8/31/2009 - St Helena, CA--The Napa Valley Vintners (NVV) non-profit trade association this week took yet another step in encouraging Napa County residents and visitors to act locally--now more than ever, to keep our local economy sparked during the Great Recession--by crafting its billboard on the St Helena Highway to read "Eat, Shop, Drink: Local."
"We are encouraging our residents to support their local shops and restaurants and their home wine region's wines as well," said NVV Executive Director Linda Reiff. She continued, "For nearly a decade our members have offered a 'locals only' discount at their wineries, known as Napa Neighbor, where tasting fees are waived, discounts are offered and more, and we hope that in these trying times our county's residents will take advantage of these great offers while on a 'stay-cation' or with visiting family or friends. We need to make sure our local stores and restaurants are viable through this challenging economy as well, so we encourage everyone to make choices that ultimately support jobs and tax revenues in our community."
The NVV recently took an informal county-wide poll of restaurants' wine lists and found a troubling show of support by some of the restaurant community for Napa Valley wines. Some popular locales offer as few as 15 percent of their selections from the appellation.
"The wine business is the economic engine of Napa County and its sustainability is critical. The most recent Economic Impact Study found that the local industry is responsible for 40,000 jobs in the county. In today's economy we need to protect these local jobs and the more than $1 billion in locally-generated tax revenues as well."
Bob Torres of his family's Trinchero Napa Valley winery noted, "There are outstanding wines from the Napa Valley appellation that are incredible values, and they are diverse in variety and style--the region is known the world over as dependable for quality year in and year out."
What can you do? Shop at local Napa County stores, eat at local Napa County restaurants and look for the many values these establishments offer to encourage business, and drink wines from the Napa Valley appellation to keep our industry vibrant for the success of our entire community.
About the NVV
The Napa Valley Vintners is the non-profit trade association responsible for promoting and protecting the Napa Valley appellation as the premier winegrowing region. The organization celebrates its 65th anniversary this year. From seven founding members in 1944, today the association represents more than 350 Napa Valley wineries and collectively is a leader in the world-wide wine industry. To learn more about our region and its legendary American wines, visit www.napavintners.com.
Learn more about the Napa Neighbor Program
Contact: Terry Hall, Communications Director 707-968-4217 thall@napavintners.com
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