BROWN-FORMAN’S FETZER SAYS GOODBYE TO HOSPITALITY

Brown-Forman Wines announced Wednesday the intention to close their Valley Oaks Hospitality site in Hopeland that features the Fetzer Vineyards brand. The closure will take place in late May and will involve a tasting room, market and inn that have been “an icon” in the Mendocino area, according the company’s spokesman Jim Caudill. Fetzer will continue to grow grapes at the Valley Oaks vineyard and ranch but will no longer receive visitors or hold a tasting, overnight-stay or sale their product onsite. Brown-Forman will now use marketing dollars previously spent on the Valley Oaks tasting room towards “regional marketing activities,” which will include increased sales support and advertising to help boost Fetzer’s relevance to consumers. Simultaneously, Fetzer eliminated its Sundial, Echo Ridge and Eagle Peak brands in order to emphasize its Valley Oaks brands.