VIN12
The History
In April, 2009, VIN12 was founded in San Francisco as a direct-to-consumer tasting event to appeal to the modern wine enthusiast. Due to increasing success and popular demand within the year, VIN12 quickly expanded beyond San Francisco, and into other Northern California cities such as San Jose, Oakland, Treasure Island, Palo Alto and Sacramento.
After 71 events, 650 vintner appearances, 95 merchants and over 21,000 attendees, VIN12 began to search for the vibrant, yet under-served cities throughout the US.
The Tasting Houses
VIN12 creates a new platform: The Tasting House.
The purpose of the Tasting House is to create boutique level tasting events in various cities throughout the year, where vintners can develop new relationships with consumers. The US has entered a golden age of all things wine, and this vanguard is VIN12’s to pave for vintners, and wine enthusiasts.
The Founder - Elie Ernest
Elie Ernest began to organize VIN12 events because he wanted to disprove a misconception about wine events being "stuffy," "old" or "traditional." He wanted to showcase that this celebrated beverage is not only approachable but modern.
A New Yorker for 30 years, and a San Franciscan for 23, a global bon vivant, and now resident of both coasts has been creating one series of events after another. In 2008, he co-founded San Francisco Wine Week, and based on the enthusiasm over a six-night period, he determined that a mobile tasting room had to be established to better serve the public, and wine producers.
Elie Ernest would describe his work with VIN12 as a personal "field theory of happiness"...A confluence of all the things that brings him joy: travel, people, food and of course, wine!
He believes that wine is the story about the place...The imagination of the winemaker...And that the "event" is truly in the bottle.