NEWS FETCH – July 21, 2015

TOP NEWS

• State proposes unprecedented $1.5-million fine for ag water district diversions
• Treasury Wine sells Asti winery, Souverain brand to Gallo at $7.5M loss
• El Nino intensifying, could rival strongest in recorded history
• Just How “Sustainable” Is The California Wine Industry?
• Trunk diseases – the new phylloxera?
• TTB Compliance can be simpler. Here’s how. *Sponsored Link*

ADDITIONAL GALLO/ASTI COVERAGE

• E. & J. Gallo Announces Purchase of Treasury’s Asti Winery & Vineyards
• Treasury Wine books loss on sale of US winery as Beringer headaches fade

GLOBAL WINE SUPPLY

• Drought, heat hurry North Coast winegrapes to early harvest
• Okanagan Winemakers watch for smoke as grape harvest nears
• Rainy summer could dampen Ohio wine harvest
• But Why is the Wine Gone? Part 1 – Prosecco

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Did 2.6″ of rain in Paso Robles in July really just happen?
• Carneros is Throwing a Birthday Party, and You’re Invited
• Sonoma County vintners prepping for 2016 ‘big game’
• Submit your interest now to get 2-1 code on the launch day – biggest discount that will be made available for USA Trade Tickets Conference. *Sponsored Link*

DROUGHT/WATER

• Drought-stricken California is burning, flooding at the same time
• Woodland building system to ‘recharge’ groundwater
• Sustainable Groundwater Management Act Implementation: An overview of the basin boundary regulation
• Dry California shows it’s serious about enforcing water cuts
• Amid epic drought, California farmers turn to water witches

DIRECT SHIPPING & PRIVATIZATION

• Arcane laws still plague wine shipment
• How User Choices Can Boost Your Wine Club Membership & Loyalty. Click For A Free Best Practices Webinar *Sponsored Link*

FINANCE, M&A

• Randall Grahm to crowdfund new vineyard for 10,000 obscure grape seedlings
• Rémy Cointreau buys historic land to beef up Mount Gay rum’s provenance

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Christie’s Half Year Sales Achieves Record Total of £2.9 Billion
• Auctionata achieves online world record, 195% growth and first positive EBITDA
• How to sell your brand in online retail channels *Sponsored Link*

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

• 6 Traits of The World’s Healthiest Wines
• Is red wine really healthy?

INDUSTRY DATA & TRENDS

• Graphs detail plummeting Sherry sales

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• Wine Competitions and the Ethical Conundrum
• What Does a Ralph Lauren Wine List Look Like?

MARKETING & SALES

• Honesty is the future of advertising
• Happy customers are the best form of marketing
• What are the worst ads ever that try to target Millennials?
• How to Manage Cash Flow to Expand your Winery, Distillery or Brewery’s Distribution. *Sponsored Link*

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Ball’s bid for Rexam hits EU competition hurdle

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• Google+ Photos Is Shutting Down On August 1st
• How the Value of Social Content is Increasing
• 7 Ways to Destroy Your Mobile Conversion Rates
• Want to beat your competitors online? Focus on magnetic content

MEDIA MATTERS

• The Hosemaster Channels James Laube’s Resignation Letter

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Does extended maceration obscure terroir?
• Wine’s struggle to make the top shelf
• Forget gadgets and age wine gracefully
• How to love vermouth
• Filtering wine one way doesn’t mean it’s the only way. Click now to see the alternatives *Sponsored Link*

WINE PEOPLE

• Liv-ex interviews Neal Martin, part two
• Q&A with vice president of winemaking at Terlato, Doug Fletcher

WINE PLACES

• Great Northwest Destination Winery: Cave B Estate Winery
• All the gold in California?

NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL WINE NEWS

• Washington Wine, Part 2: Ample Room For Growth
• Winery land use under pressure in the Okanagan
• Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Celebrates 50 Year Anniversary

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Nanoparticles and insecticides: Route to more effective pest control?
• Crop Yield Estimation Software Could Save Agriculture Millions
• Botrytis cinerea
• What It Really Takes To Grow Wine Grapes

EUROPE & THE UK

• UK sparkling wine industry takes off
• UK cider sales fizz towards £1bn mark
• Wine Wars in Prosecco’s Home: A Report from Conegliano

DOWN UNDER

• Australian Winemaker’s Federation rejects volumetric tax proposal
• Call for research to develop the Australian grape and wine community
• Predicting fashion and no discounting key to profitability say New South Wales winemakers

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• India is willing to lower the import duty on European wines
• Is Korean makgeolli the next big sparkling wine?

AROUND THE GLOBE

• How ISIS Upended The Unspoken Rules That Governed Winemaking In Hezbollah’s Heartland

NOW TAKING BETS FOR HOW QUICKLY THIS FLOPS

• World’s first blue wine goes on sale

CRAFT BEVERAGES: BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Craft brewers: Alabama laws stifle growth of burgeoning beer industry
• More Trouble Brewing, Texas Edition
• Brewers bemoan paying state fees that fund wine industry
• New Marketplace for Brewing Equipment
• Historic building transformed into craft distillery
• Oregon Brewers Fest By the Numbers
• The Spirits Business welcomes new editor
• Richmond craft brewer to expand, create more than 50 jobs
• 7 Scientific Reasons Beer Is The Most Underrated Alcoholic Drink Of All Time
• Why You Should Only Buy One Type Of Beer A Week
• Lululemon Craft Beer Is Actually Happening, Because Vancouver