AUGUST 11, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• FTC investigating Uber’s partnership with Gopuff and its deal for Drizly: report
• A preview of new fire insurance relief coming to California Wine Country this fall
• How Napa’s Court of Master Sommeliers is trying to rebuild trust after allegations
• In pursuit of the holy grail: The challenge in making good quality, no and low alcohol wine
• Fulfillment House Licensing: The new way to undermine direct to consumer shipping
• Delta Variant Clobbers U.S. Comfort With Socializing
• Which States Are Best For DTC Wine? Free Tool separates the winners from the losers.
• Bye, Bye Wine Direct: The Quick Books of wine DTC has launched! – (Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Covid Raises Blitz Spirit for Business
• 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)

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Tastry Launches AI-Assisted Smoke Impact Analysis Program with Oak Wise for California Winemakers
• Wine from Germany’s flood zone gives hope for future

DROUGHT/WATER

• More Russian River diversions halted as supplies in upper basin grow increasingly scarce
• California Drought: Wine Country Vineyard Struggles To Stay Afloat After Well Runs Dry
• Delta water cutbacks weigh on farmers

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Be part of the biggest gathering of Bulk Wine, Bulk Spirits, and Private Label professionals in the US. –  (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• 2021 will be a ‘historic’ vintage in Chile

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• A Healdsburg winery’s glitzy job contest promised $10K a month. It was a stunt – and it worked [paywall?]
• The influence of Lodi Native and list of vineyard-designate wines in Lodi

COVID-19

• Wineries Should Require Proof of Vaccination to Taste Indoors

DIVERSITY

• LibDib Highlights Corporate Commitment to Female Empowerment & Growth
• Women winemakers who usher in the future

HEALTH

• Natural Wine and the Debate Over ‘Healthy’ Alcohol
• 5 ways to help your staff’s mental health
• If you’re drinking or betting more in lockdown, you’re not alone. But watch for these signs of addiction

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• The Greening Of Bordeaux: The Two-Pronged Approach Wineries Are Taking To Address Climate Change [paywall?]
• Spotlight on sustainability: Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• Comment on “Promoting Competition in the Beer, Wine, and Spirits Markets”

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• UK: Morrisons suitor CD&R gets more time to trump $9.3 bln offer
• South Africa: DGB acquires majority shareholding in Backsberg

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Jason Adams of Fort Myers, Florida and Andrew Cullimore of Brazil newest TCM™ Certified Authenticators
• How second wines became a top investment
• Measuring Burgundy’s “value through time”: Neal Martin on vintages 1932-2016
• Italy’s most collectible wines

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• OZ: When riesling was not riesling

MEDIA MATTERS

• ‘The Story of Champagne’ a bubbly trek through the sparkling wine’s history

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Challenging The Old Order
• The Wine World and Competing Values

WINE PEOPLE

• Larry McKenna: a pinot pioneer
• Amanda Wittstrom-Higgins, Exec VP Ancient Peaks Winery, Paso Robles (podcast)

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• A New Season for Oregon’s Wine Industry
• WA Wine Industry Rapid Growth Pt 2 (podcast)

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Fear not! Potassium is your friend
• Drone Technology to Spray Vineyards Gains Popularity

DOWN UNDER

• OZ: Riverland Wine welcomes Dr Darren Oemcke
• New terroir for Digital Wine Ventures in South Australia, new market launches brought forward

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• China’s wine market enters its third age

LATIN AMERICA

• Viña La Ronciere: We want to be “pioneers” of a new Chilean wine style

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Moët Hennessey Tequila is the first to use Champagne yeast