| |
CHILDRESS VINEYARDS WINEMAKER NAMED TO INDUSTRY POST
LEXINGTON, N.C., February 9, 2005 – Mark Friszolowski, winemaker and general manager of Childress Vineyards, has been named president of the North Carolina Winegrowers Association.
Friszolowski was nominated to the post by industry peers and formally accepted the two-year term at the association’s annual meeting which was held in Greensboro last weekend. His duties will be to provide strategic direction to the 350-member non-profit association which includes all of the state’s wineries and vineyards to promote viticultural interests in North Carolina encompassing grape growing, marketing, promotion, governmental regulations, information exchange and education.
North Carolina currently has 38 wineries and ranks 12th in the nation in wine production.
Childress Vineyards is the signature winery of NASCAR team owner Richard Childress and one of North Carolina’s newest wineries. Childress recruited Friszolowski, one of America’s most award-winning winemakers, to help launch his winery which opened in October of 2004 with 11 wines crafted by Friszolowski and case production of 13,000 cases.
Friszolowski came to Childress Vineyards from Pindar, the largest premium winery on Long Island, N.Y., where he rose from cellarmaster to become winemaker/ general manager and director of vineyard operations for 650 acres of grape vines and production of over 100,000 cases annually. He also ran Pindar’s sister winery, Duck Walk Vineyards, which produced 30,000 cases annually His wines have twice been named to the 50 Best Wines of the World and he has more than 350 individual awards to his credit.
Friszolowski, 45, has developed a world-class reputation for his knowledge in the wine industry and his sophisticated palate. In addition to overseeing the 35,000 square-foot winery and operations and 65 acres of vineyards at Childress, he is often asked to serve as a judge at prestigious wine shows such as the International Eastern Wine Competition, as a guest lecturer around the world at technical seminars such as the International Terroir Symposium, and to teach winemaking and viticulture at such renowned institutions as The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. He has also taught courses on viticulture and oenology at Davidson County Community College in Lexington.
For the past 13 years, Friszolowski has also served as a worldwide consultant to wineries in the U.S. and Soviet Georgia and barrel cooperages from South Africa to Australia. His consultation includes work with overseas producers and importers from Italy, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Chile, Argentina and New Zealand. Among his creations is a liquor blend called Hpnotiq, which Wine Enthusiasts calls “the biggest success story in spirits in the last 5 years.
An avid runner, reader, and former intercollegiate windsurfing champion, Friszolwoski is a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army National Guard Reserves. In this capacity, he was involved in the initial clean-up process at the World Trade Center following 9/11.
|
