What a successful inaugural Michigan Governor’s Cup Competition! The Michigan Wine Collaborative is taking control of its own destiny and supporting the Michigan Wine Industry by hosting this competition and associated events, and trajectory of Michigan wine is thrilling. There were 300 entries from 46 wineries, and Michigan exceeded Beverage Testing Institute’s average 20% gold and platinum medal award rate by 8%, receiving 28% gold and platinum medals. Well done, Michigan!
We want to maintain total transparency on how the Governor’s Cup works: It is entirely different from the old Michigan Wine Competition hosted by the former Michigan Grape and Wine Industry Council. The Council had three full-time employees, a large state-funded budget, and was able to host the entire competition in-house; they kept all of the fees for wine entries to pay for the gala and medals and still ended up with a $6,000+ loss on it each year.

In contrast, the Michigan Wine Collaborative exists solely on dues and what grants we are able to achieve, and we have only one part-time paid employee. It’s nearly impossible to host a competition in-house at MWC with the amount of labor and space required. We outsourced the competition to Beverage Testing Institute for several important reasons:

• Third party, out of state verification of Michigan wine (based on empirical data, wine regions must be taken seriously outside the region before garnering in-state recognition)
• 3-month blind tasting of individual wines with constructive  feedback vs. 1-2 day tasting blitz with accompanying panel palate fatigue
• Added-value option for entrants to receive expanded tasting notes, shelf-talkers, marketing materials, digital tools, and a 3-year listing on Tastings.com

The Beverage Testing Institute took in a total of $32,925 from entry fees and the MWC received a total revenue share of $4,445 from entry fees. This is obviously not enough money to pay for the awards gala and trade/public tasting, so tickets to those events are priced to be self-sustaining, as are all Michigan Wine Collaborative events. We are hoping to gather the industry in an annual celebration in a central location (something that also disappeared with the Grape & Wine Council), stay front-of-mind with our Michigan legislators with our two-day “Lansing takeover,” and raise enough funds from it to continue vital Collaborative work that includes but is not limited to:

• Marketing programs to benefit every winery in the state (i.e. Taste Michigan and Cool Is Hot campaigns)
• Events to raise awareness of Michigan wines within the state and on the world wine stage
• Talent pipeline and database – growing the wine industry with qualified candidates
• Sustainable agriculture standards improvement and validation – LIVE and VineBalance adaptation + Great Lakes Sustainable Wine Alliance; supporting and developing Sustainable Ag digital application with MSU team
• Inclusion / Expansion wine education scholarships and partnership programs to include underserved populations in industry positions
• VESTA apprenticeship partnerships to place qualified VESTA interns at Michigan wineries and vineyards
• 4-H partnerships to interest young Michiganders in urban, suburban and rural areas in viticulture
• Education and research support with partnerships, sponsorships, and support of grape and wine research with academic partners; developing training modules for wine education classes
• Representing the MI wine/grape industry at national conferences (and in national groups (i.e., WineAmerica, National Grape Research Alliance)
• Connecting press and influencers with wineries and growers (i.e. the Governor’s Cup events, May Sommspirations/Brianne Cohen visit to Northern Michigan)
• Involving the public in industry celebrations to build strong fan-bases and loyalty to Michigan wineries

Thank you for understanding that the Michigan Wine Collaborative is in a very different position from the former Grape and Wine Industry Council and that with our operating budget of under $40,000 per year in dues and sponsorships, the financial structure of how we support our important work doesn’t allow for the losses the former government council could incur, and it blows my mind every day that the MWC is able to accomplish so much with so little. Many in the state are under the impression that the Michigan Wine Collaborative receives some of the $850k state money allotted to the Craft Beverage Council; we do not.  Imagine what we could do with full-time staff and a larger budget! Fundraising events like the Governor’s Cup will help get us there so that we can continue our focus on wine- and grape-centric initiatives.

Buy tickets. Show up. Show off. Michigan wine is world-class and events like this will let the world know.