Hudson Valley Wine Magazine Announces Winners of the 2010 “VINI” Awards

“The Face of Hudson Valley Wine”
First-Ever Hudson Valley Wine Label Competition

HUDSON VALLEY, NY, June 14, 2010. — Publishers of Hudson Valley Wine Magazine announced today the winners of the first-ever “Vini Awards” – the “Face of Hudson Valley Wine” Label Competition. Over seventeen Hudson Valley wineries entered almost 100 labels in seven categories for the competition. A panel of four industry professionals in the fields of design, branding and marketing rated the labels on originality, style, composition and legibility.

Winners of the 2010 “Face of Hudson Valley Wine” Label Competition in each category are:

Best Use of Illustration: Benmarl Winery 2006 Baco Noir (First Place), Hudson-Chatham Winery 2007 Merlot (Second Place), Brotherhood Winery Ruby Port (Third Place);

Best Limited Edition: Millbrook Vineyards 2006 Cabernet Franc (First Place), Hudson-Chatham Winery Baco Reserve (Second Place), Brookview Station Winery Hudson River Ridge (Third Place);

Best Use of Photography: Palaia Vineyards 2007 Cabernet Franc (First Place), Cereghino-Smith Tarragona (Second Place), Palaia Vineyards 2002 Cabernet Franc (Third Place);

Best Type Design: Clinton Vineyards Embrace (First Place), Clinton Vineyards Cassis (Second Place) and Hudson-Chatham Winery Pomme Bullé (Third Place);

Most Recognizeable as a Hudson Valley Wine: Benmarl Winery 2006 Baco Noir (First Place), Hudson-Chatham Winery Hudson River Valley Red (Second Place), Millbrook Vineyards 2008 Chardonnay (Third Place);

Most Unique Name: Cereghino-Smith Eaten by Bears (First Place), Pazdar Winery Hot Sin and Brookview Station Winery WhistleStop White (tied for Second Place), Clinton Vineyards Embrace (Third Place)

Most Memorable (overall): Benmarl Winery 2006 Baco Noir (First Place), Cereghino-Smith Rock ‘n Roll Red (Second Place), Clinton Vineyards Embrace (Third Place).

Honorable Mentions include Stoutridge Vineyards Quimby’s Rosé and Glorie Farm Winery Jumpin Jazz.

The judging panel consisted: Gordon Kaye, Editor and Publisher of Graphic Design USA, the monthly trade magazine for graphic design professionals; Mark LaRocca, President of LaRocca Branding & Advertising, Inc., in Rhinebeck, NY; Robert LaValva, Founder and Director of the New Amsterdam Market, a public market and civic institution in New York City; and Melissa Ifkovits, Wine Sales Consultant for Southern Wine and Spirits. Judging took place at Lily’s Restaurant and Bar at the Roger Smith Hotel in New York City on June 9, 2010.

When asked about the overall design the labels, Mark LaRocca commented, “Brand identity is about creating a relationship between the client and the consumer. The consumer has to see some of themselves in the label and in the product. Some of these [labels] we judged today are exciting...and will excite their clients and customers too.”

“From a marketing perspective, it was really good to actually rate labels on a scale to compare them, while keeping in mind their personal “identity” and uniqueness,” remarked Ifkovits.

Winners of Hudson Valley Wine Magazine‘s “Face of Hudson Valley Wine” Label Competition will be presented a “VINI” Award. The award-winning labels in all categories will be announced and published in the Summer 2010 issue of Hudson Valley Wine Magazine and a portfolio of the winning labels will also be made available on the magazine’s website, http://www.hvwinemag.com/.

A“People’s Choice” label award winner will be decided in July where attendees of the Shawangunk Trail’s Bounty of the Hudson Festival at Warwick Valley Winery will able able to vote for their favorite among the winners. Online voting will also be available prior to the event.

In addition, the winners of “The Face of Hudson Valley Wine” will be announced on local radio interviews and through social media. The winning labels in each category will be featured on a fullcolor, limited-edition poster, which will be distributed at wineries, wine shops and retailers throughout the region.

A major sponsor of the competition included Fox & Hound Wine and Spirits of New Paltz; and HudsonValleyWineCountry.org

This first-ever label competition is presented by the award-winning Hudson Valley Wine Magazine, the only publication dedicated to the wines and wineries of the Hudson Valley.