AUGUST 3, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• U.S. Wine DTC Value Soars 12.2% for H1, 2021; Volume Inches Up 1.8%
• Bicycles, Locomotives, and Wine Market Growth
• How will consumer needs prompt wine ecommerce models to evolve post Covid-19?
• Argentina’s Terold buys majority stake in Marin County’s WX Brands
• Delicato’s purchase of Coppola wine assets in Sonoma County gets regulatory OK
• Bye, Bye Wine Direct: The Quick Books of wine DTC has launched! – (Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Freight Blues Driving up Wine Costs
• Constellation Wins $2.3 Million For Legal Fees In To Kalon battle with Vineyard House
• 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.
• Unlock new opportunities in the bulk wine, bulk spirits, and private label business.— (Sponsored link)
• Convenience stores to the rescue! – (Sponsored link – Premium Paywall)

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Up in smoke: How wildfires are tainting grapes and threatening the wine industry
• How years of fighting every wildfire helped fuel the Western megafires of today

DROUGHT/WATER

• Lake Mendocino water levels trigger curtailments for all water rights in Upper Russian River

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• How Grammar Will Have a Multi-Billion Dollar Impact on Wine Sales
• Be part of the biggest gathering of Bulk Wine, Bulk Spirits, and Private Label professionals in the US. –  (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• ‘Better wine, better meat, more orchids’: Albertsons’ CEO says customers have traded up and they’re not going back down

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• State cuts off hundreds of Russian River growers, ranchers and others in drastic bid to save water [paywall?]
• California establishes quarantine to prohibit introduction of Spotted Lanternfly into California
• Business Capital Delivers Financing for Deerfield Ranch Winery
• Rosemary Cakebread talks Covid and collaboration

COVID-19

• Starting Tuesday, indoor mask mandate returns for Sonoma, Marin and other Bay Area counties
• NYC to mandate proof of vaccination for many indoor settings, including restaurants

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• Why Champagne Growers Decided To Modify This 100-Year-Old Rule
• Champagne producer House of Telmont unveils sustainability plan

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• WSWA Issues Statement on Recent Biden Administration Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• New Zealand Wine Giant Saved from Liquidation

AGRIFOODTECH

• French vineyard revolution: Wine producers use drones to battle grape-rotting mildew

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• ABARES reports Australian wine needs to pivot from China

BREXIT

• The government’s numbers on savings for wine drinkers don’t add up

DISTRIBUTORS

• Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits Launches New SG+ Customer Offering for Fine Wine, Artisanal Wine, Craft and Luxury Spirits

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• After Years Of Extreme Heat, Oregon Wineries Feature Cooler 2019 Vintage At Willamette Auction [paywall?]

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• The Perils of ‘Celebrity’ Culture in Drinks (podcast)

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Younger LDA wine drinkers in the US seek reassurance cues from wine labels

MEDIA MATTERS

• David Kermode on his new Drinking Hour podcast on FoodFM

MATTERS OF TASTE

• How Catena’s terroir of Malbec study ‘proves that terroir exists’
• Recalling the”burnt rubber”controversy – what was the cause?
• Why You Need to Know About English Still Wine
• How Blue Nun Became a Wine Habit
• Intro to Ziereisen

WINE PEOPLE

• The Italian Winemakers Reviving an Ancient Region
• Adjusting to the New Normal: with Ayana Misawa of Japan’s Grace Wine
• Bouncing Back Q&A: Phil Innes, Loki Wines
• Q&A with Low- & No-Alcohol Category Winner Heidi Scheid of Sunny with a Chance of Flowers

WINE PLACES

• Santa Barbara is a Feast of New Places and Ideas Right Now

EUROPE & THE UK

• UK: Former Enotria CEO joins Berkmann Wine Cellars

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• China; Customs duties encourage smuggling

AROUND THE GLOBE

• Wine consumption in Africa: Cameroon ranks second, ahead of Côte d’Ivoire and Congo

NOT JUST FOR THE TRADE

• Man digs up bottle of vodka he snuck into festival by burying it ‘weeks before’