JUNE 2, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

TOP NEWS

• Arkansas mogul Gaylon Lawrence Jr., once unknown to wine, is opening four Napa tasting rooms this summer [paywall?]
• Dr. Andy Walker to Retire: Leaves Legacy of Grapevine Breeding, Research, New Cultivars
• America Has a Drinking Problem
• Treasury Wine Estates struggles to get rid of the Ghost of Michael Clarke
• Key motivations for purchasing lower-alcohol wine: Perceived health, control and taste benefits.
• The Quick Books of wine DTC has launched! – (Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• How fires, pandemic, regulations are impacting California, Oregon wine grape farming
• Deadlines and dueling appraisals set up Rabbit Ridge Winery property for an existential turning point in mid-June
• 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

• Bob Paulinski MW: Why I Want to Be a Judge in USA Wine Ratings –  (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• OZ: Murray Valley reports “exceptional” quality for latest vintage, though grape prices remain a concern
• NZ: Are we facing a wine shortage?
• Partnership established to boost Western Australia wine exports
• Western Colorado Wine Report (podcast)
• Mid-May frost may raise some Wisconsin wine prices by 10% in 2022, Racine County winery says
• How USA Wine Ratings Judges Wines in the Same Way Consumer Do – (Sponsored link)

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• West Coast Smoke Exposure Task Force Summit to hold virtual symposium June 8
• Napa Valley’s Burgess Cellars, burned in Glass Fire, buys winery and plans summer reopening
• California Wine Grape Growers Group Overwhelmingly Backs Commission
• Folly Enterprises welcomes Christine Marsiglio MW
• See how Phase 2 Cellars streamline systems and provide exceptional customer service.

COVID-19

• American Wines Gain Favor Amid Reopening (podcast)
• California considers timing on easing workers’ virus rules

HEALTH

• How can low- and no-alcohol wine engage with ‘moderating’ Millennial and Gen Z wine consumers?

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• Climate Challenge for German Riesling
• Sustainability: A Shared Message Delivered by a Chorus of Voices
• Amid Climate Change, Napa Goes Beyond Cabernet

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• Oregon Legislature makes cocktails to-go permanent

REAL ESTATE

• On the market in Australia: new owners sought for Gapsted Wines

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• WA: Southwind Vineyard purchased by Sagemoor, private equity firm
• As $100 million Missouri wine country investment continues, one winery owner passes on offer to sell
• OR: Young investor acquires Cowhorn

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• Australia-Canada Wine Trade Dispute “Mutually Resolved”
• Australia weighs taking China to the WTO again — this time for a dispute over wine

WEBINARS/ONLINE MEETINGS

• Free webinar June 8th- Redox potential: management and control in the cellar

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Sotheby’s Single-Owner Wine Auction in Hong Kong Smashes Estimates

BORDEAUX EN PRIMEUR

• Bordeaux 2020 en primeur by appellation: Margaux
• Bordeaux en primeur 2020: The lull before the storm?
• Michael Schuster’s swan song 2020 Bordeaux en primeur report
• Canon Gaffelière 2020 En Primeur: “a superb Saint-Émilion”

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• The Wine Bots are Coming for Your Subjectivity

TRADE SHOWS & CONFERENCES

• 2021 Virtual ASEV National Conference and ASEV-NGRA Precision Viticulture Symposium Early Bird Registration Ends June 15
• Top scientific programme at the MACROWINE 2021 congress
• Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2021 goes digital
• Preparations for ProWine Shanghai 2021 in full swing

MEDIA MATTERS

• Post-Pandemic, Wine Writers Prepare for a More Diverse and Delicious Future

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Making peace with Pinotage
• New-Generation Chianti Classico, Part 2: Monteraponi
• It’s time to stop comparing English sparkling wine to Champagne
• Italy’s Winemakers Barrel Ahead With Chestnut
• Perfume and Wine
• Filtering out the gobbledygook to create your own vinous memory

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• Strong Millennial wine opportunity in Mexico

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Double Trouble for Grape Growers from Vine Mealybug

EUROPE & THE UK

• UK: BWS retail sales drop as consumers return to hospitality
• Budapest’s Natural Wine Scene Embraces Hungary’s Roots
• Growing vines in France to revive Iran’s wine culture

DOWN UNDER

• South Australia’s wine industry secures $1 million commitment

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• In Japan, aging wine undersea speeds maturing

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• The rise of luxury spirit sales at auction