JULY 18, 2022 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• Direct Wine Shipping Comes Under Fire
• Labor shortage grows critical for growers
• Wine Enthusiast creates new myopic worldview of wine
• Fruit wine and alcohol-free wines really are also wines
• COVID Spurred A Major U.S. Migration. Where Did Your Customers Move?
• Webinar – Mastering alcohol ecommerce in 2022 – (Sponsored link)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Rabbit Ridge New Owner Responds To Trustee’s Contempt of Court Filing.
• Why bulk is the hot ticket in the face of climate change
• Moderate drinking linked to brain changes and cognitive decline

WILDFIRES & WEATHER

• Stopping Megafires in California
• Sonoma County homeowners jolted with insurance hikes as a result of wildfire risk [paywall?]
• Europe Counts Cost of Wildfires as UK Braces for Record Heatwave [paywall?]

DROUGHT/WATER

• California’s Idle Crop Land May Double as Water Crisis Deepens [paywall?]
• Calif is On La Niña Watch For Third Year In a Row, Which Could Be Bad for Drought
• The Western Drought Is Getting Weird

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• WSWA Issues Statement In Response To Uniform Law Commission Adopting Direct-To-Consumer Alcohol Shipping Proposal
• Charles Lachaux Signs Exclusive Direct to Consumer Distribution Deal With Blockchain-Based Membership Wine Community Crurated

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• What Explains Grower Champagne’s Sales Slump? (podcast)
• Beaujolais vintage looks promising despite extreme weather
• The New Emergence: Upcoming Wine Regions in the USA – (Sponsored link)

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• This craft brewing star is making high-end Napa wine but treating it like beer [paywall?]
• Fertilizer prices are skyrocketing for California Central Valley farmers. Here’s why it matters
• Cabernet on the rocks? [paywall?]
• Wine industry eyes possible Carneros farmworker housing [paywall?]
• The Climate Connection: A report from Napa THRIVES [paywall?]
• Scheid Family Wines Reports First Quarter Results
• Keeping an Open Mind on 2020
• Berkeley Is a Hotbed for Natural Winemaking

DIVERSITY

• Here’s how female leadership in Arizona wine industry is surging
• New Black-owned wine by LA entrepreneur makes summer debut

HEALTH

• A glass of wine a day may lead to Alzheimer’s

NFTs, BLOCKCHAIN, & THE METAVERSE

• NFT Champagne With Artwork by Mig Sells for a Record $2.5 Million

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• OSU researchers develop computer model to predict which pesticides will harm bees [paywall?]

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• Staff shake-ups and stock market listings set to ripple through drinks trade

DISTRIBUTORS

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

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• The Lizard Brain and Other Fallacies
• Seasoned Sommelier and Wine Buyer Thomas Brenner talks us through his focus while evaluating the effectiveness of a wine program – (Sponsored link)

TRADE SHOWS & CONFERENCES

• For Two Days in August, the Coachella Valley Will Host Wine Educators From Around the World

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• How companies subtly trick users online with ‘dark patterns’

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Rosé, Seriously: Faith Plays a Role In Cain’s First Blush
• Wine Producer Who Put Ultra-Premium Rosé On The Map Is Now Taking Another Leap For Terroir Expression [paywall?]
• Italian wine from fungal-resistant grapes released
• Technology vs. Terroir
• The Beholder’s Share

WINE PEOPLE

• A Labor of Love At Work Street Wines: Britta Roberts
• State of the Cape: Interview with Rico Basson and Maryna Calow

WINE HISTORY

• Unopened Wine Bottles Discovered in a 340-Year-Old Royal Shipwreck

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• How Herbicides Are Threatening Texas Wine Production
• New Mount Pisgah wine appellation is filled with surprises

EUROPE & THE UK

• New Bordeaux Boss Quashes Vine-pull Scheme
• Champagne Pommery lodges application for English winemaking facility
• Brits reach for the rosé ahead of record-breaking heatwave

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• WSET resumes courses inside mainland China
• China’s biggest wine influencer Lady Penguin caught in smear campaign scandal

SOUTH AFRICA

• Cape wine – export or die

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• The Comeback of Koji Whiskey