Imagine your VP of Sales announcing they’ve ditched CRM for a Rolodex. Or your finance director saying Excel is too modern, so they’re switching to chalkboard.  And yet, here we are — 2025 — squinting at billbacks for hours on end and sending reps to visit every retail account like the entire industry is running for sheriff. Automation isn’t new, but for the wine & spirits world, it might as well be black magic. We love to talk about efficiency, scaling, and modernizing — right up until someone proposes replacing busywork with bots. Suddenly, it’s “But our rep relationships!” or “This is how we’ve always done it.” As if nostalgia for manual labor is part of our brand identity. Let’s get one thing straight: no one’s asking you to hand your label design to Midjourney or let ChatGPT pick your clones. We’re talking about automating the parts of your business that drain time, w

We’re excited to share that Sonoma County Winegrowers’ 2025 Grape Camp was recently featured in The Wall Street Journal! Hosted from September 28 – October 1, Grape Camp brought guests into the heart of harvest for an unforgettable, hands-on immersion in Sonoma County wine country. Attendees met local winegrowers and winemakers, harvested grapes by hand, stomped fruit, crafted their own blends, and experienced the magic of harvest from vineyard to glass. As The Wall Street Journal captured, “the Sonoma County Grape Camp brings wine and adventure lovers alike to drink from dawn ‘til dusk and sample true viticulture,” perfectly reflecting the energy, camaraderie, and joy that made this year’s camp so special. Beyond the vineyard, campers enjoyed curated tastings, farm-to-table meals, and opportunities to learn directly from Sonoma County’s expert winemakers — a true celebration of wine, community, and the people behind it all. R

Wakefield Taylors Wines and 1800 Milenio Take Top Honors July 14, 2025 — Winners have been announced in the 18th annual Women’s International Wine & Spirits Competition (IWWSC). The competition, which took place recently in Santa Rosa, Calif., was founded on the premise that the majority of wine purchased for home consumption is bought by women. The IWWSC judging panels consist entirely of professional women in the wine and spirits industries — winemakers, distillers, marketers, buyers, sommeliers, educators and journalists.  This year, Wakefield Taylor Wines 2024 Estate Riesling and 1800 Milenio Extra-Aged Añejo took top honors. Wakefield Taylor, a heritage winery in Australia’s Clare Valley (a region known for quality Reislings), wowed judges with its “mouthwatering citrus blooms” and “gentle salinity.”  A representative from 1800 Mileno remarked, “1800 Milenio is backed by 11 generations of tequila-making e

AB 51 Ban on Mandatory Arbitration in Employment is Back (Kind Of, And Probably Not For Long) Ninth Circuit Court Lifts Restraining Order on California Implementing a Ban on Mandatory Arbitration as not Being preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act The Ninth Circuit Court panel surprisingly rules that portions of California Assembly Bill 51 are not preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act, setting up a possible ban on mandatory employment agreements in California. However, the ruling is not retroactive to agreements already in place and extremely likely to be appealed and further stayed until the Supreme Court of the United States weighs in. As such, employers need not make immediate wholesale or radical changes to current practices. Want to see how this might affect your workplace? Click here to learn more about the ruling and what employers should do in response.  If you have any legal questions or concerns, please call Dawn Ross, Arif Virji, Samantha Pungprakearti, or Justin H

Here Come the COVID-19 Religious Accommodation Requests: A Guide for Employers on How to Handle the Tsunami of Requests. COVID-19 vaccinations in the workplace are the topic of the day, especially since President Biden’s recent proposal that employers with 100 or more employees mandate vaccination or weekly testing. Clearly, this is a significant development, but how big a problem is this going to present to employers? Some experts are predicting that the mandates will affect approximately 100 million Americans.  Moreover, in a recent Washington Post – ABC poll, 35% of the participants said they would request an exemption on religious or medical grounds (which the Biden proposal allows for) if their employer mandates vaccines. If the polls are anywhere close to being accurate, we could be looking at 35 million people who may soon be asking their employers for an exemption from the vaccine, most of which are expected to be based on a religious belief against vaccines, o

CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT ADDS TO COST OF DOING BUSINESS BY REQUIRING EMPLOYERS TO PAY FOR MISSED BREAKS AT A HIGHER RATE OF PAY On July 15, 2021, the California Supreme Court decided in Ferra v. Loews Hollywood Hotel, LLC, that employers must pay premium payments to employees for missed meal, rest, and recovery breaks at the employee’s “regular rate of pay” (used to calculate overtime payments) instead of the employee’s base hourly rate, as most employers have always done. The Court further held that the ruling is retroactive, which will likely result in a new wave of class action suits alleging that employers who have paid meal and rest period premiums over the last four years have done so at the incorrect rate, which in turn will trigger penalties and/or attorney’s fees. This Alert evaluates the nature and extent of the likely liability risk raised by this new decision, outlines proactive steps employers can take to reduce exposure, and explores other ar

AUSTIN, TX (March 12, 2021) – Texas Wine Growers (TWG) applauds and fully supports the filing of House Bill 1957 by State Representative John Kuempel / Senate Bill 1402 by State Senator Dawn Buckingham today. This legislation will propel the Texas wine industry forward by requiring that in order to use a Texas AVA (American Viticultural Area), […] The post Texas Wine Growers Supports the Filing of New Texas Wine Labeling Bill appeared first on Wine Industry Advisor. Url:https://wineindustryadvisor.com/2021/03/12/texas-wine-growers-supports-filing-new-wine-labeling-bill?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=texas-wine-growers-supports-filing-new-wine-labeling-bill Published Date:Fri, 12 Mar 2021 19:07:24 +0000 

ATTENTION: WINE MARKETERS It's official, the 2nd generation of AI wine marketing tools has finally arrived!  In our view, we can either learn how to master AI, or there's a decent chance AI will master us. That's why VinterActive created a FREE LinkedIn Newsletter -- AI Wine Marketing News -- not to sell our products and services but to help our friends and neighbors in wine country understand the new AI tools that can help your business and career thrive in 2025 and beyond. Subscribers to our newsletter receive an expertly curated bi-weekly summary of AI news relevant to wine marketers, wine business owners, researchers, and any professional exploring the intersection of wine marketing and our industry's rapidly evolving AI toolset. Some say AI technology will be as essential as electricity or the steam engine.   We won't go that far yet, but it reminds us of the dawn of personal computing. If you've never experienced what a new technolo

US’ Shamier Little passes on the baton to Bryce Deadmon in the mixed 4x400m relay heat at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo: Jewel Samad/AFP It began years ago, and every day, we have the chance to cross the finish line strong. How we got here is not by accident; rather, it is the result of vision, dedication, and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. It started years ago with a vision of a brand. The starting gun may have shot off generations ago, or perhaps it was more recent. Someone somewhere had the idea to set down roots and create a brand. Significant investment was made in the vineyard sources, the winery and production facility, and of course, in the tasting room. The vineyard crew has one of the hardest jobs in our industry. From being outside in the early pre-dawn hours in the cold to working in soaring temperatures during the heat of harvest, these crews show up and are rarely recognized. They face spiders, snakes, and yellow jackets that want to leave a mark. They

DEC 14, 2023 TALKING TO THE QUEEN OF WINE INDUSTRY DIGITAL ENDEAVORS ABOUT HOW TO MAXIMIZE YOUR SMALL WINERY WEBSITE IN 2024… To round out 2023 on a high note, this week we have an interview with the incredible Susan DeMatei of WineGlass Marketing, talking about how small wineries can maximize their websites in 2024. Susan is the absolute guru when it comes to the unique challenges and opportunities that wineries have in the digital space, and I’m beyond thrilled that she has agreed to talk us. WHAT ARE SOME MISTAKES THAT YOU SEE SMALL WINERIES MAKING ON THEIR WEBSITES? Underestimating the impact of the internet. I get it. As a small winery you’re forced to deal with the fires right in front of you: The machinery that needs fixing, the staff that needs your attention, the utilities that need to get paid and the customers coming to your door. But while you’re doing those very important things, hundreds, if not thousands, of people will see your website this mon