Baseball Hall of Famer Joe Morgan & Steelhead Vineyards Introduce ‘W1NE For One’ Single-Serve Packaging
Sonoma, California (PRWEB) September 05, 2013 -- Hall of Fame baseball player Joe Morgan’s interest in fine wine dates to his playing days in the San Francisco Bay Area when he made a barrel of his own wine under the personal tutelage of Robert Mondavi. Now Morgan is turning his wine interest into a business by partnering with Sonoma County’s Steelhead Vineyards to bring fine wine to ballparks and other venues in an innovative new single-serve wine package called W1NE for One that has just been introduced. With the launch of W1NE for One, Morgan and Steelhead Vineyards have the only super-premium Sonoma County wine in a single-serve package.
“People want to enjoy good wine in casual settings like ballparks, but currently the option for enjoying super-premium wine is not available,” noted Morgan. “This single serving of wine in a package that is easy to open and pour is an ideal solution. I’m excited about the opportunity to expose more people to some outstanding Sonoma County wines and make it easier to enjoy fine wine in casual settings like sports venues.”
The compact, self-contained W1NE for One package includes a 187ml patented plastic bottle with a detachable plastic glass affixed to the screw cap. Lightweight and eminently portable, the single-serve W1NE for One package is easy to use and fully recyclable. Steelhead Vineyards holds the exclusive patent for the W1NE for One packaging in the U.S. The winery currently offers Sonoma County Chardonnay and Sonoma County Merlot in its new W1NE for One packaging.
Morgan, whose Hall of Fame career spanned more than two decades and included two World Series Championships, has a long-time interest in fine wine and has become a successful business executive since retiring from baseball. W1NE for One grew out of a conversation Morgan had with Steelhead Vineyards’ proprietor Dan Leese over a glass of wine, where Leese raised the idea of an innovative single-serve wine package for making super-premium wines more accessible. Morgan’s imagination was sparked as he saw an opportunity to expose more consumers to super-premium wine in casual settings, such as ballparks, through this unique new bottle. From there, the two men developed the W1NE for One concept into a finished product. It is currently being sold at The Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati, Ohio, home of the Reds, and is shipping to other markets. W1NE for One is also available through the Steelhead Vineyards’ website.
“Our new W1NE for One package breaks new ground and is an enormous opportunity to present wine in a wide variety of new occasions and locations,” said Leese. “It’s ideal for sporting and concert venues, resorts, parks and other places where single wine servings without glass bottles are a priority.”
Morgan and Steelhead Vineyards see a sizeable market in the U.S. for single-serve wines, as the 187ml category is growing at three times the rate of the total wine category, according to IRI Symphony. They also believe they have an advantage by being the first to offer super-premium Sonoma County wine in this type of packaging.
Steelhead Vineyards’ consulting winemaker Hugh Chappelle noted, “We have access to some outstanding vineyards for our W1NE for One Chardonnay and Merlot. It’s unprecedented to put this level of wine quality in a single-serve bottle.”
Based in Sonoma, California, Steelhead Vineyards makes wines from some of the top vineyards and appellations in the North Coast. Through 1% for the Planet and Trout Unlimited, the winery donates a portion of the proceeds from every bottle sold to fund water and habitat restoration projects. Additional information on Steelhead vineyards is available at http://www.steelheadvineyards.com.
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About Steelhead Vineyards
Steelhead Vineyards was founded in 1998 to honor the Steelhead trout that are native to Wine Creek and Dry Creek in Sonoma County’s Dry Creek Valley. In 2002 the first vintage of Steelhead Red was released – a juicy Zinfandel blend – as a tribute to the restoration efforts and on-going commitment to the biodiversity of Sonoma County. From its beginning, Steelhead Vineyards has had two goals: to use its resources to create outstanding wines and to maintain and restore a balance with the surrounding environment. Steelhead Vineyards crafts wine from Sonoma County and throughout California’s North Coast with consulting winemaker Hugh Chappelle.
Michaela Zamloot, Folsom + Associates, http://folsomandassociates.com/, 415-978-9909, [email protected]
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