Sokol Blosser Wins Sunset Magazine 'Green Award'

Oregon Pinot producer recognized for environmental leadership.

Dundee, OR (PRWEB) September 10, 2007 -- In the latest recognition of Sokol Blosser Winery's decades-long commitment to producing top-quality wines with respect for the earth, founder and president Susan Sokol Blosser has been awarded Sunset Magazine's prestigious "Green Award."

The honor for the pioneering Dundee Hills winery was announced in the September 2007 issue of Sunset, the leading lifestyle publication in the West with a circulation of nearly 1.5 million. The editors noted that "president and founder Susan Sokol Blosser has pioneered green winegrowing and making in a state that is itself in front of the movement in the industry."

Established in 1971, Sokol Blosser Winery is a family owned and operated producer of Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris, as well as the popular white blend Evolution and the red blend Meditrina.

Sokol Blosser Winery's sustainable practices and achievements include:

• estate vineyards USDA certified organic by Oregon Tilth and certified sustainable by LIVE (Low Input Viticulture and Enology, an international certification);
• underground barrel cellar built to U.S. Green Building Council standards, making it the first winery in the country to earn the prestigious LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification;
• 25kW photovoltaic solar system that furnishes one-third of the business's total energy needs for production;
• 50% biodiesel used in farm tractors and trucks;
• recycling whenever possible, from office paper to pallet shrinkwrap;
• use of recycled and unbleached paper products for labels, printed collateral, wine boxes and gift bags whenever possible;
• participant in Governor Ted Kulongski’s “Carbon Neutral Challenge Initiative” to assess and reduce the business's carbon footprint, with the ultimate goal of becoming carbon neutral.

"We've long felt a sense of social responsibility in conducting our business and our lives the way we do," Susan Sokol Blosser said. "What's been especially exciting and satisfying to me is that in recent years, the next generation of Sokol Blosser Winery leadership has fully embraced these values as they've taken on more responsibility at the winery, bringing new energy and imagination to our commitment to sustainability."

Susan's children, Alex and Alison, are winery vice presidents, with Alex overseeing distributor sales, vineyard and winemaking operations, and Alison responsible for marketing, consumer direct sales, and administrative functions. Together, they guide the strategic future of the business.

About Sokol Blosser Winery
Bill Blosser and Susan Sokol Blosser planted their first grapevines in 1971 in the Dundee Hills. As one of the pioneering wineries of the region, Sokol Blosser has played a key role in developing and shaping the now-prominent Oregon wine industry. The winery works to create wines of world-class quality, produced in a sustainable manner, which reflect the distinctive flavors of the grapes, soil, and climate, as well as the winery's values and sense of place. The winery produces Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Evolution (a proprietary white wine blend of nine varieties) and Meditrina (proprietary red blend), along with small quantities of Single Block Pinot Noirs in selected vintages. For more information, visit www.sokolblosser.com.

Sokol Blosser wines are marketed throughout the United States by Terlato Wines International. For more information, visit www.terlatowines.com.

For more information on Sunset’s Western Wine Awards: http://301url.com/2007-wine-picks

For more information on the City of Portland's Office of Sustainable Development BEST Awards: http://www.portlandonline.com/osd/index.cfm?a=153829&c=41625

For more information on Governor Kulongoski’s, the Oregon Environmental Council’s and the Oregon Wine Board’s Carbon Neutral Challenge Initiative: http://oeconline.org/climate/climateneutralwineries

Contact:
Pete Danko
dankop @ terlatowines.com
503.432.8693

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