JULY 5, 2022 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• Alcohol-free wine: Is it really even wine?
• Putting the wine industry in its place
• Phelps Sale Shows Fine Wine Still Hot
• Wine Giant Castel Probed Over Alleged Links to African Militia [paywall?]
• California issues curtailments in the Russian River watershed
• Grim Forecast For Summer Wildfires, Especially West Coast.
• Webinar – Mastering alcohol ecommerce in 2022 – (Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Rabbit Ridge CEO Gets Fifth Delay To Respond to Contempt of Court Allegations.
• Rabbit Ridge CEO Accused of Multiple Contempt Of Court Misdeeds By Bankruptcy Trustee
• On-Premise Closes In On Full Recovery: SipSource.
• Could inflation mean the end of the wine club discount? [paywall?]

DROUGHT/WATER

• Drought emergency declared in Northern Italy
• Spain, Portugal Dryness ‘Unprecedented’ In 1,200 Years
• California’s drought is dire. But there’s a surprising bright spot that may make this year better than last [paywall?]

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• White Claw, Truly Hard Seltzer: Is There Any Alcohol Gen Z Won’t Drink? [paywall?]

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• Australia Crushes 1.73 Million Tonnes
• Australian winegrape crush returns to near-average size in vintage 2022
• The New Emergence: Upcoming Wine Regions in the USA – (Sponsored link)

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Lodi Winegrape Commission Announces 2022-2023 Board of Commissioners & Alternates
• Who is Buying Napa Wineries?
• Land Trust of Napa County protects 1,000 acres west of Berryessa [paywall?]
• A New World of Zinfandel from Lodi’s Old Vines

DIVERSITY

• Q&A: Rachel Allison, winner of E&J Gallo Women Behind the Wine award

HEALTH

• Fortified wine sector to grow following its ‘health benefits’ becoming popular

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• Climate change is threatening thousands of years of winemaking in Turkey
• How Upcycled Wine Waste Can Be A Flavor Enhancer

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• Constellation beer growth soars, so why are shareholders grumbling?
• Constellation Brands reports first quarter wine sales increase [paywall?]

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• Cheval Blanc Swallows its Neighbor
• Château Climens gets new majority owner after stake sale
• A Taste For Luxury

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• New Zealand Winegrowers hail free trade deal with the EU
• UK Free trade agreement brings opportunity for Australia’s smaller winemakers

DISTRIBUTORS

• How Wineries Can Boost Their Restaurant Distribution – (Sponsored link)

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Liv-ex 1000 rises in June with smallest increase this year
• Fine wine prices continue to rise in June – Liv-ex

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• A new wine venture wants you to discover wines from unheralded makers [paywall?]
• Lisa Perotti-Brown Tell It Like It Is
• Seasoned Sommelier and Wine Buyer Thomas Brenner talks us through his focus while evaluating the effectiveness of a wine program – (Sponsored link)

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Journey’s End and Interpunkt launch paperboard wine bottles

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• Sober Contemplation and the Happiness Quotient

WINE CRIME

• Groupe Castel “co-operating” with war crime allegations probe
• French police foil counterfeiters passing off cheap plonk as classy Bordeaux

MEDIA MATTERS

• How to Optimize Your Wine Brand ~ A Press Junket Punch List
• New documentary explores links between US and Bordeaux wines
• London’s wine club 67 Pall Mall to release documentary film on sommelier Gérard Basset

MATTERS OF TASTE

• País in Chile, Mission in L.A.: Everything Old Is New Again
• The Wines of Tiny Luxembourg Make a Big Impression
• Appellations as Style Police and Terroir
• Wine’s paradox of polarity
• In Praise of Airport Drinking
• Wine? It’s academic

WINE PEOPLE

• Gaining Perspective w/ Collaborations w/ Juan Munoz-Oca, Ste Michelle Wine Estates (podcast)
• Queens of the Langhe: Mother-Daughter Duo Anna and Valentina Abbona of Marchesi di Barolo (video)
• After 20 years of winemaking, Cayucos’ Aaron Jackson cements his legacy as a fierce promoter and protector of the region
• West Berkeley’s king of kosher wine is blowing his horn once again
• Macari winemaker Byron Elmendorf is exploring untapped potential
• Chateau Maine Gazin Geoff Cook on modern Bordeaux winemaking
• Celebrating California Wine History at Slamdance Koöperatieve Wines
• Burgundy and its trends: a chat with Jasper Morris, Master of Wine
• Tom Gamborg and Freddy Bulmer (podcast)

WINE PLACES

• Conegliano Valdobbiadene: exploring the Prosecco Superiore hills
• Far Upstream, Discover the Regions Left Off the Loire Valley Wine Map

WINE HISTORY

• Did 340-Year-Old Shipwrecked Wine Belong to George Washington’s Family?
• Study reveals glimpse of ancient Roman winemaking

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• WA: Walla Walla Valley Wine appoints Liz Knapke as new executive director
• NY: Chain Liquor Store Bill Introduced

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Paninvasion severity assessment of a U.S. grape pest to disrupt the global wine market
• Tiny wasp targets destructive fruit fly

EUROPE & THE UK

• Europe: Confidence in own label on a high in wake of pandemic
• UK: Nyetimber appoints Rolls Royce exec as CEO
• Discovering Portuguese History, and Portugal’s Esporão Group Wines

DOWN UNDER

• OZ: Chalmers roll out bush block alternatives
• Securing the future viability of Australian Pinot Noir
• OZ: Tim Shand joins Voyager Estate as winemaker

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• ‘China’s Coca-Cola’ buys stakes in Xige Estate
• Japan Wine Lovers Face 40% Hike in Suntory’s Beaujolais Nouveau Price [paywall?]

SOUTH AFRICA

• Blending a New Style of South African Wine
• South African catch-up

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Is It Time To Pay Attention to English Whisky?
• Sake Takes on the World