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44 WINES&VINES October 2015 BOTTLES &LABELS About Meiomi In 2006, Belle Glos spawned Meiomi (which means "coast" in the native language of Northern California's Wappo tribe). The name reflects the vineyard sources in three coastal counties for the brand's Pinot Noir and Chardon- nay wines. At first, the labels em- phasized the Belle Glos name, but as the market grew, the labels morphed, and now Meiomi is an exclusive identity, which now be- longs to Constellation. In 2007, Wagner consulted with Emeryville, Calif.-based de- signer Tony Auston for some sim- ple changes to the label. "What seemed to be a lot of money turned out to be well spent," Wag- ner said. It's a traditional paper label with foil embellishment. One thing that makes the pack- age a stand out is the closure. Meiomi's target market is on- premise, by-the-glass sales. Wag- ner surveyed restaurant buyers and learned that servers craved a premium red wine with a screw- cap closure. He opted for the WAK Natural cork from Portocork Nickel medallion produced and hand-applied at Elite Labels of San Jose, Calif. Wax from Vinpak Bonete bottle supplied by MA Silva Silkscreening by Bergin Glass Impressions Bottled by Ultima Mobile Bottling the same care as the packaging. "To the domestic market, the bold look and the masculine shoulder on the bottle represent the big Cab from our single-vineyard approach. "The nickel medallion is an abstract depiction of the sun over sea and the lines of waves visible during rise and set." Sara Nelson, Sara Nelson Designs: "As the designer, the challenge was to design a package with an ultimate destination market of China—where there is a cultural emphasis on exchanging gifts. "We needed the package to be gift- worthy and command a retail price of about $100. Not knowing a lot about the culture, we did a lot of research and relied heavily upon the client's understanding of the culture." —As told to Barbara Gelfand Summer 2015 Winner: Wines & Vines Packaging Competition —from page 43 New from Wines Vines Analytics IDENTIFY, CONTACT & MONITOR DISTRIBUTORS with the DISTRIBUTOR MARKET SERVICE • Identify Distributors by Name or by Winery • View Portfolio of Wineries Represented • Get Contact Information for Distributors • Monitor Distributor Sales • Download Performance Reports SEARCH 1,400 + NORTH AMERICAN DISTRIBUTORS Learn more about the DISTRIBUTOR MARKET SERVICE at winesandvines.com/dms