NEWS FETCH – APRIL 2, 2012

TOP NEWS

• After Kenwood Sale: Korbel turns attention to champagne, brandy
• Banfi Vintners to Buy Sonoma’s Kenwood Vineyards
• US has suspended preferential tariffs for Argentina
• Restaurant industry outlook improves
• Restaurants Expect Spring Will Bring a Warming Trend
• Diageo Targets Improved Western Europe Sales; Warns On Uplift
• Romanee-Conti Tops $8.2 Million Sellout Auction

DIRECT SHIPPING & PRIVATIZATION

• 3rd Party Direct Shipping Providers Here To Stay
• Washington Supreme Court to hear liquor privatization case
• PA: Go all the way to privatize liquor sales
• WA: Loss of state liquor money could crimp local governments

HEALTH & ALCOHOL REGULATION

• Chocolate, red wine or aspirin: Which should you be ingesting daily?
• Is moderate alcohol consumption beneficial?

MARKETING, SALES & PROMOTION

• Wine consumers habits in supermarket
• I hate half-price wines and would like to see the back of them
• Do hotels help wine brands?
• Kindred Spirits, Fellow Travelers, and Strategic Partners
• What the Wine Industry Can Learn from Craft Beer

ONLINE, TECH & SOCIAL MEDIA

• The 9 Most Important Wine Bloggers in the US
• Storytelling with Timeline: Top Three Things to Remember
• Google Kills Organic SEO

AUCTION ACTION

• Bordeaux Price Falls Expected
• Lafite 2000 – The millennium vintage
• Bordeaux Price Falls Expected
• ‘Be aware of storage costs’ when investing in wine

MATTERS OF TASTE

• It’s not the points, it’s the pairing

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Natural extracts against downy mildew
• Fraunhofer goes ‘wild’ with new sensor to help winemakers detect bad yeasts

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• $1.5 Million to improve on-farm water resources in San Joaquin County
• Tanner to make wines for Sierra Madre
• Gallo To Distribute Brancaia in United States

U.S. REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• GA: Sunday alcohol sales tee off in Augusta
• MN: Record year for municipal liquor sales
• ND: Early grape budding threatens 2012 crop if frost returns
• NY: North country wineries create ‘industrial cluster’ that’s ripe for growth
• NY: Lobbyists Give Up on Wine in Grocery Stores For Now
• PA: Hershey Harrisburg Wine Country hopes to capitalize on regional wineries
• WI: Winemakers crush barriers for approval

EUROPE

• Finns dump Kiwi beers: is wine next?
• Vinitaly numbers down
• The New Symbol of Italian Excellence
• Italian bubbles
• White wine hailed as Bordeaux 2011 en primeur week begins
• Kiwi praises “more authentic” Loire Sauvignon
• Chablis Leaps Forward Into the Past

OH CANADA!

• Wine app demystifies LCBO
• Nova Scotia Plans Wine Appellation

NEW ZEALAND

• NZ: Putting the fizz into wine ‘visionary’
• NZ: Wine war: Quality v quantity
• NZ: Weedeater a hit in vineyards

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• Chinese average wine consumption volume breaks through one liter in 2011
• 91% of the wine drunk in China is red wine
• India prefers Italian wines
• Italian wine growers aim for burgeoning Asian markets
• The wine world prepares for Vinexpo in Hong Kong

LATIN AMERICA

• US, EU blast Argentina’s trade restrictions at WTO

NOT JUST FOR THE TRADE

• Secret to “beer goggles” effect revealed
• Screw Caps vs. Corks: What You Need To know
• Finding Burgundy Bargains as Prices Surge
• Kosher wines didn’t start out so sweet

APPOINTMENTS & ANNOUNCEMENT

• HAWK AND HORSE VINEYARDS APPOINTS NY DISTRIBUTOR