The San Francisco-based Wine Institute, the advocacy group for the California wine industry, is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year by reinforcing many of the goals on which the organization was founded with the repeal of Prohibition.

“Wine Institute is currently fighting proposed tax and fee increases across the country at a time the industry is trying to preserve 875,000 wine-related jobs in the U.S., 309,000 of which are right here in California,” said Robert P. Koch, president and CEO, as Golden State vintners, growers and the media gathered at Silverado Resort earlier this week to mark the association’s diamond anniversary.

Koch noted that the organization’s “primary role in educating government leaders on the benefits of a thriving California and U.S. wine industry and the impact of punitive taxes, legislation and regulation has never been more relevant than it is in today’s economic climate.

“We address today’s challenges as an organization more than 1,000 strong, as an industry that generates 820,000 U.S. jobs — 330,000 of them in California — and $15 billion in state and federal revenue, brings long-term investment, tourism and pride to our communities and accounts for $18 billion in retail sales — or two-thirds of the U.S. wine market — and over $1 billion in exports to   122 countries.”

Highlighting landmarks in California wine trade and changes in winemaking styles, a pair of respected industry veterans — consultant Jon Fredrikson, of Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates, and master sommelier/educator Evan Goldstein — addressed Monday night’s gathering on “Milestones in California Wine,” featuring rare archival images, television footage and historical perspective.

Fredrikson noted that goals on which Wine Institute was launched — opening markets to California wine, reducing punitive taxes and opposing prohibition — are as relevant today as they were in 1934.

He noted that wine consumption per capita has increased from less than 1 gallon in 1960 to 2.5 gallons last year. He also wondered if many in the industry realize that as late as 1970 there were prohibition laws of one sort or another in force in 32 states.

Fredrikson referenced early Wine Institute advocacy efforts, including those that led to Congress passing in 1984 the Wine Equity and Export Expansion Act to reduce trade barriers abroad, setting the stage for a concerted effort by Wine Institute and member wineries to develop export markets.

“The phenomenal growth of the industry in California has been fueled by steadily increasing consumer interest and adoption of wine as part of an everyday lifestyle,” Fredrikson declared.

“Wine Institute played a key role in the public’s acceptance of wine through its early work for the Wine Advisory Board, advertising wine as a beverage of moderation to be enjoyed with meals, and later by advocating for research on the health effects of moderate wine and alcohol consumption and not just the effects of abuse.”

Fascination with wine

To underscore the evolution in California wine styles that paralleled a growing knowledge and fascination with wine and food by mainstream American consumers, Goldstein led attendees through a tasting of three wines.

Christian Brothers California Cream Sherry represented the fortified wines that dominated the American market from repeal until 1967 when table wine surpassed dessert wine in volume sales.

The “fighting varietals” of the ’80s — cork-finished, varietally labeled, affordable wines that gave Americans a common language for ordering a glass or a bottle of wine — were represented by 2008 Fetzer Vineyards Valley Oaks California chardonnay, a winery founded in 1968.

Goldstein turned to 1998 Duckhorn Vineyards Three Palms Vineyard merlot as a symbol of the explosion of small “boutique”  wineries in the ’80s and ’90s, operations that traditionally focused on wines from a single region, and often specializing in one or two varietals.

It was this increasing number of California wineries, Goldstein said, and the concurrent consolidation of distributors that led Wine Institute to initiate direct-to-consumer wine shipping legislation in California in 1985, setting a course to the 2005 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down discriminatory state laws and contributed to wineries now having access to more than 80 percent of American consumers in 35 states where the organization has helped bring about change.

Goldstein also pointed out that California, as a state, is the fourth largest producer of wine in the world. He also noted that    6 out of 10 bottles of wine sold in the United States today are produced in California.

Prior to gathering together for dinner, Koch saluted Wine Institute members who play vital roles on its board of directors, as well as his predecessor, John DeLuca, who served as president/CEO for nearly three decades.