AUGUST 25, 2021 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• After 25 years of modest gains, U.S. preference for wine is the same as it was in 1997.
• Will the world ever accept non-alcoholic wine?
• AI that can ‘taste wine’ helping detect smoke taint in wineries affected by Cali fires
• Liquor Distribution Exec to Plead Guilty in U.S. College Admissions Scandal
• Majority of Adults Changed Their Restaurant Usage as a Result of the Delta Variant (PDF)
• Bye, Bye Wine Direct: The Quick Books of wine DTC has launched! – (Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Mirabeau’s Stephen Cronk: wild fires are wake-up call to climate change
• Rabbit Ridge Winery Bankruptcy Trustee Hires Farm Operator for 2021 Harvest; Most Grapes Still Unsold
• Right-wine extremist from L.A. who turned a Lodi vineyard into a shooting range cops a plea with Feds
• Constellation Wins $2.3 Million For Legal Fees In To Kalon battle with Vineyard House
• 2021 USA Wine Ratings Winners Announced – (Sponsored link)

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Caldor Fire Blazes through El Dorado Wine Country
• OZ: AgTech and bravado brings Adelaide Hills vineyard back from ashes

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• What Are the Retailer DtC Shipping Laws?
• Recruitment shortfall among wine drinkers in the US and China
• Be part of the biggest gathering of Bulk Wine, Bulk Spirits, and Private Label professionals in the US. –  (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• 2021 Wine Grape Harvest Begins in Monterey County with a Sparkle
• As Italy prepares for harvest, climate change is on everyone’s minds

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Yucaipa poll seeks opinions on wine country and housing
• SLO Wine History Projects are Underway

COVID-19

• From CVS to Goldman Sachs, FDA move prompts vaccine mandates
• Is Your Agribusiness Prepared for the Next Global Pandemic?
• NZ: Covid 19 coronavirus Delta outbreak: More alcoholism likely in lockdown, but spirits drinkers may go dry, researcher says

DIVERSITY

• 1st Black women-owned winery tasting room in Alameda working to change the face of the industry
• 5 women shaking up the South African wine industry

STARTUPS & NEW BRANDS

• How This Tech Company Is Disrupting The Wine Industry [paywall?]
• Napa’s Firstleaf grows startup wine club to 150,000-plus members

HEALTH

• Back-sweetened Wine and Apple Cider Inhibit Foodborne Pathogens (PDF)
• Drinking wine, beer at a young age is not good for your heart health
• Flavonoid-rich food could improve your gut microbiome and lower your blood pressure
• Wine Didn’t Make Me a Better Mom

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• Growing adoption of sustainable practices in vineyards

REAL ESTATE

• See hand-chiseled stone house at heart of Sonoma vineyard for sale for $19.5 million

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• Quilceda Creek increases majority ownership of Washington State’s acclaimed Champoux Vineyard

DISTRIBUTORS

• Republic National Distributing Company Expands into Five New Control States

MARKETING & SALES

• Time to hit the road? Companies ponder when to return to in-person sales calls

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Aluminum packaging gaining attention in wine country

TRADE SHOWS & CONFERENCES

• Wine to Asia pins new dates in December

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• Study finds sites that mislead, not flat-out lie, attract record share of Facebook engagements [paywall?]

MATTERS OF TASTE

• The heroic rise of the Super Tuscans
• Jonathan Ducourt on celebrating modern winemaking
• A Changing Wine World

WINE PEOPLE

• Au Revoir Becky, Burgundy Legend
• Meet the Sauvignon Blanc Savant
• Bouncing Back Q&A: Tim Fordham, Liberty Wines
• The New Normal: Emma Gao from China’s Silver Heights

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• NY: Belhurst Castle & Winery announces new Marketing Manager to their team
• NY: Raising awareness in tasting rooms about spotted lanternfly

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Quick pics for grape cluster counts
• Zoning in on ozone
• Using cell phones to obtain accurate prebloom cluster counts
• Determining which Vegetative Index is best for your vineyard
• Wild yeast may hold key to reducing sugar content in wine

EUROPE & THE UK

• New English sparkling wine courts controversy

DOWN UNDER

• The Australian Winemakers Pushing to Recognize Indigenous Land Names