MAY 28, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

TOP NEWS

• Stars Align for Jordan’s Vineyard Move
• ‘Wildfires are a part of life here’: Wine producers prepare
• Cheap wine and a retail foe: Australia ready to take China to WTO over tariffs
• Why the food-delivery boom may soon hit the skids
• The Quick Books of wine DTC has launched! – (Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Deadlines and dueling appraisals set up Rabbit Ridge Winery property for an existential turning point in mid-June
• California tells hundreds of landowners in Sonoma, Mendocino counties to halt Russian River water diversions (possible paywall)
• America’s Top Wine Buyers to Judge USA Wine Ratings 2021 – (Sponsored link)
• Yes, we were drinking less during the pandemic– Premium Paywall

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Off-Premise And Beer & Wine Programs Are Adding Value To Cracker Barrel
• Bob Paulinski MW: Why I Want to Be a Judge in USA Wine Ratings –  (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• BC Wine Grape Acreage Report shows significant acreage growth
• Partnership established to boost Western Australia wine exports
• Wine Sales In Italy’s Retail Channel Up 8% By Volume
• How USA Wine Ratings Judges Wines in the Same Way Consumer Do – (Sponsored link)

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Ex-Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli said to pay for birthday liquor with campaign funds (possible paywall)
• See how Phase 2 Cellars streamline systems and provide exceptional customer service.

COVID-19

• WSWA Joins Coalition of American-Owned Businesses Opposed to Tax Increases in The Face of COVID-19 Recovery Efforts

DIVERSITY

• Racial Discrimination Lawsuit filed Against Terlato Wine Group

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Wildfire Preparedness Webinar (video)

DROUGHT/WATER

• Calif orders halt to hundreds of Russian River diversions in Sonoma, Mendocino counties as drought imperils supplies

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• French Biodiversity Office leaks damaging report
• Promoting sustainability from grape to glass
• Will the market respond to the huge influx of organic wines from Bordeaux?
• The Cosmic Grapevine

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• NY: Making takeout alcohol permanent shouldn’t be this hard

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• Campari Group on takeover trail again

AGRIFOODTECH

• The tech startup that taught a computer to taste wine

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• Australia’s wine industry prepares to call in World Trade Organization over China tariffs

BREXIT

• Prentis promises to work with industry on certification and Brexit/Covid fallout

DISTRIBUTORS

• Local Source, a new Texas wine distributor, tries to bring back “relationship selling.” They’re counting people, not just beans. And they’re hiring.

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Paso Robles Wine Country’s First Virtual Auction Raises Over $70,000

BORDEAUX EN PRIMEUR

• Bordeaux 2020 en primeur by appellation: Pessac-Léognan
• Grand Mayne 2020 En Primeur: “finely chiseled”
• Quinault L’Enclos 2020 En Primeur: “plenty of charm”
• Bordeaux 2020: No perfect scores from Martin in “excellent” vintage
• Tertre 2020 En Primeur: “fresh and lively”

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• A return to the wine list (possible paywall)

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Ardagh Group invests $195m in North Carolina site expansion

MEDIA MATTERS

• The third edition of Wine Science, launches next week
• Book Review: Winemakers Writ Large

WINE PEOPLE

• Talking Grapes With Dan Petroski

WINE PLACES

• How This Armenian Wine Company Is Disrupting the Wine Industry

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• OR: Small vineyard takes $10,000 hit in parking lot wine theft
• New pest discovery in Washington grapes
• Return to Long Island

ACADEMIA

• $1.5M gift will support grapevine research at Cornell AgriTech

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• UV robot wages war on vineyard threat
• Grow Grape Crop Expectations With a Good Vine Health Program

EUROPE & THE UK

• Federvini elects Pallini and Antinori
• Mallya loses another London court battle

DOWN UNDER

• Murray Valley: Regional update

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• How good is Chinese wine? It can’t compete with Old World grapes from France, Italy or Spain – yet – but give it 10 years

LATIN AMERICA

• Grapes of Wrath – Why Argentina and Brazil are Awash in Smuggled Wine
• Argentina’s government eliminates export withholdings for some SMEs