Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/776532
16 / the tasting panel / january/february 2017 INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT Esprit du Vin Acquires the Pasternak Wine Imports Portfolio N ational U.S. importer Esprit du Vin Fine Wine Merchants (EDV) has announced an agreement whereby the company will acquire the strategic assets of Pasternak Wine Imports from the current owner, Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite). Effective January 1, 2017, the Pasternak portfolio—comprised of premium, terroir-driven wines from France, Spain, Italy, Argentina, Chile, New Zealand and California—will be merged into the existing EDV portfolio. This will bring synergies including exclusive U.S. import rights for the entire range of wines from Domaines Barons de Rothschild (DBR), as well as access to First Growth Bordeaux Château Lafite Rothschild. Esprit du Vin, a Taub Family company, was established in 2010 with the mission of importing a selection of highly regarded French estates and châteaux on a national basis, beginning with founding producers such as Maison F.E. Trimbach, Ch. Greysac, Domaines Paul Mas, Domaine Bertagna, Domaine Antonin Guyon and Ch. de la Chaize. In recent years, the EDV portfolio has expanded beyond France to include outstanding properties in key wine regions around the globe. The Taub family also owns leading wine and spirits importer Palm Bay International. The sale of the Pasternak strategic assets to Esprit du Vin will enable current owner Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) to focus its energy exclusively on being a producer and supplier, while transitioning U.S. import operations to a seasoned and trusted partner. Alive and Kicking I ndependent Distillers has created a brand new flavor for their incredibly successful Twisted Shotz line called Moscow Mule Kick. The new flavor was the result of an innovative social media campaign that asked Twisted Shotz fans to create their own shot. Selling more than 75 million Shotz since its launch in 2010 and ranked in Nielsen's top ten list of prepared cocktails, Twisted Shotz features two liqueurs in separate chambers, which mix in your mouth to create a delicious libation. To add to its impressive line-up, the brand went to its social audience, including over 500,000 Millennial voices, to develop its two new releases for 2017. The "You Call the Shot" contest received over 1,000 recipes and reached three-and-a-half million people. According to Ryan Ballew, VP of Sales at Independent Distillers, USA, "We were overwhelmed by the incredible success of our 'You Call the Shot' contest. The number of people who participated and the level of enthusiasm was way beyond our expectations. With some assistance from Groove Digital Marketing out of Northern California, we were able to engage millions of existing and potential customers. As a result, we saw a nice surge in our 2016 sales, and 2017 looks to be even better." One of the winning drinks, the Moscow Mule Kick (20% ABV, SRP $5.99/four pack)—created by Ryan Golderer, who works as a Philadelphia elec- trical contractor by day—launched this month. It includes both lime liqueur and ginger liqueur with a dash of oak extract; its packaging pays homage to the traditional copper serving mugs. An Italian Experience F rom April 2–4, 2017, Grandi Langhe DOCG by by the Consorzio di Tutela Barolo Barbaresco Alba Langhe e Dogliani is back. This biennial event is open exclusively to national and international wine professionals. Three days of tasting wines of the Langhe, Italy—Barolo, Barbaresco, Diano d'Alba, Dogliani and Roero—will take place in the different towns, to allow learning about the wines directly from the producers and make new business agreements. For more information, visit www.grandilanghe.it/ en_US/home.