Labeling Part 2: Labeling Requirements and Regulations

John Trinidad

Organization:

Dickenson Peatman & Fogarty P.C., California

John Trinidad is a co-managing partner of Dickenson Peatman & Fogarty, and is a partner in the firm’s Wine Law, Business, Alcohol Beverage, and Geographical Indications practice groups. John advises wine and alcohol beverage industry clients on a broad range of legal issues, including business formation, obtaining alcohol beverage licenses, and the drafting of key contracts, such as grape purchase agreements, vineyard leases, and distribution contracts, and the purchase and sale of winery brands and assets. John also advises clients on federal and state alcohol beverage regulations such as franchise laws, tied-house laws, labeling requirements, and the protection and promotion of American Viticultural Areas.

John is a graduate of Harvard College and the New York University School of Law. In 2017-2018, John has led wine law classes the University of California Davis School of Law and Napa Valley College. He is currently a lecturer at the University of California Berkeley School of Law where he co-teaches a wine law class.

John is an avid photographer, and his pictures of vineyards, wineries, and producers were published in a book on the history of the Champagne region, But First, Champagne.

Adolfo Alarcón – Méndez

Organization:

Trinchero Family Estates, California

Adolfo Alarcón had dreamed about making wine before graduating from college with a degree in chemical engineering. After visiting a small, old-fashioned winery in Mexico early in his college career, Adolfo knew that the wine industry was for him. “I was intrigued with applying things I was learning in chemical engineering to winemaking,” he says. To further understand wine and its history, Adolfo began to study the major languages of wine-producing countries. A native Spanish speaker, he became fluent in English, French, and Italian, and has acquired the basics of German, giving him an incredible understanding of wine history and the ability to go anywhere in the world to follow his passion.

He had to wait eight years to fulfill his dream. “I needed money”, Adolfo comments, “I had to go out in the real world and work for a while first before I could go back and study winemaking.” As a graduate of the Instituto Politécnico Nacional in Mexico, Adolfo first worked as a chemical engineer for Du Pont and later for IBM before he was able to go back to school to study winemaking. While working as an engineer, recognizing the need to be well-rounded in a competitive global work market, he completed a 3-year evening MBA program at the Universidad La Salle in Mexico, graduating in 1994. At that point, he decided to quit his job and leave his native Mexico to pursue a master’s degree in Viticulture and Enology at the University of California at Davis, which he completed in 1996. It was then that he was finally able to realize his true ambition as a winemaker.

Adolfo worked as a harvest intern at Grgich Hills in Napa Valley and Antinori in Italy. He has held winemaking roles at Stonestreet Winery and Murphy Vineyards in Alexander Valley; Franciscan Estates, Charles Krug, Acacia Vineyard, and Trinchero Family Estates in Napa Valley.

Friends and colleagues describe Adolfo as a “Renaissance Man”, somebody with a broad set of talents and interests who approaches problems and challenges using both his brain and his heart.

Since 1997, Adolfo belongs to Rebovar, a group of Napa Valley winemakers who gather monthly to blind taste and discuss red Bordeaux varietal wines (Cabernet, Merlot, and Bordeaux blends), mainly from Napa Valley and Bordeaux.

Adolfo is the seventh son in a family of nine. He and his wife Nancy have two boys, Rodrigo and Diego. He enjoys gatherings, playing the piano, the guitar, and singing. He likes cooking and enjoys food and wine pairing. He likes hiking and used to be a serious climber — he once made it to the top of Mount Aconcagua in Argentina (22,960 feet), the tallest summit outside the Himalayas, the tallest in the southern hemisphere, and also the tallest in the American continent.

Janelle Christian

Organization:

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Oregon

Janelle Christian is the Director of the Office of Industry and State Outreach at the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). In this role, Janelle focuses on communication and outreach for TTB-regulated industry members. Some of her primary efforts include coordinating TTB participation at industry conferences and events; identifying training opportunities for industry members to encourage voluntary compliance with TTB laws, regulations, and requirements; and serving as a liaison with industry members and trade associations.

Janelle joined TTB in 2011 as a Presidential Management Fellow. Prior to her current position, she served as Industry Outreach Program Manager and as Policy Advisor to Headquarters Operations. Janelle received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Oregon State University, a master’s degree in public administration from Columbia University, and a law degree from the University of Oregon.

Tracy Genesen

Organization:

Wine Institute, California

Tracy serves as Vice President & General Counsel at Wine Institute, a California-based winery trade association representing over 1,000 wineries. Prior to joining Wine Institute, Tracy served as Vice President and General Counsel of Edrington North America, a Scottish-based ultra-premium spirits group that produces Macallan Scotch Whiskey amongst other world-famous products. In addition, during the course of her legal career, she has successfully represented individuals seeking political asylum in the United States. Tracy holds an adjunct law professor position at many top law schools, including Stanford and Berkeley Law Schools. Lastly, Tracy is an author/contributor to a number of publications including Wine Law in America: Law and Policy.