MARCH 9, 2023 – WINE NEWS FETCH

• California Wine Country’s race to build wine palaces
• Without retirement options, many undocumented farmworkers keep working into old age
• The Impact of AI on Wine Writing: Will it Be as Big as We Think?
• Duckhorn Portfolio 2Q Sales Grow as Consumers Budget for Wine Amid Higher Costs [paywall?]
• Beer, Spirits, & Wine – Packaged Imports Grow +8% By Value L12M through January 2023, Packaged Exports Grow +17%
• Severe Winter Temperature Increases Pretty Much Split The US In Half.
• Quietly for sale; In-Demand Vineyard in Paso’s “Hot Spot” – Sponsored Link

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• To reach different ages, wineries should try a different marketing approach
• Former New York property developer jailed in NZ for $1.3m tax fraud after setting up Canterbury winery business
• Amazon is Coming for Alcohol!

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• Short Winegrape Crop Could Be Good with Demand Remaining Flat
• 2023 predictions take a more ominous tone
• Volumes ‘remain stable’ across key regions of Frances

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Ag Health Benefits Alliance Scholarship Program Opens Applications, Offers New Award (PDF)

WILDFIRES/SMOKE TAINT

• Extreme Wildfires Make Their Own Weather

WEATHER

• Calif Governor Newsom Proclaims Storm State of Emergency Supporting 21 Additional Counties

DROUGHT/WATER

• Despite storms, water challenges persist

CLIMATE CHANGE

• Climate change a threat to Sherry’s flor yeast, study says

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Is Expanded DtC Beer, Wine & Spirits Shipping on the Way?

DIVERSITY

• Santa Barbara County Women Winemakers celebration slated for March 12
• UK: Majestic toasts its latest Diversity in Wine scholars
• Profiles in wine: Carole Meredith, wine grape geneticist [paywall?]
• The Soave Sisters
• Celebrating the Wine and Women of Ruca Malen
• Women in Wine: Fresno professor makes a splash promoting Black wine entrepreneurs
• These women are shattering the glass ceiling in the wine industry [paywall?]
• Dress for Success Honors Carolyn Wente as a Woman of Power

HEALTH

• Could the new ‘sober up jab’ help stop hangovers?

NFTs, BLOCKCHAIN, & THE METAVERSE

• Crypto Cocktails
• Will brewers take advantage of the cryo hop trend?

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• Duckhorn Portfolio Raises FY23 Outlook Following 2Q Revenue Growth [paywall?]
• Brown-Forman: U.S. Trends Normalizing, Third Quarter Sales Up 4% [paywall?]

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• Napa winery director to plant Sauvignon in the Cotswolds

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• UK/Australia free trade deal could be completed this month

DISTRIBUTORS

• The days of “managing” wine distributors are over! Please adapt accordingly!

DATA & TRENDS

• How To Tell If A Survey Is Credible: Minimum Standards

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• An environmentally friendly glass bottle may be closer than you think
• Message on a bottle – the importance of drinks labels

MEDIA MATTERS

• Why Esther Mobley broke a resolution to never write about Sideways [paywall?]
• A documentary explores how a local winery cultivates LA’s oldest grapevine to make a modern wine

MATTERS OF TASTE

• More Nonsense on Wine and Art

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• OR: Advocates Will Try Again for Large Tax Increases on Beer and Wine
• NY: Orange County’s Palaia Winery and Meadery has closed
• KS: Wichita winery can’t recover from break-in, closes up shop

EUROPE & THE UK

• UK: Wine Owners Fine Wine Buyers’ Satisfaction Survey 2023
• Scotland explores alcohol advertising restrictions [freewall?]
• Don’t just say Barbera. Say NIZZA! Why don’t Americans know about this exciting new Italian appellation?

DOWN UNDER

• Australia: Freshcare brings the horticulture and wine industries together
• The flow of Australia’s rich wine history revealed in forthcoming publication

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• China’s New Wave of Natural Wine

SOUTH AFRICA

• Heineken’s Distell Purchase Gets Final South Africa Antitrust Approval [paywall?]

BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Craft Beer Drinkers Are Likely to Purchase More Beer if Direct-to-Consumer Sales Are Available
• SunnyD launches hard seltzer