Wine Country

Napa Wine Country’s Heitz Cellar congratulates Erik Elliott, MS

Napa Wine Country’s Heitz Cellar congratulates Erik Elliott, MS

Heitz Cellar is excited to announce that Estate Director Erik Elliott has passed the Masters Exam with the Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas.

Erik is one of 10 individuals who successfully met the qualifications to be awarded the title of Master Sommelier. The results were announced at the Krug Reception on August 31, 2022, at the Royal Sonesta in Portland, Oregon.

The Master Sommelier Diploma is the highest distinction a professional can attain in the beverage service industry.

The Master Sommelier Diploma Examination consists of three sections:

a verbal theory examination,

a wine assessment exercise using the Deductive Tasting Method,

and a practical component that focuses on hospitality, beverage service, salesmanship, and overall business acumen.

Candidates must receive passing scores in each section to earn the highly coveted Master Sommelier title.

“I AM SO PROUD OF ERIK FOR PUTTING IN THE HARD WORK AND ACHIEVING THIS SPECIAL HONOR.

IT’S A JOY TO SEE MY CLOSE FRIEND AND COLLEAGUE JOIN THE COURT OF MASTER SOMMELIERS.

I HAVE WATCHED HIM GROW FROM A BARTENDER TO A SOMMELIER, A

ND EVENTUALLY A HOSPITALITY DIRECTOR TO ESTATE DIRECTOR,

ALL WHILE DEMONSTRATING HIS TIRELESS WORK ETHIC AND DEEPENING HIS KNOWLEDGE OF FINE WINE AND HOSPITALITY.”

 

Carlton McCoy, MS.

(Lawrence Wine Estates, CEO)

Wine-Lovers, visit Penn’s Peak for the weekend to enjoy Mountain Wine Festival July 23-24

Wine-Lovers, Visit Penn’s Peak to enjoy Mountain Wine Festival July 23-24

Head to Penn’s Peak in nearby Jim Thorpe for this festival which includes wine samplings from 8 local wineries.

Relax with a glass of wine on the panoramic outdoor deck with a view of Beltzville Lake and the Pocono Mountains.

Choose to stay inside and enjoy air conditioned comfort while listening to live entertainment and shopping at several local artisans pop-up shops.

Penn's Peak Mountain Wine Festival

Mountain Wine Festival Wineries

Shade Mountain, Tolino Vineyards, Black River Farms, Blue Mountain Vineyards, The Winery at Wilcox, Blue Ridge Winery, and of course Franklin Hill Vineyards

The event starts at 12:00 both days until 5:00pm

Penn's Peak Mountain Wine Festival

Mountain Wine Festival Scholarships

Part of the proceeds of Mountain Wine Festival will go to help fund scholarships to this areas future Winemakers and Viticulturists.

Tickets for Mountain Wine Festival here

Wine-Lovers, Make this Boutique Winery part of Your Oregon Trip!

Wine-Lovers, Make this Boutique Winery part of Your Oregon Trip!

Bells Up Winery – Accessibility and Experience are worth its weight in wine!

Dave and Sara Specter, owners of Bells Up Winery in Newberg, are proving that a tiny winery (they describe it as “micro-boutique” and “un-Domaine”) can make a lasting impression on visitors who want that special “Oregon Experience”.


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How does Bells Up Winery do it?

One phone call, one email, and one pour at a time.

Sara sums it up nicely.

“We were out-of-state visitors ourselves in 2008, and this type of one-on-one owner/winemaker-hosted wine experience was what we loved best, but you hardly see it anymore.”


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Their strategy and business plan—producing a scant 600 cases per year across nine wines, and only offering winemaker-hosted private tastings limited exclusively to one group at a time—may sound a bit retro, but it is an intentional throwback to simpler times… when communication and commerce were way more personal and intimate, and far less digital.


Related: Williamette Valley’s Bells Up Winery is Oregon’s answer to music in the bottle


What’s the Bells Up Winery Method

Bells Up Winery is one of the few that do not embrace online sales, online reservations, and SMS text marketing.

Dave and Sara have proved that old school relationship-based wine sales can not only work, but their customers also find it refreshing.

The only way to buy their wine is directly from the winery, either in person or by phone call. Once they’ve gotten to know you and your wine preferences, repeat orders can be made by phone or email.

If you are uncertain about a selection, they can either reference your tasting with them or discuss your preferences, then describe the available wines directly to you.

Only accepting tasting reservations by phone also allows them to advise their guests about what to expect in advance, which sets expectations for an exceptional experience. After all, reservations for this $50/person winemaker-hosted tasting are special and limited to a maximum party size of six.


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This ensures that Dave and Sara can make the personal connections that create happy visitors that talk about their experience and ambassadors of them and their Oregon travels.

Their managed and controlled growth plan of increasing production only as a wine consistently sells out allows them to stay small, intimate, and personal. They insist that winery production will cap at 1,000 cases, which will allow them to continue their focus on surprising and delighting their visitors.


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How does Bells Up Winery do it?

To learn more, visit www.bellsupwinery.com, then phone them at 503-537-1328 to arrange your own Bells Up wine tasting as part of your next Oregon Travel Experience!

Contributed by:

Carl Giavanti Consulting carl@carlgiavanticonsulting.com 971.221.4212

Flor de Caña Rum launches #TogetherForAGreenerFuture to Honor Earth Month

Flor de Caña Rum launches #TogetherForAGreenerFuture to Honor Earth Month

Sustainably Crafted Flor de Caña Rum launches #TogetherForAGreenerFuture to Honor Earth Month a global campaign to plant 70,000 trees in 2022.

To celebrate Earth Month, Flor de Caña, a Carbon Neutral and Fair Trade Certified ultra-premium rum, is joining forces with retailers, bars, restaurants and consumers around the world to launch a year-long, global reforestation campaign that aims to ensure a greener future for generations to come.


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The sustainably crafted rum brand has already planted over 800,000 trees since 2005 and is well on its way to fulfill its pledge of planting one million trees by 2025.

The campaign titled “Together for a Greener Future“, supported by environmental charity One Tree Planted, includes a series of activations in points of sale and initiatives on social media (#TogetherForAGreenerFuture) to raise awareness on the importance of reforestation, as well as tree planting events in various countries throughout the year.


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Individuals will also be able to support reforestation efforts by donating through Flor de Caña’s fundraising page with One Tree Planted, which guarantees that for every dollar donated, one tree will be planted.

In turn, Flor de Caña will match all individual donations received during the campaign.

“One Tree Planted is proud to continue our partnership with Flor de Caña,

who have supported reforestation projects through unique fundraising campaigns over the years.”

says Matt Hill,

Founder & Chief Environmental Evangelist at One Tree Planted.

As the trees grow, they’ll restore soil stability and health, improve water filtration and absorption, mitigate the effects of climate change, improve biodiversity and provide a host of benefits to the local communities”.

“As a global leader of sustainability practices within the spirits industry, we are deeply committed to the protection and preservation of the environment,” said Mauricio Solórzano, Global Ambassador for Flor de Caña.


Related:  Old Bay Vodka Wins Double Gold at prestigious 2022 San Francisco World Spirits Competition with Gold Medal Ratings from all Members 


Through our partnership with One Tree Planted we’re taking our commitment to the environment to the next level and working together to inspire people around the world to get involved in our effort to restore forests and ensure a greener future for generations to come.”

The story of Flor de Caña dates back to 1890, when a young Italian adventurer decided to establish a distillery at the base of Nicaragua’s tallest and most active volcano, the San Cristóbal.

130 years and five family generations later, the entire production process continues under the supervision of the same family.


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Flor de Caña rums are distilled with 100% renewable energy and naturally aged for up to 30 years in bourbon barrels without artificial ingredients or added sugar.

The brand was awarded “Best Rum Producer of the Year” by the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) in 2017 due to the quality of its liquid.

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