A wine bottle is the physical expression of your brand. Over time, customers have learned to associate specific shapes and sizes with quality, heritage, and style, especially when dealing with premium brands. Every element of presentation matters, with the bottle and label working together as the most powerful first impression. Selecting the right pairing is a critical step in positioning a wine effectively. For smaller or lesser-known wineries, or those from less established regions, design can play an even greater role. A distinctive bottle or striking label may inspire a purchase before the wine is even tasted. Customers often seek out packaging they feel proud to share, whether as a gift, at the table, or as part of their own social identity. The elements of a product’s design can even potentially influence how much some people enjoy a given drink, and in a way become in and of themselves a part of the overall experience. In this article, we explore the bottle

As harvest ramps up, opportunities are available across the state. From premium Napa Valley Cabernet to versatile red blenders and new plantings, here’s a quick snapshot of the grapes currently available on the market. Please reach out to our brokers for more details. Napa Valley • Cabernet Sauvignon • Chardonnay • Red Blenders Sonoma County • Cabernet Sauvignon • Chardonnay • Sauvignon Blanc • Red Blenders North Coast • Cabernet Sauvignon • Chardonnay • Sauvignon Blanc • Red Blenders San Benito County • Chenin Blanc – small lot or truckload Monterey County • Grenache – new, but established planting; very uniform; suitable for red or roséPaso Robles • Cabernet Sauvignon – multiple locations and clones available; nearly every appellation San Joaquin Valley • Cabernet Sauvignon • Chardonnay • Merlot • Zinfandel • Sauvignon Blanc Let’s make a match.If any of

Wakefield Taylors Wines and 1800 Milenio Take Top Honors July 14, 2025 — Winners have been announced in the 18th annual Women’s International Wine & Spirits Competition (IWWSC). The competition, which took place recently in Santa Rosa, Calif., was founded on the premise that the majority of wine purchased for home consumption is bought by women. The IWWSC judging panels consist entirely of professional women in the wine and spirits industries — winemakers, distillers, marketers, buyers, sommeliers, educators and journalists.  This year, Wakefield Taylor Wines 2024 Estate Riesling and 1800 Milenio Extra-Aged Añejo took top honors. Wakefield Taylor, a heritage winery in Australia’s Clare Valley (a region known for quality Reislings), wowed judges with its “mouthwatering citrus blooms” and “gentle salinity.”  A representative from 1800 Mileno remarked, “1800 Milenio is backed by 11 generations of tequila-making e

The 2025 harvests in the Southern Hemisphere are now in full swing and the picture – so far – is mixed: white grape tonnages have been exceeding expectations in Australia and bunches are large and heavy in New Zealand, but Argentina and South Africa’s crops appear to be – at best – on course for their downwardly-adjusted long-term averages, while Chile’s crush could come in significantly short due to a hotter-than-normal growing season reducing yields.  Globally speaking, the bulk market can be characterised as slow and steady since mid-February, with the Southern Hemisphere focused on harvest and demand in the Northern Hemisphere dampened by flat or declining retail sales and, in Spain, some elevated pricing on those wines most needed in Europe: generics, and especially generic white. Outside of generic white, few if any wines are making bulk-market waves as need is not pressing.  Pockets of activity have arisen: domestic demand in Chile

We can finally say that 2022 Harvest has started across the PNW. California's been harvesting for some weeks now, while Oregon and Washington are just starting. The first comments from the industry report a smaller harvest in terms of yield, with smaller berries but, generally speaking, higher quality due to the concentration of color and varietal aromas. Some of the aspects winemakers and vineyard specialists have had to deal with are not small or easy; several areas were first hit by frost, some by excessive heat and drought, and others by both. One of the common issues we experienced at JUCLAS USA is juice coming in with initial high values of VA. This particular compound can lead to the loss or suppression of aromatics, and an unpleasant sensation in the back of the throat when tasting the wines. As far as available solutions, at JUCLAS USA we recommend the use of the EASYFERM, our automated rehydration system. The EASYFERM will manage the nutrition, rehydration, and

by Steve Fredricks We are now well past a relatively uneventful and smaller harvest, particularly in the North Coast, mask mandates have been lifted in most areas, and on-premise sales continue to rebound. Overall, the industry seems to be a taking a collective deep breath to assess the current market dynamics, but remains unable to relax totally or look too far ahead. The market disruptors of Covid-based channel shifting on the consumer side and short crops from drought and fires on the supply side have been exacerbated by geo-political, supply chain, and inflationary issues. The net effect is that supply excesses are down and more in balance to demand. In many ways it feels like the market is more ‘normal’ than it has been for quite some time. At the same time, one must ask: Is this really a return to normalcy, or are we adapting to new normals? This issue will focus on what we are currently seeing in the bulk wine and grape markets, and will offer an early look at the So

The founders of Michael Lavelle Wines set out to change the way people of color experience wine and disrupt the overwhelmingly white wine industry. The wine label goes a long way in making this happen. The brand has a few inches of space and a few seconds of time to catch a consumer’s eye, make them feel something, and have them make the decision to purchase the product.  When creating the label for the Iris Collection’s Rosé and Zinfandel, the Michael Lavelle team considered all design aspects— color, size, texture, finishings (foils, glass, varnishes, etc.), and more—to ensure the labels best represented the high-quality wine inside of the bottle. Aaron Coad, Head of Creative at Michael Lavelle Wines, said, “As most customers purchase with their eyes, we wanted to be intentional about ensuring the full aesthetic of our bottles, including the label, was beautiful yet minimalistic in design to catch the attention of curious cus

New Account Manager, Karli Chase, will be covering Sonoma, Napa, and Mendocino regions for M. A. Silva USA. JULY 26, 2021 – SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA - M. A. Silva USA, the leading manufacturer of premium corks, glass, and packaging in North America, announces the addition of Karli Chase as Account Manager for the Sonoma, Napa, and Mendocino regions. Karli has essentially spent her entire life in the wine industry. She grew up on her family’s vineyard, Chase Vineyards, surrounded by 40 acres of Petite Sirah, Zinfandel, and Carignane, making her a fourth generation farmer in the Mendocino County. As Karli pursued her degree in Wine Business Strategies at Sonoma State University, she worked at Testa Vineyards, in Calpella, California and eventually moved to Comstock Wines in Sonoma County. As Account Manager, Karli brings a lot of valuable personal experience to her new position. Gustavo Beltran, Sales Manager at M. A. Silva USA, commented, “It has been a great pleasure to

by Steve Fredricks Last month I was impatiently waiting for my favorite Philly Cheesesteak as I overheard another sandwich lover describing the success of his investment in Dogecoin to his friend. He was touting Dogecoin as a “sure investment” based on his study of the price trend, and was looking forward to spending his yet unrealized gains. I couldn’t help but be reminded of reading about confirmation bias while studying psychology and behavioral economics. Confirmation bias is the tendency to place greater weight on the variables which support the future that most benefits us and to discount information that does not. Mr. Philly Cheesesteak failed to acknowledge the speculative nature of Dogecoin. I hope his friend didn’t choose to invest; shortly after overhearing that conversation, Dogecoin dropped 40 percent. Markets, in reality, are complex beasts with many evolving variables and more determining factors than just today’s price and direction. Histor

The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s preliminary 2020 crush figure, published February 10th, was in line with our pre-harvest estimate at 3,404,298 tons. This volume represents a 13% decline from 2019’s 3.91 million tons and is the lightest crop since 2011’s 3.34 million tons. The causes were Mother Nature’s lighter yields and – mainly in the Coast – smoke exposure issues that led to an unknown amount of the crop not getting picked.  Of the biggest varietals by tonnage, Chardonnay (-16.1% to 538,552 tons), Cabernet (-14.1% to 498,975 tons), Zinfandel (-14.7% to 297,726 tons) and Pinot Noir (-20.8% to 211,194 tons) all saw declines on 2019 to similar extents, with a smaller drop of -11.6% for Pinot Gris (to 218,326 tons) allowing it to overtake Pinor Noir as the fourth-biggest varietal. The state-wide average tonnage price came in at $680/ ton, down 18% from $831/ton in 2019 – something likely most attributable to the lack of