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26 WINES&VINES August 2018 WINE INDUSTRY NEWS Family Sabbatical awards up to $5,000 each year to cover travel expenses for a mid-level industry professional to travel abroad, ex- pand his or her knowledge about growing or making wine. Rafanelli said he will take this opportunity to study oak and the cooperage trade in France. CENTRAL Wedding Oak opens new tasting room Wedding Oak Winery has entered a multi-year agreement with the Burnet Economic Development Corp. to lease the Badger Build- ing and adjacent property on the Burnet County Courthouse Square in Burnet, Tex. The historic build- ing, originally constructed in 1888, is approximately 5,400 square feet in size with additional space in adjacent buildings for a total of 8,000 square feet to be occupied by the winery. In addition to the tasting room and production facil- ity, the venue will also feature a large ground-level patio, shaded open-air roof-top terrace, ex- panded event space and wine club members area. This will be Wed- ding Oak Winery's third location; the other two are in San Saba and Fredericksburg, Tex. Indiana wine impact pegged at $604 million According to a report commis- sioned by the Indiana Wine Grape Council, Purdue University and the Indiana Winery and Vineyard Association, the Indiana wine and grape industry has an estimated total economic impact of $604 million. The state is home to 97 wineries, according to the Wines Vines Analytics, and the economic impact report found those wineries drew 630,000 tourists who spent $94 million. The report also found the state's industry supports 3,900 full-time equivalent jobs with total wages of $120 million and that it generated $37 million in state and local taxes and $38 million in fed- eral taxes. EAST WSWA supports right to legalize cannabis The Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America, WSWA, based in Wash- ginton D.C., announced July 12 an official policy position in favor of a state's right to establish a legal, regulated market for adults to pur- chase and use cannabis products. The WSWA compares current fed- eral law on marijuana as similar to the failed policy of Prohibition and notes the legal cannabis market generated $7.2 billion in economic activity in 2016. In states where cannabis is "or will subsequently be legalized," the group "calls on the federal government to respect the right of states to legalize can- nabis if they adopt cannabis market regulations that meet a framework similar to that governing beverage alcohol." Virginia wine pioneer Dennis Horton dies A leader in the rebirth of the Virgin- ian wine industry, Dennis Horton, died June 19. He was 73. After serving in the United States Air Force, Horton attended the University of Maryland. He and his wife Sharon moved to Virginia in 1977 and planted a small vine- yard at their home in Madison County in 1983. In 1988, Horton and business partner Joan Bieda acquired 55 acres and the Hortons produced their first wines in 1991 at a nearby winery. Horton Cellars winery was completed in 1993. Today, the winery produces around 35,000 cases of vinifera and fruit wines from 67 acres of vines. Dennis and Sharon Horton were the first to plant Viognier and are also credited with being the first to re-establish Norton in Virginia. Horton served in numerous leader- ship positions within the Virginia wine industry including as a board member of the Virginia Wineries Association and also for that or- ganization's marketing committee. Friends and colleagues remember Wedding Oak Winery