by Smoke | Feb 11, 2014 | 2014 Event, Blog
We are in full planning mode for the 10th Annual WITS… hard to believe that a few of us sat around brain storming ideas for a “technology extravaganza for the wine industry” almost 11 years ago. Â Please plan on joining us this year in Napa, CA as we celebrate a decade of WITS, for what promises to be our most exciting and well attended event. Â Here is the link to the press release and posted below as well.

10th Annual Wine Industry Technology Symposium to Unite Wine Business Leaders, Technology Experts on June 30 & July 1, 2014
(NAPA, Calif.)  —The 10th Annual Wine Industry Technology Symposium (WITS)®, the premier event showcasing the strategic use of information technology and services for the wine industry, has been set for June 30 – July 1, 2014 at the Napa Valley Marriott Hotel. www.wineindustrytechnologysymposium.com
Executives from wineries, distributors and retailers gather annually at WITS, the only annual conference designed exclusively to foster education and debate around the application of technology solutions for the wine industry. The 2014 WITS program includes:
- Educational Tracks – Sessions on Technology Leadership, Small Business, Consumer Direct, Trade Sales & Marketing and Vineyard & Winery Operations
- Speed Dating – To celebrate the 10th technology extravaganza, WITS has introduced “speed dating†for winery CIOs and technology companies. This will provide opportunities for quality one-on-one time with key decision makers and thought leaders.
- Plus Beer, with BITS – WITS has united leaders in the craft brewing industry to add the first Beer Industry Technology Symposium (BITS™) that will run concurrent with WITS this year.
“In today’s rapidly changing business environment, where consumers are driving massive change throughout the industry, it is vital to get it right when it comes to your route to market, as well as the strategic and tactical use of enabling technology,†said J. Smoke Wallin, WITS Co-Chair. “WITS is the only place where winery owners and GMs can sit side by side for a day of learning and discussion with CIOs and other technology leaders from across the three tiers,†he added.
The WITS Steering Committee, comprised of technology and business leaders across the wine industry, is currently finalizing panel topics and keynote speakers. Past speakers have included the CEOs, CIOs and leaders from Amazon, Facebook, Groupon, garyvaynerchuk.com, FedEx Office, Nielsen and 1800-Flowers, as well as experts from IBM, Oracle, Cornell University, UC Davis, Sonoma State University and many others.
Attendees and sponsors are encouraged to register early, as space is limited and expected to sell out quickly. Registration will open March 1, 2014. For more information visit www.wineindustrytechnologysymposium.com.
About The Wine Industry Technology Symposium (WITS)
The Wine Industry Technology Symposium (WITS) was created to address the unique information technology and services needs of the wine industry. WITS is dedicated to bringing the world’s leading wineries, distributors and retailers together with the leading technology experts to foster learning and discussion. Expert panels and keynotes discuss leading edge case studies involving consumer direct marketing and sales, operations, financial management, trade sales and distribution, winemaking and vineyard management. www.wineindustrytechnologysymposium.com
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by Smoke | Jul 12, 2011 | Brand Management, New Products - Brands, News, Pelican Brands, The Paddington Corporation
Indianapolis, IN – July 12, 2011 – Paddington Brands announced today that it has launched its Agostón wine brand through Walgreens, the nation’s largest drugstore chain. Bodegas Virgen del Aguila, the Spanish wine cooperative, confirmed Paddington Brands as the exclusive U.S. importer of Agoston wines.

Agoston Tempranillo Cabernet from Spain - now available at ALL Walgreens
“When we first tasted Agostón, we knew this was a wine that would appeal to American consumers,†said J. Smoke Wallin, chairman and CEO of Paddington Brands. “Year after year Agoston has been receiving 90+ points in the Penin Wine Rating Guide, which is Spain’s equivalent to Robert Parker ratings. We have worked with Walgreens in order to bring this savory wine to the United States at an affordable price.”
In April Paddington launched both a syrah/garnacha and a tempranillo/cabernet blend in more than 4,000 Walgreens stores. The wines, priced at $5.99 a bottle in most states, have become one of the drugstore chain’s top selling imported wine brands.
“Agostón is a great addition to Walgreens wine selection as our first Spanish wine,†said Dex McCreary, Walgreens divisional merchandise manager. “We look forward to working with Paddington Brands to promote this brand and make this quality import a success.â€

Agoston Garnacha & Syrah
“We were immediately impressed with the knowledge, drive and ‘can do’ approach of the entire Paddington team,†said Jose Maria Andres, CEO of Bodegas Virgen del Aguila co-operative. “We are proud to work with Paddington to launch this wine with such an important retailer like Walgreens, a company that will advance the development of the Agostón brand.â€
About Agostón
Agostón is named after the wild Spanish boar and is made by the Bodegas Virgen del Aguila co-operative. Located in the great wine-producing area of northern Spain we´re lucky to have a climate and terroir ideal for makin
g quality wines full of character. Here we have 2,200 hectares of vines, planted with a good range of grape varieties, including the native Tempranillos and Garnachas, as well as international varieties, such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. Our oldest vines date from the year 1906 and help create wines of superb intensity, such as our Agostón range.
Our vineyards are located in the scenic foothills of the Ibérico mountain range and we have a wide variety of landscapes and eco-systems within our demarcated area. Under half of our land is taken up by vines, the rest being undisturbed areas of rocky outcrops and forested mountain slopes, dry river beds, wild-flower margins and old almond groves. This makes it and its surrounding area a zone of high biodiversity and an ideal wildlife haven, something that we’re committed to safe-guarding. The winery produces close to 10 million litres of wine a year, with a full range of styles, including young fresh whites and rosés, intense aromatic reds and complex oak-aged “Crianzas†and “Reservasâ€. The winery is modern, and fully equipped and the underground maturation cellars have 13,000 oak barrels. Â

About Paddington Brands
Paddington Brands (www.Paddingtonbrands.com) manages a portfolio of owned and agency premiere import & craft beers, artisanal spirits and fine wines. Paddington’s team and partners have extensive experience in the global beverage and consumer packaged goods industries. Paddington owns the Napa Smith Brewery & Winery and 3 Amigos Tequila. Paddington is headquartered in Metro-Indianapolis, IN, with offices in the United Kingdom and Napa, CA and a sales team covering the U.S. market and select international markets. Join us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Paddington-Brands/220043258012149 and Follow us on Twitter @Paddingtonbrands

About Walgreens
Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) is the nation’s largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2010 sales of $67 billion. The company operates 7,733 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each day, Walgreens provides nearly 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility and mail service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public sector. Take Care Health Systems is a Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.
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by Smoke | Nov 10, 2009 | 2009 Event, Brand Management, Distributors
My friend Liza has a nice piece in Winebusiness.com today on the Fall selling season. Reports from Nielsen, Bill Cascio at Glazer’s, Wilford Wong at Beverages and more! all point toward improvement over last year, though value driving business.
Yesterday, another Wine 2.0 friend, John Corcoran’s blog “Think Wine Marketing” had a well done piece on the state of marketing wine online with his interview of Paul Mabray. “A conversation about marketing wine online with Paul Mabray of VinTank” This interview captures nicely a bit of the history of the past decade of attempts at doing business online in the wine industry. It made me go back an search an old Information Week story (2000) on my then start-up eSkye.com. (ok, picture is almost 10 years old I know)


Smoke Wallin in Information Week, April 2000
“Alcohol Goes Online Overcoming Regulatory Maze
Web site simplifies ordering for industry that hasn’t changed much since Prohibition”
There has been nearly half a billion dollars ($500 million) in venture funding that has gone into various efforts in the the online wine space. In rereading this piece, it is amazing how much and how little has actually changed. Technology has leaped forward, enabling much greater communication and commerce capabilities for all. The regulatory and industry structure has bent, but not fundamentally changed. It will be very interesting to watch the impact of Web 2.0 technologies and social media on the way in which the industry operates going forward. Clearly, there is a constant march of producers and consumers to get closer together. Sometimes this is about discovery and information. Sometimes this is about commerce. Consumers feeling more connected to brand and having conversations with wineries and more importantly with their people (who make the brands what they are) is only accelerating. This has real world implications. Wine 2.0 is in the online connectivity business, but that drives our live events.  To wit, we are seeing a surge in interest in our Wine 2.0 New York event from both wineries and other companies involved in marketing to consumers. It will be interesting to see the consumer and trade turnout.
I’m looking forward to attending Web 2.0 Expo as well. It is great to get out of the wine business and look at what is cutting edge in terms of technology and latest developments.
Separately, Mashable’s blog just posted details on Web 2.0 Expo and our event Wine 2.0 Expo New York.

Mashable’s Weekly Conference and Event Guide
Mashable (blog) – Tamar Weinberg – ‎18 hours ago‎
November 18, 2009, New York City: Wine 2.0 Expo New York is the place for all Web 2.0 Expo attendees to connect with hundreds of wine and technology lovers …
Here is an excerpt from Liza’s story…
November 10, 2009
The Fall Season Shapes Up
Outlook Seems Upbeat as the Market Heads into the Final Stretch
by Liza B. Zimmerman

WineBusiness.com
Feedback from retailers, restaurateurs and wholesalers has grown increasingly positive as we move into the last part of the fourth quarter. Many seem to believe that this year is finally turning out to be more dynamic than last. According to data from a Nielsen presentation earlier this month wine was the No. 5-ranked category of the top 15 of the major 125 segments that Nielsen tracks with a 5.1 percent volume growth in the period ending September 5, 2009 over the previous year.
“Our volumes are up in total wines, about three to four percent in all states,†said Bill Cascio, the San Francisco Bay Area-based vice president and director of winery relations for the Dallas-based Glazer’s Family of Companies, which is active in 12 states. “It is shaping up to be a little bit better than last year,†he concluded.
Wilfred Wong, cellar master for the 100-store, Concord-California based Beverages and more!, said that this year is drastically different from the previous. “Last year this time business really dropped off,†concurred Brahm Callahan, wine director at Post 390, a gastropub that is part of the three-restaurant Himmel Hospitality Group which opened in Boston early this month [ed: Oct]. Callahan has a long track record in the Boston restaurant business. “We are starting to see people want to spend more money but they want to see perceived value.†Post 390’s 5,000-bottle list, priced $25 to $600, features two thirds of its selections in the $20 to $80 price range…
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