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Kendall-Jackson Named Golden Winery At State Fair
Founder Jess Jackson Honored With Lifetime Achievement Award
Camelot Vineyard Chardonnay Wins Best of California
Santa Rosa, Calif. (July 25, 2001) - Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates struck gold at
the California State Fair this week - in the form of a 10-pound Golden bear.
The prestigious, bear-shaped Golden Winery trophy went to Kendall-Jackson as the
outstanding winery for fielding the greatest number of award-winning wines in
the annual fair competition. The bear, mounted on a wooden base, is a
symbol of California.
Winery founder Jess Jackson, at the competition awards ceremony Tuesday at the
Sacramento fairgrounds, accepted the Fair's Lifetime Achievement award. It
goes each year to a person who has made profound changes in the wine industry.
Much of the attention at the Grape and Gourmet event, which precedes the opening
of the State Fair each year, centered on Kendall-Jackson Chardonnay, the
winery's best-selling varietal. The winery's Kendall-Jackson Single Vineyard
Series Camelot Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley, 1999 vintage, collected a
Double-Gold medal and tied for honors as California's best Chardonnay.
State Fair wine judges gave it a rare 99 points on the 100-point quality scale.
Kendall-Jackson 1999 White Meritage claimed a Gold Medal and 95 points. Both red
and white meritage blends won honors as best of their kind in the California
appellation. In all, Kendall-Jackson entered 44 wines in the fair and won
25 medals.
Founder Jackson accepted the award on behalf of all Kendall-Jackson employees,
and noted that the winery's focus on quality and value had not changed since the
first vintage nearly 20 years ago.
"We're always trying to offer a $50 bottle of wine to the consumer for
$20," he said.
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Kendall-Jackson Wins Golden Winery At The State Fair/page two
The California State Fair Commercial Wine Competition bills itself as the oldest
and most prestigious competition in the United States. It was founded in 1854,
the same year as the fair. This year the competition included more than 120
wineries.
"It's an honor to be recognized as outstanding amongst our Californian
winery peers," said John Grant, Kendall-Jackson president. "We
maintain a passion for our products. Our team maintains a constant focus on
quality. These awards vindicate our vision."
The State Fair competition grants a range of awards. The Golden Winery trophy
recognizes the winery with the most wines winning the highest awards. Judges
then recognize a single wine as Best of Show.
They go on to grant awards for the 10 wines that represent the best of their
particular regions, regardless of varietal, and awards for 16 Best of California
wines that represent the best of their varietal in the state. Best of Class
awards are meant for the wines representing the best of a particular varietal
from a particular region. Finally, Golds, Silvers and Bronzes go to other
worthy wines.
Over all, Kendall-Jackson won 16 Bronze Medals, seven Silver Medals, one Gold
and three Best of Class awards. In addition, the 1999 Kendall-Jackson Single
Vineyard Series Camelot Vineyard Chardonnay won a Double Gold Medal and a Best
of California for being one of two best Chardonnays in the state.
Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates produces a broad portfolio of
premium wines focused on hillside and coastal growing regions in California,
South America, Australia and Italy. Along with Kendall-Jackson, which
features CollageŽ, Vintner's ReserveŽ, Grand Reserve, Great Estates* and
Stature* wines, KJWE offers Camelot and Pepi with California appellations,
Sonoma County's La Crema Winery, Yangarra Park from Australia, Villa Arceno from
Tuscany, Italy and South American wineries Calina, from Chile and Tapiz from
Argentina.
For more information visit the web at KJ.com.
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Background information, images of products, labels and more can be found in high
resolution formats for downloading and use at http://kjsales.com
For information about the California State Fair and the Grape and Gourmet
awards, visit http://bigfun.org
Michael Winters
Public Relations Manager
Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates
425 Aviation Blvd.
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
707.525.6217
707.525.6217
707.569.0105 Fax
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