New Labels with Celebrated Winemakers Julien Fayard, Maayan Koschitzky, Pave Way for Online Wine Retailer’s Growing Focus on Collaborations
San Francisco Calif., July 15 2019 — Wine Access (www.wineaccess.com), the leading online direct to consumer (DTC) wine retailer best known for offering meticulously-selected wines from around the world, has announced a lineup of exclusive wine labels made by a series of acclaimed winemakers in Napa and Sonoma, including Julien Fayard, Maayan Koschitzky, and Britt Nichols, among others. The recently introduced collection of labels signals the continued growth and diversity of offers from Wine Access, and furthers the retailer’s mission of making the wines of celebrated winemakers more accessible for consumers nationwide. With the U.S. now firmly cemented as the largest wine consuming country in the world, Wine Access continues to adapt and respond to maturing drinkers who seek the authentic stories and people behind the bottle.
The Wine Access enterprise originally began as a web hosting service for wine shops and other wine businesses in 1997. Over time, the company has evolved into a robust DTC wine retailer offering ephemeral daily wine deals and a permanent inventory of elite bottles from around the world. The team there—which includes a Master Sommelier (Sur Lucero), one pending Master of Wine (Vanessa Conlin), and international wine judge and leading sake Sommelier (Eduardo Dingler)—has an unprecedented network of winemakers in the state that they utilize to help build their portfolio of private labels.
The recently released range of exclusive wine labels follows a traditional European négociant model, in which the Wine Access team oversees winemaking from grape to glass in direct collaboration with some of California’s most esteemed vintners. Further, the Wine Access platform has allowed top-tier California winemakers to introduce their wines and share their stories with new consumers around the country.
“As I got to know the wine team at Wine Access, it was clear to me early on that this business was unlike anything else that existed on the market today,” notes celebrated winemaker Julien Fayard, the force behind Wine Access’ Idiosyncrasy label, “When I’m able to make something like Idiosyncrasy for Wine Access, it really is meant to be a testament to the fact that exceptional wines from Napa and Sonoma do not have to break the $50 price tag. I’m excited to be a part of a team that can share the stories and wines of revered vignerons to consumers beyond our backyard.”
A number of exclusive labels are currently available on the Wine Access marketplace, and the team is in the process of expanding their portfolio to include:
- The Idiosyncrasy 2016 Cabernet Sauvignons were created with former Chateau Lafite and legendary Napa winemaker Julien Fayard. Fayard created four different Cabernets with premiere fruit from throughout the Napa Valley for the wine’s 2016 vintage. The lineup, which features ruit from Atlas Peak, Oakville and more, ranges from $43-$48 on single bottle purchases or as low as $39 on case purchases.
- The Appliqué 2016 Sonoma County Chardonnay hails from the vaunted hills of Sonoma County’s Hidden Ridge. The wine was crafted by their 100-point winemaker Tim Milos and bottled on-site; even the cork attests to its Hidden Ridge provenance. The wine—which retails for $45 at its original winery—will be available for $25 on a single bottle or $19.99 on case purchases via Wine Access.
- The Kinfolk 2018 Sauvignon Blanc is 100%, Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc, with half of the fruit is sourced from one of the most famous and acclaimed vineyards in the entire state. The wine here was crafted by Britt Nichols, the star winemaker at Valette in Healdsburg, and her husband Ry Richards, who has experience at Chappellet Vineyards and his own brand Fiancetto.
- The newly announced 2019 Napa Cabernet project with Maayan Koschitzky, winemaker of the cult winery Melka in Northern California. Wine Access will be working with Maayan to grow a wine from some of Napa’s top vineyards. They will be seeing the process through from grape to glass, all the while capturing video content, through the growing season, harvesting, and winemaking process.
A select number of Wine Access’ wine labels are designed by Gauge Branding—the designers behind the cult wine Tusk Estates—and are meticulously crafted to ensure an aesthetic continuity between winemaker, wine, and target consumer, all while fitting under a unified direction of the Wine Access brand.
Over the coming months, Wine Access plans to release more exclusive labels with some of the most revered winemakers in the country.
About Wine Access
Wine Access was founded on the philosophy that the barrier to the world’s best wines isn’t price, it’s access. For over 25 years, their sourcing team has traveled the globe’s wine trails in search of the world’s finest wines. These rare wines are made in small quantities and finding them is hard part, which is what they do. They have over 50 years of combined experience traveling the globe’s wine trails in search of the world’s finest wines. And they share their experiences with their members, enabling them to tell the stories behind the wines they serve to family and friends.then again at their judging panel, where every wine must be approved by an impressive team that includes a Master Sommelier and Master of Wine candidates. The team prides itself on only offering wines that over-deliver on quality compared to price that is simply unmatched by the wines in many brick-and-mortar stores as well as other online retailers.
