Willamette Valley Vineyards is suing Five Cent Farm, Inc., a neighboring farm. According to Statesman Journal, the lawsuit filed against Five Cent indicates that the Vineyard is claiming more than $400,000 in economic loss from damage to the Vineyard’s pinot noir grapes. The complaint states that Willamette Valley Vineyards has a…
Author: Lindsey A. Zahn
Lindsey is the founder and author of On Reserve: A Wine Law Blog. She is an attorney and the Managing Partner of the alcohol beverage and food law firm Lindsey Zahn P.C. Lindsey is admitted to the New York State Bar.
Alfred Gratien: A Day Trip to Épernay for Small Batch and Quality Champagne
A few weeks ago, I had the absolute pleasure of spending an afternoon at and touring Alfred Gratien in Épernay. The maison has been producing wine since 1864 and takes pride in stating that its Champagne is hand-crafted. The house uses Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grape varieties, which represent the three…
Clos Montmartre: A Closer Look at the Hidden Vineyard in Paris
As many times as I’ve visited Paris, I am actually disheartened to admit that—up until recently—I had never seen the hidden vineyard in Montmartre. After reading an article several weeks ago about Clos Montmartre, or the 1500 square meters of vineyard space covertly tucked behind the Sacré-Cœur, I knew it was a “must”…
Proposed Establishment of the “Champlain Valley of New York” Viticultural Area
TTB is accepting comments through August 31, 2015 on a proposed American Viticultural Area (“AVA”) called “Champlain Valley of New York,” as per a proposed rule in the Federal Register on June 30, 2015. The proposed AVA is as follows: The petition proposing the new AVA was sent to TTB by Colin…
Wine, Beer, and Spirits Law Conference in Louisville, Kentucky this September
CLE International will host its annual wine, beer, and spirits law conference in Louisville, Kentucky this September 17th and 18th. This year is the program’s 20th anniversary of the wine, beer, and spirits conference and, from its lineup, it promises to have some interesting topics in beverage law. Topics include…
New York Legislature Amends Tax Law To Help Small Wineries
In recent news, the Assembly and Senate of New York both passed a bill to amend the state’s tax law. The bill proposed a change to the current law which would significantly help small wineries within the state. The summary of the bill provides that it “[e]xempts certain wineries from…
Upcoming CLE: Beer, Wine & Distilled Spirits Law: Federal Regulation 101
On July 16, 2015 at 10:00 AM ET, I will be presenting a CLE on beer, wine, and distilled spirits law. The CLE, titled “Beer, Wine & Distilled Spirits Law: Federal Regulation 101” will have a live broadcast and will also be available on demand. A summary is below: When…
TTB Proposes New Loess Hills District AVA and Expansion of Willamette Valley
TTB is accepting comments through August 17, 2015 on a proposed American Viticultural Area (“AVA”), as per a proposed rule in the Federal Register on June 18, 2015. The proposed AVA is as follows: Loess Hills District Viticultural Area (Notice No. 153, Docket No. TTB-2015-0009): The proposed AVA of “Loess Hills District” comprises of a 12,897-square mile (8,254,151-acre)…
Empire Wine Bill Passes in New York State Senate
In case yesterday’s news wasn’t good enough for industry members, today we are here to repot something even better: the acclaimed Empire Wine bill passed today in New York’s Senate. That’s quite a successful move for a bill that was only introduced a day ago. The bill now awaits Governor…
Empire Wine Bill Passes in New York State Assembly
In promising news for industry members, the much talked-about “Empire wine bill” pending in both New York’s Assembly and Senate passed in the Assembly on Monday, June 15, 2015. See A05920 Summary. Its sister bill, S04446A, is currently still pending in the state’s Senate and, according to Capitol Confidential, “has advanced to the third…