Black-Owned Winery Lands Partnership with Delta Air Lines

The airline’s partnership with Brown Estate Vineyards came from an employee with Delta’s Black community resource group. Carlyne Scott initially suggested the partnership as a way to celebrate Black History Month, however the idea soon grew much more.

The resource has turned into a long-term collaboration where Delta Domestic One fliers can taste two Brown Estate wines on the winter 2019-2020 menu according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.The company’s 2017 Betelgeuse Sauvignon Blanc and 2017 Chaos Theory red blend will be among the wine from which customers can choose. The drinks will be served in business class on select Delta flights.

“Partnering with innovative, diverse suppliers from certified small-, minority- and women-owned businesses like Brown Estate is fundamental to Delta’s strategy to keep climbing year-round,” Vice President and Head of Supply Chain Management at Delta Heather Ostis said in a statement. “Seeking employee perspectives and leveraging unique ideas brings us closer to meeting that goal, while creating the highest quality experience for our customers.”

Delta will host a complimentary in-flight tasting for passengers on a New York-bound flight from San Francisco, Black Enterprise reported.

The winery was founded in 1996 by siblings Deneen, David, and Coral Brown. The family-run business that continues to gain exposure to “diverse audiences” according to its website. The siblings discovered their gift for wine-making after inheriting a vineyard from their parents, Bassett Brown and Marcela Brown, in 1995. They bought over the 450 acres in the Chiles Valley American Viticultural Area of Napa Valley, and the rest is history.

“We are delighted to partner with Delta Air Lines,” President Deneen Brown said in a statement according to Atlanta Black Star. “Delta’s all-in commitments to the spirit of inclusion and to their wine program are perfectly aligned with our core values at Brown Estate.”