Imperial Congratulates Arcadia Ales for its recent Catalyst Award

Southwest Michigan First honored more than 50 regional companies, organizations and individuals during its 2013 Catalyst Awards ceremony on Wednesday, May 22, 2013.  Among these notable companies was Imperial distributed Arcadia Brewing Company, whose developments in Kalamazoo include a brand new, state of the art brewing facility in downtown Kalamazoo.  Slated to open late fall, 2013, this new home to Arcadia will bring with it a number of jobs to our area.

Presented annually since 2005, this event is designed to recognize significant contributions by community partners that have resulted in economic growth and job creation in Southwest Michigan.

“The contributions made by these award-winning companies, organizations and individuals truly define Southwest Michigan’s economic growth and jobs creation efforts using a regional strategy,” said Ron Kitchens, chief executive officer of Southwest Michigan First. “We are pleased to present each of our 2013 winners with a Catalyst Award in recognition of being catalysts for leadership, change and growth in our region.”

The following companies received 2013 Catalyst Awards for jobs creation:

• AluTech
• American Axle & Manufacturing
• Arcadia Brewing Company
• Asama Coldwater Manufacturing
• Behnke Trucking and Warehousing
• Borgess Health
• Bowers Manufacturing Company
• Brembo North America
• Catalyst Development Company
• Cosma International
• Delta Industrial Valves
• Denso Manufacturing Michigan
• Dimplex Thermal Solutions
• EPI Marketing Services
• Fabri-Kal
• Faulkner Fabricators
• Geislinger
• Getman Corporation
• Gokoh Coldwater Incorporated
• Graphic Packaging International – Consumer Products Division
• Graphic Packaging International – Mill Division
• Hanson Mold
• Hark Orchids
• II Stanley Co.
• Janesville Acoustics
• Lovejoy
• MacAllister Machinery
• Mach Mold
• Marrone Bio Innovations
• Mastronardi Produce
• Mayer Tool & Engineering
• mophie
• Mueller Industries
• Musashi Auto Parts
• MVB Improvements
• Perrigo Company
• Riveer
• RSB Transmissions NA
• Schupan & Sons
• St. Joe Tool Company
• Summit Polymers
• TecNiq, Inc.
• TRMI
• T-Shirt Printing Plus
• W.E. Slitt
• Whirlpool Corporation

Southwest Michigan First also recognized contributions that moved our region and people toward greatness. Those who exemplified the ability to inspire others to lead, the desire to collaborate for greater good and the innate drive to make our communities worthy of generations to come were recipients of Community Partner of the Year awards.  Honored for their dedication to making the local community a better place to live, work, play and innovate were:

Partner for Jobs	Dan Jaqua of Jaqua Realtors Blaine Lam of Lam & Associates Lisa Miller of Branch County Economic Growth Alliance
Philanthropic Impact	American Axle & Manufacturing
Collaboration	Kalamazoo Area Building Authority United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region
Educational Impact	Kalamazoo College Western Michigan University
Mentor of the Year	Jim Heath of Stryker Instruments
Community Capitalism	Cornerstone Alliance Whirlpool Corporation

Each award winner was presented with the Catalyst, a beautiful hand-blown glass sculpture created exclusively for this event by local artist Judith Konesni of Tidal Wave Glass. This award is a symbol of the commitment to excellence demonstrated by each of this year’s winners.

For more information on the Catalyst Awards, please visit: www.southwestmichiganfirst.com/events/catalyst_awards.cfm

 

Uruguay: Worth a Second Look

Originally Printed at MercuryNews.com

A lot of Californians probably aren’t even sure where Uruguay is (southern South America, between Brazil and Argentina), let alone that it’s the continent’s fourth-largest wine producer. Not many of the country’s wines make it here, and the signature grape variety is the relatively unknown tannat.

“There’s not much traction in the U.S. market,” says international winemaking consultant Paul Hobbs, in something of an understatement.

That may be starting to change. Some of that country’s best wineries are signing up with importers and promoting their wines through a trade organization, Wines of Uruguay. Foreign investment is funding exciting new wine projects, and some wineries are hiring high-profile consultants, such as Hobbs, who is working for Juanico, Michel Rolland (Narbona) and Alberto Antonini (Garzon).

Although Uruguayan wineries are producing a variety of wines, from albarino to zinfandel, the story has to start with tannat. Tannat is “90 percent of the image of Uruguay,” says Marta Mendez of Gimenez Mendez.

Tannat, a red grape from southwestern France, was introduced to Uruguay in the 1870s. In France, notably the Madiran region, tannat produces….

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Precept Wine Acquires Yamhela Vineyard in Yamhill, Oregon

Underscoring its growth strategy and marking its 10-year anniversary, Precept Wine Chief Executive Officer Andrew Browne announced today the company’s purchase of Yamhela vineyard, located in the renowned Yamhill-Carlton American Viticultural Area in Yamhill, Ore., part of the overarching Willamette Valley AVA. Terms of the sale are undisclosed.

“In pursuit of being the vineyard and winery leader over the next decade in the Northwest, we will continue to develop, acquire and grow our business working from a strong foundation of Northwest vineyards and wines with powerful brand names,” Browne said. “We are hunting for world-class sites that support this strategy, and Yamhela is a prime example within our Oregon portfolio.”

Originally conceived by its previous ownership as a mixed use site suited to vineyards, timber, and real estate, Precept Wine Vice President of Vineyards David J. Minick said the company intends to focus on Yamhela’s premium wine grape-growing potential. Precept will expand the 30 planted acres to a fully realized total of 120 planted acres over five years. The property has a total of 374 gross acres; its vineyard was first planted in 2007. Its neighboring vineyards are held in the highest esteem by local industry peers.

“Yamhela is perched on one of the finest sites for Pinot Noir in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA. Its neighbors, including the legendary Shea Vineyard, are among the most sought after vineyards in Oregon,” said Tim Ramey, principal of Zenith Vineyard in Salem. “Precept Wine’s purchase of Yamhela is not its first venture in Oregon, but this will clearly be a cornerstone of the company’s Oregon strategy.”

About Precept Wine: Seattle-based Precept Wine is a top 20 North American wine producer that owns and operates vineyards, wineries, and tasting rooms across Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and enjoys a joint venture in the McLaren Vale, Australia. Founded in 2003 by Andrew Browne, the company’s wineries have garnered more than 350 combined best buys and critical scores exceeding 90 points. Learn more at www.preceptwine.com.

Vander Mill Cider Completes $600,000 Expansion and Begins Canning Hard Ciders

(SPRING LAKE, Mich) – One of the Midwest’s largest craft cider producers – Vander Mill Cider & Winery – is introducing a new line of canned ciders. Earlier this year, Vander Mill completed a 3500-square-foot, $600,000 expansion at its facility in Spring Lake. This includes the addition of fermentation equipment and a canning system, which will produce 1800 16-ounce cans per hour. In all, owner Paul Vander Heide estimates his 2013 production to top 100,000 gallons.

“We expect these cans to significantly increase production – with an expected volume growth of over 100% from last year,” Vander Heide says. “We wanted to decrease the cost to the consumer by increasing automation and using a more cost-effective package.”

Three canned Vander Mill brands – Hard Apple, Totally Roasted and Blue Gold (formerly known as Apple Blueberry) – will hit the marketplace in throughout Michigan in the coming week, with special events scheduled at select venues (check out Vander Mill’s Facebook and/or Twitter feeds for updated information).

“We are going to continue our focus on innovation and creativity with our ciders,” says Vander Heide. “But we wanted to take a few of our core products and make them more accessible to the consumer. Our cans should now be available in more independent stores as well as traditional grocery.” Currently, more than 600 retail outlets and 200 bars/restaurants in Michigan and Chicago serve Vander Mill ciders.

In addition to the expansion in the production area, Vander Mill has renovated its 2500-square-foot tasting room and café, with the introduction of an expanded menu under the auspices of Chef Stephanie Luke. Providing lunch and dinner, offerings include hand-made creations like Pork Belly & Polenta, Marinated Noodle Salad, Housemade Dumplings, Duck Confit Sandwich, Pulled Pork Sandwich and a selection of pretzels, cheeses, salads and more. Vander Mill offers seating for 65 indoors and 100 outside (weather permitting) in a 2000-square-foot Cider Garden.

Vander Mill opened in 2006 in a 5000-square-foot building, serving cider, donuts and fudge, in a market setting. In 2008, they released their first hard cider products in 750ml bottles and on draft. Speciality products will still be available in this larger format and Vander Heide says he’s currently working with Cider Maker Joel Brower on some barrel-aged products and brewery collaborations as well.

Vander Mill Ciders are distributed in Michigan by Imperial Beverage (except Oakland and Macomb counties.)

 

FROM BARRELS TO BOTTLES

Boonville, CA (April 30, 2013) – Expanding its first line of world-class bourbon barrel-aged craft beers, Anderson Valley Brewing Company and Wild Turkey® Bourbon announced today that Anderson Valley Brewery  has begun bottled production of its Anderson Valley Wild Turkey Bourbon Barrel Stout.

Anderson Valley and Wild Turkey will continue to work together in the coming months on a variety of exciting promotional opportunities to engage fans and introduce them to the quality and authenticity of Bourbon barrel-aged products. Anderson Valley Wild Turkey Bourbon Barrel Stout draft and bottle product will be available in 22 oz. bottles in several states including:  California, New York, Oregon, Washington, Texas, Massachusetts, Colorado, Kentucky, Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Georgia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and New Jersey amongst others by the end of June.

This once draft-only product was released in the fall 2012 as part of an exclusive partnership between Anderson Valley Brewing Company and Wild Turkey® Bourbon. As part of the partnership, Anderson Valley Brewing Company has been using repurposed American oak barrels from the famed bourbon brand’s Wild Turkey Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, to age the award-winning Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout.

“The bourbon stout has been popular since its debut and is the result of a great partnership,” said Jimmy Russell, Wild Turkey Master Distiller.  “Anderson Valley Brewing takes pride and care in crafting their beer; it’s similar to the approach we take with our bourbon. Together we produced a great craft beer and are excited to get it in the hands of more folks!”

“The partnership with the Bourbon Hall of Fame Russell family and Wild Turkey has been tremendously exciting,” said Trey White, Anderson Valley owner and CEO.  “Collaboration on this bourbon stout is just the beginning. We look forward to continuing our relationship with the Russell’s and exploring new frontiers in barrel-aged craft beer.”

Anderson Valley’s Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout is aged to perfection for three months. The resulting beer is deep ebony in hue with a beautiful mahogany head, an aroma of fresh-baked bread, toffee, and espresso mingling with the woody vanilla notes of Bourbon whiskey and the rich roasted flavors wrapped with Bourbon.

Founders says “Yes, we can!”

Founders Brewing Co. announced today that they plan to release their craft beer in cans for the first time in their fifteen-year history. The brewery will put its warm weather seasonal, All Day IPA, in cans that will be available in 12-packs across their distribution footprint early July.

“Especially in our recreational home state of Michigan, cans are a very functional package,” said Co-Founder & CEO Mike Stevens. “It means people will be able to enjoy our beer at golf courses, marinas and while hiking or camping. And we think All Day IPA works in a can particularly well.”

The brewery did extensive research to find a canning line that delivers a sealed container meeting the same quality standard as what comes off their bottling line every day.

“For this new canning line, we turned to the same manufacturer of our bottling line, world beverage industry leader, Krones,” said Vice President of Operations Brad Stevenson. “We are 100% confident in both this line and this package.”

All Day IPA will be the only Founders beer in cans to start. More Founders products may make their way into cans in the future.

WENTE FAMILY HONORS IMPERIAL BEVERAGE WITH LEGACY AWARD

The Wente Family congratulates Imperial Beverage on its recent Wente Family Estates (WFE) Legacy V Award.  Held on March 4, 2013 at Murrieta’s Well winery, the event commenced with the highly anticipated Legacy Awards Dinner, followed by the Legacy Golf Tournament at The Course at Wente Vineyards, and Distributor Council meeting to discuss industry trends.

The awards are categorized based on distributor size, with the Platinum Tier selling the highest quantity of more than 25,000 cases of the WFE portfolio. This year’s distributor winners in the Platinum Tier category were Southern Wine & Spirits of California and Southern Wine & Spirits of Florida. Tier One awards were presented to New England Wine & Spirits Inc. of Connecticut, Imperial Beverage of Michigan and Tryon Distributing of North Carolina.

The Legacy Awards honors top distributors and importers who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in distribution and successful wine portfolio growth. This is a monumental year for the Wente family, as they celebrate their 130^th year in business. “This event gives us the opportunity to pay tribute to our wonderful partners, who enable us to continue building upon our success each year,” said Carolyn Wente, CEO of Wente Family Estates.