Neal Family Vineyard [Napa] are officially “Regenerative Organic Certified®”

Napa Valley’s biodynamic winegrowing pioneer Mark Neal has recently announced that his Howell Mountain estate winery, Neal Family Vineyards, has achieved Regenerative Organic Certified® as recognized by the Regenerative Organic Alliance (ROA). The ROA was established in 2018 and is today considered the highest level of certification. There are only five vineyard estates worldwide that hold Regenerative Organic Certified® status and Neal Family Vineyards now represents the first Napa Valley vineyard to receive this certification.

“I first achieved organic certification in 1984 but being the first in Napa Valley to achieve the Regenerative Organic Certified® stamp of approval is still an exciting accomplishment for us because of what it stands for,” said Neal, vintner, founder, and owner of Neal Family Vineyards. “ROA was founded to address climate change, soil degradation, biodiversity loss, factory farming and fractured rural communities globally.  Regenerative organic agriculture is a collection of practices that focus on regenerating soil health and the full farm ecosystem. This new certification goes farther than any other organic certification – including CCOF (California Certified Organic Farmers) – by requiring specific farming practices that build soil health, ensure fairness to farmers and farm workers, and improve animal welfare. We have always exclusively used organic and biodynamic practices in our vineyards, and this certification further cements that commitment to the land and our community.”

Mark Neal is considered one of Napa Valley’s earliest organic and biodynamic pioneers and the valley would not be where it is today without his early advocacy for organic farming. He and his father started Jack Neal & Son (JNS) in 1968 and his vineyards have been certified organic starting in 1984 – long before there was any marketing cachet around sustainability. Today, under Mark’s leadership, Jack Neal & Son manages the most CCOF Certified acres in Napa Valley and can claim the largest biodynamic farming operation in the United States, effectively making Mark Neal one of Napa Valley’s most influential grape growers when it comes to ethical farming.

For more information visit  www.NealVineyards.com/

#NealFamilyVineyards #HowellMountain #RegenerativeOrganicCertification #NapaValley #vineyards #clilmatechange #biodiversity #organicfarming #biodynamic #winelovers #wine #winenews

 

Eastbound Westbound “A winemaker’s story from Bordeaux and California”

Eastbound Westbound “A winemaker’s story from Bordeaux and California” is an engaging present-day historical movie… 🎬 🎥 🎞️

…it transports you to another time period and location..

….you become engrossed in the plot…

… you also find yourself inside iconic wineries, and historic chateaus like Château Haut-Brion (Premier Cru Classé en 1855, Pessac-Léognan), and Château La Mission Haut-Brion (Cru Classé de Graves, Pessac-Léognan)

Check out the official trailer and see for yourself ….https://lnkd.in/g-uEY8Ag

#film #documentary #behindthescenes #filmproduction #setdesign #filmcrew #filmlocation #filmset #movielocation #instagood #filmtourism #filmtourist #wine #winelover #thomasjefferson #bordeauxwine #finewine #crusclassés1855 #bordeauxwinelovers #winehistory #filmlover #wineinfluencers #sommlife #sommelier #winenews #wineindustry #winetrade #eastboundwestboundfilm

Wine Unify Appoints Alicia Towns Franken Executive Director

Wine Unify, a nonprofit organization, founded to champion and promote diversity within the wine business, has announced Alicia Towns Franken as Executive Director.

Alicia has served as the Head of Mentorship and as a member of the Board of Directors since Wine Unify was officially founded in 2020. Described by her colleagues and mentees as “the heart” of Wine Unify, she brings with her firsthand experience of how the non-profit serves the wine community.

“We have all worked as volunteers at Wine Unify since the beginning, knowing that the most important priority for our donations was to go back to the awards and community-building goals we set for ourselves. We are thrilled to have reached a point in our growth where an Executive Director is both necessary for our growth and a natural part of our evolution,” says Wine Unify Co-Founder Mary Margaret McCamic, Master of Wine. “There is no one I would rather see steer this ship than my friend and colleague, Alicia Towns Franken.”

Board of Directors member Priyanka French stated, “Alicia has brought compassion, raw conversations, a sense of community and genuine relationship building into our Wine Unify program since its inception. We are so excited to see her step into this role.”

Alicia brings with her nearly 30 years in the wine industry. She began her career as the Wine Director for Boston’s famed Grill 23 & Bar, where she worked for over a decade to build one of the city’s most respected wine programs. She later worked as a sought-after wine consultant and event planner under her own business, Towns Franken Consulting. Most recently, she was the Vice President of the Wine Portfolio for Archer Roose, a canned wine company seeking to democratize the wine business. Ultimately, though, her passion for building community, working to champion a more diverse wine industry, and innate talent for mentoring young wine professionals led her to take on the role of Executive Director for Wine Unify.

“I could not be more proud of the work we have done at Wine Unify, and I cannot wait to lead this organization as we continue to grow. Giving back, being a part of change, and working to diversify the wine industry is what feeds my soul,” Alicia says of her new role.

To date, Wine Unify has given 95 awards to BIPOC wine professionals and enthusiasts. These awards include fully-funded courses through the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET), sponsorship from Coravin, glassware from Stölzle and Gabriel Glas, as well as subscriptions from Jancis Robinson and more. These awards are one piece of the organization’s core mission to welcome, elevate, and amplify the voices of underrepresented minorities in the wine business.

#wineunify #womeninwine #womeninwinebusiness #bipoc #wineindustry #winetrade #winenews #wine #winelovers #winelovers #AliciaTownsFranken

OIV Releases 2022 Global Wine Production Projections

OIV releases its report on 2022 Global Wine Production Projections and here are their findings:

Severe drought and extreme heat pose a new threat to wine production.

In 2022, despite the heat wave that touched many regions of the world, global wine production volume is expected to be at a level similar to the one observed last year. This would be the fourth consecutive year where the global production level can be considered as slightly below average.

This year’s harvest has been characterized by extreme heat and record-breaking drought that sped up ripening in vineyards all over the globe. A report recently published by the Global Drought Observatory indicated that almost two-thirds of the European territory was in a state of drought or on alert due to heat waves and extremely low rainfall: this has been the worst drought in the last 500 years. And Europe was not the only region impacted: from East Africa to California, extreme temperatures have been recorded this year.

Average production volume is expected in the EU, with positive performances recorded in Italy, France, and Germany, which balanced out the low harvests expected in Spain and Greece, which were particularly affected by the heat wave during summer.

First harvest forecasts in the USA indicate that production volume will be slightly lower than in 2021.

After the record-high figures of last year, Southern Hemisphere vineyards produced average volumes, with the only exception of New Zealand that, thanks to favorable climatic conditions, records the largest production ever.

Full Report

https://www.oiv.int/press/severe-drought-and-extreme-heat-pose-new-threat-wine-production

Source OIV

#OIV #winereport #winenews #winery #wineries #wineharvest #winelovers #wine #winetrade #wineproduction #wineproducer #wineeconomics #winetrends

 

 

Five Masters of Wine inducted at the IMW awards ceremony

The Institute of Masters of Wine has officially welcomed five new Masters of Wine to its membership at an awards ceremony in London on November 1st, 2022.

The five new MWs inaugurated at Vintners’ Hall were, from the 2020 vintage, Pasi Ketolainen MW (Finland), from the 2021 vintage, Michael Henley MW (New Zealand) and Sophie Parker-Thomson MW (New Zealand), and from the 2022 vintage, Justin Martindale MW (UK – Scotland) and Jonny Orton MW (UK – England).

Individual awards were given to Justin and Jonny, the 2022 MWs, for exceptional performance in a particular area of the MW exam. Jonny received the Villa Maria Award for his outstanding knowledge and understanding of viticulture and the Robert Mondavi Winery award for his performance across all the theory papers. For his exceptional tasting ability, Justin received the Madame Bollinger Medal, and the Quinta do Noval award for the best research paper, the evolving language of minerality in wine tasting: a case study of Decanter tasting notes 1976-2019. Research papers can be downloaded from the IMW website here.

The ceremony also honored members who had reached their 50th and 60th year as MWs. Robin Crameri MW, Julian Falk MW and James John MW passed the exam in 1972, and Ian Bamford MW, John Brownsdon MW and David Peppercorn in 1962.

There are currently 415 Masters of Wine based in 30 different countries.

#wine #wineeducation #winenews #winelovers #wineeducation #wineawards #MastersofWine #MastersofWineAwards #womeninwine