JANUARY 27, 2023 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• US Direct to Consumer Sales Stall, but Demand for $100 and $200 Bottles Grows
• The American Wine Industry Has an Old People Problem [paywall?]
• Less Affluent Consumers Reducing Frequency Rather Than Trading Down In Wine
• Buzzy, Upbeat Mood as Unified Wine & Grape Symposium Emerges from Pandemic Years
• All That Rain, and Much of California Still Remains In Moderate Drought (Except Central Coast)
• Despite Declining Inflation, Consumer Spending — Especially Food & Retail — Softened in December
• Hate filling out the CA Grape Crush Report? Now There’s help! – (Sponsored Link.)

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Price the Key for US Wine Sales
• Multistate direct sales: A guide for wineries
• Inflation has sent drinkers toward cheaper beer or fancier booze [paywall?]
• Bankruptcy Judge Rejects Creditor Objections, Approves Winc Sale To Stalking Horse
• Grow your wine brand awareness in restaurants and bars of USA – (Sponsored link)

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• Where do you fall in ‘the great drinks divide’?
• Wines of South Africa releases its 2022 export report

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Wine Compliance Alliance Partners With Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance To Host Training On TTB Requirements For Wine Labels
• 2023 listing of Lodi vineyards recognized by Historic Vineyard Society
• Napa County economy likely to be flat until 2024 [paywall?]
• Outlook for Sonoma County shows slower growth more likely than recession, says UCLA economist [paywall?]

WEATHER

• What Record Rainfall Means for California Winemakers
• The other ‘big one’: How a megaflood could swamp California’s Central Valley

DROUGHT/WATER

• Calif: State Water Project allocation increased to 30%
• California’s Delta water dilemma
• California approves Napa Valley groundwater plan [paywall?]

CLIMATE CHANGE

• As Climate Change Drives Up Temperatures, Winemakers Climb Higher

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Top Takeaways from the 2023 DTC Wine Symposium

HEALTH

• New alcohol research shows drinking small amounts can still be harmful to health

NFTs, BLOCKCHAIN, & THE METAVERSE

• Napa Valley’s crypto bros — and their NFT adventure [paywall?]
• Wine Recommendation 3.0

TAKING THE HIGH ROADS

• CBD drinks become illegal in Hong Kong

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• California Unveils Bold Plan to Sustainably Manage Pests and Eliminate High-Risk Pesticides By 2050

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• Italy seeks dialogue with Ireland in wine label row

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• Constellation Brands Announces The Decision Of James A. Locke III To Retire from the Company’s Board of Directors
• LVMH Posts Another Record Year. The Luxury Goods Company’s 2023 Hinges on China. [paywall?]
• LVMH’s Wine & Spirits Division Reports ‘Record’ Revenue And Earnings
• LVMH full-year wine and spirits sales soar
• Vintage Wine Estates Announces Second Quarter Fiscal 2023 Conference Call and Webcast

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Burgundy has more Wine than Buyers
• Is Burgundy beyond the reach of most buyers?
• Burgundy 2021: A car crash waiting to happen?
• Case study: How to reach a broader audience and sell more wine – Liv-ex
• Investing in Champagne – Why and How

DATA & TRENDS

• Seven Wine Trends to Watch

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Is Fine Wine in Sustainable Packaging A Contradiction?

WINE CRIME

• Record fines and severe sentences for Bordeaux wine fraudsters

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Red Chardonnay and Pink Prosecco. What’s the Difference?
• When it comes to making wine, people matter just as much as place
• Cognac: wine or spirit — or both? [paywall?]
• The justifiable lie? [paywall?]

WINE PEOPLE

• Paolo di Marchi leaves ‘happy ghosts’ at Isole e Olena

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• Bill introduced to help Rhode Island wineries sell on-site
• Yakima Valley wine pioneers led the way for industry to prosper in Washington state [freewall?]
• Mexican Wine? Bien sûr!

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Red wine astringency: correlations between chemical and sensory features

EUROPE & THE UK

• Fifth-generation winemaker and his wife part ways with Vietti

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• China assists Remy Cointreau to offset US decline

LATIN AMERICA

• Argentina and Brazil are gearing up for a joint currency

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Beer and spirits sales may be on the downswing [freewall?]