Sonoma County Winegrowers Focus on Creating Experiences to Engage New and Existing Wine Lovers SANTA ROSA, Calif. (January 17, 2025) – For over a decade, Sonoma County Winegrowers has been at the forefront of innovation, forging powerful partnerships with iconic brands like John Deere, Ford Pro, Wilbur Ellis, Landry’s, and the San Francisco Giants. As unveiled at this week’s annual Dollars & $ense meeting, held virtually, 2025 marks a year dedicated to “Renewing, Building, and Growing” these renowned programs, expanding their reach, amplifying the Sonoma County story, and setting new benchmarks in excellence. As Karissa Kruse, president and chief executive officer of Sonoma County Winegrowers, started her presentation with a review of the past twelve years since she joined the organization, it was clear that the results in building the brand’s visibility over the years has been successful. From being world leaders in sustainability, to sports ma

Afternoon Brief: Neil Empson, Pioneer of Fine Italian Wine in the US Market, Dies at 85

The EMPSON Companies announce the passing of their beloved Chairman and Co-Founder, Neil Trevanion Howard Empson, on Saturday, September 14, 2024. He was 85 years old...

Afternoon Brief, December 13th

Study Reveals More Than Half of Wines Sold on the British High Street Contain Toxic Chemicals: Unsuspecting members of the public could be sipping down toxic chemicals as they enjoy their favorite tipple this Christmas. That's because wines sold on the British high street by the likes of Sainsbury's, Marks and Spencer and Asda contain cancer-causing pesticides, a study shows...

Second Annual Women’s Sommelier Symposium Elevates Women in Wine

Ten Women Selected to Participate in Impactful and Empowering Event for Women in the Wine Industry SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, California (December 13, 2023) Building on the success of its inaugural […]

Demand for high-quality, natural cork continues to grow November 16th – (Napa, Calif.) — Portocork, North America’s premier supplier of natural cork closures for the wine, beer, and spirits industry, announced a sales team expansion, adding professional cork representatives that service winemaking regions spanning the entire west coast of California. “The growing demand for high quality, natural cork products developed specifically to be used by the world’s most discriminating winemakers, created the need for us to grow our California sales team,” said Portocork President & CEO Dustin Mowe. “We are making these additions in order to continue to offer first in class service to our growing customer base” Christopher Cenami – Sales Manager, has spent nearly two decades in wine and spirits sales in Northern California with major wholesale distributors such as Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, Young’s Market, and Wine

Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas Implements New Strategic Plan to Help Guide the Hospitality Industry into the Future

Santa Barbara, CA (November 1, 2023) – The Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas â„¢ has announced the approval of a strategic plan which outlines their vision for the future of the […]

Afternoon Brief, November 1st

California Scrambles to Finish Harvest: With a superb vintage in the offing, growers are racing against time to get the grapes into the winery...

Afternoon Brief, September 8th

Two Wineries Join Lawsuit Accusing Napa County of Unconstitutional Patterns & Practices: Two wineries have filed motions to join Hoopes Vineyards as parties in interest in the ongoing action against Napa County alleging an unlawful pattern and practice of forcing wineries that have operated for decades to seek permits for rights they have long possessed...