Boxoffice Pro - Winter 2020

in New York during a huge growth of
amazing New York–made beverages. We
are pretty spoiled to be surrounded by
so many talented producers, so we had a
good working relationship with Brooklyn
Winery and are big fans of everything they
have been doing there. We were at the
winery for a tasting of new vintages a few
years ago, and the idea came up of working
with them on our own proprietary blend.”
The process took nearly a year. In the
interim, the Nitehawk began working with
the winery’s graphic designer to make its
own label for the wine. “It was branded
with our name and logo on the bottle.
The first blend we made we simply called
Nitehawk Cinema x Brooklyn Winery Red
Blend no. 1,” says Dodge. “Because this was
a special blend and not something they
regularly produced, we were able to sell
it only as long as supplies lasted. It was a
popular wine choice for our customers and
really well received. We were completely
sold out after a few months.
“Although we are sold out of our
Nitehawk Winery blend, we still have an
amazing selection of wines at our theaters,
sales of which account for around
20 percent of our alcoholic beverage
sales,” notes Dodge. “In particular in the
last few years, we have been focusing on
smaller producers that utilize sustainable,
natural, and organic practices. One
of the things about Nitehawk that we
like to think sets us apart from much
of our competitors is the quality of the
products that we serve, and I think our
wine program is a great example of that.
We have a small but curated list that
focuses on quality and value. We have
some old-world classics like a Provençal
rosé, Italian prosecco, and a German
Riesling, and some modern innovators
like a biodynamic Argentinian pinot
noir, a natural-fermentation Alvarelhão
from Lodi [California], and even a few
skin-contact or orange wines. We have
been really thrilled at our customer
response, and wine sales have been
growing over the last few years, more
than any other beverage category.”
For dine-in cinemas like the Nitehawk
and Studio Movie Grill, wine pairing is
part of the experience of enjoying dinner
at the movies. “We always make sure that
we have a wine on our menu that pairs well
with each food category,” says Michels. “In
fact, we will send [moviegoers] a dedicated
email with pairings for both wine and
spirits.” Among her personal favorite
pairings are “edamame with K-J Avant
Chardonnay, sriracha chicken sliders with
Freakshow Cabernet, and any pizza with
Caymus Conundrum Red!”
“Making sure that we have the right
breadth and depth of wine choices becomes
an important part of efficiently managing
inventory,” adds Novak. “We’ve found that
our guests who enjoy wine are passionate
about what they drink. They care about a
brand or type of wine more so than a
recommendation for a wine and snack
Left: “We always make
sure that we have a
wine on our menu that
pairs well with each
food category.” —Janet
Michels, director of
purchasing, Studio
Movie Grill
Above: New York’s
Nitehawk Cinema
partnered with Brooklyn
Winery to create its own
branded series of wines.
Winter 2020
55