Dear Friends,
Thanks again to all our industry members and business partners who joined us for the 2023 Oregon Wine Symposium. As is customary, we invite your feedback on the event. A completed questionnaire will prompt us to provide you with password access to the recorded sessions when they are edited in a couple weeks.
On day one of Symposium, we honored the latest class of industry award recipients. Here they are pictured below:
Industry Award winners on the Oregon Wine Symposium Podium – Photo CWK Photography
If you want another look at their acceptance videos, the links are provided individually with their names: Vineyard Excellence Award winner pictured on the left: Pedro Martinez. Industry Partner Award winner Jackie Crawford, next to Pedro. Industry Founder’s Award winner Dr. Robert Gross there on Jackie’s left. The Outstanding Industry Leadership Award winners Drs. Jeanne and David Beck are next to Lifetime Achievement Award winners Danuta and Robin Pfeiffer. And Vineyard Excellence Award winner Alejandro Avalos is on the right.
Congratulations to you ALL.
And you can mark your calendars now for next year. The 2024 Oregon Wine Symposium will return to the Oregon Convention Center next Feb. 13-14.
In other news, the 2023-24 official Oregon Wine Touring Guide is printed and packaged up waiting for you to order your free copies (they ship in cartons of 40). Early orders from wineries and consumers are already setting records. Feel free to share this link with your wine club members so they can order their own free copy, and remind them that a digital version of the guide is also available.
Looking ahead to next month, Dr. Jeff Peterson will join us in the Oregon Wine Board (OWB)’s Zoom room for the first in a pair of online sessions during which he will go further in depth with analysis and interpretation of data and trends from the 2022 Oregon Wine Industry Labor and Salary Survey. Register for that virtual meeting coming up on Wednesday, March 22 at 10 a.m.
REMINDER: there’s just one week remaining to order your free Oregon Wine Month merchandising materials, produced and shipped by OWB. They are available to your wholesale distribution partners around the country as well. The deadline for orders is coming up fast on Tuesday, March 7. Click here for a look at additional support pieces specific to Willamette Valley wines developed by the WV Wineries Association.
P.S: Attention Oregon Malbec growers and winemakers. Help us spread the word: The first-of-its-kind showcase tasting and education event is coming to Castaway Portland on Sunday, April 30 from 12 to 5 p.m. Producers of Malbec or Malbec blends can register by March 30 to pour their wines in April. The $100 participation fee includes 2 complimentary tickets per winery, the OLCC event fee, an early access discount code for your club members and newsletter followers, plus a media/VIP tasting at noon.
Our Legacy Harvested is the beneficiary of the event. Founded in 2020 to educate, advance, and empower the BIPOC community in the wine industry, Our Legacy Harvested works with individuals at any career level to advance knowledge, expertise, and opportunities in wine, cultivating a community of wine industry change makers who are as diverse as the community of wine lovers.
Tom Danowski
President
Marketing
OWB Marketing
Order Your 2023-24 Oregon Wine Touring Guides
The 2023-24 edition of the Oregon Wine Touring Guide is now available. The new edition is getting a total print run of 70,000 copies that are distributed in Oregon and neighboring states and promoted to consumers on our website. The guide is an 80-page, full-color magazine and digital book meant to inspire more visits to your tasting room by locals and out-of-towners alike. It also makes a wonderful addition to any tasting room, and wineries are encouraged to order complimentary boxes in our Touring Guide Toolkit.
Wine Industry Insights
Study Shows Online Sales do not Increase Minors’ Access to Alcohol
Online wine shipping e-commerce and compliance platform Vinoshipper has released a study to show that e-commerce platforms with age-verification software are fully effective at stopping illegal sales of alcoholic beverages to minors. This new data could be used in loosening restrictions to allow interstate shipment of wine.
SipSource Year-end Report Tracks “Worst Performance” Since Report Inception
Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA)’s SipSource released year-ending data for 2022. The 2022 Q4 SipSource report shows that the wine category continued to struggle in 2022 despite strong growth rates in the over $15 price segment during the holiday season.
Community Benchmark Releases Overall DtC Trends for Jan. 2023
The analysis includes year-over-year January 2023 (Jan 2023 vs. Jan 2022 and 2021) data from over 486 wineries across all the regions and 128 wineries in Oregon which participate in Community Benchmark. View all regions data and Oregon-specific data.
The DtC and tasting room managers roundtable discussion at the 2023 Oregon Wine Symposium attracted more than 80 industry members who discussed current concerns and positive trends. On Feb. 21 a Zoom recap of the roundtable findings reviewed what is most important to DtC managers right now. The recording and slides are available on our website along with other DtC resources.
Register for Dr. Jeff Peterson’s Webinar on Salary Survey Findings | March 22 at 10 a.m.
Dr. Jeff Peterson will present an in-depth analysis and interpretation of data and trends from the 2022 Oregon Wine Industry Salary Survey. Register here.
Press and Media
Press Highlights
The Wine Enthusiast Highlights Oregon Dry Farming Practices
Michael Alberty describes Why Oregon Winemakers Are Embracing Dry Farming and the commitment of Oregon’s deep roots coalition members to halt irrigation once new vines bear fruit.
Wine Business Recaps the Oregon Wine Symposium.
In this article L.M. Archer captured the industry enthusiasm for the Oregon Wine Symposium including the many sessions, keynote speakers, and trade show.
National Geographic Features Portland Urban Wineries
In her article How Portland is becoming an urban hotspot for winemaking, Jacqui Agate praises Portand’s craft scene and how winemaking is a natural addition to a town of “makers at heart.”
Media Opportunities & Calls for Wine
James Suckling Requests Wines for 2023 Oregon Report | Deadline March 5JamesSuckling.comteam is looking for commercially available or soon-to-be-released Oregon wines they have not yet had the opportunity to review. OWB has worked with them to coordinate the venue for tasting and will be on hand to assist for the week they are in our state. In preparation, OWB is coordinating wine gathering at Northwest Distribution & Storage and will organize wine delivery to James Suckling’s team. All wineries are invited to submit up to three different Oregon wines using the form available on our website.
TEXSOM International Wine Awards is Accepting Wine Submissions | Deadline April 14
Judging for TEXSOM International Wine Awards (TIWA) will occur from April 30 through May 3, 2023, in Irving, Texas. Wineries do not have to have distribution in Texas to submit entries. OWB has partnered with FedEx to support this opportunity and can cover ground shipping for your wine entries. Shipping details and instructions are available on our website.
Research
February 2023 Weather and Climate Forecast
Dr. Greg Jones recently published an updated weather and climate summary and forecast. This report looks back at January conditions and forecasts conditions for February, March, and April.
OWB Viticulture & Enology Research Committee Review Cycle has Started
On Jan. 31, the portal receiving requests for OWB funding closed. A total of 18 research projects qualified for review, of which 4 are continued funding requests. Of the 14 new ones, 7 are viticulture and 7 are enology. Projects were randomly assigned for review to OWB 56 review committe members. Their reviews will be compiled by our lead reviewers and discussed on April 6. Contact Celine with any questions on OWB’s Research committee and timeline.
Opportunities
Travel Oregon Seeks Input on State Tourism Industry | Deadline March 2
Travel Oregon and the state’s 7 Regional Destination Management Organizations (RDMOs) are requesting your thoughts and perspectives on how best to support Oregon’s tourism industry. In advance of strategic planning and in support of Travel Oregon’s newly adopted 10-Year Strategic Vision, your feedback is welcomed here by March 2.
Register for Malbec in the City | Deadline March 30
Malbec in the City!will bring together producers of wines made with Malbec grapes grown in Oregon. This consumer event will take place on Sunday, April 30 in Portland at the Castaway and will benefit Our Legacy Harvested. Wineries interested in participating can fill out this form.
Other News
Register for Governor’s 2023 Conference on Tourism | April 3 – 5
Join your travel and tourism colleagues in Portland for Oregon’s largest tourism gathering of the year. Keynote speakers and breakout session will focus on objectives aligned with Travel Oregon’s 10-Year Strategic Vision, which includes experiences, equity, economy, and environment. Register for the conference here.
Tom Danowski
President
