News Briefs for March 11, 2015
March 11, 2015•The Wine Group’s Concannon Vineyard winery is commemorating 50 years since the creation of its Concannon Cabernet Sauvignon Clones 7, 8 and 11 with the debut of a new Founder’s Tier. Rolling out this month, Concannon’s Founder’s Tier includes a Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon, Monterey County Chardonnay and San Francisco Bay Petite Sirah. All three will be available on-premise nationwide at a suggested retail price of around $20 a bottle. The Founder’s Tier joins Concannon’s existing Heritage (around $65), Reserve ($24-$36), Conservancy ($18) and Selected Vineyard ($15) tiers. Created in 1965 via a collaboration between vintner Jim Concannon and UC Davis, the Concannon Clones are planted to an estimated 80% of California’s 80,000 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, according to the winery.
•Sonoma’s V2 Wine Group has gained exclusive rights to distribute the wines of Chile’s Viña Morandé in the U.S. market. Under the long-term deal, V2 will handle Morandé’s Pionero, Reserva and Gran Reserva offerings, which retail at $10-$23 a bottle. V2 was founded in 2010 by Dan and Katy Leese and Pete and Terri Kight.
•Illinois-based importer and marketer Winesellers Ltd. has added Italian wine brand Prodigo to its portfolio. Focusing on food-friendly offerings sourced from a variety of DOCs, Prodigo’s portfolio includes a Sauvignon Blanc from the Friuli-Grave region, Sangiovese Riserva from the Emilia-Romagna region and a Nero d’Avola from Sicily. Each of the wines are retail-priced at around $11 a bottle. Prodigo marks the fifth addition to Winesellers’ Italian lineup, joining the Tiamo Organic, Bellafina Sparkling, La Fiera and Gran Passione wine brands.
•Custom crush and winemaking company Rack & Riddle has added five new sparkling wines to its private label portfolio. Made with fruit from California’s North Coast and Sonoma County regions, the non-vintage lineup includes Brut, Blanc de Noirs, Blanc de Blancs, Brut Rose and Moscato varietals. According to Rack & Riddle general manager Mark Garaventa, the company’s sparkling wine program is geared toward a variety of branding opportunities, including “a restaurant offering customizable private labels for weddings, a store offering a special blend for a rewards program, or a winery’s holiday-themed label,” among other concepts. Headquartered in Healdsburg, Rack & Riddle produces more than 1 million cases of still and méthode champenoise sparkling wine annually.
•Heineken has unveiled plans to invest roughly $470 million in a new brewery in Mexico, according to news reports. The brewery—which will supply beer for both the Mexican and U.S. markets—will be located in Meoqui, part of the northern state of Chihuahua. Expected to be operational by the fourth quarter of 2017, the facility’s initial production capacity will total around 5 million hectoliters annually, with potential to eventually grow to 10 million hectoliters. Heineken’s Mexican beer portfolio includes brands such as Tecate, Sol and Dos Equis. The Meoqui brewery will mark Heineken’s seventh brewing facility in the country.
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Tagged : Heineken, The Wine Group, V2 Wine Group
