The Tasting Panel magazine

October 2013

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INDUSTRY CONFERENCE Industry Speed Dating THE ECRM GLOBAL WINE, BEER & SPIRITS CONFERENCE OFFERS BUYERS AND BRANDS THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET TO KNOW ONE ANOTHER by Breanne Demore / photos by Chris Rov Costa P ut simply, the ECRM (Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing) Global Wine, Beer and Spirits Conference at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina is the ideal meeting place for brands and buyers. The event offers a unique, intimate environment that allows the buyers to really get to know not just the brands, but the personalities behind them, and the brands to show off their latest and greatest products. Explains Kevin Consolo, Category Development Manager for ECRM, "It has been incredible to witness this event build upon its own momentum every year. It never gets old when a veteran of this business tells me that this is the best event of the year, and I'm honored to know that we've made that kind of footprint in this industry." After realizing last year that this conference was a "must attend," THE TASTING PANEL came back as the trade media sponsor with three events at the expo: a signature Speed Tasting, a Q&A Panel moderated by our Publisher/ Executive Editor, Meridith May, and the Grand Tasting. The following is a recap of our incredible week at the Global Wine, Beer and Spirits conference. Our esteemed panel (left to right): Moderator Meridith May, Publisher/ Executive Editor of THE TASTING PANEL; Levi Walker, Craft Spirit Manager of Young's Market Company San Diego; Charles Riley, Director of Food and Beverage, Omni Hotels Corporation; J. Smoke Wallin, Chairman & CEO of Lipman Brands; Jacqueline Stoll, Wine Specialist, BevMo! Orange County; and Ed Cook, Director of Beer and Wine of East Coast grocery chain Harris Teeter. 128  /  the tasting panel  /  october 2013 TP1013_104-152.indd 128 9/24/13 4:11 PM

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