Michael David Winery Named Winery of the Year
01 Feb 2016 --- Michael David Winery was named 2015's Winery of the Year this week at the 2016 Unified Wine & Grape Symposium. Jon Fredrikson, principal of Gomberg, Fredrikson and Associates and leading industry consultant, made the announcement Wednesday morning at this year's State of the Industry address saying, "They are a great California success story." This annual event is held in Sacramento and draws more than 14,000 grape growers, vintners and allied industry members from around the world. It is the largest event of its kind in the western hemisphere.
Michael David Winery continues to see unprecedented growth as they are producing over 600,000 cases annually. Kevin and Melissa, two of Michael's children and 6th generation growers, now run the day-to-day operations of the winery. Their flagship brand 7 Deadly Zins is leading the way selling over 300,000 cases, with a 15% sales increase in 2015, and also became the #1 selling Zinfandel in 2015. Gaining even more momentum, their Freakshow Cabernet Sauvignon is experiencing similar success and showing phenomenal growth in the $15-$20 price point.
"Michael David Winery is truly honored to be recognized for this award. We believe in creating fun, exciting bottles full of the best wine we know how to make. We could not achieve this distinction without the passion of our team at the winery as well as the support of our distributors, retailers, and restaurants and consumers," explains Melissa Phillips Stroud, winery Vice President of Sales and Marketing. It has been a noteworthy week for Lodi, CA to say the least; In addition to Fredrikson's announcement, Wine Enthusiast Magazine just named Lodi "Wine Region of the Year" at a presentation held in New York City last week.
