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built to meet Storage Solutions . . . Delivered to your site Shelving ORDERY TODA 30 Fire Protection Ventilation Contaiment Pan Visitors Bureau to organize and promote Taste Washington. Expanded to two days, the Seattle event attracted 400 trade attendees, a 25 percent increase from 2011. Ticket sales to consumers increased by 15 percent to more than 4,000. We will continue to leverage the bureau's support through 2013 with collaborative events planned for Seattle, New York, San Francisco, and Portland, Oregon. Our five-year-old Road Trip Washington Wine program brought 80 trade professionals to our vineyards during the 2011 and 2012 harvests. Attendees repeatedly rated the program as well organized and insightful. "I have a completely new appreciation for the wines and the vintage quality," said one California merchant. Ads for winners New Design Option Offers Protective Clothing Storage and Changing Area safely away from chemical storage at other end. 8x8 10 x 30 New and Used Refurbished Buildings Available Contact us at 509 884-0555 or www.rentmestorage.com After ten years of honoring restaurants, the Washington State Wine Awards ceremony was expanded last month to shine a spotlight on deserving nominees from retail, tourism, distributor, and wholesaler sectors. Winners will be recognized in a series of ads that will promote not only their businesses and organizations, but help raise the profile of Washington State as a destination for appreciators of fine wine and cuisine. The commission is also taking a proactive role to help build Washington State wine's national reputation by providing a leading voice for the industry and supporting alignment among its distinctive regions. Limited awareness of the diversity of wines produced in Washington makes it challenging for smaller producers and newer wineries to sell outside the state. Achieving a coherent image is crucial toward building a national reputation for Washington State as the source for premium wine at a variety of price levels. The perception that Washington State is coming of age as a wine-producing region creates exciting opportunities to be discovered and rediscovered to a world thirsty for high-quality wine. The commission is taking the steps now to ensure that resources are directed to those areas where the industry still has growing pains, those where we can continue to make a debut, and those that will propel us further toward being internationally recognized as a well-rounded, respected leader in the marketplace. Our future looks bright. • Firm chosen to build Clore Center T he Nevada-based construction firm Burke Construction Group, with an office in Spokane, Washington, was chosen to build the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center in Prosser, Washington. The $3.2 million contract is for a nearly 15,000square-foot facility, along with an outdoor patio of about 4,000 square feet. The Port of Benton commissioners chose the Burke Group, the low bidder, from a pool of 16 bidders. The project will begin in the first quarter of 2013, depending on weather, says Diahann Howard, director of economic development and governmental affairs for the Port of Benton. The Clore Center will tell the story of Washington's wine industry through educational displays and honor Clore, a Washington State University research scientist and wine industry pioneer. The center's outdoor event facility was completed in 2011 and is used for meetings and events. 46 FEBRUARY 1, 2013 GOOD FRUIT GROWER www.goodfruit.com