Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/816747
18 WINES&VINES May 2017 WINE INDUSTRY NEWS S an Rafael, Calif.—The Wines & Vines Packaging Design Awards are open for business. Wines & Vines is now ac- cepting entries for its third annual competition to choose the best and most innovative wine pack- ages from around North America. Several categories were added this year to better reflect the diversity of the wine market. The categories include: • Best Classic Format Package De- sign (glass bottles) • Best Alternative Format Package Design (bag-in-box, cans, car- tons, etc.) • Best Luxury Package Design (bottles priced $50 and up) • Best Package Redesign (before and after) • Best Package Series Design (product line) Wines & Vines graphic designer Rebecca Arnn, who is managing the design competition, said orga- nizers decided to add new catego- ries based on trends among entries to the 2016 competition. "With these categories, we can really focus on and celebrate more honed-in winners," she said. For example, "People were doing a lot of series in order to show their whole line and not just one bottle. This category considers the brand as a whole." Another new category, Best Luxury Package Design, is exclu- sive to bottles with retail prices of $50 and up. These designs tend to be more understated but crafted from high-end materials, accord- ing to Arnn, who said setting them apart means "the luxury packages can stand on their own." The Best Package Redesign cat- egory celebrates the work that goes into a redesign and how brands benefit from the evolution of wine packaging. "I thought this category was interesting because people put so much work into their packages," Arnn said. New for 2017, both wineries and packaging suppliers are eligible to enter wine packages in the com- petition, and the entry fee is the same regardless of who submits the package. The entry fee is $90 for each category except Best Package Series Design, for which contestants are asked to provide between two and five examples from the series for an entry fee of $140. Awards history Now in its third year, the Wines & Vines Packaging Design Awards has grown from a feature created to showcase packaging suppliers' products during the Wines & Vines Packaging Conference to an independently judged event open to any wine made from grapes grown in a North American ap- pellation between May 1, 2015, and May 31, 2017. The panel of judges is com- prised of professionals from the design and wine industies. For more information visit wvpack.com. —Kate Lavin Wine Packaging Awards Open for Entries THE PERFECT VARIETAL IN VINTNER'S HOSE BALTHAZAR™ Texcelrubber.com 800-231-7116 Introducing The New Texcel BALTHAZAR™ WINERY HOSE BALTHAZAR™ Packaging Conference attendees vote for their favorite competition finalists.