NEWS FETCH — October 17, 2017

TOP NEWS

• Insurance payouts may not cover all wildfire damage for California wineries
• As Fires Move On, Wine Country Wonders Whether Immigrants Will, Too
• Nuns Surpasses Atlas as largest active fire. Firefight focused on protecting Kenwood, Oakmont & Rutherford/Oakville area (Updated 06:22am, Oct 17).
• Status on 93 wineries (and wine businesses): Good, bad or gone – UPDATED 7:13 a.m., Oct. 17
• Wildfires create worst crisis for PG&E since San Bruno gas disaster
• U.S. Economic Confidence Index Dips to -1 Last Week
• New London wine competition will rate wines for commercial success and consumer appeal in addition to quality. *Sponsored Link*

—-NAPA/SONOMA/NORTH BAY FIRES SPECIAL SECTION—-

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Truck driver hauling water to firefighters killed – Newest fires strike Sugarloaf area, Rutherford as Nuns Complex spreads over the Mayacamas. Sonoma City battle eases – Updated 8:19 a.m. PDT 10/16/17

RECENT UPDATES

• Firefighters say drones interfered with their work — one pilot cited
• Wine Institute Media Update: Wildfires in Northern California
• Napa lifts order to boil water for remaining rural customers
• In Aftermath of Wildfires, PG&E Says Nearly All Electric Customers to be Restored by Late Monday with Continued Progress for Remaining Gas Outages
• Napa fire battle fought Monday in front of gawkers on Highway 29
• Napa Wildfires Update: Hoarse Voices And Cautiously Good News
• Police arrest woman in credit card, checkbook thefts from fire victims

EVACUATION INFORMATION

• California wildfire evacuees allowed home as crews search for bodies
• UPDATED: Evacuation information for Sonoma County
• Evacuation shelters close at college, American Canyon
• Mandatory evacuation lifted for Circle Oaks area
• Calistoga slowly returns to life after evacuations lifted
• Napa County lifts evacuations at Berryessa Highlands

RECOVERY/AFTER THE FIRES

• Cleanup From California Fires Poses Environmental and Health Risks
• Return to normalcy seems distant in fire-ravaged Sonoma Valley
• Napa wine growers hopeful after wildfires
• Calistoga picks up the pieces after Tubbs fire
• Wildfires raise fear of a ‘mass exodus’ by residents unable to afford housing
• California wine country tries to get back to business despite wildfire destruction
• ‘What are we going to do with people who no longer have a home?’
• How Will We Recover from the Fires?
• Homecomings ease frustration, erase hope

FIRES AND WINE/TOURISM

• Sonoma, Napa winemakers need property access to salvage grapes, monitor fermentation
• Sharp decline expected in grape yield due to Sonoma, Napa county fires
• Why the Wineries Affected by the Wildfires in Napa Will be Fine
• Economic Impact of California Wine Country Wildfires: Preliminary Analysis
• Monterey County Hospitality officials come together to accommodate visitors in wake of Wine Country Fires
• Six Misconceptions About Smoke Taint
• Napa Valley workers harvest last fruits of season by night
• A closer look at the 22 wineries damaged by Wine Country fires

FIRES AND MARIJUANA

• Marijuana could get more expensive after California wildfires wiped out a year’s supply of weed

FIRE RECOVERY BUSINESS RESOURCES

• Fire Recovery Business Resources
• How to get relief from TTB if you experienced damage from Northern California wildfires
• Here are resources for Sonoma, Napa, Mendocino, Lake fire-affected businesses and employees
• Additional Fire Recovery Business Resources

ADDITIONAL RELIEF EFFORTS

• Wells Fargo provides an additional $850,000 for California wildfire relief
• Quest Makes Contribution For California Wine Country Fire Relief
• Napa DA offers tips for charitable donations after fire disaster
• Napa Wildfires Update, Part Two: 6 Specific Actions For Moving Forward
• Salvation Army reports meal totals, asks for donations
• First Presbyterian Church offering 2 days of free day care
• Napa County one-stop disaster aid shop opens
• Press, normally a high-end restaurant, serves up comfort foods to first responders and those affected by fires
• California Wildfire Relief
• WA’s Red Mountain wineries rally to help people of fire-ravaged Wine Country
• Schools offer aid to Wine Country fire victims
• California Wine Country Needs Your Help
• Fund set up to support Sonoma’s fire victims
• Wine country fires: Buy Napa and Sonoma wines to support their communities

RESEARCH/PREVENTION

• How the massive firestorm in California became one of the worst in state history
• Forest-thinning project saved homes but highlights obstacles

STORIES/COMMENTARY

• Vineyard owners share stories of loss and salvation amid wine country wildfires
• Remembering The Fire Victims
• More Thoughts on the Wine Country Fires

—–END SPECIAL SECTION—-

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• Tasmania: A great vintage is looming

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• New fire in Santa Cruz Mountains prompts evacuations
• Monterey County wildfire sparked by lit cigarette butt
• Wonderful Nurseries Lives Up to Its “Growers First” Reputation *Sponsored Link*

DROUGHT/WATER

• Money-for-water experiment gaining steam in the Colorado River basin
• DWR groundwater levels report shows mixed results

REAL ESTATE – What’s this new section about?

• ** Sponsored link: Estate Vineyard,Tasting Room & Ranch with spectacular top-of-the world views, $3,950,000, 110 Acres, California. Confidential listing. Click now for more info and non-disclosure details.

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Bordeaux 2015: The great truffle hunt
• Asia, Web Connections Expanding Traditional Auction Business, Christie’s CEO Says

WINE SELECTION AND RECOMMENDATION

• How to Build a Killer Wine List in a Liquor Control State
• America Says ‘Rosé’ With a Provençal Accent

MARKETING & SALES

• Consumer Behavior and Expectations: The 2017 Holiday Season Report (PDF)

SOCIAL MEDIA & TECH

• From Just Browsing to Just Buying with Pinterest

PAYMENTS

• Venmo now lets you pay online at millions of U.S. retailers where PayPal is accepted

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Getting back to nature
• Barbera Came to Stay
• Red Blends Hit a Sweet Spot

WINE PEOPLE

• Haut-Bailly owner makes ‘officer’ grade on French honours list

WINE TOURISM

• Wine tourism is more than just a nice-to-have for the category

ACADEMIA

• Mousensor, LLC receives NSF SBIA to decode the human sense of smell
• Help determine the future of the Michigan State University Extension grape and wine team

EUROPE & THE UK

• Rías Baixas hit by wildfires
• Spain’s Cava Maker Codorniu Moves Headquarters Out of Catalonia
• Austria confirms new DAC wine growing region
• UK: Drinks industry warns against ‘punitive’ tax hike
• Wanderlust launches one-hour wine delivery service in London

ASIA & PACIFIC RIM

• China Foods to sell Great Wall wine brand, due to ‘great uncertainties’

LATIN AMERICA

• Rethinking Argentina

NOT JUST FOR THE TRADE

• Communion wine helps save abducted Nigerian priest

CRAFT BEVERAGES: BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Small & independent brewers seek $213bn to ‘Take Craft Back’ from AB InBev
• Craft, Flavored Malt and Imported Beers Continue to Experience Growth While Traditional Beers Struggle
• How to Grow Cider Apples