NEWS FETCH — January 20, 2016

TOP NEWS

• FBI Looking Into Complaints Against California Wine Merchant
• The complete, text-searchable document listing all of Premier Cru’s 5,000+ victims
• SVB Report Preview: Dark clouds for US wine trade
• China’s Wine Consumption Remains in Austerity Era
• Personal Satisfaction in U.S. High, but Not Fully Recovered
• Iran bans printing of word the ‘wine’
• The Business of Wine. Accessing key information. *Sponsored Link*

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• 3 Napa Valley Producers to Give Up Name ‘Port’ on Wine Labels
• Californian winemakers to crack Cuba
• eWinery & Napa Valley Point of Sale Become vinSUITE
• Woman winemakers in CA? Still not very many
• Shasta Wine Village hopes to start construction in spring
• ProWein 2016 easier to navigate for US buyers – check out “Route USA”! *Sponsored Link*

DROUGHT/WATER

• Q&A with Lynn Ingram: Drought Lessons from History
• Winegrowers Can’t Rely on El Niño

TRADE SHOWS & CONFERENCES

• Unified 2016: Nomacorc’s New Technologies and Advancements
• ProWein targets the US and Asia
• 22nd Annual Central Coast Insights Event Set for Paso Robles
• Wine Importers and Distributors, meet the world in NYC and source your next brand at USATT. Get your trade Pass Now and Avoid Gate Fee. *Sponsored Link*
• How to Hire Top-Selling Sommeliers and Drive Your Sales *Sponsored Link*

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• Virgin Wines posts 12% growth over Christmas trading period
• Tobacco Corp Altria’s Wine Segment: Surprising Top Performer for 2015
• Casillero del Diablo boosts Concha y Toro
• Staffing costs dampen Wetherspoon results

DISTRIBUTORS

• Castle Rock Winery Extends Distributor Deal
• Sarah’s Vineyard signs distro deal with Vision Wine Brands
• V2 to distribure Merryvale Wines
• Practical Information for wine reps on how to successfully grow sales network in US Market *Sponsored Link*

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Liv-ex: All eyes on Pontet Canet 2006
• Bowie Wine Becomes Collector Target
• (100) Grand Cru | I spotted this bottle of ’82 Lafite in Beijing last week…

HEALTH

• Alcohol industry relies on risky drinkers for profits, report says
• Alcohol too LOW – EU blocks sale of Felton Road Riesling
• One in five Australians consume three quarters of alcohol, report finds

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• Will you need a TTB wine bond starting in 2017?
• Group sex, illegal pot get OK in Vancouver, but wine in grocery stores? No way

DATA & TRENDS

• The Top Wine Trend Predictions Of 2016, From Expert Sommeliers
• Mobile commerce is booming, but what do consumers expect to see when they get to your site?

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• Who would be the ideal wine critic? A specialist or a generalist?
• A Millennial’s Mingle with Wine

MARKETING & SALES

• From cocktails to craft: What do millennials want in alcoholic beverages?
• Majestic tasks shoppers with choosing the next beer it stocks
• Lessons from the Biggest Brands in the Booze Business – Blue Chip Brands
• The Long Island Wine Council: Marketing Destination Over Distribution
• Trends In Food, Applications In Wine: Tips From The Fancy Food Show

PACKAGING, LABELS & CORKS

• Single-serve stemmed wine packaging coupled for efficiency

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• 61% of Fortune 500 CEOs Have No Social Media Presence

MANAGEMENT & EMPLOYMENT

• What Trader Joe’s Can Teach Us About Treating Workers Well

VINO PROSTITUTION

• Paid-for wine reviews draw flak

MATTERS OF TASTE

• The Art And Science Behind The Best Tasting Wines
• Tasting the legend Romanée Conti
• Dunne on Wine: Gems from Idaho
• Montevertine: Le Pergole Torte 1980-2012
• CHEAT SHEET: Sparkling Wine Sweetness Scale

WINE PEOPLE

• Trinchero on Business of Family Winemaking (audio)
• Making A Break From Cava with Rebel Winemaker Pepe Raventos
• UC Cooperative Extension Members Win Bank of West Innovation Award
• Cask him anything: República’s Scott Tipton talks fortified wine

WINE PLACES

• Australian Wine: History, Evolution, Revolution

WINE ENTERTAINMENT

• Wine trade supergroup Skin Côntact to reform
• Bay Area rap legend E-40 finds success in beverage world

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• Vineyards have two environments – one above ground

MARIJUANA

• Santa Rosa seeks to regulate commercial pot cultivation

CRAFT BEVERAGES: BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS – Today’s Top Headlines

• Beer wholesaling enjoying a purple patch
• Oskar Blues Brewery Posts 30% growth in 2015
• The Tahona Process Is Tequila Making At Its Most Bad Ass
• Here’s a crash course in craft beer marketing
• Moosehead launches in the U.S.
• Is Scotch whisky fighting a possible hangover?

Get the rest of today’s news at Craft Beverage Insights