THE COLOR OF WINE BY URBANVINO

By Jena Domingue Creator and CEO of UrbanVino House of Brands Photos courtesy of UrbanVino On the recent podcast, he spoked about how he grew up, his family influences and how he made his way from the baseball diamond to the vineyard. Growing up in Sacramento, Greg’s first love and the reason he went to college at University of Miami was football. He insisted he wanted to be a two-sport player and when the football coach told him he had to make a choice, well, he chose baseball. Greg was drafted four times, then went on to make his mark in the big leagues as a four-time MLB All-Star.

Greg Vaughn, four-time Major League Baseball All-Star and all around great guy, businessman and philanthropist, is killing it in the game of wine. I recently had a chance to hang out with Greg at the Black Food and Wine Experience to gather firsthand feedback on his wine. I can tell you, his sparkling rosé is a real crowd please and his pinot is delicious enough to impress the pickiest of Pinotphiles.

Since retirement Greg has become a solid businessman, serious golfer, and a pillar in his community of Northern California and Henderson, Nevada. Greg partnered with his good friends at E2 Winery several years ago to roll out his selection of varietals, most notable—the sparkling rosé, pinot noir and merlot will know you socks off. These are not lightweight wines— they definitely deliver a home run. I was quite impressed as I tasted through his collection. The pinot just seems to dance in the glass. It is smooth, sexy and lets you know you are drinking with the big boys. The rosé is flirty and can stand alone, with no need to dress it up. It just shows up and makes an impact on you. Greg is very proud of his wines and has his hands in all aspects of the winemaking process. He picks and helps process the fruit and, most importantly, guides the winemaking process to fit his palette and preference. You can see his fingerprints

all over the bottles. The Fifty bottle of pinot celebrates Greg’s 50 home runs in one season. The merlot also celebrates that standout season and, if you look closely at the label, all the dates of the 50 homeruns are listed. This is a fun brand that will quickly grow on you, not just for the wine, but for the cause. While playing for Toronto, Greg’s son fell ill, and they learned he had childhood diabetes. Since that time, Greg formed the Vaughn’s Valley Foundation 23 Wines to raise awareness and raise funding to support his community. Almost all proceeds from GV23 Wines go to the foundation to fund research into juvenile diabetes as well as whatever other needs crop up in the community. During the pandemic, Vaughn’s Valley funded internet access for thousands of school children as well as gifted laptops and backpacks so children would have the tools they needed to be successful. He also contributes resources to first responders and heroes of his community. Vaughn’s Valley hosts a celebrity

golf tournament every year and continues to be a huge driver for the foundation. Greg is also known to sponsor comedy shows, Top Golf events and baseball mentorship camps. I can say this is an all-around fun-loving family man who loves his three children, especially his grandson, Major.

To donate, sponsor or participate, visit vaughnvalley.org. GV23 is sold is 11 baseball stadiums, can be found on wine lists throughout California and Nevada and purchased at 23wines. com.

Visit UrbanVino.com or Apple Podcasts to listen to the UrbanVino Podcast for a complete audio version of the meeting, and visit YouTube for the video version.

Connect with Jena at LinkedIn @ Jena Domingue and Instagram @ urbanvino.

Jena Domingue is the creator and CEO of UrbanVino House of Brands and Senior Vice President of Sales and Talent and Culture at WineDirect. She is also US Ambassador (California) for Liquid Icons, a global agency working with ultra-premium wine brands worldwide, offering scholarships and apprenticeships specifically geared to promote diversity and inclusion in wine education and hospitality.

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