Villa Mt. Eden Winery Partners with CDNOW for National Music for Your Mouth Consumer Program; Hispanic Point of Sale Materials Highlight the Retail Program in Select Markets

Business Wire, March 23, 2001

Business Editors

ST. HELENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 23, 2001

Celebrating the lifestyle connection between wine and music, Napa Valley winery Villa Mt. Eden teams up with online retailer CDNOW for an innovative national consumer retail program.

"Music for Your Mouth," which runs now through May, offers consumers 15% off CD purchases at a unique URL within CDNOW.com. Point of sale materials showcasing the program, including Hispanic versions in select markets, will be on display at participating chain and independent wine retailers nationally through April.

"A partnership with a top online retailer along with our traditional retailers, is a unique opportunity for our winery to appeal to consumers at two distinct destinations," said brand manger Steve Lorenz. "CDNOW is one of the leading online music retail sites and we believe there is a natural affinity between wine and music. Teaming up with CDNOW also enables visitors on the CDNOW.com site to link to Villa Mt. Eden's new interactive website (www.villamteden.com), which give visitors a visual exploration of our award-winning winery."

To highlight the program in the retail environment, point of sale (POS) materials feature colorful, flowing images of hands playing the guitar and piano and include bottle neckhangers, three-sided header cards and tearpads to give consumers a take-away reminder of the promotion. Spanish versions also are available in the Los Angeles, Texas, New York and Florida markets.

"We've seen many traditional packaged goods companies develop unique POS and advertising to connect with the Hispanic community," said Lorenz. "This seemed like a logical next step for us and we are excited to be one of the first domestic wineries to produce Hispanic POS materials to reach out to this important and growing segment of the population."

Located on the scenic Silverado Trail, Villa Mt. Eden has been creating distinctive wines in the heart of Napa Valley since 1881. Winemaker Mike McGrath crafts premium Chardonnay, Cabernet, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Syrah and other classic varietals for Villa Mt. Eden. In the last five years, Villa Mt. Eden wines have received 72 gold medals in international competitions and 35 "90+" ratings in wine publications.

Photos available upon request.