The 2002 WineMaker Label Contest Winners!

Apparently, the third time really is the charm. Although our first two contests attracted hundreds of great labels, this year the number of entries skyrocketed, and the quality of the artwork hit a high point, too. When the WineMaker staff gathered to judge the entries, it took the better part of a day — and lots of sort-of-friendly arguments — simply to cut the stack in half. Picking the winners was even harder. Though we’re always excited for the people who pull down the prizes, it’s tough to put the remaining labels in the also-ran pile. That’s because every entry represents the time, talent, creative energy and artistic vibe of someone who matters a great deal to us: a WineMaker reader. The labels offer images that are personal and sometimes poignant: baby pictures, faded snapshots, photos of people’s homes, vineyards, ancestors and friends. There are recipes for homemade tomato sauce, hand-drawn illustrations and cartoons, and jokes that made us laugh even if they weren’t really funny. You laugh just because someone tried. In the end, that’s what our contest is all about. Thanks for being a part of it.

GRAND PRIZE:

Sara Bowers Hayward, California Prize: Three-station Italian bottle filler from Grape and Granary; Winery Master home winemaking software from Winery Master; 45-bottle tree and rinser from Leener’s Brew Works “Long before I began my career as a graphic designer, I had a passion for wine labels. In fact, I started making labels for fun before I started making my own wine! Not too long ago my husband Greg and I planted our first little vineyard, but it hasn’t produced any grapes yet. So far we have used fresh grapes from a local vineyard that crushes them for us. The base artwork for these labels came from the old art nouveau posters by artist Alphonse Mucha. Using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, I updated the look with art nouveau fonts and altered other features to make them into exotic, unique and hopefully eye-catching little labels. On some labels I replaced whatever item each woman was holding with a wine glass. The poppies on the inside of the back Muscat label have a great magnifying effect when the bottle is filled!”

GOLD PRIZE:

Dr. Raphy Singer Beit-Shemesh, Israel Prize: Gift certificate from Maltose Express; Winery Master home winemaking software from Winery Master; Wine Label™ design software packages from LabelWare Computing Ltd.; Techniques in Home Winemaking by Daniel Pambianchi from Vehicule Press “I began making wine in 1982 in South Africa because I needed some kosher wine. I’ve since become qualified as a doctor and moved to Israel, where I started a family and continued my winemaking. The artwork for this label was done by my daughter, Natalie, at age 7. She used water-based paints and hot glue for dimension. I scanned the picture into my computer and composed the label using Microsoft Publisher. After printing the label on my inkjet printer I had colorfast color copies made. Whenever I serve this wine, I point proudly at Natalie as I recount the story of how she helped.”

SILVER PRIZE

Matt Carmack Atlanta, Georgia Prize: One dozen personalized wine glasses from Slinger Mill Glass Etching; Gold Sommelier and Gold Pour-n-Cork set from The Perfect Sommelier “This is the label design for my very first batch of wine: Cabernet Sauvignon from a kit. So far I’ve had good luck with kits, but I plan to also try fresh grapes once I’ve had more practice. The label design was inspired by my crazy cat, Max. I adopted him as a stray when he showed up at my office, where I work as the art director for a financial marketing company. During my winemaking he was forever at my feet trying to get into everything, but he’s still fun to have around. I created this label in Photoshop using my Macintosh computer. I found the illustration on the Web and it looks just like Max!”

BRONZE PRIZE

James Goodwin Washington, New Jersey Prize: A 50-pound pail of Straight-A cleanser from Logic, Inc; Winery Master home winemaking software from Winery Master “I’m a self-taught, amateur graphic artist who used Photoshop to create this design for my dad’s wine. I’m a recent graduate looking to get into advertising or Web design. This label is adapted from a contact sheet of photos I had recently taken at Sunset Beach, North Carolina. The beach is perfect to represent a summer wine, and the blue tone nicely complements the blue bottles the labels will be placed on. As for my choice of the David Berman quote, I wanted something vibrant, something affirming. This one just found me. The house is my father’s old Theta Chi house from Lafayette College, where he first fell in love with wine. He started off making wine from kits but now experiments with several methods using apples, strawberries and mangoes, among other fruits.”

HONORABLE MENTION

Agnese Muravska Vermillion, SD Prize: White Labs polo shirt Bruce and Judy Lorenz Rio Rancho, NM Prize: Alcobase kit, a carbon filter system and a selection of Still Spirit flavors from Steinbart Wholesale Dan McFeeley Kankakee, IL Prize: Double Blast bottle washer, quick connect utility hose, kitchen faucet adapter and spare nozzle set from Fermtech Ltd. John Yacoviello Weirton, WV Prize: 36-bottle wood wine rack from The Epicurean, Inc. Layne Montgomery Folsom, CA Prize: Digital laboratory-grade pH meter from Thomas Scientific Randall Martin The Woodlands, TX Prize: LIQUOR QUIK high-alcohol starter package including Super Yeast, Super-KLEER K.C. finings, and assorted premium liqueur essences from Winemakeri Inc. David Leonard Sacramento, CA Prize: Faucet adapter bottle washer and sulfite test kit from Thomas Scientific Lawrence Volland Lockport, NY Prize: 80-bottle drainer tree, and bottle rinser and sulfite spritzer from The Market Basket (www.BrewCitySupplies.com) Kevin Kozak San Diego, CA Prize: Watch from Wine Not International, Inc. Dr. Boyce Clark Baton Rouge, LA Prize: Hand-painted ceramic wine trivet from High Country Store; Wine Label™ design software package from LabelWare Inc. Michael Miller Rochester, NY Prize: Flexible foam bottle and cylinder washer from Thomas Scientific; The Perfect Sommelier from Woodstick Wines, Inc. Wendy and Scott Shapiro Sacramento, CA Prize: Precision acid test kit from Annapolis Home Brew; Wine Bag from Wine Not International, Inc. Marti Czarnecki Walnutport, PA Prize: Faucet adapter bottle washer and sulfite test kit from Thomas Scientific Celeste Byrd Poyen, AR Prize: Women’s fleece jacket from White Labs Stephen Patrizio Media, PA Prize: Flexible foam bottle and cylinder washer from Thomas Scientific; The Perfect Sommelier from Woodstick Wines Inc. Joan Huff Louisville, KY Prize: Precision magnetic hydrometer from Annapolis Home Brew; five coupons for wine yeast from White Labs Greg Abrom Rutherford, NJ Prize: 90-bottle rotating drainer tree with bottle rinser from Quality Wine and Ale Henry Ratz Fiddletown, CA Prize: Wine Label™ design software package from LabelWare Computing Ltd.; Digital long-stem thermometer from Thomas Scientific Paul Mirowski La Mesa, CA Prize: Wine Label™ design software package from LabelWare Computing Ltd.; talking digital timer from Thomas Scientific Karen Schrader Spring Hill, FL Prize: Monogrammed polo shirt, two 125-ml XL packages of wine yeast, and one 1.5-ounce package of yeast nutrient from Wyeast Laboratories Jeanne Abbott Des Moines, IA Prize: Wine Label™ design software package from LabelWare Computing Ltd.; five coupons for wine yeast from White Labs Dean Percival Cape Girardeau, MO Prize: Travel Bag from Wine Not International, Inc. Dr. and Mrs. John Cozzarelli Nutley, NJ Prize: Matching pair of logo T-shirts, two 125-ml XL packages of wine yeast, and one 1.5-ounce package of yeast nutrient from Wyeast Laboratories Jim May Scranton, PA Prize: Watch from Wine Not International, Inc. Lee Goodman Baltimore, MD Prize: White Labs polo shirt