Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/646485
1 1 4 V I N E YA R D & W I N E RY M A N A G E M E N T | M a r - A p r 2 016 w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m PASSAGES Harry Mariani of Banfi Vintners Dies at 78 Harry Mariani, the former president of Banfi Vintners, died Jan. 5 in Huntington, N.Y. He was 78. Mariani, togeth- er with his brother, John, helped introduce many Ameri- cans to Italian wine. Their family wine import firm gained prominence in the 1970s and 1980s with Riunite, a spark- ing Lambrusco. By 1983, Riunite was the No. 1 import- ed wine in America. Its success allowed the Marianis to establish their own winery in Montalcino, Castello Banfi, known for Brunello. Harry Mariani was born Jan. 21, 1937, in New York, the youngest child of John Mariani Sr. and his wife, Eva. He is survived by his wife, Anne; his daughters, Ginny Kitt and Katy Goodrich; his sons, James (currently Banfi's co-CEO) and John; as well as eight grandchildren and his siblings, Joan and John. Wine Lab Expert Ben Gavitt Dies at 59 Ben Gavitt of Union Springs, N.Y., died on December 25, 2015, following a courageous battle with cancer. His wife, Mary-Jo, and son, Nathanial, were by his side. A graduate of Cornell University, Gavitt was the director of the New York State Wine Analytical Lab. From 1989 to 2015, he tested and tasted thousands of wines, detecting potential problems and helping ensure New York's wine industry continued to develop an international reputation for excellence. Gavitt was born in Ithaca, the son of the late Paul and Bonita Gavitt. Wine Blogger Ben Carter Passes Away Award-winning wine blogger of wine-by-benito. blogspot.com Ben Carter died of heart failure in his Cor- dova, Tenn., home on Dec. 24 at the age of 39. Carter had a lifelong love of food and wine that inspired him to write not only his blog, but also columns and reviews for snooth.com and seriouseats.com. Carter was also an accomplished lin- guist, reading and writing in six languages while continuing to learn more. Carter is survived by his parents, Allen and Susan Carter; his brother, John Carter; and his grandpar- ents, Chuck and Lou Carter. Smurfit Kappa Ireland Wins Awards Dublin-based print and packaging solutions provider Smurfit Kappa recently received three accolades in one week at the Irish Print Awards and the Checkout National Retail Supplier Awards. The wins, honoring its Irish operations, include a Best Packaging/Design Services Provider award, Screen Printer of the Year, and National Newspa- per Printer of the Year. Coravin's Model Two Gets Nod from GQ Motiv Design, a Boston-based brand and prod- uct development firm, has announced that its client, Coravin Wine Systems, was named to GQ maga- zine's 2015 "Best Stuff" list of 25 great products for its Coravin Model Two. The Model Two allows wine lovers to pour and enjoy a glass of wine, without pull- ing the cork, while protecting the wine from oxidation. Brancott Expands Low-Calorie Wine Market Pernod Ricard's Brancott Estate in New Zea- land, which reportedly passed the 200,000-case mark in 2015, is targeting millennial and female consumers with Brancott's low-calorie Flight Song range. The line made from grapes harvested earlier in the season features a Sauvignon Blanc and a Pinot Grigio. At the same time, Brancott is expanding its super-premium Letter Series, which retails for about $20 per bottle. Gallo to Acquire The Ranch Winery E. & J. Gallo Winery of Modesto, Calif., has agreed to acquire The Ranch Winery in St. Hele- na. One of the largest facilities of its kind in Napa Valley, The Ranch Winery has a 4.6-million-case bottling capacity and features a crush capacity of 30,000 tons. It also has 8 million gallons of stor- age space. The acquisition triples Gallo's capacity in Napa to 45,000 tons.