Tim and sister Marcia Mondavi, their families, and Robert and Margrit Mondavi.are partnering together to release a new wine entitled “Continuum.” The name is meant to symbolize the continuing legacy of the Robert Mondavi family, according to local Napa reports.The partnership is currently set to produce only one wine (a cabernet sauvignon) at 1,500 cases … Continue reading “TIM MONDAVI MAKES A COMEBACK”

In commenting on the full-year guidance, Norm Wesley, chairman and CEO stated: “2006 was an excellent year for Fortune Brands.”The company achieved its quarterly and full year target, and was especially helped by the wine and spirits business (Beam Global), which offset losses by home and hardware.“The benefits of our wine and spirits acquisition accelerated … Continue reading “NORM WESLEY: 2006 WAS AN EXCELLENT YEAR”

Washington state will likely expand Sunday liquor sales to more stores after a successful experiment showed a huge increase in sales. Over the last 16 months, 20 state-run stores and 38 contract stores run by private vendors have been keeping Sunday hours, noon to 5 p.m., which has resulted in a projected $18.5 million in … Continue reading “SUNDAY SALES A HIT IN WASHINGTON”

Four Roses Yellow Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey will be featured in Rocky Balboa during a scene between Rocky and his brother-in-law, Paulie, who has appeared in all six Rocky movies.“I remember Four Roses growing up. It was my grandfather’s favorite drink,” said Sylvester Stallone in a press release issued by the company. Four Roses was … Continue reading “FOUR ROSES YELLOW FEATURED IN ROCKY BALBOA”

U.K.-based Berry Bros. & Rudd Spirits (BB&R Spirits) has extended its partnership with Campari-owned Skyy Spirits in the U.S., allowing Skyy to continue as the exclusive markets of BB&R’s Scotch whiskey line (includes Cutty Sark Blended Scotch whiskey and The Glenrothes Single Malt Scotch whiskies.) The partnership was first formed seven years ago.“We continue to … Continue reading “SKYY SPIRITS RENEWS DEALS WITH CUTTY SARK”

Speculation alert: Shares of Fortune Brands have grown rapidly from June to Dec. 13, prompting speculation that Fortune may split in two.Spirits, led by Jim Beam, could combine with the golf business, while home and hardware would be “spun off to shareholder,” according to Business Week. You are unauthorized to view this page. Username Password … Continue reading “GROWING SHARES MAY PROMPT FORTUNE TO SPLIT”

When it comes to selling wine in restaurants, what promotions work? Not all advertising is profitable, and some of the results might surprise you, as they did us. A 12-week study conducted by Brian Wansink Ph.D., director of the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab, and other researchers was aimed at uncovering what kind of … Continue reading “RESTAURANT WINE PROMOTIONS THAT WORK”

Fred Franzia has done it again, managing to strike controversy virtually every time his highly successful company, Bronco Wine, puts out a new brand. This time, however, the brawl is not with Napa wineries.After spending six years in court unsuccessfully fighting for the right to use “Napa” in the name of several brands whose grapes … Continue reading “FRED FRANZIA ISSUING COPYCAT LABELS?”

Kendall-Jackson has once again made plans for a wine grape processing facility in rural Knights Valley after an earlier version met with neighborhood resistance, according to the Press-Democrat. Last week the wine giant issued a scaled-down proposal to build a larger boutique winery and tasting room in Knights Valley after failing to gain acceptance from … Continue reading “KENDALL JACKSON RUFFLING THE LOCALS”

Vincor Canada, a unit of Constellation, announced yesterday it has secured a sponsorship deal with the country’s Olympic and Paralympic Winter games in 2010, along with sponsoring the Canadian Olympic team for the games in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.Two varietals in Vincor’s super-premium price segment will make up the co-branded offering, while … Continue reading “VINCOR’S GOING TO THE OLYMPICS”

Pernod is going above and beyond the regulation requirements in the E.U. by extending a warning display to pregnant women.The wine and spirits company plans to put warning labels to pregnant women on its wine and spirits brands throughout the E.U., where it is already mandatory in France but not in other E.U. countries. The … Continue reading “PERNOD GETS “SENSIBLE.””

Reuters reports that wine and spirits firm Moet Hennessy, majority-owned by French fashion powerhouse LVMH , is in talks to buy into top Chinese liquor maker Jiannanchun. Jiannanchun owns China’s second-biggest brand of baijiu — a grain and sorghum-based alcohol whose name means “white liquor.” The two companies are still in negotiations. On Tuesday WSD … Continue reading “CHINA IS WHERE IT’S AT”

Representatives from wine regions around the globe have joined together to further reinforce truth in labeling laws with consumers. In effort to gain support, members of the wine industry have launched the Wine Place & Origins online petition today (December 15), asserting the importance of location to wine. Much like the recent rulings by the … Continue reading “WINE INDUSTRY PETITIONS FOR TRUTH IN LABELING”

Former Pennsylvania State Senator Joe Conti was named CEO of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board PLCB), but not without some criticism. PLCB Chairman Jonathan Newman loudly opposes the appointment, initiated by Gov. Ed Rendell and confirmed by two other members of the board, on the grounds that more steps should have been taken. Newman claims … Continue reading “DISSENSION ERRUPTS IN PENNSYLVANIA LIQUOR BOARD”

Russian Standard, producer of the Imperia brand, is moving fast to make an imprint on the U.S. vodka market. In addition to its recent lawsuit against Pernod’s Stolichnaya vodka, Russian Standard dropped a whopping $3 million for the internet domain name vodka.com, confirmed yesterday. Russian billionaire Roustam Tariko purchased the name from an undisclosed seller … Continue reading “RUSSIAN STANDARD DROPS $3M FOR DOMAIN”