'Exponential growth' in flexo label quality.

Rodney Strong Vineyards of Healdsburg, CA, USA, has been in business since the late 1950s and has been constantly evolving. According to John Leyden, vice president of packaging and distribution, a 37-year company veteran, the winery is currently producing and marketing wine under the labels of Rodney Strong Vineyards, Sonoma Vineyards and the newly acquired Davis Bynum. "We have some of Northern California's finest appellations," he says. "Among them are the Russian River Valley, Chalk Hill, Alexander Valley, and Sonoma Coast."

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Located on the Old Redwood Highway just north of Santa Rosa, Rodney Strong Vineyards is owned and operated by the Klein family. Tom Klein, who purchased the winery from the original owner in 1959, sold 50 percent of the 1,200 acres that were planted and, according to Leyden, "has replaced the acreage with specific land to grow grapes that will do best in specific soils and climate. For example, the vineyards near the Russian River are planted to pinot, Alexander Valley to cabernet sauvigon," Leyden says.

David Larsen, public relations director for the winery, says, "We're now putting together a plan for the Davis Bynum wines, and we will be concentrating on pinot noir and chardonnay." Rodney Strong and Davis Bynum are similar, both being family-owned, "and both use sustainable farming practices," says Larsen.

"There's a genuine sharing of craftsmanship with our wine grower and our winemaker," Leyden says. "We really want to bring craftmanship back into the hands of the wine-maker. Because of direct competition with European wines, we're very careful about matching the soils with the grapes in order to produce the best possible wines."

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"Terroir" is a term Leyden and Larsen both use when describing some of their vineyards. While there are numerous translations of this French term, the best one seems to be the combination of various natural factors associated with the vineyard. "These include micro-climate, including the amount of rainful, slope of the land, drainage, amount of sun in a day, altitude, even the type of underlayment--rock, gravel, sand, clay, and so on," says Larsen. Leyden adds, "You can even have certain rows of vines within a block which produce a different tasting grape."

With Rodney Strong's--and the wine industry's--quest for perfection, it's no wonder that there is a huge spotlight on the products used to label these nectars of the gods. "We put in a new bottling line last year and are capable of labeling with wet glue or pressure sensitive, but our labeling now is all pressure sensitive," Leyden says. "The recent exponential growth in flexographic label quality, combined with dramatic reductions in cost, has meant that we can switch totally to PS.

"It's simple," he adds. "There is no clean-up required for pressure sensitive and no requirement to purchase change parts at $20,000 to $30,000 a set for wet glue applied labels." Leyden also says that a change in bottle design or label shape requiring different parts for the labeling equipment could mean a 12-week wait for the parts to come from Germany.

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"Our marketing arm works with outside designers--they meet with them constantly, tweaking things," he adds. "It used to be that a design would remain unchanged, except for the year or the alcohol content, for five to six years. Now it's often three years or less, including minor changes, and sometimes a totally new redesign is called for to keep the line fresh."

Leyden says that Rodney Strong believes in establishing a partnership with its suppliers. "Of course cost is important," he adds, "but quality and service are paramount. Once you have earned a position as our partner it is very difficult to get bumped." (Great news for those who have experienced reverse bid auctions.)

"Relationships are key because they mean the difference between lip service and true service," Leyden says. "Annie Cheung of G3 Enterprises in Modesto, CA, is our sales contact and she is a true professional. James Stone runs the narrow web label team at G3 and he is the inside leader. Both of them take their business--and ours--to heart."

"We're realists," he adds. "There will occasionally be problems when you're dealing with any supplier. But the team at G3 makes it a point to be here within 24 hours or less if something has to be resolved, and they have a four to five hour drive to get here." With G3's vision "to be the supplier of choice to the wine industry" and Rodney Strong Vineyards proprietor Tom Klein's mission of "crafting world class wines that capture the essence of Sonoma County" you can feel the partnership at work.