The World of Pinot Noir announces March 2021 will be ‘WOPN Wine Month’ 

This year, the largest annual gathering of Pinot Noir producers and fans is going virtual it’s going to be bigger and longer.

During the month of March every Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday will feature a series of virtual tasting seminars, events, auctions, and winemaker happy hours via Zoom, Instagram Live and Facebook Live.

“Each year, our 3,000-plus attendees often say they’d love even more content and more opportunities for intimate experiences with winemakers,” says Laura Booras, president of the World of Pinot Noir Board of Directors. “This year, we actually have an opportunity to grow those opportunities.”

New this year is the “WOPN Wine Case Experience.” Each guest will receive a carefully selected case of hard-to-find pinot noirs handpicked by our esteemed World of Pinot Sommelier Team. Then, each Wednesday (beginning March 3), David Glancy, Master Sommelier and Founder of the San Francisco Wine School, will host an exclusive winemaker seminar and discussion featuring three of the 12 wines.

Every Thursday (beginning March 4), WOPN will present a different deep-dive tasting seminar. These winemaker panel discussions will feature esteemed personalities in the winemaking community and delve into sites such as Bien Nacido, the terroirs of the Santa Lucia Highlands and explore the rugged elegance of the Sonoma Coast. Each tasting seminar will feature a collection of wines for purchase.

In addition to the eight tasting seminars, WOPN will host a series of free live Facebook and Instagram winemaker discussions and Happy Hours every Wednesday at noon (PST) and Friday at 5 p.m. (PST), respectively.

WOPN’s popular annual silent auction also goes virtual. Bid throughout the month on large-format bottles, exclusive library wines, and one-of-a-kind experiences from scores of producers from around the world.

For further information please visit the World of Pinot Noir website

WINEGB ANNOUNCES ITS CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES FOR 2021

WineGB has just released its 2021 calendar of activities as part of its UK market development strategy. This year there will be a strong focus on wine tourism and the retail sector, underpinned by industry values including sustainability, product excellence and innovation.

Activities kick off with a virtual three-day wine tourism conference next month. ‘Wine Tourism in the UK: the route to success’ will run 2nd – 4th March, 10 am-12 pm each day. Whilst aimed primarily at industry members, many of whom are actively engaged in wine tourism, the calibre and line up of speakers will be instructive and inspiring for anyone working within the wider tourism and hospitality industry.

English Wine Week is moving to June, taking place Saturday 19th – Sunday 27th June. Celebrating English vineyards and wines in a week that includes Summer Solstice and Midsummers Day as well as the beginning of flowering seemed a timely and seasonal move for both vineyards and the many retailers selling English wines. With the range of wines now readily accessible and reported record sales of English wines in the last year, the Week provides the perfect opportunity to team up with retailers to spread the strong message of availability, together with encouraging more people to visit the many vineyards that are open to the public (in times without lockdown restrictions). More information about how WineGB will be proposing to work with retailers will be released shortly.

There will be a separate Welsh Wine Week, scheduled to take place Friday 4th – Sunday 13th June. Supported by the Welsh Government’s Drinks Cluster, there will be a veritable toast to the growing number of vineyards across Wales. Further information will be available from https://drinkwelsh.co.uk

The pandemic last year meant that the annual WineGB Trade & Press tasting was cancelled. This year’s tasting is scheduled to take place on Tuesday 7th September (subject to any restrictions of course) and promises to be the key showcase event for GB wines and the recent excellent vintages and releases.

The WineGB Awards will see judging taking place over the week of 7th June at Ashling Park Wine Estate, Sussex. Led by Co-Chairs Susie Barrie MW and Oz Clarke, the wines will go through a rigorous tasting process with the highest calibre of judges. The aim of the Awards is not only to celebrate excellence but to provide significant promotional opportunities for all the winners through an extensive social media campaign and supporting all stockists and resellers. The medal wins will be announced on Thursday 24th June (during English Wine Week). A trophy announcement and awards ceremony is planned and further details will be released in due course.

A number of dedicated social campaigns will also be rolled out over the year. Upcoming is a Valentine’s focus with a difference: #WineMyHeartAway is running in association with Susie Barrie MW and Peter Richards MW together with Majestic and encouraging followers and industry alike across their social channels (Instagram and Twitter) to share the first time they fell in love with wine. To celebrate International Women’s Day on 8th March, WineGB is teaming with Women in Wine London to run a series of Instagram Live interviews across that week until 15th March, featuring women from some of the many different areas of the Great British wine industry.

Comments Julia Trustram Eve, WineGB’s Marketing Manager: “Whilst last year was incredibly challenging for many of our members, the rise in retail and direct to consumer sales demonstrated that consumers are more clearly focussed on provenance, sustainability, buying from local producers – all of which our industry is proud to provide. Above all we want to set out a calendar of events and projects that focus on key consumer drivers and allows them and the trade to engage with this wonderful industry of ours, which is going through remarkable growth and bursting with confidence.

“We sincerely hope that the many tourism operations and our own trade tasting will be able to take place in person – we cannot wait to see everyone again and give the trade a chance to connect with our wines. Here’s to a great 2021.”

Further information – visit https://www.winegb.co.uk/trade/

California Wine Institute Launches “Golden State of Mind” Campaign

The “Golden State of Mind” campaign will showcase California’s efforts in sustainable vine growing, innovation and winemaking advancements.

The first phase will be rolled out spring 2021 and will focus on digital advertising and consumer-focused promotions, starting with the introduction of a new look and logo.

Built on the pillars of optimism, innovation and advancements in winemaking, the campaign will also promote a calendar of online events, such as virtual winery tours for the trade and education webinars, as well as a new wine education course with a four-tier certification program.

Seeking to expand its audience in both new and emerging markets, the California Wine Institute is launching its new campaign in the following markets: Canada, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Mexico, Sweden, and the United Kingdom as well as Australia, France, Israel, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, Ukraine and other Eastern European markets.

California Wine Institute’s vice president of international marketing, Honore Comfort, commented: “The crises of 2020, felt both locally and globally, have underscored the importance of our enduring relationships with supporters of California wine around the world.

“We have an opportunity to forge a new path, to share California’s unique attributes so that we continue to grow and evolve in the minds and glasses of our global audience and build a more robust sales channel for our wineries.”

The Wine Institute launched its 2030 Plan last year, a 10-year strategy to increase US wine exports, 95% of which are sourced from California to over $2.5 billion. The strategy aims to increase sales in current markets, launch activity in new markets, and encourage more wineries in California to sell internationally.

The campaign aims to shine a spotlight on California values, showcase the state’s family-owned wine producers, next-generation winemakers and growers and also highlight its commitment to sustainability, diversity and inclusion.

For further details visit – website.

Wine Australia is launching a new global 24/7 virtual platform

Wine Australia is launching an (always-on) 24/7 virtual platform “Australian Wine Connect” in March which will bring the global wine community together to experience and explore Australia’s wine scene.

The interactive platform will be a go-to resource for Australian wine over the next twelve months. Featuring wineries from across 65 regions; connecting winemakers, buyers, importers, distributors, media, educators and more; and offering a diverse program of engaging events and experiences.

Australian Wine Connect will create a bold new world of opportunities for Australian wineries to promote their products across the UK, Europe, the US, Canada and Asian markets.

Wine Australia chief executive officer Andreas Clark said, “We’re proud to bring this same spirit of innovation to the way we do business and have been working hard to develop a valuable opportunity for Australian wineries to continue marketing and selling their wines overseas this year”.

“Australian Wine Connect has been designed to offer similar benefits to an international trade show, however it also enables wineries to reach and engage with multiple markets across the globe and it will be live and offering various virtual business opportunities for a full twelve months,” he said.

Clark said it will allow buyers from across the world to network and meet producers, discover new wines, link up with distributors and enable sales conversations. It will also offer ongoing live thought-leadership sessions, tasting sessions, variety and regional explorations to showcase the people, places and processes that make Australian wine unique.

Australian Wine Connect will go live on 31 March 2021 and registrations for the virtual showcase are now open to Australian wineries. Eligible wineries can apply for the Wine Export Grant to help cover the cost of participation.

The Australian wine community is renowned for its creativity in the pursuit of creating the most diverse and distinctive wines in the world.

The multi-faceted platform will host virtual events and collaboration tools to help wineries stay up to date in market and will promote Australian wine in a new and exciting way to raise awareness and increase demand amongst an international trade audience.

For further details, click here

Private Clients and Investors invited to bid at Hospices de Nuits-Saint-Georges Wine Auction on March 14, 2021

This year, for the first time, Burgundian producer Maison Edouard Delaunay is allowing a limited number of private clients and investors the chance to bid at this spring’s 60th Hospices de Nuits Wine Auction which will be held March 14th, 2021.

Since 1961, this “en primeur” sale of 228-litre barrels has been solely for trade buyers, until this year, the négociant will allow a number of private collectors to bid for the first time.

Prospective buyers can purchase a minimum of 24 bottles. They will be welcome (Covid restrictions dependent) to stay at Château de Gilly on Friday, March 12, with a visit to the Maison Delaunay winery on Saturday and then attend a tasting and lunch at the Hospices de Nuits on the day of the auction, Sunday, March 14, 2021.

The wines sold will finish their aging in the cellars of Maison Edouard Delaunay, at Étang Vergy, under the supervision of cellar master Christophe Briotet, recently nominated “best winemaker in the world” by the “International Wine Challenge”.

A Historical Relationship
The historic relationship between Maison Edouard Delaunay and the Hospices de Nuits began long before the first auction in 1961, when Laurent Delaunay’s grandfather bought Hospices de Nuits wines by mutual, exclusive agreement.

The Charity – Hospices de Nuits
Hospices de Nuits consists of a working hospital, a retirement home and one of the most beautiful collections of vineyards of Nuits-Saint-Georges and the Côte de Nuits whose wines are sold at the traditional March auction.

The Hospices de Nuits was founded in 1270 and is historically older than Hospices de Beaune which was founded in 1443. The Hospices de Nuits began offering its wine at auction 60 years ago. Over the centuries the Hospice has been bequeathed numerous vineyards which today comprises of 12.5 hectares. Most of the vineyards are in Nuits-Saint-Georges, covering six parcels of village appellations and nine premier crus, and including Les Didiers.

Laurent Delaunay states: “To bid at the Hospices de Nuits combines the pleasure of buying top wines with the joy of contributing to a great charity.”

For further information, and details of how to sign up and bid https://burgundyauction.wine/