APRIL 19, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

TOP NEWS

• Why a “Netflix of wine” is impossible with current recommendation methods
• Fresno vineyard shooting leaves 1 dead, 2 wounded (possible paywall)
• Champagne and 5 other items top post-pandemic spending
• What’s Behind the Growth in Alcohol Consumption?
• The 2020 California Grape Harvest Got Walloped
• TTB Approved 165.4K Products L12M through March 2021, A Decrease of -17.3K (–9.5%)
• Zoom fatigue is worse for women than men: Study
• The Quick Books of wine DTC has launched! – (Sponsored link)

OBITUARIES

• Barolo Legend Boffa Dies
• The wonderfully complicated and all too brief (and happy) life of Pio Boffa

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Controversy as Gallo Seeks East Coast Foothold
• 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)
• Update: Wine prices 2021 (Premium Paywall)

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Proposed bill would expand shipping options to Maine
• Top sommeliers on why they take part in Sommeliers Choice Awards (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• Which will be the best restaurant wine in the USA? (Sponsored link)

SPRING FROSTS

• Winter’s Last Gasp Devastates French Vineyards
• Pledge of €1bn made to mitigate France’s frost “disaster”
• Frost will have an impact on En Primeur pricing
• Domaine Gayda’s Tim Ford: After the frost where do we go from here?
• Rathfinny spared from devastating late spring frosts

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Sonoma County winemaker seeks zero-tolerance policy for sexual assault and harassment (possible paywall)
• Northern California’s Shannon Family of Wines adds 2 regional sales managers
• See how Phase 2 Cellars streamline systems and provide exceptional customer service.

COVID-19

• What to expect at re-opened wineries: Reservations, contact tracing and social distance (possible paywall)

HEALTH

• How low-and-no brands could reshape the alcohol sector
• Instead of Lower Alcohol, Drink Better Wine
• Trying to drink less? There’s an app for that

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Napa County May Install Early Warning Wildfire Detection System

TAKING THE HIGH ROADS

• Sonoma and Napa counties differ on mixing wine and cannabis cultivation (possible paywall)

DROUGHT/WATER

• Three states, one river and too many straws
• Interstate water wars are heating up along with the climate
• US West prepares for possible 1st water shortage declaration

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• Re-use is not often a part of the three Rs
• Why the Wine World May Depend on Regenerative Agriculture — Starting Now
• The U.S. Wineries Pursuing Radical Sustainability

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• Swiss Village Champagne Loses Another Fight To Get Name On Wine

REAL ESTATE

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

AGRIFOODTECH

• Sony’s FlavorGraph uses AI to predict which ingredients will pair together
• The Quality of Your Coffee May Soon Be Determined by a Robot

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Bordeaux trading rises on US tariff suspension ahead of 2020 EP campaign
• Talking Trade on Liv-ex – Frost hit much of Europe while the Bordeaux market heated up

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• Do we really understand what experts tell us about wine?
• The Birth of the Wine Connoisseur

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• A Shift To Premium: The Newest Canned Beverages Are Reinventing The RTD Category

TRADE SHOWS & CONFERENCES

• ASEV National Conference registration is now open

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• Facebook plans to go after Clubhouse — and podcasts — with a suite of new audio products

MEDIA MATTERS

• National Humor Month Includes Lots Of Wine

MATTERS OF TASTE

• The S Word: Complete Guide to Sulfur in Wine
• Fresh, Crisp and Savory: The Indigenous White Wine Grapes of Northern Italy

WINE PEOPLE

• Why Lyle Railsback left his dream job at Kermit Lynch to become an entrepreneur
• Thibaut-Janisson, Claude Thibaut Founder & Winemaker podcast transcript (PDF)
• Heather Griffin, Partner Summit Lake Vineyards, Howell Mtn, Napa Valley (podcast)
• Special Wines For A Special Cause At Little Wings

WINE PLACES

• The Road Less Traveled – Wineries of Edna Valley & Arroyo Grande

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• OR: Looking ahead to a ‘bounce back’ summer in wine country

ACADEMIA

• Arkansas researchers pour efforts into wine research

EUROPE & THE UK

• Rioja unveils 5 year plan to boost exports, sustainability and wine tourism

DOWN UNDER

• Australians continue responsible drinking trends

SOUTH AFRICA

• Why South Africa Banned Booze — And What Happened Next

AROUND THE GLOBE

• Cocaine Wine and Hungry for Hungary

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• What delays in the global supply chain could mean for Kentucky’s bourbon industry
• Rice wine, Thai beer and other alcoholic drinks from Southeast Asia that are among the region’s finest and most notorious – snake wine, anyone?