10/17/2024 - Saint Helena, CA - Today marks the 80th anniversary of the Napa Valley Vintners trade association. Since its founding in 1944, the organization has brought vintners together with the mission to promote, protect and enhance the Napa Valley wine region.
As often is the case in the wine industry, the birth of the Napa Valley Vintners started among friends and neighbors over a bottle of wine and a good meal. In 1944, seven founding members came together to form an organization that would go on to become a leader in the global wine industry.
They wanted to create a group that would bring vintners together to share knowledge and build camaraderie to help propel the Napa Valley wine industry forward. Robert Mondavi remembered discussions at the early meetings centered around winemaking, business decisions, market conditions and promoting the region. Today, those same principles remain at the core of the organization with a membership that totals nearly 550 wineries.
Since its founding, NVV has advocated on behalf of its members and its region as well as for the wine industry and wine regions around the globe.
"The Napa Valley wine region wouldn't be what it is today without the hard work of thousands of vintners who came together over the years to promote, protect and enhance the Napa Valley and this organization which drove those efforts," said Linda Reiff, President and CEO of Napa Valley Vintners. "It’s remarkable to look back at the magnitude of all that we've accomplished together, and it’s equally breathtaking to look at the breadth and depth of what we do and offer today for our members and our community.”
Over eight decades, there are many standout moments achieved by vintners who have given their time and passion to developing the Napa Valley wine region. With each passing decade, the contributions and achievements have soared higher and higher. Some of the top moments through the decades included:
1940s: Seven members founded the organization and by 1948 the group had hosted its first consumer wine tasting to promote the region.
1950s: As the region experienced growth, the organization matured, and the Napa wine industry became stronger because of it.
1960s: The standout accomplishment of the decade was the creation of the Napa Valley Ag Preserve; still in place today, it was the beginning of Napa Valley's long history of conservation.
1970s: Napa Valley wineries took the top honors at the Judgment of Paris tasting, putting Napa Valley on the world map which further attracted pioneers in the wine industry to Napa Valley.
1980s: Member wineries worked together to establish Napa Valley as the first American Viticultural Area in California and hosted the inaugural Auction Napa Valley as a means to give back to the community.
1990s: NVV organized its first foreign trade mission to bring Napa wines to the world and shortly thereafter created Premiere Napa Valley that drew trade members to Napa Valley.
2000s: Napa Green was created to further the region's sustainability efforts, NVV helped build a community health care center, the organization invested in trade education by creating Master Napa Valley among other signature programs and commissioned research on the geology, soil science and climate of the region. NVV co-founded Wine Origins Alliance and secured name protection in the US and EU, and also increased community giving with numerous capital investments and nonprofits supported.
2010s: NVV giving to the community reached $100 million milestone, membership surpassed 500 wineries and NVV created even more education and promotion programs. During times of disaster, NVV stepped up to give back to the community during the 2014 earthquake and the 2017 wildfires. NVV further protected the Napa name becoming the first region to secure Geographic Indication status in China.
2020s: NVV gave at unprecedented levels during the global pandemic even without fundraising in 2020 and 2021 and surpassed another milestone in giving at $200 million, Collective Napa Valley was born as the next iteration of year-round philanthropy work, the organization created a custom leadership development program and NVV committed to giving deeply in the areas of youth health and the environment. Most recently, NVV announced it was the first wine region to obtain name protection for a wine region in Mexico.
Today, NVV continues to help its members with marketing their brands as well as the region. Over the next four months alone, 76 wine events are planned to take Napa Valley to San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, Palm Springs, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Miami, Boca Raton, Paris and London. In addition, next year the organization will celebrate 29 years of Premiere Napa Valley and 45 years of giving through philanthropy efforts.
The organization continues to advocate for its members and for the industry at large at the local, state, national and global levels remaining a key leader on recognizing the importance of place names in wine and advocating for fair trade.
According to founding member Louis M. Martini, early vintners wanted to create an association that would bring the region together to work toward common goals, and since its founding NVV has done that.
To learn more about the organization, visit the website, view NVV's milestones timeline, and listen in on voices from the past and present through the UC Berkeley Bancroft Library digital collection that also houses the Napa Valley Vintners Oral History Project developed in 2019.
About Napa Valley Vintners
The Napa Valley Vintners nonprofit trade association has been cultivating excellence since 1944 by inspiring its nearly 550 members to consistently produce wines of the highest quality, provide environmental leadership and care for the extraordinary place they call home. NVV has invested more than $230 million in community healthcare, youth development and the environment in Napa County, and is dedicated to improving diversity and championing inclusivity in its community and in the wine industry. Learn more at napavintners.com.
Contact: Teresa Wall, Senior Director of Communications - 707-968-4210, twall@napavintners.com
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