June 8, 2016 — Following two years in London and resounding success in Bilbao, Spain in December 2015 the premier international wine industry event, Wine Vision, will make its first visit to the New World of wine in 2016. The host location for this year’s Wine Vision will be Sonoma County, one of North America’s most progressive wine producing areas with a two-hundred year history of viniculture and a commitment to sustainability.
“We look forward to welcoming the global industry to Sonoma County,” says Karissa Kruse, President of the Sonoma County Winegrowers. “We’re ready to show our peers around the globe how our community of multi-generational grape growers and vintners are setting the gold standard for sustainability as well as producing some of the finest quality wines in the world.” In 2014 the Sonoma County Winegrowers announced its commitment to become America’s first 100% certified sustainable wine growing region by 2019 and is progressing rapidly towards that goal, with more than half the vineyard acres already certified sustainable.
Sonoma County is the birthplace of California wine with the first commercial, bonded winery in the state, Buena Vista, dating back to 1857. Today there are more than 450 wineries and 1,800 vineyards in Sonoma County. Most are multi-generational family businesses with a deep commitment to the land and the community. The wine region is comprised of 17 unique appellations with varied topography — the foggy Pacific Coast, rolling hills and valleys, and steep mountain ranges — and is home to 66 commercial grape varieties, including 44 red and 22 white. These wine grapes have been the county’s highest revenue generating crop since 1989 and, today, classic Bordeaux and Burgundian grape varieties rub shoulders with lesser known varieties native to California and from around the world. This diversity allows Sonoma County to produce a rich variety of wines for home market and export.
Recognised as the wine industry’s leading business innovation forum, Wine Vision left its London home in 2015 and set off on a global journey to showcase some of the world’s most progressive wine regions. By partnering with a new location each year Wine Vision is bringing debate about the wine industry’s future to its centres of production and creating a showcase for regional innovation and ingenuity.
Last December Spain’s Basque country was the first international co-host of Wine Vision, attracting record delegate numbers. In an independent post-event survey, 88% of attendees rated Wine Vision 2015 and Bilbao as excellent or good. 84% agreed it had met or exceeded their extremely high expectations for the quality of its content, networking and opportunities to make new commercial contacts. 79% described Wine Vision as ‘unique’ and 73% named it as the event that now ‘sets the agenda’ for the global wine industry.
“Almost two thirds (61%) of our delegates confirmed that they plan to join Wine Vision again in 2016,” says Andrew Reed, Managing Director of Events for Wine Vision’s organisers, William Reed. “They told us they relish the opportunity to see great wine producing regions up close and urged us to take them even further afield in 2016 – so we look forward to welcoming them to Sonoma.”
Highlights of Wine Vision’s visit to Sonoma County will include:
- An interactive 3-day conference programme that combines global content with an opportunity to experience a premier world wine region close up.
- Options to extend your visit with a series of wine tours across Sonoma County immediately following Wine Vision.
- A first night Prohibition Party at the Francis Ford Coppola winery that will celebrate the 83rd anniversary of the end of prohibition in movie-maker style.
- A series of exclusive networking luncheons and dinners at some of California’s most innovative wineries including Rodney Strong Vineyards and Jackson Family Wines.
- An introduction to the county’s sustainability projects including an initiative to power a winery with high tech battery technology developed by Tesla, the ground-breaking electric car company founded by the serial entrepreneur and multi-billionaire founder of PayPal, Elon Musk.
Wine Vision will be held from 5 to 7 December 2016. If you would like further information about attendance or sponsorship opportunities please contact:
Margarete Baltay, Event Director
T: +44 (0)1293 610 452
E: margarete.baltay@wrbm.com
About Wine Vision
Wine Vision is a leading industry event created by the international publishing and events business, William Reed. Wine Vision was founded in 2013, takes place annually and complements a portfolio of wine publications and events, which include the globally renowned International Wine Challenge and BeverageDaily.com. It is administers the World’s 50 Best Restaurants programme.
About William Reed Business Media
Wine Vision is delivered by William Reed Business Media, publishers of a host of magazines, digital newsletters, publications and data sources for the wine industry.
As in international events company, William Reed welcomes more than 40,000 delegates to over 40 live events, conferences and exhibitions every year, on every continent.
About Sonoma County Winegrowers
The Sonoma County Winegrape Commission, also known as Sonoma County Winegrowers (SCW), is a marketing and education organization dedicated to the promotion and preservation of Sonoma County as one of the world’s premier grape growing regions. SCW has oversight by the California Department of Food and Agriculture and seeks to increase awareness and recognition of the quality and diversity of Sonoma County’s grapes and wines through dynamic marketing and educational programs targeted to wine consumers around the world. In January 2014, SCW committed to becoming the nation’s first 100% sustainable winegrowing region by 2019. Currently, 64% of the vineyard acreage in Sonoma County has gone through the sustainability self-assessment and more than half of the vineyard acres are certified by a third party auditor. These sustainability efforts were recently recognized with California’s highest environmental honour, the Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award (GEELA).
