Washington Wine Institute

WineDirect Webinar: How to Drive Online Wine Sales
2020-05-07 10:00 UTC
The Washington Wine Institute has partnered with Adrienne Stillman, Director of Marketing at WineDirect, for a deep dive on how to keep online sales going during – and after – our Stay Home Stay Healthy order currently in place.
You’ll learn how two:

Effectively segment your customer database to deliver personalized offers
Design email campaigns that convert sales
Re-engage past club members & nurture new buyers
Use social media to boost engagement & sales

Can’t join us live? Sign up and we’ll send you the recording.

RSVP to Reserve Your Spot Today!

Can’t make the live webinar? Sign up anyway and we’ll send you the recording!

We are excited to bring you this Direct-to-Consumer educational opportunity via our DTC experts and partners at WineDirect. We hope you can join us to learn and gather some takeaways to improve your winery’s direct wine sales experience.

About Adrienne Stillman:

With a passion for wine, small business and technology, Adrienne currently serves as Director of Marketing for WineDirect where she oversees all aspects of marketing and communications.

In her current role, Adrienne spends much of her time researching industry trends and best practices, with a particular focus on email marketing and online sales. Her professional experience includes PR and digital strategy for a variety of wine and spirits brands, product marketing in financial services and authoring the book Where Bartenders Drink a global guide to the world’s best bars (Phaidon, 2017). Adrienne is also a Certified Sommelier. A New York City native, she lives in Napa Valley with her husband and their dog.

State Night - #WAwine and #WAdine
2020-05-01
This Friday, May 1st, is the 40th night of our statewide stay-at-home order. Since we still all can’t go out together, we’re proposing that we all “go in” together: a statewide stay-at-home order of take out of #WAwine and #WAdine.

Why? Because we’re all in this together. Also, the word “quarantine” comes from quaranta giorni, meaning forty days, and so we’ve decided to turn an arbitrary day into a meaningful night that mobilizes our industry and supports our local communities. We’ve all been doing what we individually can to support each other.

And so, we’re declaring this Friday be “State Night” a night when our entire state goes on a date with itself. A part of our @SipGlocal initiative, State Night brings together two incredibly important industries — the #WAwine and #WAdine worlds — and serves up a powerful reminder to people: step up to the plate and support whatever local means to you.

LOGISTICS: HOW TO PARTAKE

It’s as simple as a one-two step:

Order take-out on Friday from a local restaurant you love, or a restaurant that has been an ardent supporter of your wine and winery; and
Post a picture to your feeds or stories on social media, tagging the restaurant as well as @SipGlocal.

Grassroots Day of Action
2020-04-22
Washington State Wineries and Wine Industry
As part of our craft beverage alcohol coalition’s efforts to secure more aid for the beverage alcohol industries, we need your help. Today we are holding a national “Day of Action”to contact House Members and Senators. We are asking that you send a note to Congress to let them know that our industries need help. It is very simple and will only take a minute of your time.
Please go to this website (Covid-19 Day of Action) and enter your zip code to generate an automatic letter asking your House Member and Senators for aid. The Washington Wine Institute joins our national association leaders at WineAmerica in asking for the following:

Suspension of all federal excise taxes on domestic and imported alcohol products, effective January 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020.
Enact a permanent extension of the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act (H.R. 1175/S. 362), which now has bipartisan support from 74 senators and 343 representatives and would provide certainty amidst economic instability and help ensure craft producers respond to economic duress and withstand this crisis.
Approve additional funding to support no- and low-interest loan and grant programs administered by the Department of the Treasury and Small Business Administration, including the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loans.
Authorize the Department of the Treasury to create a Workforce Stabilization Fund for the hospitality and travel sectors that will allow distilleries, breweries, wineries, and cideries to keep workers employed, maintain operations, and meet financial obligations.
Create temporary tax incentives that encourage consumers to return to on-premise dining and drinking establishments when public health officials determine it’s safe.
Encourage the Administration to suspend tariffs on beer, wine, and distilled spirits products.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to WineAmerica’s Vice President Michael Kaiser at mkaiser@wineamerca.org. Our thanks to WineAmerica for leading the federal effort and coordinating this national day of action for all Washington State wineries.
Thank you for your help!

Wine Industry COVID-19 Requirements, Relief & Recommendations Webinar
2020-04-10 10:00 - 11:30 UTC
Wine Industry COVID-19 Requirements, Relief & Recommendations

Presented in Partnership by Washington Wine Institute & Washington Winegrowers Association

Date: Friday, April 10, 2020

Time: 10:00am – 11:30am

Location: WEBINAR (instructions will be provided day-of webinar to registered attendees)

Vineyard and winery employers are invited to join us for this free COVID-19 webinar with experts from Foster Garvey PC and Moss Adams. We’ll break down the CARES Act, update you on federal tax changes, identify some key considerations in contracts and insurance recovery, and review Washington liquor laws for producing and selling wine in this unprecedented time.

Registration is required; there is a maximum cap on attendance.

Due to anticipated attendance and our desire to provide as much valuable information as possible in a short time frame, Q&A will not be conducted during the webinar, but upon registering, you will be asked to submit a question to help shape content, and we will be taking questions for follow-up responses post-event.

REGISTER HERE

Stay Safe

Oregon Wine Symposium
2020-02-11 - 2020-02-12 | Oregon Convention Center, 777 NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Portland, OR, 97232, United States
As the premier educational event and trade show for the Northwest wine community, the Oregon Wine Symposium covers the most relevant topics in viticulture, enology and wine business. Presented by leading wine industry experts, the Symposium is a must-attend event for winery and vineyard owners, vineyard managers, winemakers, marketing and sales managers and winery staff.

Registration Opens September 16th, 2019

Washington State Wine Commission Board Meeting
2019-11-22 09:00 UTC | The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA, United States
This Washington State Wine board meeting will take place from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The agenda will be posted here one week prior.

Per the Open Public Meetings Act, this meeting is open to the public.

WWI Fall Board Meeting
2019-11-19 13:00 UTC

Webinar: Washington Edition of the WineDirect DTC Sales Report
2019-10-29 10:00 UTC
Join us at 10 a.m. PDT on Tuesday, October 29th for a deep dive on Washington-specific data from WineDirect’s 2019 Direct-to-Consumer Sales Report, hosted by Marketing Director Adrienne Stillman. We’ll look at how Washington wineries stack up against the rest of the Pacific Northwest, California and the broader United States, identifying key opportunities and trends to help your winery improve your DTC sales strategy.

– Highlights include:
– Insights from the largest repository of DTC transactional data available

– Mobile traffic and purchase volume

– Wine club, tasting room and online sales trends

– Opportunity areas you can leverage today
Can’t join the live webinar? Sign up anyway and we’ll send you a recording!

WWI Board Meeting
2019-06-25 13:00 UTC | Airfield Estates, 560 Merlot DR, Prosser, WA, 99350
1:00-4:00

WWI Eastside Annual Membership Meeting
2019-06-25 09:00 UTC | The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA, United States
9:00-12:00
This year we will again have a fantastic lineup of speakers and are excited to have them join us to educate, update, and inform you on various topics of importance to the Washington Wine Industry. These topics include:

Keynote speakers from WA wine industry leaders in our State Senate and House providing first-hand updates on the 2019 session and how we can work together to better the industry in 2020
Washington Wine Institute’s Executive Director providing a 2018-2019 overview of your Association’s past year’s successes, changes, opportunities, and a hot-off-the-presses review of how WWI is evolving to increase value for our members based on our recent Association Strategic Planning Process
A Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board update including recent rule-making work on custom crush, alternating proprietorships, bulk wine storage and transfer, quality assurance/educational tasting of wine in the tasting room, and more…
Legal and IT professionals explaining the background of recent federal and state ADA noncompliance lawsuits against wineries’ websites and providing guidance and resources on how WWI members can minimize the chances of being sued in the future
A programmatic update from the company founder of Givily, Amy Kauffman, covering our newest membership benefit program helping wineries track, organize, and market their charitable giving
An update on the Washington State Wine Commission’s world-class efforts to lead in the fields of Viticulture and Enology research
And More…!
As we finalize the agenda we will be announcing more details from each of our speakers for the 2019 Annual Membership Meetings!

Complying with WSLCB Regulations Seminar
2019-06-24 12:30 UTC | WSU – Wine Science Center, 359 University Drive, Richland, WA, 99354, United States
This seminar will clarify Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) compliance requirements for Washington wineries engaging in on and off premise events.

Presented by WSLCB representatives, topics covered will include participation in on-site and off-site events; off-site sales; and the do’s and don’ts in tastings rooms, advertising and social media. Participants will learn directly from the WSLCB how to navigate the often-times confusing and challenging permit and license rules and regulations, providing the needed confidence to promote activities and sell product within the bounds of the law.

REGISTER HERE

WWI Westside Annual Membership Meeting
2019-06-18 09:00 UTC | Columbia Winery, 14030 NE 145th St, Woodinville, WA, 98072, United States

Complying with WSLCB Regulation Seminar
2019-06-17 12:30 UTC | Columbia Winery, 14030 NE 145th St, Woodinville, WA, 98072, United States

Spring Workshop for the Winery General Permit
2019-04-23 12:00 UTC | The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA, United States
12:00-5:00pm

Washington Wine Institute is partnering with the Department of Ecology to host a workshop to help those wineries that will need to apply for the wastewater general permit. This workshop will have presenters from the Department of Ecology as well as representatives from a local law firm, consulting firm, and engineering firm. There will also be other local business there to answer questions and offer their services to all Washington state wineries, if needed.

RSVP to ct@wwi.wine if you would like to attend. Admission is free!

Taste Washington
2019-03-28 - 2019-03-31 | Various Locations Throughout Seattle
Taste Washington is returning, and you’re invited to the celebration! A food and wine lovers’ wonderland, Taste Washington offers the most wine and food from one single place, in one single place. With more than 235 wineries, 65 restaurants and some of the nation’s most-talented chefs, this is the ultimate taste test. Get ready to drink and eat your heart out.
Tickets Now On Sale

Washington Wine Institute Board Meeting
2019-01-28 09:00 UTC
9:00am – 12:00pm

Washington State Wine Commission Board Meeting
2019-01-25 09:00 UTC | Columbia Winery, 14030 NE 145th St, Woodinville, WA, 98072, United States
Per the Open Public Meetings Act, this meeting is open to the public.

Agenda to be published one week prior to the board meeting.

9:00am-12:00pm

WSLCB Winery Liquor Laws 101 Seminar
2018-12-10 12:30 UTC | Townshend Cellars, 1222 N Regal St, Spoakne, WA, 99202, United States
The Washington Winegrowers Association and the Washington Wine Institute have partnered
to offer seminars that will help clarify Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB)
compliance requirements for Washington wineries.

Registration open - Scroll down to purchase your tickets

Presented by a WSLCB representative, topics covered will include:
• Common permits used by wineries
• Off-site sales
• The do's and dont's for tasting rooms
• Advertising
• Donations
• Winemaker dinners
• Social media

Participants will learn directly from the WSLCB how to navigate the often-times confusing and challenging WSLCB permit and license rules and regulations,
providing the needed confidence to know winery and/or tasting room(s) operations are within the bounds of the law. Each attendee will leave with a list of WSLCB
contacts for any questions that arise in the future pertaining to our state liquor laws.

12:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Registration Fees:
$40 members (Washington Winegrowers or Washington Wine Institute), rates increase onsite to $45
$60 non-members (rates increase onsite to $65)

Pre- Registration will close at 12:30 PM PST on Sunday December 9th. Tickets can still be purchased at the door.
Scroll down to purchase your tickets until Sunday December 9th at 12:30PM

WSLCB Winery Liquor Laws 101 Seminar
2018-12-03 12:30 UTC | Columbia Gorge Discovery Center & Museum, 5000 Discovery Dr, The Dalles, OR, 97058
The Washington Winegrowers Association and the Washington Wine Institute have partnered
to offer seminars that will help clarify Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB)
compliance requirements for Washington wineries.

Registration open! - Scroll down to purchase your tickets

Presented by a WSLCB representative, topics covered will include:
• Common permits used by wineries
• Off-site sales
• The do's and dont's for tasting rooms
• Advertising
• Donations
• Winemaker dinners
• Social media

Participants will learn directly from the WSLCB how to navigate the often-times confusing and challenging WSLCB permit and license rules and regulations,
providing the needed confidence to know winery and/or tasting room(s) operations are within the bounds of the law. Each attendee will leave with a list of WSLCB
contacts for any questions that arise in the future pertaining to our state liquor laws.

12:30 pm - 3:00 pm

Registration Fees:
$45 members (Washington Winegrowers or Washington Wine Institute)
$65 non-members

Tickets available at the door on date of event.

Sponsored by:

Washington State Wine Commission Board Meeting
2018-11-16 09:00 UTC | The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA, United States
The agenda for the November 16, 2018 board meeting will be posted on the Washington State Wine Commission’s by the afternoon of Friday, November 9.
The meeting will be held from 9 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.
Per the Open Public Meetings Act, this meeting is open to the public.

Grape & Wine Issues Caucus
2018-11-15 08:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Yakima Sundome, 1301 S Fair Ave, Yakima, WA, 98901, United States
2018 Grape & Wine Issues Caucus: Impacts of Polarized Politics
Learn how polarization in public policy, whether in Olympia or DC, impacts the Washington wine industry. From immigration to the Wastewater General Permit and the Farm Bill to tariffs, you won’t want to miss this event!

Join Washington Wine Institute (WWI) and Washington Winegrowers for a day of policy insights to help increase your knowledge and understanding of state and federal issues, ensure legal compliance with specific state and federal regulations, understand your role in advocacy, and learn who to contact with questions or input. This event is appropriate for management and owners of grower and vintner operations as well as affiliated industries.
8:30 AM – 4:00 PM (includes a light breakfast, lunch, and a wine reception)
Early Morning Workshop scheduled for 8:45AM
DTC SHIPPING “HOW TO” WORKSHOP
Larry Cormier, General Manager, Sovos Compliance
Thursday, November 15 | Yakima Fair Grounds, WA
Then, we want to hear from you, too! Share your perspectives on these issues and help shape our 2019 policy positions.
Pre – Registration closes at 5pm on Wednesday November 14th.
Scroll down to purchase tickets. Please indicate name of all attendees in the comment field if purchasing more than one ticket

AGENDA

8:30 am Registration opens

8:45 am DtC shipping “how to” workshop

9:30 am Registration continues | Light breakfast

10:00 am Welcome

10:15 am-2:30 pm (Lunch at 12:00 pm)

Election results – what do the outcomes mean to the industry?

Current policy landscape – what are we preparing for in 2019?
Pesticide work group outcomes
Alcohol tax reform next steps
Immigration legislation and guest worker program status
Outcomes of Farm Bill legislation
Trade policy implications
Recent rulemaking outcomes and resources for compliance

2:40 pm Keynote Address

3:20 pm Reception

4:00 pm Safe Journey Home

Special Thanks to our 2018 Sponsors:
Presenting Sponsor: Inland Desert Nursery

Lunch Sponsor: ShipCompliant by SOVOS

Reception Sponsor: Moss Adams Registration Sponsor: FedEx

Presented in partnership by the Washington Winegrowers and the Washington Wine Institute

Washington State Wine Commission Board Meeting
2018-08-17 09:00 - 12:00 UTC | Bridgewater Center Community Room, 22505 State Route 9 SE, Woodinville, WA, 98072, United States
The agenda for the August 17, 2018 board meeting will be posted on the Washington State Wine Commission’s website by the afternoon of Friday, August 10.
The meeting will be held from 9 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.
Per the Open Public Meetings Act, this meeting is open to the public.

Winemaker Picnic & Barrel Auction
2018-08-16 16:00 - 20:00 UTC | Chateau Ste Michelle Winery, Woodinville
The kickoff to the weekend of events where you’ll have the opportunity to meet and mingle with Washington winemakers and choose from over 100 wines to taste. Extraordinary bites are provided by Tulalip Resort Casino’s acclaimed restaurants and showcase dishes seasoned with inventive culinary twists. For the competitive wine collector, you’ll have the chance to bid on one-of-a-kind wines in the Barrel Auction. It all happens on the lovely concert grounds at Chateau Ste. Michelle winery.

WAVEx
2018-07-11 13:00 - 16:00 UTC | Chateau Ste Michelle Winery, Woodinville
Registration is open for WAVEx, a condensed version of the popular research seminar called Washington Advancements in Viticulture and Enology (WAVE). The half-day session on July 11, 2018, from 1:00-4:00 p.m. at Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery in Woodinville is sponsored by the Washington State Wine Commission, Washington State University and Woodinville Wine Country.

The WAVEx-Woodinville presentations will explore how to take wine quality to the next level through the theme “Making Better Wine through Chemistry.” WSU scientists Drs. Jim Harbertson, Thomas Henick-Kling and Tom Collins will share practical tips and application of research to help winemakers avoid wine faults, use sulfur dioxide appropriately, know what’s living in their wine, winery sanitation methods and more.

Washington State Wine Commission Board Meeting
2018-06-22 09:00 - 12:00 UTC | The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA, United States
The agenda for the June 22, 2018 board meeting will be posted on the Washington State Wine Commission’s website by the afternoon of Friday, June 15.
The meeting will be held from 9 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.
Per the Open Public Meetings Act, this meeting is open to the public.

East-side Annual WWI Membership Meeting
2018-06-18 13:00 - 16:00 UTC | The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA, United States
Please join us for our East-side Annual Membership Meeting in June.

West-side Annual WWI Membership Meeting
2018-06-11 13:00 - 16:00 UTC | Columbia Winery, 14030 NE 145th St, Woodinville, WA, 98072, United States
Please join us for our West-side Annual Membership Meeting in Woodinville June 11th, 2018.

FedEx Temperature Control Shipping Webinar
2018-05-03 10:00 - 23:00 UTC
Please join the Washington Wine Institute on May 3rd from 10 am to 11 am for our upcoming webinar featuring Tony Lane, FedEx’s Washington State wine industry Account Executive, for a presentation on temperature control shipping as well as direct to consumer and common carrier compliance for domestic shipping. The webinar will include a discussion of the processes for utilizing the upcoming temperature control shipping option in Washington State and how you can get signed up for the program when it is unveiled later this year. Also, experts will be onhand to answer questions regrading direct-to-consumer shipping regulations and what common carriers are doing to abide by state shipping regulations. The webinar will provide wineries with tools to help ensure positive business growth through enhanced knowledge of direct to consumer shipping including tools and resources. Register today and we will send all needed links and related documents for your review and preparation a few days prior to the webinar.

For any questions or to RSVP, please email name of attendee and email to WWI’s Association and Operations Manager CT Moen at ct@wwi.wine.

Washington State Wine Commission Board Meeting
2018-04-13 09:00 - 17:00 UTC | Chateau Ste Michelle Winery, Woodinville
The agenda for the April 13, 2018 board meeting will be posted on the Washington State Wine Commission’s website by the afternoon of Friday, April 6.
This will be an extended meeting and will be held from 9 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
Per the Open Public Meetings Act, this meeting is open to the public.

WAVE
2018-04-04 09:00 - 17:30 UTC | The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA, United States
WAVE, Washington’s signature research event, will feature in-depth research findings and conclude with a wine social. Vineyard topics include an assessment of new sprayer technologies, fine-tuning irrigation strategies, and managing vineyard salinity issues. Winery topics are managing Brettanomyces in the winery, what have we learned about smoke taint, and managing tannins in the winery. WAVE will conclude with a wine social hour. Target audience: Washington wine grape growers and wineries.
