December 2023 Newsletter

Prepare for the upcoming MWC Annual Meeting & Election, Register for the upcoming NW Orchard & Vineyard Show…Sponsor and exhibit too, Learn about MWC’s O&V Sessions, Mark your calendars for the upcoming wine industry events, Register for the upcoming informational session on Uncork Me! Michigan, Access the recording from the Vinroom informational session, Read a special recognition from VESTA to MWC, and More!

2023 Michigan Wine Collaborative Annual Meeting & Election

The Michigan Wine Collaborative Election and Annual Meeting will take place during the 2023 Northwest Orchard & Vineyard Show in Traverse City, MI on January 17th at 3:25 PM. We encourage all members to attend the 2024 Northwest Orchard & Vineyard Show and the MWC Annual Meeting, however, remote participation options will be available. Call in information is listed below.

We have some open board seats, executive positions, and committee chair posts available for dedicated MWC members looking to get involved.

BOARD SEATS 2024
NW Winery Seat

Other Region Winery Seat- Held by Chris Southern of Detroit Vineyards- NO OPPOSITION CURRENTLY

Supplier/Vendor

HONORARY BOARD SEATS

IT Specialist

Financial Strategist

EXECUTIVE POSITIONS AVAILABLE

VICE PRESIDENT

COMMITTEE CHAIR POSITIONS

GRANTS & FUNDING

BYLAWS PROPOSALS

CURRENTLY TAKING PROPOSAL INPUT

We will be promoting the full line up of candidates and ballot initiatives soon. Keep an eye out in your email and on social media for more information.

To view out current Bylaws see below….

BYLAWS-2023 EDITION

You can volunteer or nominate for the MWC Board of Directors and provide input on Bylaws proposals HERE.

Meeting Call In Information

Michigan Wine Collaborative is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: MWC 2024 Annual Meeting & Election
Time: Jan 17, 2024 03:25 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89346324063

Meeting ID: 893 4632 4063

Click Here to Volunteer or Nominate for the MWC Board of Directors!

Register Now for the 2024 NW Orchard & Vineyard Show

The 2024 Northwest Michigan Orchard and Vineyard Show is scheduled for Jan. 16-17 at the Grand Traverse Resort in Acme, Michigan. Registration opens at 8 a.m. on Jan. 16 and the cost for both days is $50 in advance and $55 at the door. The line can be long at the registration desk, so meeting attendees are encouraged to arrive well before the 9 a.m. start time. Both days will feature educational programs and vendor exhibits.

One registration (tree fruit or grape session) will give attendees access to both the tree fruit sessions and grape sessions for both days.

The fruit industry luncheon will be Tuesday, Jan. 16, and is open to both tree fruit and grape registrants at a first come first serve basis.

There will be two separate lunches on Wednesday. One room will hold the grape industry luncheon and the other will hold the Cherry Marketing Institute luncheon.

The exhibit hall will be open during the show to feature vendors of orchard and vineyard equipment and supplies, commodity organizations and other exhibitors.

Both Tuesday and Wednesday will offer a variety of topics relating to research and information on tart cherries, sweet cherries, apples and wine grapes addressing production and marketing. Cherry, apple and grape sessions will be held on both days. Tuesday’s sessions will conclude with a social hour.

The program is presented by the Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Foundation with collaboration from Michigan State University Extension and AgBioResearch, Cherry Marketing Institute, Parallel 45, Michigan Wine Collaborative, and the MSU Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Center.

For more information on the Northwest Michigan Orchard and Vineyard Show, please call Jenn Zelinski at 231-946-1510 or email [email protected].

We are currently seeking some winery and/or industry partners to sponsor the hospitality suite portion of the event. If you are interested in sponsoring or attending please reach out to Tom Petzold or Emily.

Sponsorship & Exhibition Opportunities at the 2024 NW Orchard & Vineyard Show

Click Here to Inquire on Opportunities!

2024 O&V Hospitality Suite

The evening of the first Grape Session day (16 Jan), a Hospitality Suite is planned to be arranged by sponsors so our industry member/conference participants can enjoy networking and catching up on the latest “stories”. Bring a bottle of your “special” wine to share; there will be plenty of samples from our participants if this year is like years past. Look for announcements at the Grape Session on the first day of the conference. Questions can be addressed to Tom Petzold.

MWC Sessions at the NW O&V Show

MI Wine Industry Funding Town Hall

This is an industry discussion that is intended to bring Michigan wine industry stakeholders together to educate, debate, and plant the seeds of compromise on funding the Michigan wine industry interests of Research, Education, and Marketing in 2024 and beyond. We will be discussing recent legislation that has been introduced in the Michigan House of Representatives, educating on processes of Public Act 232, and soliciting other ideas on how to fund the initiatives. Led by a moderator, there will be a panel of industry professionals discussing each unique perspective and experience as related to each of the topics. Panelist will include:

Nate Love from Kelley Cawthorne on behalf of the Michigan Wine Producer’s Association
Chad Reenders (via zoom) from the Michigan Blueberry Advisory Committee
Diane Smith from the Michigan Apple Committee
Michael Kaiser (via zoom) of Wine America
Morgen McLaughlin of the Willamette Valley Wineries Association & Willamette Valley Wine Foundation

For more information about our panelists CLICK HERE!

Do you…

Have questions on HB 5270?
Concerns about PA 232?
Marketing strategy suggestions?

Help us formulate questions for the panel by providing your input ahead of time. We are asking the MI grape and wine industry to submit questions, concerns, and comments at the link below…

https://forms.gle/u7F634Rp68Krg3ay7

Please make sure to RSVP to this event so we can plan for a successful session and make the most of the hour we have available. This is a great opportunity to engage with your industry colleagues and get amped up before the 2024 MWC Annual Meeting following the Town Hall. Get inspired to get involved in 2024!!

Please keep in mind we have a limited time frame of one hour to get to a wide variety of topics, concerns, and questions. We may not get to cover everything but this is a great jumping off point to get the conversation started.

RSVP Here!

Keen Sustainability Session

MWC member, Keen, will be presenting on Tuesday January 16th at 1:55pm within the Viticulture Session. Keen will be covering Solar Sustainability Solutions for Growers and Wineries: Technologies, Services, Incentives, and Funding.

Keen’s own Tim Pulliam will speak on the unique advantages of solar energy in the winery and orchard sector. Tim’s deep experience in agricultural and industry energy systems and local expertise make him an ideal representative of Keen’s capabilities. On-site solar energy generation is an opportunity for local growers to take true ownership of their energy use. From refrigeration to processing, electricity is a considerable cost of doing business.

Adequate and efficient energy storage is equally important. Combined with solar panels, storage capacity allows growers to mitigate the impact of peak energy pricing hours or run operations entirely with stored energy when on-site demand is low. Generation, storage, and automation packed into a streamlined system yield real long-term solutions for businesses looking to discover new efficiencies.

Reach out to Keen ahead of time by contacting Jamie Vaughn at:

[email protected]

Learn More about Keen’s Session Here!

Hospitality Training Sessions: TAM & MiCast

Interested in your staff brushing up on their alcohol serving and hospitality skills ahead of the 2024 busy seasons? MWC will be hosting both a TAM certification and Part One of the MiCAST Modules. Information on both sessions can be found below:

TAM Certification (Wednesday January 17th 9:00AM-11:55AM)
ALCOHOL CERTIFICATION OPPORTUNITY: Michigan Licensed Beverage Association will be offering their patented alcohol management licensing course for safer alcohol consumption in our tasting rooms. Participants will receive certification upon completion. This session requires an additional registration. Cost is $45.MiCAST Training Module (Wednesday January 17th 2:10PM-3:20PM)
SALES TRAINING OPPORTUNITY: This is part of a 3-part credentialed program. This is only the first module that will educate industry on quality customer service and the 6 steps of the sales process in our tasting rooms. Booklet for sale.

Upcoming Industry Events

Conference season is upon us! Mark your calendars for these upcoming industry events:
Eastern Winery Exposition 3/12-/3/14/2024 Syracuse, NY
Now in its 12th year, the Eastern Winery Exposition returns to Syracuse as the largest winery and vineyard trade show held east of the Pacific states. You’ll have the opportunity to meet with more than 200 exhibiting companies; attend workshop & conference sessions covering all aspects of the winery and vineyard business; network with 1,000+ other industry professionals; and attend the numerous social & networking events.New in 2024: the License to Steal ® wine marketing conference is returning to EWE and will be presented as a Marketing track within the EWE Conference. That means all conference attendees can attend LTS Marketing sessions without needing to register for a separate pass and vice versa.Registration for the 2024 Eastern Winery Exposition is now open. The Michigan Wine Collaborative (MWC) is a Supporting Sponsor of EWE and as one the many MWC member benefits, MWC members have received a registration discount of 10%. The exclusive promo code has been emailed to all Michigan Wine Collaborative members. If you need a replacement code please reach out to Emily. There’s still time to join the Michigan Wine Collaborative and acquire this exclusive discount code in addition to many other member benefits. Click Here to Join!

Michigan Craft Beverage Summit 3/4-3/5/2024 Kalamazoo, MI
Join the Michigan Craft Beverage Council (MCBC) and Pure Michigan Business Connect (PMBC) for the first-ever Michigan Craft Beverage Summit. The summit aims to educate and connect growers, producers and other industry suppliers and to create collaborative partnerships and advance an ever-growing state craft beverage industry.

Attendees will:

Interact with craft beverage producers around the state, as well as farmers and equipment suppliers
Receive education around navigating local supply chains and sourcing Michigan-grown agriculture
Learn about state resources available to industry businesses (grants, technical assistance, etc.)
Engage in breakout sessions related to Michigan-grown ingredients, resources, and topics that relate to all craft beverage sectors
Participate in a supplier exhibition of products/services to craft beverage growers & producers
Connect in one-on-one buyer-supplier meetings

*Not all attendees will be able to exhibit or participate in one-on-one meetings
Who should attend?

Decision makers at Michigan breweries, wineries, cideries, and distilleries
Michigan growers of grain and specialty crops used in the craft beverage production process
Michigan suppliers currently servicing the craft beverage industry or those looking to enter the industry for new market opportunities (i.e. grain handlers, grain cleaners, maltsters, relevant professional service providers, etc.)
Grocers/retailers/other purchasers looking for Michigan craft beverage products
Local, regional and state small business service providers
Anyone interested in getting engaged in the Michigan craft beverage industry

Registration is required and an early bird discount is available through January 19. General attendee and exhibitor pricing details are available here.

Sommelier’s Choice Awards

The goal of the Sommeliers Choice Awards is simple: to provide on-premise buyers and sommeliers a valuable benchmark for understanding which wines would make a compelling addition to a wine list.

The judging panel of the Sommeliers Choice Awards in Chicago will consist entirely of top sommeliers, on-premise wine buyers, and wine directors at U.S. restaurants, bars, pubs, and clubs.

Medals will be awarded to those wines that meet very specific judging criteria, with a goal of identifying wines that should become additions to the restaurant wine lists. Wines will be judged according to criteria such as how well they pair with food items in addition to their overall versatility and other factors like Typicity, Pricing, Quality, and Package.

Let’s secure Michigan wine’s place in this competition and on the world stage of wine by entering this and other competitions. By entering competitions we collect opportunities to promote our state’s wine region. Entry details are below…

Key Pricing & Deadlines:
Early Bird price: $90per varietal
Early BIrd Deadline: January 31, 2024.
Judging Dates: May 21, 2024
Winners Announced: June 20, 2024

Quantity Discounts:
4 to 9 entries :10% discount
10 to 14 entries :15% discount
15 + entries : 20% discount

Please make sure to note MICHIGAN WINE COLLABORATIVE when submitting inquiries or entries.

Learn More Here!

MWC Members Invited to Register for Uncork Me! Michigan Informational Session

Michigan Wine Collaborative is partnering with Brothers Molloy Events on Uncork Me Michigan! You can see the other Uncork Me events that they operate here. This endless tasting event from 2-7pm showcases local Michigan Wine/Cider/Meads in Downtown Detroit!

We will be hosting an Informational Session/Meet & Greet on December 19th at 10a.m. for those interested in learning more about this event and participating. We are encouraging our membership to attend and come with questions you may have about this new event. Please register below to lock in your spot.

Not a MWC member yet? JOIN HERE!

Click Here to Learn More and to RSVP!

Vinroom Informational Session

Introducing Vinroom, a groundbreaking app that seamlessly integrates into your winery’s operations, fostering a deeper connection with your customers and fueling business growth. Vinroom elevates the tasting room experience by empowering customers to easily capture their thoughts and ratings on the wines they taste. It boosts on-site, online, and retail wine sales, and grows wine club memberships. Additionally, it serves as a platform to publicize winery events and bolster wine tourism. Beyond enhancing customer engagement, Vinroom also gathers essential data to benefit the winery’s operations and marketing strategies.

MWC is partnering with Vinroom to allow our members the exclusive opportunity to be introduced to the platform, provide feedback and suggestions, and the chance to test it out in tasting rooms. We are excited to work together with you and Vinroom to collaborate on how to make this new platform a success for MI tasting rooms, the Michigan Wine Collaborative, and to help Vinroom improve and expand upon their concept.

On December 7th we hosted an introductory/informational session including a Q&A portion. We recorded this meeting for those unable to attend. There is also a survey Vinroom is asking wineries to complete to aid them in finessing the platform. Access those resources below.

View the Vinroom Recording Here!

Complete the Vinroom Survey Here!

VESTA Recognizes MWC for Diversity & Inclusion Efforts

Michigan Wine Collaborative (MWC) would like to thank VESTA for their recognition of our organization for our efforts towards increased diversity and inclusion of the Michigan grape and wine industries as well as our passion for workforce development.

Calling All MI Wine Events!!

We want to help promote your vineyard and winery events!! MWC members are welcomed to submit events at any time for promotion in the Vintage Michigan Event Calendar. These events are shared with the over 4000 Vintage Michigan members. Please submit via the form below or contact Emily with event information, links, graphics, and invitations.

Share Your Events for the Vintage Michigan Calendar Here!

Check Out the Current Calendar Here!