
Combining old and new is a common theme.
At Antinori’s La Braccesca estate, winemaker
Lorenzo Dongarrà says: “We want roots in
tradition, but we also innovate—we want to be
something in between.”
VINO NOBILE
A view of the ancient hilltop town of Montepulciano
from Salcheto, where Michele Manelli takes a hightech approach to the challenges of Sangiovese.
than Chianti, which gives softer acidity
and riper fruit flavors, says Seymour, yet it’s
not as warm as Montalcino, so the wines
are lighter-bodied. “The signature profile
here is spice, herbs, bright fruit and earth,”
she describes.
Balance sets the region’s wines apart,
says Giulio Caporali, who purchased the
Valdipiatta estate in the 1980s and runs it
with his daughter, Miriam. “Brunello has
more muscle and Chianti can be tart; here
we have balanced wines that are elegant
and feminine,” he says. Vino Nobile’s
aging requirements—just two years in
cask compared to Brunello’s four—adds
to their approachability, Caporali adds.
While in general Brunello may achieve
more complexity and have greater aging
potential, Vino Nobile is fresher and
more consumer-friendly out of the gate.
Montepulciano’s heavy clay soils
also play a role. “The red soils in Montepulciano allow the roots to go very
deep, which brings more minerality
and fruit flavors than other parts
of Tuscany,” says Luca De Ferrari
who heads his family’s legendary
Boscarelli estate with his brother,
Nicolò, and mother, Paola. Bos-
“The soul of Vino
Nobile is freshness.”
— Michele Manelli, Salcheto
carelli’s traditionally-styled wines are made
in the family’s tiny, ultra-old-school, lowceilinged winery which hasn’t changed
much since the 1960s. (Boscarelli’s smoky,
perfumed Il Nocio 2011 is particularly
exquisite). “Yet we still have much to
learn about these soils,” De Ferrari explains. “What is Vino Nobile? We are
still defining.”
Nowhere is the balance between
tradition and modernity more visible
than at the ultra-sleek, brand new
winery at Dei, run by Caterina
Dei, a professional opera singer
and granddaughter of the founder.
The facility is gravity-fed, geo-
thermal-heated and built out of travertine
stone (the other Dei family business) and
resembles a Roman amphitheater. Dei’s organically grown wines are lush, aromatic
and fruit-driven; they are more modern for
sure, yet still supremely elegant.
Sangiovese Reclaims
Center Stage
The experimentation with international
varieties, which held sway throughout
Italy in recent decades, has been at
work in Montepulciano as well. In fact,
denomination rules recently increased the
amount of non-Sangiovese grapes permitted
in Vino Nobile to 30%. Yet quality
producers today lean much more towards
100% Sangiovese for their Vino Nobile—a
critical step for the region’s resurgence,
believes Jeff Porter, the Beverage Director
for Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group:
BELOW: Poliziano decided in 2008 to dial back on
the oak in favor of larger, more neutral casks.
CONSUMER
CONSUMER DEMAND
DEMAND CONTINUES
CONTINUES
TO
RISE
FOR
ROS!*
TO RISE FOR ROS!*
•• $10-15
$10-15 Rosé
Rosé is
is the
the fastest
fastest growing
growing
varietal,
up
to
+46%
Dollar
varietal, up to +46% Dollar Sales
Sales and
and
+43%
+43% Volume
Volume Sales.
Sales.
•• When
When on
on feature,
feature, $10-15
$10-15 Ros
Ros has
has aa
significantly
higher
lift
+35.9%
significantly higher lift +35.9% vs.
vs.
Chardonnay
Chardonnay +28.1%
+28.1% and
and Sauvignon
Sauvignon
Blanc
Blanc 22.7%.
22.7%.
*Source:
*Source:Nielsen
NielsenTotal
TotalUS
USxAOC
xAOCLiquor
Liquor••Period
Period::
Latest
Latest52
52Wks
Wks--W/E
W/E12/05/15
12/05/15
©2016
©2016Chateau
ChateauSt.
St.Jean,
Jean,Kenwood,
Kenwood,CA
CA
VINO NOBILE
Frederico Carletti, Poliziano
“The best expression of terroir isn’t always
by sticking with tradition—we want more
technology and less chemistry."
— Frederico Carletti, Poliziano
“People today don’t want a homogeneous
flavor profile, they want distinct
expressions and the return to classic
production styles. Focus on Sangiovese
is key to expressing Montepulciano’s
terroir. The region has stopped trying to
be something they thought people wanted
in the past.”
Young winemakers are passionately
driving this trend. Alberto Brini, whose
family acquired Il Conventino in 2003,
was among the first in Montepulciano
to farm organically. “Now that we better
understand how to work with Sangiovese
in the vineyard to tame its acidity and
tannins, we don’t need grapes like
Merlot,” Brini says.
Michele Manelli, who founded
Salcheto winery in 1997, takes a high-tech
approach to the challenges of Sangiovese.
“The soul of Vino Nobile is freshness—the
biggest problem is greenness and rough
tannins,” he says. Manelli worked with
a scuba diving company to help design
a system that traps CO2 given off during
fermentation and pumps it back through
the tank where it bubbles gently through
the grapes—extracting more fruit flavors
and less tannins. (Partially underground,
Salcheto is 100% energy self-sufficient
and is lit entirely by natural light brought
through a system of pipes with mirrors.)
Along with the renewed focus on
Sangiovese, another important shift is
restraint in oak. “In the past five years,
I have seen producers here really come
to understand how to use oak barrels
to highlight, not dominate the wines,”
Porter observes. A legitimate criticism of
Vino Nobile for years was that the fruit
was drowned out by extended oak aging—
or too much new French oak—but the
pendulum has swung back.
Owner Frederico Carletti, whose family
purchased Poliziano—the closest thing
Montepulciano has to a household name in
the U.S. market—made the decision to dial
back on the oak in 2008 in favor of larger,
more neutral casks for his Vino Nobile, and
single vineyard trophy bottling Asinone.
The wines are still bolder, darker and more
powerful than many in the region, but fresher
and more terroir-driven. “Like everyone,
my palate evolves and we wanted a less oak
influenced taste profile. People really want
taste terroir today,” he says. Poliziano also
made the move toward organic viticulture,
and is experimenting with native yeasts.
“The best expression of terroir isn’t always
by sticking with tradition—we want
more technology and less chemistry,”
he observes.
Finding the Spotlight
Still, the region’s reputation has yet to
catch up to the wine quality. There is a
lot of discussion in Montepulciano over
how to best achieve this. McCarthy
recommends a name abbreviation: “For
Americans, ‘Vino Nobile di Montepulciano’ is a mouthful—they should be marketing these wines simply as ‘Nobile.’”
One helpful selling point is their
value. Most Vino Nobiles retail for
less than $30, about half of what you
would pay for Brunello in any vintage
(and the region’s lesser wine, Rossi di
Montepulciano, is more affordable still).
“They offer terrific value for retailers and
restaurants,” says Porter. “If someone
wants a Brunello but has sticker shock,
they can still have the identity of
great Sangiovese with Vino Nobile,”
says Porter.
Plus, they tend to be more reliable
than Chianti, says McCarthy: “Because
there is far less Vino Nobile produced,
and even fewer that are exported
here, they represent very solid quality.
Compared with other parts of Tuscany,
you’re not going to find too many dogs in
Vino Nobile. ” n
Caterina Dei at her new geothermal winery.
Time to pop open
some brand
*sparkling*
new Roscato!
NE W
2014
•
Roscato: +75.5% over last year!
•
Roscato Rosso is the #1 Sweet Red*
©2016 PALM BAY INTERNATIONAL, BOCA RATON, FL
*NIELSEN XAOC + LIQUOR 52WKS 12/5/15
*$ Sales
SPARKLING
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Prosecco
SPARKLING
Moscato
retail focus
The art (and science) of the blend: The key to
successful négociant wines is skillful blending
on a comparatively larger scale than with singleestate wines, yielding a consistent supply of
approachable, affordable, distinctive wine.
why nÉgociants still matter
Applying savoir-faire to regional French wines
enables ‘middlemen’ to bring value to the U.S. market
By roger morris
T
here was a time in the 1960s and ’70s when French wine
merchants— négociants—had great influence as to which wines
from Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Rhône Valley were being
consumed in America.
Not only were they middlemen for
expensive wines produced by châteaux
and estates, the bigger négociants also
produced under their own labels most
of the affordable French wines
purchased in restaurants,
country clubs and retail
shops. These négociant, or
shippers’, wines were blends
of grapes sourced from
many farmers within a
region—Bordeaux, Côtesde-Rhône, Bourgogne—or
The wine doesn’t know what
package it’s in: Négociant wines
today sport a variety of looks.
sub-region—Pauillac, Châteauneuf-duPape, Mâcon—which was prominently
displayed on their labels.
Although these wines continued to
have a presence, several developments reduced their
ubiquity as the U.S. wine
market grew steadily in the
1980s and ’90s—notably
scandals about mislabeling of wines, the growing American preference for estate-grown
wines and wines labeled
by variety.
In the early era of negociants, names
such as Faiveley, Bouchard, Louis Jadot
and others established themselves as
reliable shippers of solid French wines
at relatively modest prices and in good
supply. This century, as the wine industry
has grown large and complex, there is
Dennis Kreps of Quintessential believes that the
red-hot demand for blended wines is helping to
boost French blends.
LOOK FOR NEW PACKAGING
6 12
18 24
P
A
C
K
bottles
singles
&12
P
A
C
K
cans
retail focus
even more juice floating around, and the
practice of sourcing, blending and bottling
wine has spread well beyond France
(Cameron Hughes and 90+ Cellars, for
instance). It is quite common nowadays
to find négociant, or multi-source,
wines alongside estate wines under the
same label.
Blended regional wines are
well-suited to American tastes.
“Regional blends have the great advantage for the consumer of consistency in
quality and taste year after year,” says Ro-
modern model
B
oston-based Latitude
Beverage Co. is a self-labeled
“modern day négociant,” best
known by their 90+ Cellars
label which comprises
more than 30 distinct wines,
ranging from $9-$25 SRP,
from all over the world.
The firm went from zero to
300,000 cases in annual
sales in six years. Brett
Vankowski, Vice President
and Co-Founder, sees
a set of factors making
négociant wine a good fit
for today’s wine market:
■ Better quality winemaking around the
world offers négociants “access to greater
quantities of better wine than ever before.”
■ Thanks to flexibility in sourcing, “we are
not limited to one geographic region—
if quality or quantity isn’t where it needs to
be for that region, we are able to focus
on another.”
■ Free from large upfront investment
in land, vines, etc., “we can adapt
quickly to the changing preferences of
wine drinkers.”
land Quancard of Cheval Quancard,
into Languedoc in search of rea Bordeaux-based négociant. “For
gional blends. The large French
the American wine merchant,
wine firm, Castel Frères now
there is the attraction of guarowns the historic Barton &
anteed volume. If the demand
Guestier line and is emphais there, we can always source
sizing wines from the Rhône
more wine, which we can’t do
and the South of France for
with our château wines.”
American markets.
Dennis Kreps of the familyWhile pointing out néowned Quintessential importgociants own 10% of Grand
ers—which recently took over
and Premier Cru vineyards,
With many small
growers, Burgundy
the gigantic Georges Duboeuf
Denis Duveau, Vice Direcand the Rhône
portfolio—says, “The attractor of the Syndicat des NéValley lend
themselves
well
to
tion is two-fold. Stateside
gociants, says, “There is not
négociant wines.
consumers are increasingly inenough wine to supply the
terested in where a wine is from.
demand and sell Burgundy
Also, blended wines remain the best
around the word. That’s why nébargain—great style and great prices.”
gociants buy most of the Burgundy reKreps believes that the well-reported shift
gional [unblended] wines. Making more
of consumer interest to blended wines,
simple ‘Bourgogne’ is a way to satisfy
whether from different varieties or from
more customers.”
different growers within a region, has
On the downside, Bordeaux is
fueled sales.
seeking
better traction.
Romain Teyteau, North American
Although the Mouton-Cadet and DoExports Director of Georges Duboeuf,
maines Barons de Rothchild (Lafite) franwhich is strong in Burgundy and Beaujochises continue to be well-represented,
lais, agrees. “Look at Macon-Villages, for
regional Bordeaux blends have struggled.
example—great Chardonnays for $10 to
Other négociant brands that have
$15 retail, with overall exports up douheld
ground include Sirius and Dourthe.
ble-digits in 2015. And Beaujolais also
This
may
be the one area of France where
has an incredible potential because of its
Americans
tend to feel more comfortable
ever-improving quality.”
with single-estate wine.
Burgundy, Rhône and
“I’ve never seen the ‘point’ of generic
Languedoc getting hotter.
regional Bordeaux, other than perhaps for
David Hinkle, Chief French Officer
restaurants or big chain grocery stores,”
for Skurnik Wines, which imports Paul
says Mark Wessels, manager of MacArthur
Jaboulet Aine, says, “There’s
Beverages in Washington, D.C.
been a resurgence of interest in
Wessels points out that, unlike
regional wines from northern
Burgundy and Rhône. “There
Rhône, especially in Crozesare hundreds of petits châteaux
Hermitage and St. Joseph.
in Bordeaux available in the
And the industry is more
five euro range.” n
interested in Provence
these days.”
Branding seens to be more
Rhône négociants such
important for Bordeaux than for
as M. Chapoutier have
other French négociant wines,
due in part to an abundance of
expanded south and west
value-priced petits châteaux.
RumChata®, Caribbean Rum with Real Dairy Cream, Natural and Artificial Flavors, 13.75% alc./vol. Produced and Bottled by
Agave Loco Brands, Pewaukee, WI 53072. Please Enjoy Responsibly. RUMCHATA and CHATA are Registered Trademarks of Agave Loco, LLC.
O
On Call
black barrel
‘old fashion’
Jameson Black Barrel,
bitters, orange peel,
Luxardo cherries
the barrel
rolls on
At the Jameson-centric
Barrelman Tavern in Chicago,
Irish whiskey keeps getting reinvented
By w. r. tish
T
here may be venues that pour more Jameson Irish whiskey
than Barrelman Tavern in Chicago, but it’s hard to imagine that
any pour it with more enthusiasm. “We’ve always had a special
thing for Jameson,” says the bar’s owner, Blake Itagaki. And his
regulars are on board too; instead of ringing in 2016 with a Champagne
toast at midnight, the crowd at the Barrelman raised shots of the brand new
Jameson Caskmates expression.
Not a big bar, Barrelman Tavern has
plenty of TVs mounted high for easy
viewing, but it is more neighborhood
joint than sports bar. The drinks menu
is dominated by whiskies, with a tilt
toward shot favorites, and is rounded
out with 25+ mostly craft beers, on
tap and in can or bottle. Wine? Try
another bar. Heck, they don’t even
serve food at the Barrelman (patrons
can order in).
No surprise: Jameson is also the
focal point of the bar’s handful of listed
cocktails. Itagaki and his GM, Danny
Lenart, chose Black Barrel for their take
on the Old Fashioned because its “charred
character and sherried sweetness makes it
a pretty close match to a bourbon.”
Their approach to using Jameson in
cocktails is straightforward. “We try not
to add anything that could overwhelm
the whiskey,” says Itagaki.
Drink menu at
BARRELMAN TAVERN
in Chicago, IL.
barrelmanchicago.com
The bar’s signature cocktail, The
Barrelman, was developed after he went
to the distillery in Ireland and sampled
a Black Barrel-based summer cocktail
with a hint of OJ and orange bitters.
“We were working on what our signature
drink would be,” Itagaki recalls. “So
when I came back we put our own spin
on it and used cider and added Averna.
In the beginning we thought we would
have a summer and winter Barrelman
signature cocktail, but this cocktail
was so popular we’ve kept it as the
only one.”
The Barrelman’s Jameson focus is
kept fresh by the bartenders playing
not only with mixed drinks, but also
with infusions to create new shot
experiences. One that became a yearround staple is Black Barrel with
apples, pears and cinnamon stick. “We
also did a blueberry-infused Jameson,”
notes Itagaki. “It tasted better than
it looked.”
The rage in January was a new
shot featuring Jameson’s brand new
Caskmates expression (finished in stout
barrels) infused with Andes mints (and
a secret ingredient, if you must know). It
does not have a name—it’s just the latest
word-of-mouth, try-this-one creation—
something the regulars have come to not
merely expect but to embrace.
And for Itagaki, Lenart and the
Barrelman staff, those novelties keep them
ahead at the leading edge of Irish whiskey
in general and Jameson in particular. “We
don’t like to follow trends,” says Itagaki,
“we try to make them!” n
General Manager Danny Lenart
Caskmates
Connection
J
ameson Caskmates is right at
home in any neighborhood bar,
since it resulted from a neighborly
collaboration between the Irish distiller and
a micro-brewery in nearby Cork City.
The concept was hatched in 2013 by
Dave Quinn, Master of Whiskey Science
The barrelman
PHOTOGRAPHs BY TINA SMOTHERS
Recipe by Blake Itagaki
Ingredients:
2 oz Jameson Black Barrel
¾ oz Averna Amaro Siciliano
½ oz Apple Cider Simple Syrup
(substitute cider for water)
Dash of Orange Bitters
Garnish: Orange Rind
Method:
Build ingredients over ice in a rocks glass.
Rim and garnish glass with an orange rind.
at Jameson, and Shane Long, Head
Brewer at Franciscan Well—over drinks
at a pub. First Jameson shared some of
their proprietary barrels from the Midleton
Distillery with the brewery, which created a
unique Irish stout aged in Jameson barrels.
Returning the gesture, those barrels were
sent back to the distillery and refilled with
Jameson Original. As a result of its time
spent in the stout-seasoned barrels, the
now-bottled whiskey has the triple-distilled
smoothness of Jameson, but now with new
added notes of coffee, cocoa and hops.
P
new
products
1
2
3
1. Buchanan’s blended
Scotch Whisky
2. Domaine des Hospices de Belleville
Buchanan’s has new packaging for three
of its four blends: Buchanan’s DeLuxe
(SRP $31), Buchanan’s Master ($45)
and Buchanan’s Special Reserve ($75);
Buchanan’s Red Seal will follow later in
2016. The new bottles leverage the brands
recognizable imagery, including the canteen
shape, the signature red seal and the coat of
arms meaning “Hence The Brighter Spirit.”
The burgeoning Beaujolais category has a
new trio of AOC wines. Maison Joseph
Drouhin has introduced three Beaujolais
Crus—a Brouilly (SRP $23), Fleurie ($25) and
Morgon ($21), all 2014—called Domaine des
Hospices de Belleville. Frederic Drouhin of
Maison Joseph Drouhin formed a partnership
with the Hospices de Belleville in October 2014,
enabling Drouhin to oversee the vineyards,
winemaking and marketing.
SRP: $31-$75
buchananswhisky.com
SRP: $21-$25
drouhin.com
4. The Macallan Edition No. 1
5. Niner Wine Estates 2013
Cabernet Sauvignon
The newest malt whisky from The Macallan,
Edition No.1, is drawn from eight European and
American oak cask styles that were crafted and
Sherry-seasoned in Spain. Each year a special
selection of oak casks will be handpicked to
create Edition; a dedicated “Master of Wood”
oversees the intricate sourcing and production,
showcasing the pivotal role wood plays in
Scotch malt whisky. 96 proof.
Big yet beautiful, Niner Estates 2013
Cabernet Sauvignon represents the best
of Paso Robles. Ripe plum and black
cherry aromas lead into a rich palate and
a full finish that melds tannin with fruit. The
Cabernet is blended with 4% Malbec and 4%
Petite Verdot and aged in barrel (30% new
French oak) for 18 months. Production at
the “green” winery (LEED Silver Certified and
SIP Certified) is overseen by Patrick Muran.
Marketed by Bronco Wine Co.
SRP: $90
themacallan.com
SRP: $39.99
broncowine.com
4
5
3. Svedka Cucumber Lime
Svedka’s newest flavor, Cucumber Lime, builds
on culinary momentum within the food and
beverage spaces for refreshing, bright flavors
as well as trends within Asian and Mexican
cuisine. Cucumber Lime joins other exotic
Svedka flavor combos such as Grapefruit
Jalapeño, Strawberry Lemonade and Orange
Cream Pop, in addition to core flavors: Cherry,
Citron, Clementine, Raspberry, Vanilla and
Peach. Available in 50ml, 375ml, 750ml, 1L and
1.75L. 70 proof.
SRP: $12.99/750ml
svedka.com
6. Korbel Brut Rosé
In the increasingly competitive $10-$15
bubbly category, Korbel has released a
limited-edition bottle wrap for their California
Brut Rosé. A pink lace pattern adorns the
bottle, and a bold “K” draws attention to
the brand name; available nationally while
supplies last. Offering generous strawberry,
cherry and melon fruit, as well as a hint of
sweetness in the finish, the Brut Rosé was the
brand’s most awarded offering in 2015.
SRP: $13.99
korbel.com
6
Don’t miss the premier industry event
that connects America’s distributors
with suppliers, importers and exporters!
Register now to see cutting edge products and services and
to network with industry decision makers and innovators.
If you are seeking to expand distribution or gain media attention
for your existing or new products and services, the WSWA
73rd Annual Convention & Exposition is where you need to be.
Registration is Open
For the latest schedule of events, information on pricing, exhibit
opportunities and sponsorship visit wswaconvention.org
For sponsorship inquiries please contact
Cindy Nachman-Senders, [email protected]
Stay connected! Follow us on Facebook and
Twitter. View Convention highlights on YouTube.
Visit wswaconvention.org for links.
Convention Highlights
•
•
•
•
•
•
Dynamic General Session Speakers
Enhanced U.S. Beverage Alcohol Forum (USBAF)
Increased media presence: trade and lifestyle outlets
2 Exhibit Halls
Over 400 Suppliers
60 Lower Level Hospitality Suites
• 120 Traditional Hospitality Suites
Enter to win one or all of our exciting competitions!
• Wine & Spirits Tasting Competition
• Call for Cocktails Mixology Competition
• Wholesaler Iron Mixologist Competition
For more information on competitions and for
competition entry forms go to wswaconvention.org
P
new
products
7
8
7. Callia Alta
Palm Bay International is introducing new
packaging for the Callia Alta range from
Argentina. The new label captures the spirit
of Bodegas Callia’s origin. It was inspired by
the legend of a young immigrant woman who
arrived in Argentina’s Tulum Valley, describing
it as a paradise with abundant fruits. The Callia
Alta range includes a Malbec, Shiraz, Pinot
Grigio and Torrontes.
SRP: $8.99
palmbay.com
10. Haraszthy Family
Cellars 2015 ‘Bearitage’
Sauvignon Blanc
Bearitage 2015 Sauvignon Blanc, grown
in the Lodi AVA, was cold-fermented and
finished in stainless steel tanks. This
completely oak-free approach lets winemaker
Val Haraszthy keep the wine crisp, with the
clean, almost tangy minerality the grape is
known for. Best served chilled, this 100%
SB is very approachable, with aromas and
flavors of lemon, tropical lime and green
apples. Marketed by Bronco Wine Co.
SRP: $14.99
broncowine.com
9
10
8. Hochstadter’s Vatted
Straight Rye Whiskey
The Cooper Spirits Co. has launched
Hochstadter’s Vatted Straight Rye Whiskey,
the first to officially designate its blend of
straight rye whiskies as vatted. The five
straight rye whiskies (from U.S. and Canada),
from four to 15 years old, were combined in
vats, allowing the flavors to harmonize before
being non-chill filtered and bottled. Best in
classic rye cocktails, or for sipping straight or
on ice. 100 proof.
SRP: $34.99
cooperspirits.com
11. Chateau St. Jean ‘Bijou’ Rosé
Chateau St. Jean has expanded their Bijou
line to include a dry rosé. Bijou Rosé joins
the lightly oaked Chardonnay launched in
2014 with bright new packaging to capitalize
on a consumer need for crisp and clean fruitforward wines. Elegant, fresh and dry, the
2015 California wine has pleasing aromas
and flavors of watermelon, citrus, raspberry,
cherry and rose petal.
SRP: $11.99
chateaustjean.com
11
12
9. Christian Brothers Apple
Heaven Hill has announced the launch of
Christian Brothers Apple, the third flavor
extension of the well-known brandy, joining
Honey and Peach. The combination of
natural apple with oak-aged brandy gives
Christian Brothers a solid position in the
expanding apple-flavored spirits arena.
Available nationally in 50ml, 375ml and 750ml.
70 proof.
SRP: $10.99/750ml
christianbrothers.com
12. Deep Eddy Peach
Deep Eddy’s newest flavor is gluten-free and
made with all-natural flavors, including real
peaches and Texas aquifer water. Peach joins
Straight Vodka, Lemon, Ruby Red Grapefruit,
Cranberry and Sweet Tea in the Deep Eddy
lineup. It works well with simple mixers like
ginger ale, iced tea and lemonade, as well as
in variations on the Peach Bellini. Available in 1L
and 1.75ml. 70 proof.
SRP: $19.99/1L; $26.99/1.75ml
deepeddyvodka.com
DISTRIBUTED BY INTERBALT: (855)SANTERO OR (301)793.1818
SANTERO FLAVORED MOSCATOS
BARshots
Julian Demiri
An Unexpected Ascension
By Doug Mace
J
ulian Demiri arrived in the United States in 1996 as a
young 19 year-old from Albania. He arrived speaking no
English. He arrived with no job. He had however, just one
the lottery.
Every year the United States offers around 50,000 temporary
green cards to applicants from around the world. While this may
not be the lottery you had in mind, it is in many ways just as important in the lives of those who are picked. What those "winners"
do with such an opportunity makes all the difference.
Speaking French and Albanian, Demiri hit the ground running at a now defunct bar in Fells Point. After five years, Demiri
earned full citizenship and sought a job at the Inner Harbor staple, the Rusty Scupper. The Scupper has become a well-known
landmark in Baltimore with an impressive history and an awardwinning wine list.
Demiri interviewed with long-time General Manager Ed
Prutzer, but he was told that due to slow business following the
9/11 attacks they didn't have the shifts available to hire him. Continuing to press for a position Julian was offered "a few shifts."
That small 'trial offer' suddenly became an open position. Without hesitation Demiri took that stroke of good fortune and ran
with it. Just a few years later he began as a shift supervisor and
now serves as the Assistant General Manager and Director of
Wines.
Demiri's quick to point out that he has had help along the way,
"When I came here 20 years ago from Albania we had nothing
If you could choose any wine,
which one would you drink:
"Napa Cabernet"
Person you'd most like to serve:
"Andrew Zimmerman from Bizarre Foods"
Other career would
loved to have tried:
"A pilot. When I was a kid I always wanted to fly."
Next major industry trend:
"I think the trend toward local and
artisan products will continue."
Favorite thing to do outside of work:
"Spend time outside with my family. I take a lot of day trips
into the far counties of Maryland and into neighboring states"
and I knew nothing. I had to assimilate and I got lucky to have a
few people along the way who gave me a chance and shared their
knowledge with me."
While Demiri had help in developing the Rusty Scupper’s
award-winning wine list he has worked with it longer than anyone.
When given an opportunity to do so, he made it his own. Explaining the first of his challenges, "When I got the job, everything was
a little high, some of the pricing was off. We had to bring in new
wines and adjust."
Eleven years in a row the Rusty Scupper has earned the award
for 'Best Affordable Wine List' from Wine Spectator magazine. The
award is one of three that go to entry, mid, and high level wine
lists in each state, each year. From 2004-2015 the Scupper has
won the award for Maryland.
The feat of dominating such an award for over a decade is no
easy task. Demiri believes the restaurant's success comes from a
series of approaches that are each backed with reason and evidence. Demiri describes the process as if he's a scientist delicately
balancing an equation, but with the confidence of a UFC fighter.
The accessibility of the list helps to keep the award coming
back to the corner of the harbor. "We never fail on that," said
Demiri referring to the distinction. "We design it this way for
a reason. We want affordable and inexpensive if you are on a
budget. [If] somebody is entry level they get it. [If] somebody is an
expert they have that too."
This balance isn't achieved through only feel, but also an understanding of the customer.
"I think American palates are different; softer, sweeter, floral,
fruity." Demiri continued, "You need to adjust with the market. A
recognizable list with easy to drink wines. The best reading is the
guest. You have to adjust day to day."
Perhaps it is the ability to adjust to changing circumstances
that has made Demiri one of the best at what he does. After two
decades in the United States he's ascended to heights he certainly
may never have dreamed about. As far as the next twenty years are
concerned? Demiri stays driven rather than dream-filled, "I've had
to be dynamic in the past 20 years and I don't see that changing.
In our business you cannot get stale, you cannot get complacent.
People's tastes change and you need to stay fresh and give people
what they want." n
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W
wine buzz
Both the LVE
Cabernet & Chardonnay
have a laser-cut label
that features roses as the
background.
New AVA-DriVeN LiNe
reAffirms KeNwooD’s
streNgth iN soNomA
Kenwood Vineyards has held a
strong but relatively quiet presence
in Sonoma County since 1970
(considering they produce about
half a million cases annually). Part
of Pernod Ricard’s wine portfolio
since 2014, the brand is getting a
fresh makeover. SKUs have been
trimmed back, and not only do
the bottles sport a new look, but
longtime winemaker Pat Henderson has been charged with a new
mission to refocus Kenwood by
introducing a new terroir-driven,
AVA-designated range.
The idea is simple—and made doable by Kenwood’s broad
palette of vineyards. “Six Ridges is a tribute to the mountains and
ridges that border this very special place,” explains Henderson.
“With this new range, we wanted to bottle the very best of the
County. We’ve chosen only the best varietals from each appellation
and provided extra special treatment from grape to bottle.”
The new Six Ridge label both represents an aerial view of vineyard blocks and echoes the iconic wolf-head labels of Kenwood’s
Jack London series. The Six Ridges range is rolling out nationwide
now, with the following:
2012 Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (SRP $24.99)
2014 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir ($24.99)
2014 Russian River Valley Chardonnay ($21.99)
2013 Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel ($24.99)
2013 Dry Creek Valley Merlot ($24.99)
The sixth, a 2015 Sonoma Coast Sauvignon Blanc, will be available May 2016. Effectively a reserve tier priced under $25, the Six
Ridges line should help draw renewed attention to Kenwood as a
consistent and deep source for value. kenwoodvineyards.com
JohN LegeND ADDs wiNe
to his repertoire
Napa Valley’s Raymond Vineyards and
acclaimed singer/songwriter John Legend
have launched the LVE Collection, which
will be poured exclusively at 66 locations
of Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine
Bar through March. LVE stands for Legend
Vineyard Exclusive. There are two wines:
a complex 2013 LVE Cabernet Sauvignon
($24/glass; $96/bottle) and a balanced,
fruit-forward 2014 LVE Chardonnay ($17;
$66). In April, the LVE Collection will be
available through current distributors of
Boisset Collection wines.
boissetcollection.com
flemingssteakhouse.com
lvewines.com
John Legend with
Jean-Charles Boisset
sAuVigNoN BLANc
fLexiNg muscLes iN 2016
Look what’s having a moment: Sauvignon Blanc, the aromatic and naturally acid-fueled grape that has been a perennial distant #2 to Chardonnay. SB was lauded by Nielsen
as one of the hottest varietal wines of 2015, growing 10.7%
in volume and 13.3% in value. Over in Marlborough, NZ,
Wine Spectator columnist Matt Kramer told a crowd at the
first-ever Sauvignon Blanc Celebration in that NZ’s own
distinctive style of SB is entering a “mid-life” crisis, and in
the next stage, “talent beats luck.” Meanwhile, Rombauer
Vineyards, known for Cab and Chard like so many Napa
Valley wineries, has released their first Sauvignon Blanc—
it’s fresh, crisp and vibrant (SRP $24).
F
the find
BOOKER’S 2016
BATCH COLLECTION
KICKS OFF WITH ‘BLUEGRASS’
You almost need a scorecard to keep up with
bourbon extensions lately. Booker’s has just
launched their 2016 Batch Collection with
“Bluegrass” (SRP $59.99). Each batch in the
six-series releas—to be released over the
course of the year—will feature a unique label
and a connection to Booker Noe’s life. The
inaugural release in the collection highlights
his love of bluegrass music.
Made with barrels culled from seven
different rack houses, like all batches of
Booker’s Bourbon, Bluegrass is bottled uncut
at its natural proof and was hand selected
by Fred Noe, Beam’s 7th Generation Master
Distiller. Bluegrass displays notes of vanilla
and toasted nuts with a smooth and balanced
finish. At 127.9 proof, it is best enjoyed with
ice or cut with water. bookersbourbon.com
VODKA THAT’S OUT OF THIS WORLD...
The spirits industry is no stranger to products that, well, use their
head in packaging. Witness Crystal Head Vodka and Kah Tequila.
And welcome to earth Outerspace Vodka, bottled in an alienhead bottle and whose liquid that is “filtered through outerspace
meteorites.” With pop culture of late having a string of high-profile
extra-terrestrial encounters of the very
popular kind (The Martian; Star Wars:
The Force Awakens; The X Files reboot),
now seems like a fine time to tap into
the alien concept with an appropriately
self-aware product. The 80 proof
Outerspace Vodka has launched in
28 states and counting, and has sold
over 10,000 cases. SRP $29.99/750ml;
$5.99/50ml. marsalle.com
FROM HOUSE OF SUNTORY:
YAMAZAKI SHERRY CASK 2016
THE PERFECT LIQUEUR FOR LOVE?
Aiming for Valentine’s Day and beyond, Lucas Bols
has launched Bols Parfait Amour Liqueur ($17.99,
48 proof). Translating to “perfect love,” Parfait Amour
has been produced by Lucas Bols since the early 19th
century to celebrate an engagement or a marriage in the
Netherlands. The dark purple liqueur has an aromatic
floral character that comes from rose and violet petals,
enhanced by vanilla, orange peel and almonds. Its
floral flavor profile is tailored for classic cocktails or
adding to sparkling wine. It joins the 30+
Bols flavors currently available in the U.S.
lucasbols.com
MORE AMORÉ
Put half an ounce of Parfait
Amour in a flute and top with
Champagne.
Jim Murray shocked the world when he named Suntory Whisky
Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2013 as his “World Whisky of the Year” in his
2015 Whisky Bible. Sherry cask aging has been critical to the flavor
profile of many Suntory whiskies, including Yamazaki, since 1924.
While the distillery’s first pure
Sherry cask single malt was
not in the U.S. market, the
newest release—the 2016—is
available here. For the 2016
edition, Chief Blender Shinji
Fukuyo taps into the same lot
of whiskies that were used for
the 2013, now two years more
mature—in some cases more
than 25 years old—creating
a whisky that has remarkable
richness and complexity. Only
5,000 bottles of Yamazaki
Sherry Cask 2016 are
available for the world, bottled
at 96 proof, with SRP of $300.
whisky.suntory.com
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[email protected]
Hardware, Software, Installation, Training
MarketShots
Treasury Wine Estates and Diageo Chateau and Estates
Announce Integration
Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) recently introduced the Breakthru Beverage Group’s Maryland, District
of Columbia and Delaware sales and management teams to their newly integrated Diageo Chateau
and Estates (DC&E) wine interests at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel. Brands include Beaulieu,
Sterling, Provenance, Rosenblum, Acacia, Hewitt and Blossom Hill, among others.
Highlights of the acquisition include:
l The acquisition delivers significant supply chain synergies, which will improve profitability and
performance in the future.
l The DC&E acquisition doubles TWE’s Masstige and Luxury business.
l TWE will employ more than 1,200 employees in the US & Canada.
l The combined business will have 47 vineyards totaling just below 12,000 acres in premium growing
regions of California.
l The combined business will own and operate 10 wineries in California; Beringer, Sterling Vineyards,
St. Clement, Beaulieu Vineyard, Stags’ Leap, Provenance/Hewitt, Etude, Chateau St. Jean, Paso 360 and
Paicines.
“This is very positive news for both sides of the business,” stated Carla Camino, Mid-Atlantic Regional
Director at Treasury Wine Estates. “TWE has gained some incredible brands and a team of highly
qualified wine professionals. We have begun to, and look forward to implementing best practices from
both sides.”
Here are Bob Trostel, Breakthru Beverage Delaware President; Dan Minutola, Breakthru Beverage
Delaware Director of Sales; Kerry Knight, Treasury Wine Estates State Manager-DC & DE; Bruce Richardson, Breakthru Beverage Maryland Vice President; Carla Camino, Treasury Wine Estates Mid-Atlantic Regional Director; Doug Mason, Breakthru Beverage Washington DC Treasury Account Development Specialist; Laura Hoffman, Treasury Wine Estates Wine Director; Rob Budke, Breakthru Beverage
Maryland Director of Sales; Rosie Haugh, Breakthru Beverage Washington DC General Sales Manager;
Tim Irwin, Treasury Wine Estates Sterling Senior Brand Manager; and George Concannon, Breakthru
Beverage Washington DC Division Manager; at the TWE event at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront.
Tim Irwin, Treasury Wine Estates
Sterling Senior Brand Manager;
pours samples and answers
questions about Sterling’s
Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.
Here’s Kerry Knight, Treasury Wine
Estates State Manager-DC & DE;
pouring Provenance Sauvignon Blanc.
Mike Schneider, Breakthru Beverage Maryland
Director of Sales; and Bruce Richardson, Breakthru
Beverage Maryland Vice President; enjoy the TWE
event at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront.
Mike Stine, Breakthru Beverage Maryland Division
Manager; and Bryant Hall, Breakthru Beverage
Washington DC Director of Sales; at the TWE event.
At the Treasury Wine Estates introduction event are Bob Trostel,
Breakthru Beverage Delaware President; Rosie Haugh, General Sales
Manager Breakthru Beverage Washington DC; Carla Camino, Treasury
Wine Estates Mid-Atlantic Regional Director; Jeff Scarry, Breakthru
Beverage Maryland Senior Vice President; and Will Smith, Treasury
Wine Estates Director Trade Marketing Luxury.
RELIABLE CHURCHILL IS NOW
BREAKTHRU
BEVERAGE
MARYLAND
ATTENTION
ALL LICENSEES!
MARYLAND STATE
CERTIFIED
ALCOHOL AWARENESS
COURSES
Weekly classes held throughout the
state or at your place of business
to suit your schedule!
You receive course instructions, a
manual, your certificate, and a
copy of the certification letter
which is immediately forwarded to
your respective liquor board.
INDIVIDUAL & GROUP PRICES
REASONABLE
FEE!
For your appointment
call John Murray at:
410 553-8927
[email protected]
Certification expires four years from the
date you are certified
MarketShots
MARYLANDWINERIES
yields, I have been able to source
enough from the farm for the last 10
The partnership of E. & J. Gallo Winery and the Maryland Food years to make the smaller amounts I
Bank … where Gallo donated one meal for each bottle of specified
require,” said Bandzak. “I have found
wine purchased in participating accounts from September 1st to
it
to be consistent in taste and color.”
December 31st, 2015 … was a resounding success. “32,566
meals were provided through the program from bottles sold of Frei Romano Winery, founded by
Brothers, Edna Valley, William Hill, and Carnivor,” Ashley Solomon,
Joseph and Jo-Ann Romano, also uses
BY KEVIN ATTICKS
E. & J. Gallo State Manager, recently explained at Breakthru Beverage Maryland. “In addition, our Volunteer
Rougeon
wines.Beverage
The founders
Day [December 4, 2015] was incredibly successful with the Maryland
Gallo in
andits
Breakthru
teams
his
black
Frenchsay
that
Rougeon
boasts
black
packing almost 12,000 pounds of food translating to 9,700 meals.” Carnivor, William Hill Estate,“a
Edna
Valley
American
hybrid
Vineyards and Frei Brothers Reserve
all saw
at least a 20% lift during
the aroma
program.leads to a mediumcherry
grape is known for its ability to make
bodied red with a deliciously sweet
simple, tasty wines.
finish.” The label suggests enjoying
Rougeon produces medium-sized
with red meat, ripe cheeses or good
compact clusters. Its grape vines are
conversation.
hardy, but production can be erratic
Joe Romano spoke highly of the
at times, causing its yields to come as
Rougeon grape. “One of the reasons
often as twice a year or as few as every
that I selected Rougeon was because
two years.
Rougeon wine was not widely availLike all other grapes, Rougeon is
able as a varietal as it is typically
susceptible to disease. The two highest
used in blending for its color,” said
disease exposures this grape could
Romano. He was looking for a wine
suffer from are downy mildew and
that Denise
wouldParent,
standE&Jout,
and
he Area
found
Here are Manny Singh, Breakthru Beverage Field Sales Manager;
Gallo
Winery
powdery mildew.
These Breakthru
diseases have
Manager-Barefoot;
Ben Trostel,
Beverage Fieldthe
Sales
Manager;
Amberand
Saba,aroma
Breakthru
dark
red color
attracBeverage Field Sales Manager; John Reardon, E&J Gallo Winery Northeast Region Director; Ashley
the
potential
to
reduce
vine
growth,
tive
and
thought
as
a
sweet
wine—also
Solomon, E&J Gallo Winery Maryland State Manager; Nick Pfeifer, Breakthru Beverage Division Manager;
Laurayield,
Urban,quality,
Marylandand
Foodwinter
Bank Director
of Foundation Relations
andor
Funded
Stelluti,
hardiness,
atypical
this Projects;
grape—itJustin
would
be
E&J Gallo Winery Spirits Sales Manager; Elliot Salman, Breakthru Beverage Field Sales Manager;
especially because
the
Rougeon
very Sales
interesting.
and Greg Angel, Breakthru Beverage Field
Manager. “In the end, the wine
grows in tight clusters. Other disease
turned out to be everything I hoped
susceptibilities are black rot
for, and it’s great with chocolate!”
and botrytis as well as some
sensitivity to sulfur.
Taste Maryland Wine
Rougeon also produces
Come to The Maryland Wine
a beautiful red color and
Festival in September. We have passes
is often mixed to make a
available for members of the trade to
blended wine. However, it
come to The Maryland Wine Festival
has also been used to make
in September at the Carroll County
port wines. Rougeon grape
Farm Museum in Westminster. To
is often blended with grapes
register for passes, contact a Marysuch as Chambourcin and
land winery representative. Limit two
Baco Noir. Erik Bandzak,
passes per account.
of Aliceanna Winery chose
Come early on Saturday, Septemthis grape due to its deep
ber 15 or Sunday, September 16 to try
red color and very dry taste.
Maryland wines and learn more about
“Most winemakers use this
our industry before the crowds arrive.
The Sales Impact Monthly Winners are pictured here with Ashley Solomon,
grape to make
port-style
moreMaryland
about the
on www.
E. & J. Gallo State Manager; and Learn
Laura Urban,
Foodevent
Bank Director
of IFoundation
Relations
Projects … November program winner, n
wines, but
believe it
has a and Funded
marylandwine.com/events-festivals.
Tom Ozarowski, Breakthru Beverage Sales Representative; September
great taste onprogram
its own,”
said Robert Callanan, Breakthru Beverage Sales
co-winner,
Representative; October program winner, Chris Ferre, Breakthru
Bandzak.
Beverage Sales Representative;
and December
program director
winner,of the
KEVIN ATTICKS
is the executive
Bandzak maintains
thatBreakthru
Will Appel,
Beverage Sales Representative.
Maryland
Wineries
Association,
the
trade group
pictured
his use of the grape(Not
has
lit- is September co-winner Brian O’Neill.)
representing Maryland’s wineries. He is a regular
tle to no downsides. “While
contributor to the Daily Record and was the wine
most winemakers dislike it
editor of The Grapevine magazine. Kevin may be
reached at 410 252-WINE or
because of its inconsistent
Rougeon
E&J Gallo Fights Hunger with Wine
Dark and Erratic
T
[email protected].
MarketShots
Martell Cognacs were
at Grace’s Mandarin
Restaurant in National
Harbor with RNDC’s
Michael Collins and
National Martell
Ambassador
Karim Lateef
BMore Entertained and Terremoto Tequila Host
The First Annual Bartending Competition at
El Bufalo Tequila Bar & Kitchen
Deep Eddy Peach Vodka Kick Off at Banditos in Federal Hill
ULTIMATE BEVERAGE CHALLENGE
PRESENTS
ULTIMATE WINE
CHALLENGE
ALL ENTRIES DUE APRIL 29TH, 2016
ULTIMATE WINE CHALLENGE
Since 2010, Ultimate Wine Challenge has set the platinum standard for wine evaluation.
Each year in May, the world’s foremost wine authors, educators, journalists and buyers,
led by F. Paul Pacult, convene at the state of-the-art Ultimate Beverage Challenge
evaluation center in Hawthorne, NY to smell, taste, savor and judge wine entries from all
over the world. The coveted UWC Chairman’s Trophy is awarded to the top scoring wine
in each category: last year, wines in 43 different categories were honored with this award.
Products are also recognized with the accolades Finalist, Great Value and Tried & True
Award. (See UWC 2015 results at www.ultimate-beverage.com) This is why Ultimate
Wine Challenge is truly...Like No Other Competition.
UBC GUIDE: TOP SCORING WINES WILL BE FEATURED IN THE
OCTOBER 2016 BEVERAGE MEDIA GROUP TOP U.S. MARKETS
Details and to enter:
ultimate-beverage.com/uwc2016info
Questions:
[email protected]
or 1-347-878-6551
MarketShots
Southern Wine and Spirits Partners With
Casamigos Spirits Company
Casamigos Tequila founders George Clooney, Rande Gerber and
Michael Meldman having launched their own importing company
(Casamigos Spirits Company LLC); has partnered with Southern Wine
and Spirits in Maryland and the District of Columbia.
Lee Einsidler, CEO; Adam Rosen, Executive VP Marketing; Jeffrey Einsidler, regional sales manager; and Jay Lucas, regional sales manager; all with
the newly formed Casamigo Spirits Company; joined 50 Southern Wine and Spirits sales personnel and management from Washington, DC and Maryland
to kick off the new partnership.
SWS Tastings Around Town
Suzie Wang, owner of Snowden River
Liquors in Columbia; Wendy Adams of
Southern Wine and Spirits; and Reid
Harper of Accolade Wines; prepare for
a tasting.
Joshua Sandusky recently conducted
a tasting of the highly rated Waterbrook
wines at Laurel Wine and Spirits.
Our Lady of Grace Church recently held
a tasting with over 300 attendees to benefit
the parish. Shown here, Chris Lombardi
with some popular choices.
MarketShots
Robert Burns Dinner
The annual tribute to the life, works and spirit of the great Scottish Poet, Robert Burns (1759-1796) was
celebrated on Saturday, January 30, 2016 at the River’s Edge Club on the Patuxent Naval Base. The event
was hosted by the Royal Air Force, the US Air Force and supported by the British Embassy and Southern
Wine and Spirits (SWS). During the festivities, eager patrons enjoyed haggis, read Burn’s poetry, danced to
the sound of bagpipes, and enjoyed fine Whiskey. A few of the brands SWS showcased at this event included
Hardy’s Stamp Wines, Luigi Bosca-Finca La Linda Wines, Sheep Dip Islay Blend, Glengoyne 12 Year, 15 Year
and 18 Year old, Wemyss’ The Hive, and The Feathery Blended Malt Scotch. These varieties of whiskey and
wines made the evening perfect for great conversation and a one of a kind celebration.
Here’s Ken Young of the Royal Air Force with joyful attendees.
Grand Master Chief Jeffrey Owejan of the Naval
Air Station Patuxent River was in attendance.
The Washington, DC based Homespun Ceilidh Band played Scottish, Irish, Manx, Welsh,
and Cape Breton style music for the event.
Each table adorned beautiful place settings
with Hardy’s and Finca La Linda wines.
ULTIMATE BEVERAGE CHALLENGE
PRESENTS
ULTIMATE WINE
CHALLENGE
ALL ENTRIES DUE APRIL 29TH, 2016
ULTIMATE WINE CHALLENGE
Since 2010, Ultimate Wine Challenge has set the platinum standard for wine evaluation.
Each year in May, the world’s foremost wine authors, educators, journalists and buyers,
led by F. Paul Pacult, convene at the state of-the-art Ultimate Beverage Challenge
evaluation center in Hawthorne, NY to smell, taste, savor and judge wine entries from all
over the world. The coveted UWC Chairman’s Trophy is awarded to the top scoring wine
in each category: last year, wines in 43 different categories were honored with this award.
Products are also recognized with the accolades Finalist, Great Value and Tried & True
Award. (See UWC 2015 results at www.ultimate-beverage.com) This is why Ultimate
Wine Challenge is truly...Like No Other Competition.
UBC GUIDE: TOP SCORING WINES WILL BE FEATURED IN THE
OCTOBER 2016 BEVERAGE MEDIA GROUP TOP U.S. MARKETS
Details and to enter:
ultimate-beverage.com/uwc2016info
Questions:
[email protected]
or 1-347-878-6551
MarketShots
Treasury Wine Estates and Diageo Chateau and Estates
Announce Integration
Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) recently introduced the Breakthru Beverage Group’s Maryland, District
of Columbia and Delaware sales and management teams to their newly integrated Diageo Chateau
and Estates (DC&E) wine interests at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel. Brands include Beaulieu,
Sterling, Provenance, Rosenblum, Acacia, Hewitt and Blossom Hill, among others.
Highlights of the acquisition include:
l The acquisition delivers significant supply chain synergies, which will improve profitability and
performance in the future.
l The DC&E acquisition doubles TWE’s Masstige and Luxury business.
l TWE will employ more than 1,200 employees in the US & Canada.
l The combined business will have 47 vineyards totaling just below 12,000 acres in premium growing
regions of California.
l The combined business will own and operate 10 wineries in California; Beringer, Sterling Vineyards,
St. Clement, Beaulieu Vineyard, Stags’ Leap, Provenance/Hewitt, Etude, Chateau St. Jean, Paso 360 and
Paicines.
“This is very positive news for both sides of the business,” stated Carla Camino, Mid-Atlantic Regional
Director at Treasury Wine Estates. “TWE has gained some incredible brands and a team of highly
qualified wine professionals. We have begun to, and look forward to implementing best practices from
both sides.”
Here are Bob Trostel, Breakthru Beverage Delaware President; Dan Minutola, Breakthru Beverage
Delaware Director of Sales; Kerry Knight, Treasury Wine Estates State Manager-DC & DE; Bruce Richardson, Breakthru Beverage Maryland Vice President; Carla Camino, Treasury Wine Estates Mid-Atlantic Regional Director; Doug Mason, Breakthru Beverage Washington DC Treasury Account Development Specialist; Laura Hoffman, Treasury Wine Estates Wine Director; Rob Budke, Breakthru Beverage
Maryland Director of Sales; Rosie Haugh, Breakthru Beverage Washington DC General Sales Manager;
Tim Irwin, Treasury Wine Estates Sterling Senior Brand Manager; and George Concannon, Breakthru
Beverage Washington DC Division Manager; at the TWE event at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront.
Tim Irwin, Treasury Wine Estates
Sterling Senior Brand Manager;
pours samples and answers
questions about Sterling’s
Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.
Here’s Kerry Knight, Treasury Wine
Estates State Manager-DC & DE;
pouring Provenance Sauvignon Blanc.
Mike Schneider, Breakthru Beverage Maryland
Director of Sales; and Bruce Richardson, Breakthru
Beverage Maryland Vice President; enjoy the TWE
event at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront.
Mike Stine, Breakthru Beverage Maryland Division
Manager; and Bryant Hall, Breakthru Beverage
Washington DC Director of Sales; at the TWE event.
At the Treasury Wine Estates introduction event are Bob Trostel,
Breakthru Beverage Delaware President; Rosie Haugh, General Sales
Manager Breakthru Beverage Washington DC; Carla Camino, Treasury
Wine Estates Mid-Atlantic Regional Director; Jeff Scarry, Breakthru
Beverage Maryland Senior Vice President; and Will Smith, Treasury
Wine Estates Director Trade Marketing Luxury.
WASHINGTON WHOLESALE IS NOW
BREAKTHRU
BEVERAGE
WASHINGTON DC
MarketShots
Southern Wine and Spirits Partners With
Casamigos Spirits Company
Casamigos Tequila founders George Clooney, Rande Gerber and
Michael Meldman having launched their own importing company
(Casamigos Spirits Company LLC); has partnered with Southern Wine
and Spirits in Maryland and the District of Columbia.
Lee Einsidler, CEO; Adam Rosen, Executive VP Marketing; Jeffrey Einsidler, regional sales manager; and Jay Lucas, regional sales manager; all with
the newly formed Casamigo Spirits Company; joined 50 Southern Wine and Spirits sales personnel and management from Washington, DC and Maryland
to kick off the new partnership.
SWS Tastings Around Town
Suzie Wang, owner of Snowden River
Liquors in Columbia; Wendy Adams of
Southern Wine and Spirits; and Reid
Harper of Accolade Wines; prepare for
a tasting.
Joshua Sandusky recently conducted
a tasting of the highly rated Waterbrook
wines at Laurel Wine and Spirits.
Our Lady of Grace Church recently held a
tasting with over 300 attendees to benefit the
parish. Shown here, Chris Lombardi with some
popular choices.

March 2016 - Beverage Journal, Maryland and Washington, DC

Transcription

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