Client Success: How We Brought the Hudson Valley’s Flagship Winery to Journalists Across the Country

February 27, 2025

The Hudson Valley is home to some of the most remarkable wineries in New York State, yet many of the country’s leading wine and spirit journalists had yet to experience its offerings firsthand. To bridge this gap and introduce Millbrook Vineyards & Winery (Millbrook Winery) to these journalists, Impact PR & Communications (IPR&C) coordinated an exclusive, intimate virtual wine-tasting event, where wine writers had the opportunity to sit down with head winemaker, Ian Bearup, to taste and talk all things Hudson Valley wine. This innovative approach allowed the winery to showcase its award-winning varietals to an influential audience, despite geographical limitations.

In terms of planning and execution, our goal was to introduce journalists in the wine space, who might not have had the opportunity to visit Millbrook Winery in person, to the exceptional quality of Hudson Valley wines. To achieve this, we took a strategic approach including:

• Targeted research and outreach: IPR&C researched and identified top journalists, reporters and bloggers across the country, crafted a compelling pitch around the winery with an invitation to join the virtual event, with the goal of securing interested attendees.
• Curated wine selection and shipment: After securing five esteemed journalists, IPR&C coordinated with the winery to ship each media attendee a curated package featuring four wine varietals that took home gold and silver medals at the 2024 Hudson Valley Wine Competition, ensuring each could fully experience the best of the region.
• Host the expert-led virtual tasting: On the scheduled date, the IPR&C and Millbrook Winery team convened for an intimate Zoom tasting session led by Ian Bearup who guided the journalists through each wine, discussing the tasting notes, winemaking process and unique landscape of wine in New York’s Hudson Valley. Guests were able to ask Ian questions in real-time, leave their thoughts and tasting notes in the chat and spend a Friday afternoon with peers they hadn’t yet connected with.

The virtual tasting not only introduced the winery to these influential journalists but positioned the greater Hudson Valley as a wine destination worthy of recognition like other well-known New York wine destinations such as Long Island and the Finger Lakes. In addition:

• The experience helped the journalists, who might never have had the opportunity to visit the winery in person, gain firsthand experience with its offerings, fostering greater recognition of the Hudson Valley wine scene.
• The personalized and interactive nature of the event created a compelling experience, encouraging both media interest and coverage.
• By building personal and intimate relationships with top wine writers, the winery now has an open line of communication for future collaborations and potential press coverage.

Our virtual wine tasting proved to be a highly creative and effective way to overcome geographical barriers and connect a distinguished local winery with leading experts and set the stage for continued engagement with interested press, ensuring Millbrook Winery and the Hudson Valley as a whole receive the recognition it deserves.