Kosta Browne Winery wine fine after flooding in Sebastopol

Kosta Browne wines avoid flood damage

Kosta Browne Winery in Sebastopol said Friday its wines are safe after water seeped into its facility in the Barlow as a result of heavy rainfall from the atmospheric river. The winery, part of the Duckhorn Wine Co. portfolio, is located on the northeast end of the shopping and eatery complex.

“We do have some water at the winery, but are relieved to report that our vintage 2017 wines are in great condition and are safely tucked away,” Carol Reber, chief marketing officer for Duckhorn, said in an email. Reber said the winery, which was founded 1997, has factored the possibility of flooding into “our winemaking operations and taken every measure possible to safeguard our wines in barrel and bottle.”

The winery sells about 85 percent of its wines directly to consumers. It has had a waiting list as long as 18 months for new customers because it has become a darling of pinot noir aficionados. It produces about 30,000 cases annually.

Last summer, it opened an exclusive tasting room for its customers. Other winery tasting rooms in The Barlow that were affected by the flood include Pax, Friedeman Wines and McPhail.

Bertran leaves Gloria Ferrer in Sonoma

Eva Bertran has left Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards in Sonoma and is returning to her native Spain. Her last day was Thursday.

Bertran, who came to the United States in 1986, was part of the original team that helped expand the winery under Gloria Ferrer and her husband, José. For many years, she essentially served as the public face for the winery, which is known for its sparkling wines.

The company was part of the Ferrer’s Freixenet wine empire based in Spain. In August, German-?based Henkell & Co. Sektkellerei KG took ownership control of Freixenet, creating the largest sparkling wine producer in the world.

In her role, Bertran worked as executive vice president at Freixenet. She also had worked as a president of the Sonoma County Vintners and the Sonoma Valley Vintners and Growers. She served for years on the board of Carneros Wine Alliance.

Jackson wines launches green campaign

Jackson Family Wines of Santa Rosa has partnered with a Spanish winery to create an industry working group to help lower carbon emissions.

The Santa Rosa-based company has teamed with Familia Torres in the campaign to reduce their total carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2045. The effort has been named the International Wineries for Climate Action.

“Our common goal is to move beyond conversations around the urgency of climate change by collaborating on scalable solutions to reduce our global industry’s carbon footprint,” Katie Jackson, senior vice president of corporate responsibility at Jackson Family Wines, said in a statement.

Both wineries have reduced by more than 25 percent their total carbon emissions per bottle since they have started tracking their output.

Compiled by Bill Swindell. Submit items to bill.swindell@pressdemocrat.com.