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14 WINES&VINES September 2018 WINE INDUSTRY NEWS Precept buys Truett-Hurst wholesale business Truett-Hurst wine company in Healdsburg, Calif., announced it sold its wholesale wine business t o S e a t t l e , Wa s h . - b a s e d P re - cept Wine Brands for $18 million in cash. Truett-Hurst, a publicly traded wine company, announced the deal in an Aug. 13 statement. After paying off taxes, bank loans and other expenses, Truett-Hurst expected to have $5.6 million in cash and to own the 22.6-acre Tru- ett-Hurst estate with 13.5 planted acres and Healdsburg tasting room outright. The wholesale business consisted of bottled wine inven- tory and brands, supplies, bulk wine and intellectual property used for private label wine brands for mainly national retail chains. The sale is intended to enable Truett- Hurst to focus all of its resources on direct-to-consumer sales of the core brands Truett-Hurst and VML. Paul Dolan was also appointed as the company's interim chief execu- tive officer. Summit acquires Beau Vigne S u m m i t V i n e y a rd s , a v e n t u re formed by partners Don Dady and Jason Kyle, acquired Beau Vigne winery from Edward and Trish Baily Snider. Beau Vigne produces around 4,000 cases a year, has a tasting room in Yountville, Calif., and is currently building a new winery in Napa Valley. The new owners are both based in Arizona. Dady is the founder of a financial services company and Kyle is part owner of a coffee company and a former NFL long snapper who won a Super Bowl in 2010 with the New Orleans Saints. New winemaker, winery at Hudson Clayton Kirchoff is the new wine- maker at Hudson Vineyards in Napa, Calif. Kirchoff has worked at Hudson for the past five years and previously gained experience at Failla Wines, Realm Cellars and Chateau Boswell. The company hired Skip Karabian as brand direc- tor. Prior to joining Hudson, Kara- bian worked at Wilson Daniels as brand manager as well as Regusci Winery in Napa Valley. The winery also announced it has expanded its operations to include a new win- ery and a hospitality facility that it planned to open on Sept. 1. Constellation Brands invests $4 billion in Cannabis firm Constellation Brands, the third largest wine company in the United States, announced it is increasing its stake in the Canadian cannabis company Canopy Growth through a $4 billion investment. Accord- ing to the statement announcing the deal, Constellation will acquire a 38% stake in the company and expects to position it as "the global leader in cannabis production, branding, intellectual property and retailing." The investment, which was described as the largest in cannabis to date, is expected to be used for strategic acquisitions or to build assets to serve the nearly 30 countries considering legalizing cannabis for medicinal use and any new markets for recreational use. Canopy already operates in 11 countries including Canada, which is poised to legalize recreational use of marijuana in October. "Over the past year, we've come to better understand the cannabis market, the tremendous growth oppor- tunity it presents, and Canopy's market-leading capabilities in this space," said Constellation Brands CEO Robert Sands. "We look for- ward to supporting Canopy as they extend their recognized global leadership position in the medical and recreational cannabis space." New winemaker at Far Niente Far Niente Family of Wineries and Vineyards in Oakville, Calif., named Andrew Delos as the new director of winemaking. Delos has been with the company for 14 years, first as assistant winemaker at Nickel & Nickel, then as winemaker of EnRoute since its first vintage in 2007. In his new position, Delos will continue as EnRoute winemaker, while managing overall production capabilities and coordinating best practices among the winemakers for the entire Far Niente group. Ehlers names new winemaker Laura Diaz Muñoz is the new wine- maker and director of operations of Ehlers Estate winery in Napa Valley. Muñoz has spent the last ten years at Jackson Family Wines, where she was the associate winemaker for Cardinale & Lokoya, Mt. Brave Wines and La Jota Vineyard Co. Optimism swells for 2018 vintage In July the early prediction for California's wine grape harvest was between 4 and 4.25 million tons, and by mid-August growers affirmed the state's vineyards were right on track with average yields and good quality. Despite raging wildfires in the Northern half of the state, most said the smoke was far enough away or came early enough so smoke taint is as of yet not a major concern. See page 15. Wines & Vines held its fifth annual wine packaging conference on Aug. 9 in Napa Valley and announced the winners of its wine packaging design contest. Rodney Strong Wine Estate's Upshot brand won gold in the classic category and also was named Best in Show by the panel of judges. See page 18. An invasive pest in the East Coast could cause billions of dollars in eco- nomic damage, according to experts who convened a special meeting in July to discuss the threat of the spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) that is a voracious eater and uses its piercing-sucking mouthparts to feed on grapevines, apples, hardwoods and more than 70 other plant species. See page 59. LATEST NEWS More detail on the news at winesandvines.com. Top Stories The month in perspective Rodney Strong Wine Estate's director of marketing Erica Odden accepts the awards. Clayton Kirchoff Laura Diaz Muñoz