As the first SEC-authorized community-funded US business, Willamette Valley Vineyards (Tii:WVVI) fully understands the benefits of offering shareholder perks, having grown substantially since the winery began inviting wine enthusiasts to own its common and preferred stock. Owners of the winery’s stock enjoy invitations to exclusive events, priority to purchase limited-production wines, new releases, discounted items and wines with personalized labels, and more. Willamette Valley shareholders may also receive complimentary tours as VIP guests.

Since its founding in 1983 by vintner Jim Bernau, Willamette Valley Vineyards has grown into a world-class winery that was named “One of America’s Great Pinot Noir Producers” by Wine Enthusiast. The winery offers tours and tastings at several locations that include downtown McMinnville, OR, where visitors can experience a guide through flights of the vineyard’s certified sustainable wines. Then there’s the Willamette Valley Vineyards at Tualatin Estate, a 171-acre vineyard that is one of the oldest and most respected vineyard sites in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. Shareholders may also opt to enjoy food and wine pairings and tableside service at the winery’s Estate Tasting Room in Turner, OR.

Willamette Valley Vineyards is also aggressively expanding its tasting room and restaurant locations, with plans underway to open new sites in Lake Oswego, Happy Valley and Bend, Oregon, as well as Vancouver, Washington. This means shareholders will be able to take advantage of their perks at a greater number of locations. “So, if you’re an owner in Lake Oswego, you have the opportunity to be an owner of that location,” explains Carissa Cook, Development Manager for Willamette Valley Vineyards. “You can come in, and you get a complimentary wine tasting for you and your guests once a month. We have priority reservations and seating for owners and special events that only they would be invited to, or first grab at tickets for events. They have the opportunity to be an owner of a tasting room restaurant that they can visit on a very regular basis.”

Last year saw consumers partaking in smaller quantities of alcohol but splurging for higher-quality wines and spirits – which is good news for Willamette Valley Vineyards. That trend seems to be continuing as we head into 2022. “We’re seeing that people are becoming savvier consumers, and there’s a big trend – especially in alcoholic drinks – where people are drinking less but drinking at the tier up,” says Cook. “So that’s just with health and wellness, being a trend, we see them drinking less, but that they’re more interested in the product that they can have more information on, and there’s a story behind it. And it’s that next kind of step up from just the inexpensive tiers.”

Willamette Valley’s overall objective is to operate tasting rooms and restaurants all over the country. “Our goal is to really take our show on the road and find places where our customers and owners live so we can build new locations near them,” says Cook. “And they have a spot that they can go to frequently to enjoy wine on-premises, but also to purchase wine to take home with them without paying the retail price for wine that you would elsewhere.”

Willamette Valley Vineyards stock perks available here.