NAPA, CALIF. (PRWEB) – Benchmark Wine Group, the largest online retailer of rare wine, has been named one of Wine Enthusiast’s 50 Best Wine Retailers in America for 2020. Benchmark successfully established its place as a top wine retailer with an inventory of over 70,000 bottles, expertise in wine authentication, and the customer service you look for in a brick-and-mortar.
“We are very excited and honored to be named one of Wine Enthusiast’s 50 best wine retailers in America. We would not be here without our loyal customer base whom we have built very strong relationships with over the years,” comments Dave Parker, CEO of Benchmark Wine Group, “I want to thank our passionate staff for working tirelessly to ensure the highest quality of customer service is met each day.
With $36M in annual sales, an estimated 3% market share of the US’s $1.1B online wine sales, and 4% of the $1B rare (i.e., back vintage) wine market, Benchmark Wine Group is the largest single retailer in the rare wine category nationwide. Benchmark Wine Group has grown at a cumulative annual growth rate of over 19% through strategic acquisitions, proprietary valuation, and pricing methods, making it one of the fastest growing online alcohol retailers; in an industry growing at 2%, by comparison.
Over the past eighteen years, Benchmark has acquired for resale some of the most sought after wines on the planet. Their Napa-based inventory features more than 10,000 SKUs of rare and well-aged wine, including verticals of Colgin starting at 1994, six pack horizontals of Petrus 1998 and large format Cheval Blanc 2005.
During these trying times for society in general and the hospitality industry in particular, Benchmark Wine Group has made it a goal to support their trade customers, helping them liquidate their wine inventories, purchasing over $200,000 of top wine from on-premise accounts. Recent purchases include over 1800 bottles from a 3 Michelin star restaurant and over $35,000 of Burgundy, Italian, and German wine from another Michelin starred account. Recently, they partnered with the United Sommeliers Foundation for their ‘Raid Y(our) Cellar’ virtual tasting series.
Parker continues, “Supporting United Sommeliers foundation during the COVID-19 Pandemic was an easy decision for us. Whether a customer, employee, or a host during a dinner event, the Sommelier community has been an important part of the growth of not just our company, but the wine industry.”
For more information on Benchmark Wine Group please contact Michelle Erland at Michelle@parallel36.com or Pia Szabo at pszabo@parallel36.com.
About Benchmark Wine Group: Benchmark is the leading source of fine and rare wine for wine retailers, restaurants and collectors around the world. Based in Napa Valley, they acquire the most sought-after wines from private individuals and professional contacts. Their staff draws on decades of industry experience and is dedicated to providing exceptional service to all clients. Benchmarkwine.com offers 24 hour access to their cellar, displaying inventory in real time, ready for purchase.
“I’ve known Chef Ken Frank for over a decade,” says WALT Wines General Manger, Jeff Zappelli. “When we sat down and to pair our wines with his dish selections, it was thrilling. Each of the wines has a distinct flavor profile, so to have Ken complement those profiles with food selections is a wonderful way to highlight the focus of this experience.”
A collaboration between Chef de Cuisine Holly Jivin of The Bazaar and Executive Chef Marc Segarra of Refectorio, the Michelin-starred restaurant at Abadia Retuerta LeDomaine, the ticketed ten-course tasting menu offered on November 15 & 16 will showcase signature dishes from both restaurants, paired with Spanish wines from Abadia Retuerta. Tickets, priced at $150 per person, are available via 
With the distinguished reputation that Michelin upholds, which restaurateurs have known as the “bible of all restaurant guides”, the history of how it came about is rather surprising. The guide was formulated by a couple of men who were determined to gain more traction in their tire business – yes, I’m talking about the same well-known Michelin tire company that has customers driving towards signs of the white marshmallow shaped cartoon guy that acts as the company’s mascot. French entrepreneurs, Andre and Edouard Michelin started the guide in 1900 for hotels and restaurants in an effort to get more drivers on the road, wearing down their tires and buying more, essentially from their business. It was a genius way to encourage people to travel longer distances instead of taking short joy rides that cars were generally used for in those days. In 1926, the guide expanded to focusing on fine dining, five years later appointing the competitive 3-star system.
Among this year’s luminaries are names like l’Arpege’s Alain Passard, Misiòn 19’s Javier Plascencia, Ludo Lefebvre of Ludo Bites, Masaharu Morimoto of Morimoto restaurants from New York to Napa, internationally renowned Argentinean grill master and featured chef on the Netflix original series Chef’s Table Francis Mallmann, DAMA’s Antonia Lofaso, Richard Blais of Trail Blais, Michelle Bernstein of Café La Trova, Dean Fearing of Fearing’s Restaurant, and the chef dubbed “The Last Magnificent,” Jeremiah Tower. A prime opportunity for event-goers to rub shoulders and snap photos with a veritable “who’s who” of culinary legends will take place at the Lexus Grand Tasting Tent on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, which will feature 30 chefs and more than 300 wines from top-notch producers around the world. Other event highlights include:
Renowned for its commitment to sourcing ingredients from neighboring farms and purveyors, Mediterranean-inspired seasonal dishes, an award-winning international wine cellar, and spectacular vista views, The Restaurant has attained a rich legacy as a “must experience” stop along any culinary journey to Napa Valley. In addition, The Restaurant has received a Star award every year since Michelin began publishing the San Francisco Bay Area and Northern California Wine Country edition.
Two restaurants were given three-star rankings for the first time: Atelier Crenn (San Francisco) and Single Thread (Healdsburg). They join Benu, Quince and Saison in San Francisco and The French Laundry (Yountville), Manresa (Los Gatos), The Restaurant at Meadowood (St. Helena) in locations surrounding the city.
