Francis Ford Coppola honored with wine lifetime achievement award

Francis Ford Coppola is being recognized with a 2019 Wine Enthusiast Wine Star Lifetime Achievement Award.

The magazine stated that the award is given to those who have 'indelibly altered the face of the wine world and beyond,' including Robert Mondavi, Ernest and Julio Gallo, and Jess Jackson.

The Family Coppola operates four wineries in California and Oregon for the filmmaker and screenwriter. Anchored in Sonoma County, it runs Francis Ford Coppola Winery in Geyserville, Virginia Dare Winery (formerly, Geyser Peak), Domaine de Broglie vineyard and tasting room in Oregon, and Great Women Spirits.

'I'm humbled by this recognition,' Coppola stated about the award. 'I'd always entertained the idea of having enough land to grow some grapes and make a little bit of homemade wine to share with friends, as my grandfather and uncles had done when I was growing up. In the mid 1970s this became a reality for my family and now with forty years in winemaking, quality and authenticity of our wines are particularly important because our name is on the label. You can trust that we stand by it. If it's a wine, we enjoy drinking it together, if it's a resort, it was found, imagined, built and frequented by our family.'

Corey Beck, CEO and chief winemaker of The Family Coppola, stated that Coppola inspires the company to 'use creativity, passion and teamwork in all that we do within The Family Coppola business. He is progressive, a risk-taker and the respect for his family and heritage shapes his priorities and perspective. It's natural that his wine business is anchored by such strong values and innovative experiences that bring people together.'

The Family Coppola also operates the film production company American Zoetrope; a literary and art magazine, "Zoetrope: All-Story"; Cafe Zoetrope in San Francisco; and Mammarella Foods, a line of organic pastas and sauces.

Coppola himself oversees the luxury-tier Inglenook wine brand, based in Napa Valley.