MARCH 8, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

TOP NEWS

• Canadian SPAC punts on pot, pivots to premium US wine in last-minute hunt for quality (Then becomes US citizen!)
• Wine Tariff Truce the First Step
• Why we need more women working in the wine industry
• Restaurant Wine Directors Worry About the Future (possible paywall)
• Senate passes $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan with $28.6 billion in restaurant relief; bill now heads back to the House
• Beer, Spirits, & Wine – Packaged Imports Decline -4% By Value L12M through January 2021, Packaged Exports Decline -10%
• Does wine compliance make you cry? We’re here to help with that but need your input!(Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• The Southern Glazer’s-Constellation deal is one more slap up the head for wine drinkers
• A close look at the Vintage Wine Estate acquisition path that’s led to its upcoming public offering
• The Duckhorn Portfolio files for an estimated $300 million IPO
• How genes wreck wine recommendations
• Sommeliers Choice Awards launches Shelf talkers and Tasting notes for entrants – (Sponsored link)

DIVERSITY

• Where have women got to in wine?
• How the drinks industry is tackling gender inequality
• ‘Girlboss,’ ‘Mompreneur’ and Female Empowerment in the Drinks Industry
• Black vintners getting broader support in making industry more diverse (possible paywall)
• 11 Women Who Are Changing the Face of Southern California’s Wine Industry
• Portugal’s women winemakers
• Five inspiring women working in English wine
• Winemaker Theresa Heredia Credits The Women Who Paved The Way (possible paywall)
• Acker Launches Virtual “Women in Wine” Series Featuring Female Trailblazers in Wine
• 12 female-owned drinks brands to seek out and sip

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Why US winelovers can’t buy the bottles they want
• Captain Lamberth and Tennessee’s Ship of Fools
• With restaurants’ reduced demand, you can find wines at a discount — if you know where to look (possible paywall)
• Becoming a Master Sommelier in the midst of a global pandemic (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• Prosecco announces sustained production and sales
• Grow Your Wine Brand In USA with 2021 Sommeliers Choice Awards (Sponsored link)

ADDITIONAL TARIFFS COVERAGE

• Six things to know about the suspension of the European wine tariff — and why they’re almost all good
• Trade War On Liquor Cools Off … For Now (possible paywall)
• U.S. Government Pauses Tariffs on European Wines
• NABI Heartily Applauds the Mutual Suspension by United States and European Union of the Airbus and Boeing Tariffs for Four Months
• E.U. and U.S. Tariffs Suspended, Wine Professionals Hope for Refunds

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Sonoma County eases permitting for low-impact vineyard replanting
• Napa County tries to find Staglin winery visitor balance (possible paywall)
• Gaynor Strachan Chun to join WineGlass Marketing as Head of Strategic Services
• Peter Gago: “Welcome to the Penfolds California”
• See how Phase 2 Cellars streamline systems and provide exceptional customer service.

COVID-19

• Grocery stores’ pandemic boom is over
• CDC study: Restaurant dining bans and mask mandates make a difference in COVID-19 rates
• Bay Area restaurants have yet another way to lose money during the pandemic: diner fraud
• COVID Impact on Oregon Wine Pt 2 (podcast)

HEALTH

• Does drinking wine really help fight Covid-19?

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Wildfire smoke up is to 10 times more harmful to breathe than other air pollution, new study finds (possible paywall)

DROUGHT/WATER

• Managing Water and Crops with Groundwater Salinity – A growing menace

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• New Wine Labeling Webpages Available: TTB

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• French drinks giant Pernod Ricard rumoured to be mulling £5bn bid for Penfolds distributor Treasury Wine Estates

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• Special purpose companies can offer SPAC-tacular public offerings
• Understanding SPACs
• Amid pandemic, Santa Rosa vintner Pat Roney rounding up millions for buyouts (possible paywall)
• From wine to Chinese medicine, risk of bubbles rises globally

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Trade jumps in wake of US-EU tariff truce
• Liv-ex Special report – The Wine Business of Tomorrow: 3 innovative models to take you into the future
• How do you store your wine?

MARKETING & SALES

• Monthly Maintenance Musts For a Well Tended Website
• Winery email marketing helps backfill lost sales, but signs of consumer fatigue emerging

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Alcohol on labels – how accurate?
• Wine Pros Weigh In on the Best Bottle Closures
• Why the future for wine in cans has arrived
• Georges Duboeuf’s Beaujolais Nouveau Art Label Contest Invitation

TRADE SHOWS & CONFERENCES

• Registration Open for the 2nd US Sustainable Winegrowing Summit
• Notable Food-and-Wine Events Face an Uncertain Year Ahead

MATTERS OF TASTE

• The use of varietal as a term, its history and passing practicality
• Mouthfeel In Motion: Defining a Wine’s Rhythm
• Champagne: the art of blending

WINE PEOPLE

• Barone Alessandro de Renzis Sonnino – “There was nobody in the world like him.”
• Wine Trailblazer: Kiara Scott of Brookdale Estate
• Sonal Holland is one in a billion, India’s only woman Master of Wine
• Talking Marin County Wine With Stewart Johnson of Kendric Vineyards
• Meet South Africa’s Boela Gerber
• Domaine Faiveley and the Riches of Burgundy: Interview with Eve Faiveley
• The couple transforming Missouri wine country into the Midwest’s Napa Valley

WINE EDUCATION

• Chris Wilson: things they don’t teach you at wine school

WINE HISTORY

• St. Charles Winery is granted Washington’s first post-Prohibition winery permit after the manufacture of wine is legalized on March 22, 1933

FOOD & RESTAURANTS

• The hidden costs of food delivery

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• Who’s Eating Indoors in NYC? Mostly Millennials Ordering Pricey Wine

EUROPE & THE UK

• Bordeaux vines get swept away in landslide
• Croatia’s Viticulture to be Impacted by EU strategy for Reducing Pesticides

LATIN AMERICA

• Clos De Los Siete, The Story Behind The Successful Argentinean Brand Created By Celebrity Consultant Michel Rolland (possible paywall)

NOT JUST FOR THE TRADE

• The Most Extreme Wine Tastings Around the World

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Whiskey’s Future May Look Like Wine’s Present