98
Beverage Media
November 2012
news
front
Memo from United
Restaurants & Tavern Owners
Don’t get caught stuck closing
your doors in 2012 when it’s time to
welcome 2013: the last day to
file for a New Year’s Eve permit
is Friday, November 16th.
This year marks URTO’s
75
th year of representing the
restaurants, pubs, taverns and
bars, that make New York the
dining capital of the world. Plans to
celebrate this “Diamond Jubilee” in-
clude a bigger than ever Annual Din-
ner Dance, to be held at the Riverside
Church on Wednesday, December 5.
This year’s as recipients of our
“
Man of the Year” awards are Frank
Dwyer and Pete Fitzpatrick, partners
in Playwright Taverns I, II, III, Jack
Dempsey’s Bar, Hurley’s Saloon and
several others. The Anheuser-Busch
New York Sales & Service Team will
be honored with our “Industry Men of
the Year” award, with Ed Fitzmaurice
accepting. Additionally, Thomas Slat-
tery, chairman of the URTO and sales
representative of Empire Merchants
will receive our “Meritorious
Service Award” for his devo-
tion to the association and his
50
years in hospitality.
URTO participated in a
FSTA Conference on “How to
Practice ‘A’ Grade Food Safety
in Restaurants,” held at the New York
Institute of Technology on Octo-
ber 16. The focus was on the Health
Department’s inspection process and
strategies to avoid the most frequent-
ly cited violations. Marc Murphy of
Benchmarc Restaurants and Events
presented the keynote address, fol-
lowed by workshops.
The United Restaurant and Tavern Owners of New York,
Inc. is an alliance of restaurants, bars, nightclubs, inns,
and hotels which all share the prestige—and the head-
aches—of operating in the entertainment and attraction
center of the world. For information on membership and
other services, please visit urto.org or call 212-557-5200.
CORPORATE
DISCUS Hosts ‘Spirit of Mount
Vernon’ Fundraiser & Honors 3
The 11
th
annual Distilled Spirits
Council (DISCUS) “Spirit of Mount
Vernon” heritage dinner and rare spir-
its auction held on the lawn of Mount
Vernon raised $240,000 for the new
Fred W. Smith National Library for
the Study of George Washington and
$100,000 for the Wounded Warrior
Family Support Program. This brings
the grand total for the history of this
event to over $3 million.
During the live auction, one of the
last bottles of George Washington Rye
from the first-ever batch produced at
Mount Vernon in 200 years sold for
$27,000. Made from Washington’s ac-
tual recipe on an 18th Century style pot
still, this handcrafted straight rye whis-
key was produced at the George Wash-
ington Distillery in 2003 by a team of
new york
Retailers Get in ‘New York
State of Wine’ for the Holidays
The Last Store on Main Street—the
statewide coalition of retailers, wineries,
small business advocates, unions and dis-
tributors—has launched a new statewide
promotion to boost the sales of New York
wines through the holiday season.
Throughout October andNovember,
retailers across the state participating in
the “New York State of Wine” campaign
will host in-store tastings with NY win-
eries, run specials on New York vintages
and include local wines on their list of
Thanksgiving and Holiday selections.
Participating retailers will also display
festive, full-color posters in their shops
to remind consumers of the high quality
of New York wines.
This marks the fourth consecutive
year the coalition has stepped in to run
this kind of promotion. “We are proud
to continue to do all we
can to tell the story of
New York wines in our
stores,” said Jeff Saun-
ders, Coalition founder
and president of the Re-
tailers Alliance. “New
York wineries make
great wines that can
compete with any in
the world, and we en-
joy offering home-state
options for customers
shopping for wine.”
“
There’s something for everyone in
New York’s vineyards,” said Stefan Ka-
logridis, Coalition leader and president
of the New York State Liquor Store As-
sociation. “Give a New York wine this
holiday season—it’s a great gift.”
Michael Correra, executive director
of the Metropolitan Package Store As-
sociation and a Coalition leader, said,
“
Working together with wineries, we
can help promote New
York wines and increase
consumer demand among
New Yorkers. That’s good
for our stores, for the win-
eries and for the state.”
Indeed, support of region-
al wine is at its highest
level ever in many states;
the new poster campaign
and related wine tastings
are expected also to boost
tourism in the Finger
Lakes, Hudson Valley and Long Island.
New York ranks third in wine pro-
duction, behind California and Wash-
ington, and second in wine consump-
tion. The Last Store on Main Street is
determined to help the New York wine
industry grow by educating and intro-
ducing consumers to local wines.
To get your “New York State of Wine” poster,
visit:
lastmainstreetstore.com
or call
212-681-1380
