April 20, Joseph W. Mollica, Chairman Michael R. Milligan, Deputy Commissioner

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1 April 20, 2017 Joseph W. Mollica, Chairman Michael R. Milligan, Deputy Commissioner Contact: E.J. Powers x11 NH Liquor Commission Honors Employees and Business Partners at Annual Awards Ceremony North Hampton s Sea Hagg Distillery and Zorvino Vineyards in Sandown, along with employees from across the state, honored alongside Tito s Vodka, Crown Royal, Josh Cellars & Apothic Wines Concord, NH The New Hampshire Liquor Commission (NHLC) paid tribute to its 2016 Wine, Spirit & Employee Award winners Thursday, March 30, at the Puritan Backroom in Manchester, honoring national brands, local wineries and distilleries, and NHLC employees. Award winners were honored for their community support, innovative product marketing, exceptional sales and tireless work ethic. NHLC recognized the top distillery, winery, wine, spirit and business partner, along with the top New Hampshire winery and distillery. NHLC also recognized several NH Liquor & Wine Outlet employees for their diligence, dedication, teamwork and overall excellence in representing values of NHLC. Our annual Wine, Spirit and Employee Award ceremony is the perfect opportunity to recognize the employees and business partners, both locally and nationally, who make tremendous contributions to our overall success, said NHLC Chairman Joseph Mollica. These remarkable brands, products and individuals all play a vital role in exceeding our sales goals, which in Fiscal Year 2016 reached a recordbreaking $678.4 million in gross sales. NHLC recognized the following brands, products, individuals and NH Liquor & Wine Outlets: Spirit of the Year Tito s Vodka Distillery of the Year Crown Royal Wine of the Year Josh Cellars Cabernet Winery of the Year Apothic Wines Business Partners of the Year Richard Racicot and James Cordio, NH Department of Information Technology New Hampshire Distillery of the Year Sea Hagg Distillery New Hampshire Winery of the Year Zorvino Vineyards Customer First Award Lee Bequette, Store 34 (Salem) Raise Your Glass Award NHLC Maintenance Team Top Shelf Merchandising Award Store 64 (New London) Tight Ship Award Store 50 (Nashua) Award for Leadership James Haggis, Store 66 (Hooksett) Excellence in Teamwork Award Store 57 (Ossipee) with special mention of Matt Kresco Above and Beyond Award Lauren Munroe, Store 23 (Conway)

2 Spirit of the Year Tito s Vodka has been available in New Hampshire since 2005, and has never strayed from its original product a simple, quality vodka which at a competitive price puts Tito s in high demand. In addition to experiencing a 58-percent jump in retail sales, Tito s participated as a major sponsor for the annual Distiller s Showcase of Premium Spirits and partnered on a number of other marketing initiatives, including a sweepstakes program for customers to win a NH Liquor & Wine Outlet gift card with the purchase of Tito s products. Tito s also participated as the choice vodka in the Build a Mule promotion, which took place over the summer and included Tito s, ginger beer and a set of copper mugs at a discounted price, along with a free Tito s tote bag for participating customers. Distillery of the Year Longstanding brands sometimes face difficulty sustaining mainstream interest, but this has not been the case for Crown Royal. The brand continues to find success with its signature selections, in addition to its newer flavors. Three of the 13 Crown Royal offerings available at NH Liquor & Wine Outlets sit within the top 200 performing spirits in terms of retail gross profits produced. In addition to its status as a top-shelf brand, Crown Royal remains dedicated to working with NHLC on a local initiative called Operation Care for Troops. The organization collects Crown Royal bags, which are donated to military troops that use the bags to store night-vision goggles. Crown Royal has also made a financial contribution each year since the program s launch. Wine of the Year Joseph Carr is a world-class sommelier with decades of experience in the wine industry. Following 10 years as an international industry executive, Carr set out on his own in 2005 to form his family-owned wine company. Carr is named after his father, who was known by his friends as Josh, thus the inspiration behind Carr s Josh Cellars. Josh wines have steadily risen in the ranks throughout NH Liquor & Wine Outlets, and Josh Cabernet experienced a surge in popularity in 2016 with a 29-percent increase in sales, which amounted to a $90,000 increase in profits. Winery of the Year The Apothic brand, as a whole, has had a tremendous year in terms of sales in New Hampshire with a total combined sales increase of 48 percent across all wines. More than one million bottles of Apothic Red were sold in NH Liquor & Wine Outlets in 2016, and Apothic Crush experienced a 447-percent increase in sales, while Apothic Dark experienced a 174-percent increase. Overall, Apothic is expected to continue its streak of popularity, and the new Apothic Rose will be introduced to the New Hampshire market this spring. Business Partner of the Year Typically this category is awarded to a broker or distributor, but due to a transformed relationship between NHLC and NH Department of Information Technology (DoIT) over the past year, Richard Racicot and James Cordio of DoIT have been named business partners of the year for their outstanding commitment and service during The entire department as a whole, and especially these two individuals were instrumental during the opening of seven new or relocated stores, ensuring continued business operations during transition periods that often had to be executed after business hours and in less than 24 hours. In addition to new projects, DoIT ensures smooth operations in all areas of NHLC s technology and continues to present innovative opportunities to streamline efficiency. New Hampshire Award Winners From a 150-vine winery to now 2,000 vines on site, Zorvino has become a destination for tastings, tours, an extensive gift shop and special social and culinary events. Citing its 60-percent increase in sales at NH Liquor & Wine Outlets in 2016, NHLC recognized Zorvino Vineyards in Sandown as the New Hampshire Winery of the Year. Just a few years ago, New Hampshire only had one distillery. Today, there a nine in full production with more on the horizon. NHLC works with local wine and spirit partners to provide strategic support and guidance, and Sea Hagg Distillery, this year s New Hampshire Distillery of the year, made a significant effort in 2016 to relaunch its business. With the introduction of Ice Pik vodka and Rocky Peak Cinnamon

3 whiskey at select NH Liquor & Wine Outlets in 2016, Sea Hagg sales climbed to $243,000 for the year, an increase of 651 percent from the previous year. NHLC Employee Award Winners NHLC honored long-time dedicated associates, knowledgeable managers and rising stars from across the state in its second year selecting employee awards. Our success is due in large part to our dedicated employees who come in day after day with an unwavering commitment to our customers, Chairman Mollica said. We recognize these individuals because of their willingness and enthusiasm to provide a memorable shopping experience and share a genuine passion for their work with our Outlet guests. We are tremendously appreciative to these employees, and all those around the state, for their commitment to the Liquor Commission and the State of New Hampshire. Photos and Captions Caption: The New Hampshire Liquor Commission (NHLC) recently paid tribute to its 2016 Wine, Spirit & Employee Award winners, honoring national brands, local wineries and distilleries, and NHLC employees. NHLC honored Crown Royal as the Distillery of the Year. Pictured here, from left to right, NHLC Deputy Commissioner Michael Milligan; NHLC Chairman Joseph Mollica; Joe Dudek, general sales manager / VP of North American Spirits & Wine Brokerage, a Division of Southern Wine & Spirits; Keara Funck of Diageo; Jim Adelmann, director of sales at Diageo; Nicole Brassard Jordan, NHLC director of marketing, merchandising and warehousing; and Mark Roy, NHLC spirits marketing specialist. Photo by Gil Talbot.

4 Caption: NHLC honored Apothic as the Winery of the Year. Pictured here, from left to right, NHLC Chairman Joseph Mollica; NHLC Deputy Commissioner Michael Milligan; Brandon Colpitts, director of retail sales in the northeast, E. & J. Gallo Winery; Joe Ricci, director of New Hampshire sales and marketing, Pine State Beverage; Lisa Gosselin, NHLC wine marketing specialist; Joseph Gallo, vice president, premium business unit, E. & J. Gallo Winery; and Nicole Brassard Jordan, NHLC director of marketing, merchandising and warehousing. Photo by Gil Talbot.

5 Caption: NHLC honored Josh Cabernet as the Wine of the Year. Pictured here, from left to right, NHLC Deputy Commissioner Michael Milligan; NHLC Chairman Joseph Mollica; and Joseph Carr, founder of Josh Cellars. Photo by Gil Talbot.

6 Caption: NHLC honored Tito s Handmade Vodka as the Spirit of the Year. Pictured here, from left to right, NHLC Deputy Commissioner Michael Milligan; NHLC Chairman Joseph Mollica; Tim Burke, division manager, Tito s Handmade Vodka; Dean Williams, executive vice president and general manager, Martignetti Companies of New Hampshire; Nicole Brassard Jordan, NHLC director of marketing, merchandising and warehousing; and Mark Roy, NHLC spirits marketing specialist. Photo by Gil Talbot. About the New Hampshire Liquor Commission The New Hampshire Liquor Commission (NHLC) operates 79 retail locations throughout the Granite State and serves more than 11 million customers each year. More than $3 billion in net profits has been raised since the first store opened in NHLC set an all-time sales record in Fiscal Year 2016, generating $678.4 million in gross sales, an increase of $36.3 million or 5.65% over the previous fiscal year. Total liquor net profits reached $159 million, of which $156 million was transferred to the New Hampshire General Fund, which is used to fund programs including education, health and social services, transportation and natural resource protection, and $3 million was transferred to New Hampshire s Alcohol Abuse Prevention and Treatment Fund, which utilizes a percentage of NHLC profits to fund addiction treatment and prevention programs. Visit to locate a store, search for product availability, learn about monthly sales, review wine tasting schedules, and sign up to receive significant savings with monthly Extras. ###