Dawn Dolan
Offering a well-rounded view of the wine industry, Dawn Dolan transitioned from doing administration for the University of Michigan, to spending six years as both Marketing and Wholesale Manager for the Wilson Artisan Wineries group, where she learned the ins and outs of the wine industry. Dolan describes herself as a newbie grape grower who has also been an amateur wine maker for ten years, learning from classes at the Santa Rosa Junior College and the professional winemakers with whom she has worked. With this multi-faceted experience in the wine world, she brings a consideration of different viewpoints to her work.
Dolan started as senior editor of her high school yearbook. While studying in Provence, France, she fell in love with inexpensive Côtes du Rhone wines. After teaching for ten years, and earning a Master’s degree, she was back at the marketing end, using her skills to help establish the newly minted National Board of Habitat for Humanity-Costa Rica.
Dolan is now a private marketing consultant for family wineries, and senior consultant for VingDirect. She has been contributing to Wine Industry Advisor since 2015.
Market Trends for All: Case Goods and Bulk Wine Forecast
In this WIN Expo staple, Turrentine Brokerage offers a recap of the 2018 harvest and provides an update of the state of the grape and bulk wine markets, as well as case good sales trends, with emphasis on the North Coast as well as California-wide. Brian Clements, Vice President and Bryan Foster, National Sales Manager will be offering their expert and data-driven insights on what changes are currently happening in this market. Providing detail relevant to all levels of grape growers, small and large wineries, they are convinced that the information provided can help inform business decisions.
Local Experts Weigh in on the State of the North Coast...
What’s been happening in the North Coast wine industry?
Specifically developed for wineries in Sonoma, Napa, Lake, and Mendocino Counties, this conference session will delve into topics for small, direct-to-consumer wineries as well as bigger players with national distribution.
Your Wine Brand Could Be Lost in One Single Trademark Infringement
The landscape of the alcoholic beverage industry in the new millennium looks dramatically different than the drinks business of the 20th century. There has been a staggering increase in the number of new private label wine brands for retailers and restaurants, while foreign producers have moved into the U.S. market with new brands at a rate never before seen.
New Wine Shopper Data Solution Helps Wineries Achieve Distribution Success
Label Analytics has a new unique tool for wineries already in the wholesale market, or those just jumping on the bandwagon when it comes to distribution. Many wineries find it difficult to break into the three–tier system and gain any traction when a preponderance of the wines on the shelf are owned by large operations.
A Detailed Look at the Cannabis Consumer
The curious, the fearful, and the opportunists will all have an occasion to get a glimpse of who the cannabis consumer is and what opportunities or concerns there may be to glean for the wine industry.
Will Cannabis Present Cross-Over Opportunities for Wine Industry Professionals?
Liz Gehl, founder and chief recruiter of Gehl Search Partners, has been recruiting in the adult beverage industry for several years, and sees many opportunities starting to present themselves in the fledgling legalized cannabis industry. “Our primary focus is providing incredible talent within sales, marketing, commercial strategy and planning, finance, accounting, and administrative roles”, says Gehl. “The competition for talent exists far beyond the vineyard worker level.” Gehl works with people coming from the adult beverage industry bringing with them professional skill sets within compliance, branding, and marketing that are in high demand.
Technology Advances Farming and Winemaking Practices at Rombauer
If you’ve never seen a NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) map, they look pretty much like a topography map, which shows a green color in areas denoting healthy vegetation and yellow to red colors in more difficult areas. For the science-oriented, according to the GISgeography website, NDVI quantifies vegetation by measuring the difference between near-infrared (vegetation that strongly reflects) and red light (vegetation that absorbs). Healthy vegetation (chlorophyll) reflects more near-infrared (NIR) and green light compared to other wavelengths. But it absorbs more red and blue light, which is why our eyes see vegetation as the color green.
Considering Value and Strategy When Entering Wine Competitions
For small and large wineries alike, entering wines in a competition is a tried and true marketing tool. Get a medal, push out an email to your direct-to-consumer base telling them about the award, and give the info to your sales reps, and let them sell the product with its new, improved standing.
Wine Industry Under Attack in Napa
To the outside, the escalation of the argument between the proponents of and those against the Napa County Watershed and Oak Woodland Protection Initiative, better known as Measure C, the initiative to amend the Napa County General Plan and Zoning Code, appears to have reached a red alert level with record speed.
Engaging Consumers with Digital Tools in Today’s Experience Economy
Think about connecting with your customers through experiences to secure their loyalty. Goods and services are not enough to interest the consumer anymore. In the new economic era businesses must organize and offer extraordinary and memorable events for their customers.
Wine’s Most Inspiring People 2018: The Alternative Wine Packaging Trailblazer
Jordan Kivelstadt is a straight-shooter. Innovator? Check. Relationship builder? Check again. Saving the planet? Check. This young man, who just recently turned 36 years old, is one of our winners of the Most Inspiring People of 2018 series. He is an impressive forward-thinker, disrupting old theories of wine packaging as he goes forth.
Wine & Weed Session at the WIN Expo Garners Attention
With a panel of local experts converged, the audience had an immediate reminder that the preferred industry term is “cannabis” from moderator Heather Irwin, the Press Democrat’s dining editor and author of the Emerald Report.
End of Year Wine and Grape Market Trends
Globally, 2017 saw the lowest level of world-wide wine grape production in sixteen years, Glenn Proctor, Partner at Ciatti Company, told the audience in the opening minutes of the afternoon WIN Expo session Fires & Acquisition: Impact on the North Coast Grape Market. The hot summer affected overall yield, bringing in 3.85 million tons this year. Given the volatility of this agricultural product, Proctor said that “some buyers are changing strategies about how they source their crop.”
Visionaries in Wine Grape Irrigation Forecasting Earn WINnovation Award
Tule Technologies' FieldStat Water Stress Forecasts innovative approach uses collected data to forecast outcomes of theoretical water applications, and has brought precision watering to a higher plane.
WIN Expo 2017 Wine & Weed: A New Normal on the...
When the first Wine & Weed panel discussion was introduced last year at the 2016 WIN Expo, the room was packed. Now, with the private use law upon us and taking effect in just six weeks, a “next steps” session is planned as a hot topic for this year’s Expo.
