April New York Wine Month Canceled

Posted February 22, 2009 by Lenn Thompson in News & Events

All of the "discussion" surrounding Governor Paterson's proposed changes to the New York wine industry is having some perhaps unexpected consequences.

Jim Trezise, of the New York Wine and Grape Foundation sent the following in and email to some of those involved in planning for April's New York Wine Month:

I just wanted to let you know that, unfortunately, we will NOT be conducting our “New York Wine Month” program in April as planned. This decision is based on information from the four wholesaler companies who have been very supportive: Elmira, Empire North, Opici, Southern, and Winebow.

The reason for the postponement is the controversy surrounding the issue of wine sales in grocery stores, which at least temporarily has created much uncertainty as to whether the liquor stores would participate in the promotion. For your information, NYWGF is neutral on this issue, as are many wineries, but for many stores “neutral isn’t good enough”. It is truly a shame that wineries are the “collateral damage” (innocent victims) in a battle that is not theirs.

We hope that when the dust settles we’ll be able to revive this program, and that we’ll have a budget to support it. We appreciate your interest, and will keep you informed.