Formation of The Global Artisan Vintners Alliance (AVA)

The Livermore Valley Wine Community (LVWC) and Alameda County, District 1 Supervisor, David Haubert recently announced the formation of The Global Artisan Vintners Alliance (AVA). The Global AVA was established to create a beneficial and sustainable alliance of partner wine regions across the globe. Last week, I attended an online media event discussing this new wine organization. 

The Global AVA will "promote collaboration and exchange of information between winemakers, wine associations, government representatives, tourism and economic development organizations, and business associations. Representatives of the partner wine regions will actively participate in professional development opportunities through discussions about winemaking techniques and sustainability methods, student and professional intern exchanges, and sharing of best practices around economic development, agri-tourism and marketing initiatives to elevate the global presence of the participating wine region, among other opportunities." 

The founding wine regions include: 

• Livermore Valley Wine Community, California; 
• Texas Hill Country Wineries, Texas; 
• Chilecito, Argentina; 
• Dalmatia, Croatia; 
• Chinon, France; 
• Alentejo, Portugal; 
• Vale dos Vinhedos, Brazil; 
• Badacsony, Hungary; and 
• Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. 

This is certainly a diverse group of wine regions, and who would have imagined wine regions from places such as Mexico, Hungary, Brazil, Texas, and others all working together? It's an intriguing experiment and we shall see what they are able to accomplish.

Additional wine regions may be eventually added, and those added regions can also be part of an existing country member. For example, even though the region of Dalmatia, in Croatia, is a member, other wine regions from Croatia, such as Istria and Slavonia, could be made members in the future.  

“On behalf of the entire Livermore Valley Wine Community, we are proud to lead the efforts to establish The Global Artisan Vintners Alliance,” said Brandi Lombardi, Executive Director for the Livermore Valley Wine Community. “As one of the oldest wine regions in California, Livermore Valley has a rich history of winemaking tradition side by side with new winemakers and new techniques. This alliance will allow all partner regions to work together and expand opportunities for their winemakers and wineries as well as enhance tourism to their respective parts of the globe.”

“I envisioned creating a network of global wine region partners, and I’m thrilled to see this come to life through the hard work of my team and the Livermore Valley Winegrowers Association,” said David Haubert, Alameda County, District 1 Supervisor. “This Alliance will bring great value and innovation, and I’m excited to be part of this trailblazing group of industry leaders.”

The Alliance will engage in bimonthly Zoom meetings, to discuss various issues of mutual interest, and is currently planning their inaugural in-person Summit in the Livermore Valley in the summer. Each year, the Summit will be held at the location of different members of the Alliance. 

There seemed to be good energy during the online event, and they are very open to ideas and suggestions. I see much potential for this new Alliance, and I'll be keeping an eye on their progress. The world wine industry certainly faces many challenges, and wine regions which work together may be best able to handle such challenges.