NEWS FETCH – March 6, 2015

TOP NEWS

• Gallo Glass Toxics Lawsuit: Biggest Story Involves Unanswered Questions
• Same-store restaurant sales rise in February despite winter woes
• 3-Tier Battles Heat Up – Stinging Defeat in KY Raises Questions
• El Nino finally here; but this one is weak, weird, and late
• Peter Cressy To Step Down As DISCUS CEO
• Animal rights groups can sue Napa restaurant over foie gras
• TTB Compliance can be simpler. Here’s how. *Sponsored Link*

GLOBAL WINE SUPPLY

• South Africa’s wild fires under control as wineries assess damage to vines

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Melka Winery wins final approval after debate
• Gary Eberle honored with Wine Lifetime Achievement Award
• Napa Valley Vintners Invite Napa County Residents to a Morning in the Winery
• Drizly Alcohol Delivery Expands Availability To San Fernando Valley

DROUGHT/WATER

• First global rainfall and snowfall map from new Earth mission released
• Rising temperatures are amplifying drought effects
• Active weather leads to several drought improvements
• How California’s aging water system puts everyone at risk

DISTRIBUTORS

• Dear wineries: Big wine & spirits distributors hate you
• Booze Wholesalers and The Stupidity of My Species
• Beverage Trade Network Launches USA Trade Tasting To Help Producers Connect With Distributors *Sponsored Link*

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Bordeaux’s last chance to transform “out of touch” en primeur system

ALCOHOL, HEALTH, AND THE FRENCH PARADOX
Click the link above for more news, articles and archives.

• Mediterranean diet is better than exercise
• We do not need an alternative to alcohol: Heimoff
• New Zealand wine industry launches low-alcohol initiative

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• ShipCompliant Cider Edition Demo Webinar

INDUSTRY DATA & TRENDS

• Preferred Alcoholic Beverages of Each Country
• Champagne enjoys an Aussie boom
• How To Build a Cult-Like Following For Your Brand: *Sponsored Link*

MARKETING & SALES

• Humanizing Your Brand, On Purpose
• Is Your Visual Content Promotion A Social Media Snore?
• Why email marketing is still in style — and thriving
• How Data Can Help You to Personalize Event Experiences
• What It Takes To Get Your Brand Approved By Commercial Airlines: *Sponsored Link*

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Idaho winery puts wine in a beer can
• O-I acquires Bennu Glass renaming its plant O-I Kalama

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• Facebook warns Page owners their like counts will drop on March 12
• To succeed online takes hard work, time and money
• Sacramento tech team creates ‘Requested’ app for restaurant discounts
• Which Beer App Should You Use To Track What You Drink?
• 5 Reasons Why No One Likes You Anymore…on Facebook

PAYMENTS

• Apple Pay has reportedly been hit with fraudulent transactions

MEDIA MATTERS

• A Year in Champagne lacks sparkle, info
• A Few Thoughts About Satire, Entirely Witless

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Wine is apparently causing our political gridlock
• The Great Prosecco Surge
• Cats, bats, birds, and dogs in the vineyards

WINE PEOPLE

• Q&A: Bret Lopez, Scarecrow

WINE PLACES

• Paying Homage to Burgundy and Michel Lafarge
• Ancient Greek wine jug found in Champagne

REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• OR: Stoller Family Estate Plans for Second Winemaking Facility
• Oregon’s wine industry emerges as an outsized ag force
• Proposed Pa. cider law could unleash flood of brews
• Two Washington wines, one vineyard, two winemakers, one family

ACADEMIA

• OZ: $22k study grant awarded for fining agents research
• Viticulture journal toasts vineyard protection research

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Winemakers Debate Optical Sorting
• Red wine is made from the skins

EUROPE & THE UK

• Rhône Launches International Program to Fight French Chauvinism
• In France, Pesticides Get in Way of Natural Wines
• UK importer commits to price freeze
• EU: Lords press Commission to act on alcohol
• Tax alcohol based on abv

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• HK: New deputy chairman for Madison Wines
• Chinese students learn wine trade in Bordeaux

SOUTH AFRICA

• South African Winery Uses Tea Tactics To Preserve Wine

AROUND THE GLOBE

• Drinking Russian in Moscow

OLIVE OIL

• NZ Drought may bite olive harvest
• Why Does Olive Oil Get All the Love?

CRAFT BEVERAGES: BEER, CIDER WINE & SPIRITS

• Africa set to become ‘fastest growing beer market’ by 2017
• Mixability & premiumization potential gives US whiskey edge over Scotch
• Banking On Mixology Trend, Italian Bitters Proliferate In U.S.