Dear Friends,
Welcome back from the holiday. As you get caught up, here’s a roundup of items that may be of interest:
Dr. Alexander Levin reminds us that he is organizing the 2023 edition of Grape Day at the Southern Oregon Research and Extension Center in Central Point on Monday, July 17 starting at 8:30 a.m. The cost is $20 and you can register and view the four-hour agenda here. Lunch after the program ends is sponsored by the Rogue Valley Winegrowers Association.
If you missed the June 7 webinar sponsored by the West Coast Smoke Exposure Task Force, this link will take you to the recording. It’s a long one, (2 hours and 41 minutes) but packed with great research updates, plus information on insurance and new vineyard sensor and barrier spray developments.
The Oregon Wine Board’s (OWB) most recent public meeting on June 1 included a very good Marketing and Communications presentation that might interest those curious to learn more about where the OWB is investing to drive consumer awareness for Oregon, encourage tourism, and support winery expansion efforts into new markets. Here is the link to that meeting recording, and you can skip ahead to the 33 minute mark for the Marcom discussion.
In news from the OWB, we are recruiting to bring on a Communications and Media Relations professional. Our interim Communications Director, Sarah Murdoch, will continue to work closely with us and with industry members during our search so the important work in this critical area continues uninterrupted.
And results from the Decanter World Wine Awards are in. Oregon, again, was the envied region. Decanter based its decisions on reviews of a record 18,250 wines from 57 countries scored by 236 judges. Oregon won a Best in Show designation (Archery Summit’s 2021 Pinot Noir) which was one of only 50 Best in Show medals presented. There were also four Gold medals for US wines, including Domaine Serene’s Two Barns 2019 Pinot Noir. Congratulations to all the Oregon winemakers who were recognized this year.
Finally, Oregon’s Rudy Marchesi has been in front of the parade helping to organize this month’s Cambium Conference in St. Helena focused on Biodynamic vineyard practices and winemaking. The program includes three days of tastings, masterclasses, and case studies. A few tickets are still available, and you can sign up for one or more right here.
P.S. Save the Date, Tuesday, Aug.15 at 11 a.m. for a Zoom meeting to recap Oregon Wine Month 2023 and look ahead to 2024. We’ll be reviewing the numbers with industry expert Danny Brager and inviting AVA associations to share their successes and learnings. Register here.
While we continue to hear great anecdotes testifying to the increasing momentum Oregon Wine Month is generating in markets around the country, pictures tell the stories even better.
Here’s one of several great shots sent our way by Lyn Jerzerick, a sales manager with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits in the Pensacola area. It’s another example of the energy and enthusiasm our partners are bringing to Oregon Wine Month all over the country. Way to go, and thank you, Lyn.
Tom Danowski
President
Marketing
OWB Marketing
Register Now for Oregon Wine Month ’23 Recap and ’24 Planning Meeting | Aug. 15 at 11 a.m.
Please join us as we recap promotional efforts from Oregon Wine Month 2023. We will look at robust national business results from this year’s campaign for all trade channels including DtC, on and off premise depletion data, scan data, and more. Additionally, we will look at results from digital marketing and our social media efforts. We will discuss 2024 planning in an open forum. Register here.
Wine Industry Insights
Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Forecast by BevAlc Insights
Chardonnay has long been the top-selling white wine in the U.S. yet lately, Sauvignon Blanc has been stealing the spotlight. California vintners are reporting a boom in demand and wine buyers are seeing a shortage of Sancerre due to challenging weather conditions in France. Countries such as New Zealand and Chile are stepping in to fill the gap. BevAlc Insights took a deep dive into Drizly data for the last 12 months to explore the top-selling Sauvignon Blancs, the most popular countries of origin, and the fastest-growing brands. Learn more.
Education
Oregon Statewide Summer DtC Townhall | Recording Available
On June 13, winery owners, tasting room, and wine club managers gathered online for a statewide townhall to review the spring DtC and tasting room data and share insights to prepare for the busy summer months. This townhall co-hosted by OWB and regional associations included presentations from Community Benchmark and WISE Academy. Watch the recording or read the presentation deck. To reacquaint yourself with this program, visit the Community Benchmark Toolkit.
2023 Oregon Wine Symposium I Presentations and Recordings Available
The 2023 Oregon Wine Symposium offered attendees a rich menu of seminars on topics from business and marketing to viticulture and enology. OWB is now making recordings and presentations available to any of its industry members. View all Symposium content here. Specific topics can be filtered and searched for in the RESOURCES section of the OWB industry website.
Biodynamic Masterclass Open to Oregon Industry Members I July 27-29
Join international and domestic (including Oregon) wine producers and leaders in biodynamic viticulture for three days of masterclasses and tastings at the Quintessa estate in Napa Valley, California. Large and small biodynamic producers from around the world will share insights and knowledge. Biodiversity and terroir specialists will offer a perspective on viticulture in today’s changing environment. With a focus on practices and principles that build vineyard health and resilience, this immersive and conversational symposium is ideal for wine producers, consultants, viticulturists, sommeliers, and wine educators. Register here.
Press and Media
Press Highlights
Wine Enthusiast Celebrates the Willamette Valley 40th Anniversary
The article acknowledges both established and new wineries moving the AVA forward into the next 40 years. Read more.
LGBTQ Nation Covers Second Annual Queer Wine Fest
Now in its second year, Remy Drabkin’s Queer Wine Fest is making national news with an article in LGBTQ Nation with a reach just shy of 1 million readers. Drabkin, who served as McMinnville City Council member, council president, and now mayor has created a safe space for queer winemakers and wine drinkers.
MSN McMinnville Amongst Oregon Towns for Foodies in Wine Country
McMinnville took the state spotlight as Foodie Town in this MSN feature. Along with a hero shot of a dish from the famed Thistle restaurant, the story begins, “Sitting in the heart of Oregon’s famed Willamette Valley wine region, McMinnville is a welcoming town with a delightful main drag full of cool restaurants.” Visit MSN for more.
NY Times Includes Momtazi in their Story on Wine Cultural Identity
The New York Times welcomes over 135 million visitors to its newspaper every month, and this article, “When wine becomes Critical to Cultural Identity,” was syndicated in six other newspapers. In his article, Eric Asimov refers to a documentary that will be released later this year, “Somm: Cup of Salvation”. This fourth film in the “Somm” series will focus on the cultural importance of wine and will feature Oregon Maysara Wines founded by Flora and Moe Momtazi in 1997, 15 years after they fled Iran. If you don’t have a subscription to the NY Times, you can view the article syndicated here.
Jeb Dunnuck’s requests wine samples of any variety | Deadline July 7
Wine review site Jeb Dunnuck.com seeks Oregon wines for their Oregon reviewer Audrey Frick. She can accept mailed submissions in NYC, one bottle per winery, any variety. Learn more.
The New Wine Review wants to hear from you
The New Wine Review is a new online wine publication that has launched this month. They are eager to provide a good representation of Oregon. Virginie Boone, Senior Editor and Critic says: “We will be telling stories and rating wines. I am based in California but hoping to expand coverage into Oregon. I am a fan of the wines and know our readers will be too.” Learn more.
Oregon Wine Press Seeks Chardonnay | Deadline July 11
The Oregon Wine Press seeks Chardonnay for their September issue. Learn more.
Research
Viticulture & Enology
July 2023 Weather and Climate Forecast
Dr. Greg Jones recently published an updated weather and climate summary and forecast. This report looks back at June conditions and forecasts conditions for July, August, and September.
Spring Vineyard Update
Read about seasonal vineyard progress throughout the state’s winegrowing regions from Dr. Patty Skinkis, Professor and Viticulture Extension Specialist, OSU.
Grape Powdery Mildew Risk Model App
This online app funded in part by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Crop Protection, and Pest Management, Extension Implementation Program (USDA-NIFA-CPPM-EIP) offers a newer, streamlined interface for the existing model, which is also available through MyPest Page. It determines the 7-14 day risk forecast for powdery mildew based on vineyard location.
2023 Virtual Smoke Summit Webinar Recording
The West Coast Smoke Exposure Task Force Annual Smoke Summit took place virtually on Wednesday, June 7. This year’s summit featured prominent researchers sharing insights and recent discoveries on the impacts of wildfire smoke, USDA Agricultural Research Service updates on their research activities and future initiatives, and crop insurance policy information specifically addressing smoke-related concerns. The recording of the summit is available here.
Industry Research
UCLA Studies Claim Organic Wines Taste Better
Two UCLA studies on Organic Wines: Do eco-friendly wines taste better? and Evidence mounts that eco-friendly wine tastes better were referenced in a recent Wine Searcher article Why Organic Wine Tastes Better. These studies proved that organically certified wines scored 6.2 percent higher whilst Biodynamically certified wines – which don’t just eschew chemicals, but also require growers to plant and harvest at certain times and integrate animals and native plants into a holistic and closed-loop farming system – earned 11.8 percent higher scores.
Opportunities
Uncork the Potential of Our Marketplace
Do you have a job to offer? Are you looking for grapes? The Oregon Wine Board Marketplace is a useful tool for getting the word out. Don’t miss out on this free resource. Let’s connect the industry by trading and thriving together!
Oregon Wine Experience Tickets available
Enjoy artisan cheese and charcuterie provided by the Oregon Cheese Cave while savoring medal-winning Oregon wines. Check out this year’s program and get tickets for the Oregon Wine Experience and University series.
Other News
¡Salud! Online Auction | July 11-13
¡Salud! Services is a clinical department of OHSU Hillsboro Medical Center and Hillsboro Medical Center Foundation project. This relationship between vintners and physicians, united in their mission to provide vital healthcare services to the vineyard steward population, is unique to Oregon. Since 1992, the program has been fully funded from the proceeds of the annual ¡Salud! Oregon Pinot noir Auction and private donations. Become a bidder by June 30 and be entered to win a tasting for four from Beaux Frères!
Travel Oregon Visitor Profile Regional Dashboards Available
In addition to the Oregon Visitor Profile study done in collaboration with Destination Analysts, Travel Oregon, the Port of Portland and DMOs from across the state have developed regional reports. These reports provide insights into visitors perceptions, motivations, trip details, satisfaction, planning, and demographics.
Regional reports are available below and online:
Tom Danowski
President
