DECEMBER 16, 2020 – WINE NEWS FETCH

TOP NEWS

• Ohio State Attorney General Has Commanding Lead In Direct Shipping Litigation Tournament 4-2-1
• Kentucky finally opens for DTC alcohol shipments, but with a catch
• On-trade sales in five US states plummet 48%
• 5 Insights from Drizly’s November Sales
• The UK has lost 12.5% of its wine drinkers since 2015. Will the US follow suit?
• How “new school” technology lets L’Ecole No. 41 produce amazing “old school” wines.(Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Can Millennials and Gen Z Actually Save the Wine Biz?
• Winc’s actual customer retention rate — here’s how the math works
• 2020 USA Wine Ratings Winners Announced (Sponsored link)

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Selling Wine, Beer, And Spirits In America*(Sponsored)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• The French wine industry considers ‘deferred vineyard restructuring’, aka temporary vine pulls
• What’s new at the 2021 Sommeliers Choice Awards and how that will help wine brands. (Sponsored link)

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Opinion: Don’t use pandemic to erode winery regulations

HEALTH

• Dietitians share their most hated foods, from deli meat and energy drinks to red wine
• Is More Wine and Cheese Good for Your Brain? We Sure Hope So

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• How Heat Waves Impact Wine Grapes

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• California’s ‘climate damn emergency’ can’t be ignored

AGRIFOODTECH

• Monarch Tractor Powers Next-generation Viticulture

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• Major winemakers still ambitious to grow Asian operations despite China slapping industry with crippling tariffs
• Australia ups ante in China trade row with WTO challenge of barley tariffs

DISTRIBUTORS

• Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits Appoints Kim Beto to Senior Vice President of Wine for Nevada

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• L’Eglise-Clinet 2010 tops best price-performers on Liv-ex
• Is Stealing Wine the Right Choice for a Life of Crime?

DATA & TRENDS

• Wine Intelligence’s industry predictions for 2021

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• A Remedy for Tired Wine Tasting Notes

MARKETING & SALES

• Limited editions: What do they deliver for beverage brands?
• For media brands, wine clubs keep the revenue flowing

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• What wins for a wine label is a careful balance of centrality and distinctiveness
• Diageo introduces health warnings on labels
• OR: Nomen’s recyclable PET bottles ask wine buyers to pass on glass
• Frustrating Champagne labelling
• Natural wine labels on the borderline (images NSFW)

MANAGEMENT & EMPLOYMENT

• Robert Hanson, EVP-President, Wine and Spirits Division at Constellation Brands, on why potential can be more important than a lengthy CV (video)

MEDIA MATTERS

• Holiday Wine Books That Will Inspire Your Drinking And Learning (possible paywall)

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Sekt: The Chequered History
• Is cabernet franc finally having its moment?
• Thoughts about “flawed” wine: Terry Theise
• Bubblegum In Your Coffee?
• Jasper Morris on Burgundy (podcast)

COMPETITIONS/AWARDS

• Meet the winners of 2020 Wine, Spirits + Beer Industry Awards by North Bay Business Journal

WINE PEOPLE

• Tom Matthews on The Taste with Doug Shafer (podcast)
• New Horizons Q&A: Pierre Mansour, The Wine Society

WINE EDUCATION

• Jedi wine training
• Wine Education Gifts for Wine Loving Family and Friends

FOOD & RESTAURANTS

• A Deeper, Darker Look at James Beard, Food Oracle and Gay Man (possible paywall)

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• MI: Apple Works Winery in gets initial approval for event hall in Germantown
• NC: New vineyard opens near Mount Airy

EUROPE & THE UK

• UK: Winedelivered aims to be the “net-a-porter for wine”

DOWN UNDER

• OZ: Adelaide Hills Winery Petaluma To Close

LATIN AMERICA

• An increasing proportion of Brazilian adults are entering the wine market, with the monthly wine drinking population increasing by 7 million since 2018

NOT JUST FOR THE TRADE

• Five great wine games for Christmas