Sokol Blosser 6th in 100 Best Green Companies to Work For in Oregon
(DUNDEE, OR) – Sokol Blosser Winery was honored by Oregon Business magazine at the Gerding Theater on June 1 as one of Oregon’s Best Green Companies to Work For in 2009. The 100 Best Green Companies were selected based on sustainable practices sections from the 100 Best Companies to Work For survey process, completed by 372 employers last fall.
Susan Sokol Blosser, Founder of Sokol Blosser Winery, gave the keynote address. In her speech, she emphasized the importance of recognizing change in today’s business model: “The urgency of today’s crises is our opportunity to do something equally courageous, profound, and difficult—to create a lifestyle based on an economic structure that incorporates the triple bottom line—people, planet, and profit.”
Other winners in the top 10 included Gerding Edlen Development, Kimpton Hotels, Doubletree Hotel and Elephant’s Deli. Honorees were selected based on a 2008 survey of nearly 30,000 Oregon workers and a benefits survey completed by Oregon employers. After accepting the award for sixth out of 100 employers nominated, Alex Sokol Blosser, unlike his mother Susan, was nearly speechless. “We are so honored. This means a lot to us, not just as business owners but also as employers and stewards of the land. We see this as a win-win all the way – running a successful business that our employees are proud to work for, and doing it in a sustainable manner.”
Alex and Alison Sokol Blosser, who are siblings as well as second generation winegrowers and current Co-Presidents of Sokol Blosser Winery, encourage their 22 employees to discuss ideas openly and think critically about sustainability in the workplace. Sokol Blosser holds monthly Green Bag Lunches to encourage team members to talk about green ideas and has used those ideas to recreate office spaces to use more natural light and purchased eco-friendly office furniture and paints with no off-gassing. This spring, the staff also founded a half acre community garden to provide fresh produce for employees.
Sokol Blosser Winery pursues environmentally friendly practices in all phases of its business, including farming their estate vineyards to USDA certified organic standards, using biodiesel in farm tractors, and purchasing unbleached paper products for labels and wine boxes. Sokol Blosser’s 25kW photovoltaic solar panel system provides for one third of the Winery’s energy needs, and their underground barrel cellar, built to U.S. Green Building Council standards, became the first winery building in the country to earn the prestigious LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.
About Sokol Blosser Winery
The Sokol Blosser family planted their first grapevines in 1971 in the Dundee Hills and now farms over 85 certified organic acres. As one of the pioneering wineries of the region, Sokol Blosser has played a key role in developing and shaping the now-prominent Oregon wine industry. The winery works to create wines of world-class quality, produced in a sustainable manner, which reflect the distinctive flavors of the grapes, soil, and climate, as well as the winery's values and sense of place. The winery produces Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Evolution (a proprietary white wine blend of nine varieties) and Meditrina (proprietary red blend), along with small quantities of Single Block Pinot Noirs in selected vintages. Learn more at www.sokolblosser.com.
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