NEWS FETCH – December 19, 2013

TOP NEWS

• Aussie Grape growers fear death of industry after 50% price cuts
• Kurniawan Guilty: 9 Major Viewpoints From Around The Globe (Scroll down for more)
• Concha Y Toro aims to sell a million cases in Asia
• Fed to Start Unwinding Its Stimulus Next Month
• What treasure is buried beneath farmland?
• Rudy Kurniawan Could Be the Tip of a Fake Wine Crisis

• The Drunken Botanist: The Plants That Create the World’s Great Drinks [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Salinas wine cellar owner pleads guilty to federal tax evasion
• Calistoga hit with another water rights lawsuit
• Reyes Winery – the only Latino-owned winery in L.A.
• Napa investors given one month to take over BottleRock
• SLO County Pushes water district for Paso Robles basin

• The New California Wine: A Guide to the Producers and Wines Behind a Revolution in Taste [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

DISTRIBUTORS, DIRECT SHIPPING & PRIVATIZATION

• Wine Enthusiast’s Simplified Direct Shipping Infographic
• TN speaker: Wine in grocery stores may pass this year

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• Constellation: Water-Logged And Getting Wetter

FINANCE, M&A

• Southport Lane Establishes Premium Beverage Group

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Wine Owners founder outlines three steps to wine investing
• Mouton 2000 Bucks trend

• Investing in Liquid Assets: Uncorking Profits in Today’s Global Wine Market [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

KURNIAWAN GUILTY: WORTHY REACTIONS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE

• Spectator: Kurniawan Guilty in Landmark Case
• Bloomberg: Wine Dealer Convicted of Selling Counterfeit Bottles
• Wall Street Journal: Jury Convicts in Wine Scam
• FBI Official News release
• LA Times: Wine collector is convicted of fraud
• Decanter: No Magic In The Cellar
• NY Times: Jury Convicts Wine Dealer in Fraud Case
• UK Guardian: Wine peddler convicted for making fake vintages in his Calif kitchen
• Jury Convicts Wine Collector Rudy Kurniawan of Fraud

• The Billionaire’s Vinegar: The Mystery of the World’s Most Expensive Bottle of Wine [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

HEALTH

• Teen Drinking Rates Hit Historic Lows

REGULATION & COMPLIANCE

• Sonoma Conjunctive Labeling Law Applies to Wines Bottled on or after Jan. 1, 2014

LEGAL MATTERS

• Store Liable In Wine Spill Injury

INDUSTRY DATA

• Argentina: 2014 Wine Forcast

MARKETING & SALES

• Shopify wants to transform all retail, everywhere, everywhen, everyhow
• Mobile Growth Pushes Facebook to Become No. 2 US Digital Ad Seller

• Wine Brands: Success Strategies for New Markets, New Consumers and New Trends [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

MANAGEMENT & EMPLOYMENT

• Wine Thefts Prompt Security Reviews

• Global Brands: The Evolution of Multinationals in Alcoholic Beverages (Cambridge Studies in the Emergence of Global Enterprise) [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Hugh Johnson: Drop The “Idiotic” 100-Point Scale
• Why Heimoff’s dog is like some winemakers. Or the other way around.
• Q&A with Wayne Falkenberg, chief winemaker, Lindeman’s
• New Zealand’s Grand Expectations
• Lemberger’s long slide into oblivion

• The Essential Scratch and Sniff Guide to Becoming a Wine Expert: Take a Whiff of That [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

MEDIA MATTERS

• Wark’s Top 10 Wine Books of 2013

• The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

OH CANADA!

• Wineries shut out of Ontario farmers’ markets

• Canadian Wineries: The story of Canada’s entry into the world of world-class vintages [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• OSHA Overtstepping Ag Exemptions bounds?

• Postmodern Winemaking: Rethinking the Modern Science of an Ancient Craft [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• South Africa’s KWV wines launched in India

• Wine Grapes: A Complete Guide to 1,368 Vine Varieties, Including Their Origins and Flavours [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

LATIN AMERICA

• Argentina: 2014 Wine Forcast

NOT JUST FOR THE TRADE

• Wine and warfare part 4: Sabrage
• A Boozey Year in Review- as seen through the top 8 GIFs of 2013

• Whiskey Women: The Untold Story of How Women Saved Bourbon, Scotch, and Irish Whiskey [Sponsored Holiday Shopping Link]

OLIVE OIL

• Family olive oil in Australia
• Greek olive oil industry faces crisis