Oregon Wine Board 2015-16 Annual Report Letter from Your Chairman For my final Chairman’s report on the state of our industry, I am pleased to say that the strength and growth that we have seen over the past decade continues. While there are many reasons for continued optimism, the Oregon Wine Board is also increasingly aware that new pressures are affecting many family-owned wineries and vineyards across the state. For this reason, the OWB has doubled its focus on developing new programs, investing for impact, providing tools to help strengthen the Oregon Wine brand and improve operating efficiencies for Oregon’s wine community. In terms of growth, the latest Vineyard and Winery Report shows that our industry continues to advance, but at a much more modest pace: Overall production in 2015 reached an all-time high of 84,949 tons, up 7% over the prior vintage. This was the result of both more planted acreage and higher than average yields per acre. Total case sales grew by 9%, with the largest increase coming from direct-to-consumer sales – a 14% increase over 2014. 

This news followed the 2015 ShipCompliant and Wines & Vines report on direct-to-consumer sales, which showed Oregon wine sales surged almost 15% last year versus an overall category rate of 8%, propelling our state’s wineries to $100 million in direct annual sales. Similarly, 2015 Nielsen data showed that Oregon wine sales were up just over 13% in national dollar volume compared to the total table wine category growth of 5%. The total number of wineries reached 702, a record high and a 4% increase over 2014. The number of vineyards increased 2% to 1,052. In addition to this growth, the attention and care given by our grape growers and winemakers from vine to bottle has never been higher, as evidenced by our consistently strong wine reviews. Though Oregon contributed only 1% of domestic wine production, it accounted for 21% of domestic wines that garnered a score of 90 points or higher by Wine Spectator in 2015. Additionally, five Oregon wines from four AVAs made Wine Spectator’s list of Top 100 Wines of 2015 and for the second time, an Oregon wine made the No. 3 spot.

To support this growth and national attention, your Board and OWB’s management team concentrated on engaging trade gatekeepers to increase the availability of Oregon wines, fostered industry understanding of the importance of scientific research, and drove competitive advantage through industry education. Some highlights of this past year include: Hosting the largest Oregon Wine Symposium to date, with more than 1,700 industry professionals in attendance.best red wine sg Welcoming the highest-performing fine wine distributors in the U.S. to Oregon as part of the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America annual Conference on Leadership Development.best meals to eat with wine Producing the inaugural edition of the Official Oregon Wine Touring Guide.sweet red wine served at olive garden

Growing the Oregon Wine A-List Awards program by 36%. This program recognizes restaurant wine lists across the world that displays enthusiasm for the diverse regions, varieties and producers of Oregon. Conducting a national consumer market research study to understand the purchasing habits, buying influences and perceptions of premium wine regions among the segment of fine wine consumers who purchase 85% of wines priced more than $20 at retail.wine new york strip Leveraging federal grant funding to bring influential buyers from around the world to Oregon, and conducting international tastings for importers and restaurateurs in Europe and Asia.good wine to drink with dessert Partnering with the Oregon Winegrowers Association and regional winery groups to lobby effectively in Salem for important refinements to the 2011 legislation that established the nation’s first Wine Country License Plate program.food and wine best cooking schools

Furthering our investment in technical research to support advancements in viticulture and enology through a 17% increase in funding. With all this momentum, it is clear that our industry is on the verge of a new era. It’s been a pleasure to serve as your chairman this past year. On behalf of the Oregon Wine Board of Directors and with gratitude for your many contributions to our accomplishments, Chairman, Oregon Wine BoardIs it truly the "anti-Walmart?" Often much less maligned than its retail warehouse counterparts, Costco has developed a sort of cult following among thrifty shoppers and supporters of workers' rights alike. But if you're one of these wholesale superfans, how much do you truly know about the company? You may have heard that the first Costco warehouse opened in Seattle and that their Kirkland brand was originally supposed to be "Seattle Signature." Perhaps you're also aware that the company spends no money on advertisements, instead hoping programs like their "treasure hunts," which feature steep but limited-time discounts on luxury -- and occasionally outlandish -- items, will keep customers coming back.

But if you're a true die-hard fan of the shopping mecca, you'll need to read on for the true treasures. Time to earn that Gold Star! 1. Costco is actually one of America's largest pizza chains. Although Costco's current CEO, Craig Jelinek, claims he never touches the pizza, the super large and cheesy slices have become an American cult favorite. Nobody really considers Costco to be a "pizza chain," but with more than 400 stores in the United States, all but a couple with food courts, it is one the biggest pizza sellers in the country. That's just slightly behind giants such as Chuck E. Cheese and CiCi's, and far more than the roughly 265 locations of California Pizza Kitchen. If you feel like their food court pizza doesn't make Costco a true pizzeria, then maybe their "Pizza Hotline," which allows customers to call in pizza orders ahead, will convince you. Of course, their food courts are also famous for other items, like the hot dog and soda combo which has kept its price of $1.50 for almost three decades.

Image Left: Twitter account @HallieStufano & Image Right: Twitter account @BrielleZolciak 2. They once offered full barrels of Jack Daniel's whiskey. Costco regularly rotates their partnerships with alcohol companies so this doesn't appear to be currently available, but there was a time when you could buy an actual "single barrel" of Jack Daniels' whiskey for $8499.99. Sam's Club ended up selling the same thing so this wasn't exactly an exclusive, but the Walmart-owned brand sold the barrel for more than $1100 more than Costco's price. Although the barrel is kind of hard to top, Costco's Kirkland brand has also made interesting alcohol partnerships, such as an official version of luxury scotch The Macallan. What makes these Kirkland partnerships special is that they sell for much cheaper than the brands usually go for themselves. Other non-alcoholic "treasure" purchases in the past have included wedding dresses and a $1 million engagement ring. 3. Their employee wages and benefits are well above competitors.

Costco has been called the "anti-Walmart" by publications from The New York Times to Gawker, and this is largely because of the way Costco compensates its employees. From Bloomberg Businessweek's 2013 profile of the company: Despite the sagging economy and challenges to the industry, Costco pays its hourly workers an average of $20.89 an hour, not including overtime (vs. the minimum wage of $7.25 an hour). By comparison, Walmart said its average wage for full-time employees in the U.S. is $12.67 an hour, according to a letter it sent in April to activist Ralph Nader. Eighty-eight percent of Costco employees have company-sponsored health insurance; Walmart says that “more than half” of its do. Costco workers with coverage pay premiums that amount to less than 10 percent of the overall cost of their plans. It treats its employees well in the belief that a happier work environment will result in a more profitable company. “I just think people need to make a living wage with health benefits,” says Jelinek.

“It also puts more money back into the economy and creates a healthier country. It’s really that simple." This treatment of employees has often upset Wall Street. As one analyst from Deutsche Bank wonderfully summed up, "it's better to be an employee or a customer than a shareholder." 4. That said, some workers you see at Costco receive low pay and no benefits. Costco works through contracting companies like Club Demonstration Services for help with certain store functions. These companies often don't offer benefits and pay much lower wages than Costco. This appears to mostly involve the workers who hand out the much sought after free samples. Reports have said people from these third-party contractors count for up to 10 percent of in-store Costco workers, though this number is unconfirmed. CDS did not respond to a request for comment. 5. Costco's founder was literally mentored by someone named Mr. Price. Founder Jim Sinegal was once served as executive vice president for merchandising at one of the original wholesale retailers, FedMart, and became the protégé of its chairman, Sol Price.

Although not quite as directly, Price's business was the inspiration for Walmart as well. Walmart founder Sam Walton wrote in his book "Made In America" that he named his company Walmart because of the "mart" in FedMart. Price apparently often told a joke about other retail executives meeting him and saying, “Sol, you are the father of everything we have inherited.” To which Price replied, “I really wish I had worn a condom.” Mr. Price started FedMart in San Diego during the early 1950s and would also end up creating another warehouse store called Price Club in 1976, which Costco would eventually buy. 6. You can buy "doomsday supplies" and caskets at Costco. If you're feeling particularly morbid about society's future, you can always go to Costco's Emergency Kits & Supplies page to order things like the "Emergency Cube," which provides over 30,000 servings of food with a shelf life of 25 years. That'll only set you back $4000! Costco also has a pretty good selection of coffins that can even be ordered online.

7. Bibles at the store were labeled as "fiction" for a brief time. In late 2013, Costco accidentally labeled a "small percentage" of its Bibles as "fiction," which set off an uproar. The company quickly apologized, blaming their distributors for mislabeling the books. The company has also sold a book called "The Brick Bible." It's like the Bible, but with Legos ... and some mildly NSFW images like this. Sam's Club banned it, but you could still find it at Costco. 8. The apple pie from "American Pie" was reportedly bought at a Costco. According to IMDb, the apple pie from iconic '90s movie "American Pie" was purchased at Costco. For those who don't remember, the scene features actor Jason Biggs violating an apple pie, only to have his father walk in and catch him in the act. 9. Costco often doesn't always get along with big name brands, including Tiffany & Co. and Apple. Costco has had a history of conflict with some famous brands. Tiffany & Company: In February of 2013, the jewelry company filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit because Costco was selling rings labeled "Tiffany engagement rings," despite the jewelry not being authentic.

Apple: Costco stopped carrying Apple products in 2010, after only being allowed to sell the iPod in stores and being barred from selling any Apple products online. An ongoing animosity seems to exist between the companies. Coca-Cola: After Coca-Cola failed to give Costco the price they wanted, the retailer took all of the soda off their shelves in 2009. This lasted about a month, until Costco felt they had won the negotiation battle. In 2013, Costco pulled Coca-Cola from their food courts and replaced it with Pepsi after a similar price disagreement. Starbucks: Starbucks once failed to pass along savings to Costco after a price cut in coffee beans, which led the warehouse to threaten to pull all of their coffee products from their stores. Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz reportedly called Costco owner Jim Sinegal and asked, "Who do you think you are? 10. The company refrains from hiring business school graduates. Costco makes an attempt to hire managerial and higher-level positions from within the company.