Merritt Winery

FORESTVILLE, N.Y. (September 1, 2008) – Merritt Estate wines have been available throughout New York State as of June 1 of this year. During October, the winery will be featured at the Epcot Center in the 13th annual Epcot International Food and Wine Festival in a move that could soon land the small town winery in the Florida market permanently.

Merritt will be featured on October 11 at Epcot Center in their New York Wine Experience kiosk. The entire festival runs from September 26 to November 9, 2008.

The festival was created to showcase popular foods and wines from around the world. Among the festivities, there will be regional food, wine and beer available, famous chefs and winemakers offering food and wine pairing seminars, live music featuring En Vogue, Spyro Gyra, Boyz II Men and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy among others, and dozens of activities for children.

“This is going to be huge for us,” said Edwin Rodriguez, Marketing and Promotions Director for Merritt Estate Winery. “This is a small step toward the future. The Epcot Center is quite the stage for us to be on. Not many wineries can say that they were featured in Disney World,” said Rodriguez. Merritt is one of six wineries from across the state that will be featured in Florida this October, but they are the only local winery to take the trip. The winery will be featuring their award-winning Bella Rosa, Chautauqua Blush and Riesling. Bella Rosa has been the wineries top selling wine for several years now, so there was no question that Merritt would submit that wine. “The Bella Rosa is helping us shape our brand,” said Rodriguez, “and we want to see that brand grow in new states.”

“We have been looking at the Florida market for several years now,” said William T. Merritt, President of Merritt Estate Winery. “There is so much potential in Florida because there are so many folks that move from our area to Florida for retirement that already enjoy our wines. This is going to be a great experience for the winery. Plus, Hey! I’m goin’ to Disney World!” said Merritt. Merritt is looking to test the waters in Florida to see how the brand catches on. “We will go down to Florida, create some buzz about our wine and create an image that people want to be a part of, then we will proceed to include Florida into our distribution plans in the future,” said Merritt. “Our distributor, Opici Wine Group, has a facility in Florida as well as New York so it is a natural extension of our market.”

“We hope that anyone living in or visiting Florida during that time will stop by to support us,” said Rodriguez. “We like to get involved with the community as often as possible. It is always a pleasure when the community gets back involved with us in return.” Tickets can be purchased online or from the Disney telephone box office.

For more information on Merritt Estate Winery news and events, call 888-965-4800 or visit www.merrittestatewinery.com.

Merritt Estate Winery is located in the largest grape growing region of New York State. The grapes and wines produced under the Merritt name rival the quality of premium vintages throughout the world.