APRIL 15, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• 2,000+ Calif wineries must comply with new state water discharge regs
• Netflix Added Big Data To Amp Up Recommendations. Why Wine Needs a Touch of That Too.
• Epic drought means water crisis on Oregon-California border
• White Claw’s higher-alcohol Surge means Millennials can stop pretending hard seltzer was ever ‘healthy’ (possible paywall)
• France’s wine regions start counting the cost of April’s bitter frost damage
• Reinvented And Ready To Drink: The Wine Cocktail Category Is Exploding (possible paywall)
• Grocery stores will almost dodge retail apocalypse predicted to continue after pandemic
• Shocking news: Wine tastes better when it costs more money, even when it doesn’t(Sponsored link, premium paywall)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• The hidden cost of wine retail’s ecommerce miracle
• Wine’s best known right-wing extremist among FBI’s record number of domestic terror arrests
• Ratings & reviews are useless for wine and movie recommendations, so Netflix killed them and embraced Big Data
• Final Call To Enter In The 2021 Sommeliers Choice Awards. Submission closes on April 20, 2021 – (Sponsored link)

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Top sommeliers on why they take part in Sommeliers Choice Awards (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• Germany buys the most bulk wine
• Which will be the best restaurant wine in the USA? (Sponsored link)

2021 SPRING FROSTS

• Provence reports smaller 2020 vintage due to spring frosts
• ‘Third of French wine production lost’ due to cold snap
• French Wine Makers Liken Widespread Vine Damage to ‘the Loss of a Family Member’
• ‘It’s a tragedy.’ French winemakers face devastation after worst weather in 30 years
• Italy in luck: The damage caused by the late frosts seems to be less than initially feared

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Angry Windsor residents demand vintner/mayor Foppoli resign (possible paywall)
• Calif: Prop 65 Changes Coming That Could Cause Headaches For Businesses
• Saverglass Expands with a Multi-Service Warehouse in Fairfield, California
• Gallo plans bottling plant in South Carolina. What it means for Modesto headquarters.
• St. Helena’s Rombauer Vineyards diversifies vineyard with sheep (possible paywall)
• Paso Robles History Museum reopens April 16, introduces new Wine History Gallery
• See how Phase 2 Cellars streamline systems and provide exceptional customer service.

COVID-19

• How a Boutique Winery Emerged From the Pandemic Better Than Ever (possible paywall)
• Here’s when Wine Country event venues plan to reopen under California’s loosened pandemic rules
• Lake County moves to orange less-restrictive reopening tier; Solano is last Bay Area county in red tier

DIVERSITY

• Napa Valley Wine Academy Makes Education Accessible With Trio of New Scholarships Focused Upon Diversity

HEALTH

• Why Pinot Noir May Be The Best Wine For Your Health (possible paywall)

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• California is poised for a catastrophic fire season. Experts say its plan isn’t nearly enough

DROUGHT/WATER

• Klamath Basin faces more water cutbacks amid drought

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• 26 photovoltaic projects in French vineyards for Sun’Agri
• Can wine and cheese be the new engines of ‘clean’ electricity?
• Champagne Goes Green To Battle Climate Change (possible paywall)

RECYCLED WASTEWATER

• Santa Rosa cuts back recycled water allocations to agriculture by two-thirds

REAL ESTATE

• Legacy Family Vineyard, Howell Mtn AVA – Ultra-Premium Cab & Zin, Winery Potential, 2 residences. 33 acres + water. – (Sponsored link)

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• LVMH on the upswing

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• The merger negotiations of Nicolas Feuillatte and Castelnau are postponed

AGRIFOODTECH

• NZ: Automating Estimates: AI to predict yields

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• Proposal for six-month suspension of EU and US wine and spirits tariffs

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Gone Rudy, Gone: Wine Fraud Deported
• 2005 Bordeaux: Here and Now
• What Does Bordeaux En Primeurs Look Like in 2021?

MARKETING & SALES

• The Black Rooster catches up: Chianti Classico sales increase significantly.

TRADE SHOWS & CONFERENCES

• Napa Valley Wine Library hosts annual Wine Seminar (possible paywall)
• London Wine Fair launches preview event for on-trade

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• Yes, Facebook Ads Do Sell Wine
• Real-Time Wine Talk: How Clubhouse Changes Industry Conversations

PAYMENTS

• 200-Year-Old American Wine Shop Now Accepts Cryptocurrencies
• This Company Is Turning Iconic Wines Into NFTs, But There’s Nothing To Drink
• Like it or not, you should probably start paying attention to bitcoin

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Ancient Vines, New Territory: Corsica’s Indigenous Grapes
• The New “Rules” for Wine Pairing

WINE PLACES

• How Bordeaux’s Château des Arras is united by two sisters

WINE EDUCATION

• Women of the Vine & Spirits Becomes Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) Approved Program Provider Extending Opportunities Way Beyond the Classroom

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• Washington Winegrowers re-elect board members (possible paywall)

EUROPE & THE UK

• New cellar master at The Champagne Castelnau Cooperative
• Rioja’s ambitious 5-year plan
• UK: Near 60% like-for-like sales rise on first day of hospitality trading
• UK: Industry slams reported plans for mandatory on-trade BWS calorie labelling

DOWN UNDER

• OZ: Updated Environmental Guidelines for the wine industry
• New regional tourism projects approved in South Australia