JULY 26, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

TOP NEWS

• Swapping Chardonnay for Cabernet in Napa
• Calif Water Board releases draft emergency regs for Delta
• California moves to cut off water to thousands of farmers, as drought dries up rivers
• Wage Pressures Likely to Retreat as Labor Market Normalizes
• Is the hard seltzer boom starting to fizzle out?
• Bye, Bye Wine Direct: The Quick Books of wine DTC has launched! – (Sponsored link)

OBITUARIES

• California says goodbye to ‘the Godfather of Barbera’

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• California Wine Sales Hit $40 Billion in 2020, Despite Pandemic
• Tobacco giant finally divests Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Estates
• Scathing legal analysis of smoke taint rejections by wineries finds vague, inadequate and possibly illegal contracts.
• Were smoke-impacted grapes & wine laundered? Lake County Court Battle Highlights Taint Ambiguities & Winery-Grower Tension
• Unlock new opportunities in the bulk wine, bulk spirits, and private label business.— (Sponsored link)

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Wildfire Insurance Legislation SB 11 Signed by California Governor
• Major monsoonal moisture surge to bring fairly widespread California thunderstorms (wetter south, drier north), with NorCal fire weather concerns
• Landslide carries vineyard away in Jura
• After the floods, German winemakers look to rebuild

DROUGHT/WATER

• A Dry Argument: Wine, Irrigation and Terroir

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• DtC Shipping Essentials: Customer Aggregate Volume Limits (CAVL)
• Could the golden era be over for RTDs?
• Be part of the biggest gathering of Bulk Wine, Bulk Spirits, and Private Label professionals in the US. –  (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• This is who drinks the priciest champagne
• Champagne sets an available yield of 10,000kg of grapes per ha
• Chianti and Brunello reduce yields
• Rosé Sales Still Climbing (PDF)

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• California North Coast farmworker group compiles list of demands amid virus, smoke
• Tom Barrack strikes a $250 million bail deal to get out of jail
• Left Bend closing Los Gatos tasting room, but wines will still pour

COVID-19

• OZ: Are wineries more susceptible to ‘super-spreader’ events for COVID-19?
• As more workers fall ill, Bay Area restaurateurs weigh a dramatic step: banning the unvaccinated [paywall?]

STARTUPS & NEW BRANDS

• Will this new Sonoma County wine be a hit with millennials? [paywall?]

HEALTH

• Mycotoxins in red wine: Occurrence and risk assessment
• The Truth About Gluten-Free Wine

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• Burgundy’s wine region banks on resilient older vines to cope with climate change [paywall?]

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• OZ: eBev secures $2m Series A funding to accelerate growth

BREXIT

• Analysis: Cross-industry support sees government u-turn on VI-1 forms

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Willamette Valley gears up for annual Pinot Noir auction
• Talking Trade on Liv-ex – call for aid in the Ahr Valley
• Cheval-Blanc and Ausone Say Adieu to St.-Emilion Classification. Does It Matter?

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Batàr than the rest
• What is a “Linear” Wine?
• Felicity Carter Tackles Clean Wine In The Circle’s “Let’s Talk About” Webinar
• I Can Still Taste and Smell the Cellars of Bordeaux
• There is no box wine in Heaven. Or is there?

WINE PEOPLE

• Mark Pisoni Talks Santa Lucia Highlands Wine
• How Tablas Creek is Leading California’s Rhône Movement with Jason Haas
• Lance Vande Hoef – Pellenc America (podcast)
• Erica Crawford, Founder & CEO Loveblock Wine, New Zealand (podcast)

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• Dr. Greg Jones Becomes CEO at Abacela, His Family Winery in Oregon
• Virginia vineyard invests in agriculture, community

EUROPE & THE UK

• Prosecco elects new president
• Flooded Vineyards and Hot Bordeaux

LATIN AMERICA

• Chile to form organic wine growers’ association

SOUTH AFRICA

• South Africa lifts fourth alcohol ban

AROUND THE GLOBE

• One Of The Oldest Wine Producing Countries Growing Grapes In Conflict Zones—The Reemergence Of Armenia [paywall?]

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Across the U.S., Traditional Saké Gets a Craft Spin