Seattle-Based Wine Merchant Acquires and Improves MadWine.com

    SEATTLE, WA, June 26, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Seattle's Esquin Wine Merchants, a leading local wine retailer, has made the move to introduce their already influential presence within the local wine community to a much larger audience through the acquisition and redesign of the online retailer MadWine.com. The 42-year-old family owned and operated wine retailer has a strong history of offering high quality products at competitive prices sold in a warm and inviting environment. With the launch of the new MadWine.com, Esquin is now able to offer their signature value and customer experience to consumers located in coffee shops, at the office, or even right in their own living room. MadWine.com strives to provide the best customer service of any wine retailer on the web.

The oldest and largest wine merchant in the Northwest, Esquin acquired MadWine.com in March 2009, doubling MadWine's selection in the first year. With a relaunch of the site in June 2010, MadWine.com has rebranded itself into a comprehensive resource for wine-lovers, featuring a free newsletter subscription, 90+ rated wines that are under $20, as well as an unbeatable selection of wines representing a wide range of regions and varietals. The redesigned website is both user-friendly and robust as it categorizes thousands of wines and offers recommendations all within a simple, clean design.

A brand new, full-time social media department has also been added, thus allowing both the Esquin and MadWine brands to engage with wine enthusiasts in real time. In addition to their active presence on sites such as Facebook and Twitter, their new blog allows them to share their years of knowledge as sommeliers with the public. Articles about food and wine pairings, wine reviews, and coverage of public tasting events all provide a level of information sure to keep the avid fermented grape fan glued to their computer screen.

MadWine is managed by Stephanie Burkhart while sister, Alisha Gosline, oversees the operations at Esquin. At the top, wine industry veteran Chuck LeFevre pulls from his years of experience to oversee his daughters' efforts.

MadWine.com currently has nearly 5,500 wines available for purchase, with plans to offer over 8,000 quality wines to customers within the next six months. Sales through MadWine.com increased 78% in the 1st quarter of 2011 over the same quarter of 2010, following a 44% increase in the 4th quarter of 2010. MadWine's goal is to be the center of your wine universe, whether you want to learn something new about the wine-making process, send a Sampler Case of wine to a friend or simply place an order for yourself to experience one of www.MadWine.com's highly rated hand-picked wines.

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