10,000 And Counting
Bruce Stevenson (second from right), superintendent of the Ohio Division of Liquor Control, and Tom Kappa, the division's chief of Agency Operations, hold a barrel head celebrating the sale of 10,000 cases of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Honey in less than a year. Making the presentation are (l-r) Alan Wise from Brown-Forman, Damian Rudolph from RNDC/General and Mike Pyser from Brown-Forman.
Court Splits On Wholesaler Claims Of Franchise Violations
CANTON — An appeals court here took different views of a local beer wholesaler’s claims of franchise law violations against two companies.
The Fifth District Court of Appeals last month reversed a lower court ruling that found the owner of the Labatt beer brand violated state franchise law when it terminated Esber Beverage Co.’s contract to distribute its products, but upheld a ruling in favor of Esber in a case involving The Wine Group.
Ohio Wines Win Medals
SANTA ROSA, Calif. — Two Ohio wineries earned medals at the inaugural U.S. National Wine Competition here last month.
Debonne Vineyards of Madison took a silver medal for its 2010 Grand River Valley Riesling, while Cincinnati’s Henke Winery won bronze for 2010 Vendange A’Trois in the Red Bordeaux Type Blends category.
Judges tasted more than 1,100 wines to choose Sweepstakes Winners, Best of Class, double gold, gold, silver and bronze medal winners. The judges’ favorite for Best of Show was a cream sherry from Rancho De Philo in California.
America's Beer Distributors Celebrate Tavern Month
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Throughout the month of May, the National Beer Wholesalers Association is recognizing National Tavern Month, a celebration of the many licensed bars and taverns that provide hundreds of thousands of jobs to hardworking men and women and enrich America’s social culture.
Bar and tavern owners work together with beer distributors in communities in every state across the country to provide responsible service and sales. Beer distributors and tavern owners support server training programs, ID checks and the effective state-based system of alcohol regulation.
NRA Index Closes Out 1Q At Post-recession High
WASHINGTON — Driven by solid same-store sales and traffic results and an increasingly bullish outlook among restaurant operators, the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index matched its post-recession high in March.
Report: Wine Producers Look To Smaller Markets For Growth
NEW YORK (PRNewswire) — A new report found that traditionally attractive export markets for wine are currently in scarce supply, but that smaller markets are increasingly interesting.
According to financial services company Rabobank, many of the global wine trade’s traditional core markets are seeing falling volumes and lower profits in the face of economic headwinds. Canada, however, is an example of the smaller markets which the wine-exporting countries are taking a harder look at because they offer stronger growth potential and better pricing.
Tequila Sales Hit Record High
BROMSGROVE, England (PRNewswire) — Tequila sales hit a record high in 2010, with global shipments rising by 4.8 percent to 23.87 million cases from 22.77 million cases in 2009, according to the IWSR/just-drinks Global Market Review of Tequila.
Germany was the only one of tequila’s top six markets not to show growth in 2010. Moreover, the tequila sector has recorded a five-year compound annual growth rate of 3.8 percent, in spite of the global recession and a downturn in its two major markets — the U.S. and Mexico — in 2009.
Heaven Hill Plans Downtown Louisville Distillery
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Heaven Hill Distilleries Inc. recently announced plans to opened a multi-million dollar artisanal distillery in downtown Louisville.
Slated to open in September 2013, The Evan Williams Bourbon Experience will celebrate the legacy of Evan Williams, Kentucky’s first distiller and namesake of Heaven Hill’s flagship bourbon brand. Heaven Hill will renovate its historic building at 528 West Main St., in the heart of what was once called “Whiskey Row” in Louisville for the facility.
Beam, NCDC Call For DWI Court Expansion
WASHINGTON — Beam Inc. and the National Center for DWI Courts recently called for an expansion of courts designed specifically to deal with drunken driving offenders.
According to NCDC, DWI courts are the most successful criminal justice response to hard-core drunken driving. Government statistics show that 70 percent of fatal crashes due to drunken driving involve hard-core offenders, defined as those with a blood alcohol content above .15 percent or a previous DWI conviction. There currently are about 550 DWI courts across the country.
Shannon Ridge Acquires High Valley Vineyard
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The owners of Shannon Ridge Winery recently purchased High Valley Vineyard and will add that property and brand to their portfolio of Lake County wines.
The 80-acre vineyard lies adjacent to Shannon Ridge in the High Valley appellation of Lake County. “We really believe in Lake County and the quality that we can deliver in the bottle,” said Shannon Ridge co-owner Clay Shannon. “So purchasing this vineyard and these wines was just another way to confirm our commitment to the region.”
Broadstone REIT Acquires Hess Wine Facility For $27.8 Million
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (PRNewswire) — A New York-based real estate investment trust recently acquired the production, warehouse and distribution facility of The Hess Collection Winery in Napa County.
Broadstone Net Lease Inc. acquired the 284,000-square-foot facility for $27.8 million. The property is net leased to Hess for an initial 20 year term.
NRA: Restaurants Add 560,000 Jobs In Past Two Years
WASHINGTON — The National Restaurant Association recently reported that restaurants have added more than 560,000 jobs since the beginning of the employment recovery, with more than 200,000 of those positions created in the last six months.
Scottish Distillers Make Whisky At George Washington's Distillery
MOUNT VERNON, Va. — Three of Scotland’s top distillers recently joined with representatives of the Scottish government, Mount Vernon Estate, the Distilled Spirits Council and the Scotch Whisky Association to celebrate the first-ever Scottish-style single malt produced at George Washington’s Distillery.
Ohio Pizza Maker Earns 'Best' At International Competition
SALSOMAGGIORE, Italy — An Ohio pizza maker who was a member of the U.S. Pizza Team earned “Best in the U.S.” honors here last month at the 2012 World Championship of Pizza.
Mike Amheiser, owner of Pizza Dock in Fredericktown, captured the Best in the U.S. prize for his Gluten-Free pie. His U.S. teammates, Greg Spaulding of Lexington, Ky., and Tom Carfrae, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, also captured Best awards in the Classic Pizza and Pan Pizza categories, respectively.
Diageo Opens Captain Morgan Visitor Center In Virgin Islands
ST. CROIX, U.S. Virgin Islands (PRNewswire) — Diageo recently celebrated the grand opening of its Captain Morgan Visitor Center here.
To mark the official grand opening of the visitor center, Captain Morgan and the Morganettes conducted a ribbon slashing ceremony at the site with the captain’s sword. Attendees toasted the opening with Captain Morgan rum punch, followed by a guided tour of the facility.
Underage Employee Must Know Their Limits
What do the Ohio liquor laws allow your employees to do? Can the bagger carry groceries out to the car? Can “underage” employees handle alcohol? Can they sell alcohol? What are the limitations?
The Ohio liquor laws are sometimes tricky and often a bit confusing. Working within the law will save you money from costly citations.