Temecula Winegrowers Adopt Principles For Continued Growth

TEMECULA, Calif. - The Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association has unanimously adopted a set of operating principles that will serve as a springboard for greater community involvement and more strategic relationships for the six-year-old organization.

The guidelines, believed to be first ever adopted by a regional wine association, stress a set of shared values that will serve as a foundation for the association as it moves forward as a unified group that represents the premiere winemaking region in Southern California, said Ray Falkner, winery owner and association president.

The Temecula Valley wine-growing region, which stretches from the shadows of Mount Palomar to the hills above Temecula and Murrieta, currently has 46 grower and 22 winery members. With more than two dozen new wineries in the planning stages, the region is expected to become an even bigger magnet for visitors from all over Southern California.

“This is a big step forward in the maturation process for the association and will provide us greater strength through cooperation,” said Falkner, co-owner of Falkner Winery. “Ultimately it will allow our association to speak with a single voice, lead to more opportunities for wineries and growers in Wine Country, and provide better experiences for the thousands of tourists who visit this unique region each year.”

As the association grows, it plans to work more closely with neighboring cities, the county, local businesses, and other tourist destinations in the region to ensure that the Temecula Valley remains a great place to visit.

The Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association recently teamed up with the Temecula Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau to market Temecula and Wine Country as part of a new innovative branding and awareness campaign.

The wineries and the region will be featured on banners located on light poles and walkways in upscale Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego and on a billboard at the intersection of the 215 and 10 freeways. The message will reach 18 million shoppers a year at the mall and the thousands of freeway motorists who pass through the intersection each day.

The Winegrowers Association is a nonprofit regional organization formed in 2001 from the merger of a growers and vintners group that is dedicated to the making and growing of quality wine and winegrapes in the Temecula Valley.