Business of Wine: 2017
On March 4th, 2017 the FAI hosted their third annual Business of Wine in Lucas Hall, home of the Leavey School of Business. 150 alumni, faculty, staff and students gathered to taste the carefully crafted wines of Patland Estate Vineyards, Smith Family Wines, Guglielmo Winery, E & J Gallo Winery, Testarossa Winery, Epoch Estate Wines, Bargetto Winery, E16 Wine Company, and J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines. There were also artisan caramels to compliment the wine tasting, courtesy of Courtney’s Caramels.
Following the tasting the guests enjoyed dinner as “The Business of Wine” main event began. A distinguished panel of wine industry experts focusing on the topic of family owned businesses. Moderated by Alcohol Beverage and Business Law Attorney Craig Rashkis Esq. SCU ‘93, JD ‘00 the discussion was lively, informative, and engaging . Every good bottle of wine tells a story and this year’s panelists were no exception. Michael Patland SCU ‘15, Director of Marketing at Patland Estate Vineyards, Jason Smith, President/CEO at Smith Family Wines, and Tracy Genesen, General Counsel and Vice President at The Wine Institute shared their unique experiences and fielded questions regarding building a strong family brand, the challenges faced by California vintners, and the importance of building lasting partnerships within the industry.
“There’s big upfront costs, so start small and capitalize where you can.” - Jason Smith
“Go out and meet people in the industry. They love to help.” - Michael Patland SCU ‘15
Tracy Geneson - “The three-tiered system of Makers-Distributors-Resellers of regulation in the industry is a lingering result of the prohibition era and that the number of California wineries has jumped from 807 in 1990 to a staggering 4,600 by 2016.”
The Q & A session gave the guests an opportunity to have the panel address the impact of the recent rains noting that after years of sustained drought, California’s landscape has been inundated with storm after storm since the beginning of the water year in October. The competition from foreign markets as online buying explodes, how are California wine producers reacting to the influx of wine coming in from places like Argentina and New Zealand?
The Business of Wine once again brought together winemakers, industry experts, and wine enthusiasts who enjoyed the experience of celebrating California's premium wine industry and sampling some distinctive wines.