A partnership between the Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative and reusable wine bottle company Revino is hoping to bring more refill infrastructure to the state.
Pacific-Northwest-based Revino was founded in 2021 and runs a reusable glass bottle program for Willamette Valley, Oregon winemakers. Its bottles can be refilled up to 50 times, according to a local news outlet.
Starting in 2024, Revino will send its bottles – about 2.4 million, by its estimation – to about 30 wine brands across Oregon. Those brands will then fill the bottles with their products and sell them using their own labeling.
After purchasing, consumers can return the bottles to any Oregon BottleDrop location, just like they could with any other containers covered by the state deposit return system (DRS). Wine is not covered under the DRS.
The Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative (OBRC) administers the state DRS program and also has its own reusable beer bottle program it’s been running for several years.
Just like the beer bottles, Revino’s bottles will be pulled out and sent to a washing facility before being reused. The company estimates that it will send out about 2.4 million bottles in 2024.
Morgen McLaughlin, executive director of the Willamette Valley Wineries Association, said the program “will fill a crucial hole in Oregon’s wine industry by introducing a sustainable solution for glass bottle reuse.”
Eric Chambers, OBRC vice president of strategy and outreach, said consumers’ familiarity with BottleDrop will increase the chances that Revino gets its bottles back.
