Family Winemakers 20th Anniversary Tasting featured 342 wineries and a large wine trade audience

     At 6 p.m. on Monday, August 23 the curtain came down on Family Winemakers of California's 20th Anniversary Tasting.  The two-day wine tasting event featured 342 members of FWC from across the state.  Both days saw a larger wine trade audience then previous years.  Consumer attendance on Sunday also increased over 2009.
     The inaugural tasting in 1991 featured 46 wineries.  Ten of the original participants poured at the Anniversary Tasting -- Chateau Montelena, Fisher Vineyards, Fritz Winery, Hanzell Vineyards, Justin Vineyards & Winery, Kendall-Jackson Winery, Lava Cap Winery, Macauley Vineyard, Renaissance Vineyard & Winery, and Swanson Vineyards & Winery.
     The FWC tasting calendar for 2011 is March 13 at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in San Diego, March 15 at the Pasadena Convention Center, and August 21-22 at Fort Mason Center's Festival Pavilion in San Francisco.

FWC applauds passage of SJR 34  

California Legislature resolution opposes H.R. 5034

“The California Legislature took an important stand today with the passage of Senate Joint Resolution 34 because it puts the largest wine producing state and largest wine market state on record in opposing H.R. 5034,” said Paul Kronenberg, President of Family Winemakers of California in a statement released after the vote.  “California has been a leader in direct-to-consumer wine policy since 1985 and responding to the modern business demands of wine production, distribution and sales.  There’s no reason other than economic protectionism to entertain legislation that locks in a monopoly and perpetuates archaic laws.”
 
The resolution, authored by Senators Alex Padilla and Patricia Wiggins, urges Congress not to pass H.R. 5034.  SJR 34, sponsored by FWC and other California and regional wine groups, points out that 37 states and the District of Columbia allow direct shipping of wine from wineries to consumers, and that the annual economic benefit to the nation is $121.8 billion.  Senator Diane Feinstein(D-CA) has already referenced the resolution in the August 5, 2010 Congressional Record (Page S6863) in pointing out her opposition to H.R. 5034.
 
Passage of H.R. 5034 could roll back progress made in improving consumer choice in wine and creating market access for a multitude of small wine producers across the country. FWC has spent the past 10 years working on direct shipping litigation on behalf of its 600 small producers to help wineries without distribution and a retail presence gain access to new consumers.  Targeted litigation over several years culminated in the Granholm decision in 2005.  Just recently Family Winemakers of California v. Jenkins overturned a facially neutral production cap law in Massachusetts at the 1st Circuit Court of Appeal.  Without redress to the courts on these types of laws that discriminate there will be a concerted push by wholesalers to roll back direct shipping and other market access gains.

 H.R. 5034 would fundamentally change the way discriminatory laws are challenged in court.  It would essentially allow the 21st Amendment, which gave the states the right to regulate alcohol, to trump the concerns of the Commerce Clause.  The burden of proof to challenge a facially neutral law that discriminates would be so narrow that litigation would wither and put interstate commerce in wine at jeopardy.

Which wineries do direct-to-consumer sales?

Welcome to Family Winemakers of California's web site. The most value-added feature of the web site is our "Buying CA Wine" consumer map. Click there and you can simply find out if you live in a state that allows direct to consumer sales and more importantly, which Family Winemakers members are selling in your state. The list you'll find under each state will give you a direct link to that winery and its online store. Each state page contains valuable information for consumers buying wine.

Quick contact info

If you'd like to contact us you may do so by calling (916) 498-7500. Our fax number is (916) 498-7505.

Or write us a letter and mail it to:
Family Winemakers of California
520 Capitol Mall, Suite 260
Sacramento CA 95814
info@familywinemakers.org