The Leelanau Peninsula, Old Mission Peninsula, and Virginia regions joined the Wine Origins Alliance (WOA), an international organization that protects the names and trade of regional wines.
The three regions were formally welcomed in Washington, D.C. May 2.
Andie Hobbing, managing director of the Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail, expressed excitement about the partnership saying that the alliance will, “Put us on the map to get nationally recognized.” The partnership will get local wineries and wine trails “recognized by politicians in D.C. and bring up positive changes and improvements.”
Charles Goamaere, co-chair and founding member of the WOA says the WOA is “delighted to work together to reach our goals alongside these organizations and their extraordinary wines.” The Wine Origins Alliance (WOA) has been working since 2005 to protect wine place names and remove all tariff barriers that prevent the sale and proper wine place naming of wine around the world. With the addition of these three U.S. regions, the WOA comes to a total of 36 wine name regions and a total of 90,000 wineries across the world.
The Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail is described as “known for its quaint towns, crystal clear lakes, and streams, and rolling terrain, the Leelanau Wine Trail has wines like no other,” said Geoff Hamlin, president of the Leelanau Peninsula Wine Trail. Hamlin, too, voices his excitement.
“(We) look forward to a long and successful partnership with the Wine Origins Alliance and supporting its mission to protect the integrity of wine region names worldwide,” he said.
Old Mission Peninsula Wine Trail is described as being, “A distinctive and cool microclimate that allows for the production of a variety of whites, reds, sparkling and dessert wines that cannot be replicated elsewhere,” said Marie-Chantal Dalese, the President and CEO of Chateau Chantal and Secretary of the Old Mission Peninsula Wine Trail. “We are excited to join the Alliance and its efforts to make clear that when it comes to wine, location matters.”
The Virginia Wineries Association is known to be home to more than 28 grape varietals, 10 regions, and eight distinct AVAs across the commonwealth.
“The Virginia Wineries Association understands the importance of protecting wine place names,” said Christina Sandridge, executive director of the Virginia Wineries Association. “We are proud to come together alongside our colleagues from around the world to support the important mission of WOA.”
The WOA will continue to protect wine region names and work hard to make sure that the names aren’t abused and/or miscommunicated to international customers. It protects the rights of the local wine region names and will help to show more of the world Leelanau’s wine expertise.
