Destination Cellars Launches Online Wine Portal
Adds Robin Lail of Lail Vineyards and Molly Fletcher of Career Sports and Entertainment
to Advisory Board
DULLES, Va., October 8, 2009 – Destination Cellars, the first and only luxury destination wine club, today launched a new wine portal and website, continuing to provide members exclusive access to some of the best wines in the world. Destination Cellars also added Robin Lail of Lail Vineyards and Molly Fletcher of Career Sports and Entertainment as new advisory board members and will host two elite wine events in May.
Destination Cellars’ proprietary online portal allows clients and alliance partners to purchase wine direct from various winery partners around the world. Members may also RSVP directly to private wine events, inquire 24/7 about customized and exclusive wine experiences globally, and learn about wine and food pairings from Master Sommelier, Alpana Singh.
The portal is live with Destination Cellars partners MasterCard World & World Elite, Exclusive Resorts, The Markers Club, Private Club Network and others. Already registered are members from Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, South America, Tokyo, USA and Europe. Destination Cellars also enhanced its own website, adding a personal wine concierge to assist its clients with purchasing wine.
"We are continually enhancing the Destination Cellars experience," said David Keuhner, founder and CEO of Destination Cellars. "Our online wine concierge and portal, launched together with our partners enables Destination Cellars to be a dynamic resource to our members on all things wine, even when they are not enjoying a customized wine experience. Having legendary vintner, Robin Lail and accomplished sports agent, Molly Fletcher join our advisory board adds yet another dimension to our mission to offer our members unparalleled wine wisdom and experiences."
Robin Daniel Lail, the great grandniece of Inglenook Vineyards founder Captain Gustav Niebaum, is a fourth generation vintner in Napa Valley. Her father, John Daniel, Jr. who re-opened Inglenook following Prohibition, was the first to put Napa Valley as an appellation on wine bottles and produced legendary wines. He was one of the founders of the NV Vintners and Robert Mondavi’s mentor. Following a five year apprenticeship with Robert Mondavi, Robin Lail mounted the first NV Wine Auction in 1981. In 1982 she co-founded Dominus with Christian Moueix of Chateau Petrus and in 1983; she co-founded Merryvale with Bill Harlan of Harlan Estate. She also served as managing director of Meadowood in 1985 and 1993. In 1995, Lail founded Lail Vineyards with her husband, Jon, and her daughters taking the family legacy into the 21st Century. As a member of the Destination Cellars advisory board she will bring the perspective of a 130-year legacy in Napa Valley to enhance the Destination Cellars experience.
"Destination Cellars and Lail Vineyards share a passion for great wine traditions and a dedication, bordering on an obsession with excellence,” said Robin Lail, president, Lail Vineyards. “I am honored to share my family’s legacy with the Destination Cellars community."
Molly Fletcher is the President of Client Representation at Atlanta-based Career Sports & Entertainment, which represents Major League Baseball players, PGA Tour golfers, NCAA football and basketball coaches, NBA coaches and sports broadcasters. As one of the few female sports agents in professional sports, she negotiates client contracts, appearances, endorsements and sponsorships for Career Sports & Entertainment clients while also managing the growth and direction of the division, which represents almost 200 clients, including pitcher John Smoltz, Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo, Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers, and ESPN broadcaster Erin Andrews.
Destination Cellars is also hosting two private wine events in May. The first is a May 2nd reception with Dan Kosta of Kosta Browne Winery which was recently recognized by Wine Spectator as one of the “Best Ever” Pinot Noirs produced in Sonoma County and has proudly been voted in the Top 100 Wines in the World in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2009. Co-hosted by James Beard Award winning proprietor chef Jeffery Bruben at Bistro Bis in Washington, DC, attendees will enjoy exquisite food paired with the highly allocated wines of Kosta Browne.
On May 13th Destination Cellars will host a fundraising reception to support the United States South Africa Wine Foundation, featuring Warwick and Vilafonté wines from Stelenbosch, South Africa. The Foundation aids the post-apartheid transformation of the South African wine industry by developing the skills of the disadvantaged South African wine workforce through internships within the U.S. wine industry. A US-based non-profit, the Foundation fosters diversity in the South African wine sector by exposing workers to the U.S. wine industry with the hope that they will advance in their careers or eventually establish wineries of their own. The event will take place at the Washington DC offices Nixon Peabody, LLC.
About Destination Cellars
Founded in 2006, Destination Cellars is the first and only luxury destination club that offers affluent wine, food and travel enthusiasts personalized access to prestigious winery properties around the world. Individual and corporate club members enjoy exclusive, tailored experiences at more than 100 of the world’s finest wineries spanning seven countries. From an intimate wine tasting and fine dining experience, to cave exploration and bio-dynamic seminars, Destination Cellars creates private “once in a lifetime” experiences, to ensure it opens the world of wine to those who desire an extraordinary and memorable journey. Destination Cellars has built an esteemed alliance network to guarantee its members receive the best services available, including YPO, TIGER 21, Exclusive Resorts, Merrill Lynch, VIP Desk, Private Club Network, The Markers Club, Nos Caves Vin, Cellar Advisors, PGA Tour professional Parker McLachlin and LGPA Tour professional Meghan Francella.
For more information on Destination Cellars membership, visit http://www.destinationcellars.com or contact us at 703-327-3109.
Press Contact:
Karyn Martin
Emerge PR
(617) 729-3173
kmartin@emergepr.com.