Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/138003
Former Lodi Winegrape Commission head takes the helm at WineAmerica BY DAVE MCINTYRE Mark ark Chandler is wine's new man in Washington, DC. Chandler was named in February to take the helm of WineAmerica, the industry's national trade association, as its executive director. WineAmerica is often overshadowed by the Wine Institute, which represents the California wine industry, but with more than 800 member wineries in 48 states, WineAmerica is poised to be the national voice of U.S. wine. There were about 2,000 wineries in the United States at the turn of the millennium. Today, there are nearly 8,000. That tremendous growth has occurred throughout the country, not just along the West Coast. Now a wine country vacation doesn't simply mean Napa Valley – it includes Charlottesville, Va.; Chandler w w w. v w m media.com New York's Finger Lakes and Long Island; Michigan's Old Mission Peninsula, and the Texas High Plains. As Americans eat local and drink local, they are not only visiting wineries in out-of-the-way places, but also tasting wines from heretofore unheard-of grapes such as Frontenac and Marquette. Before coming to Washington, Chandler spent 20 years leading the Lodi Winegrape Commission, helping that region emerge from under Napa Valley's shadow as a quality wine producer. A past president of the Society of Wine Educators, Chandler was named by Sunset magazine as wine professional of the year in 2005, and INTOWINE.com named him as one of the top 100 most influential people in the U.S. wine industry in 2012. As Chandler settles into his new job in the nation's 97