JANUARY 31, 2019 – WINE NEWS FETCH

TOP NEWS

• U.S. wine shipments up 1.2% in 2018, but nearly 50% of regular wine drinkers trying to reduce alcohol consumption
• Wine growth in single digits, better than beer, but second fiddle to spirits.
• Federal judge eviscerates PG&E over California wildfires
• Top Constitutional Lawyer Says TTB Label Functions Must Be Treated as Essential
• OZ: De Bortoli buys Rutherglen Estates
• Behind The Scenes At The Yellow Tail Super Bowl Ad
• Drink now culture
• Top tips to aspiring young winemakers from Chris Thomas of Dowie Doole. Click now to learn more! *Sponsored Link*

ICYMI (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

• Teetotal for a year: why waking up to low and no is the trade’s biggest challenge
• Sextant Wines Purchases Old Edna Township
• Cannabis, wine still a murky mixture
• How To Sell Wine Into Restaurants Effectively*Sponsored Link*

WINE SUPPLY & CONSUMPTION

• NorCal Grape growers look to offset losses from smoke
• The vineyards suffering in Waipara, New Zealand’s driest place
• OH: Cold weather could have an icy impact on the local wine industry

CALIFORNIA BRIEFS

• Central Coast Olive Oil Competition now open for entries
• Gambling, drinking at Bridgeport grocery store brings permit suspension
• Inside the Growing Role of Social Media Influencers in the Wine Industry *Sponsored Link*

PG&E WILDFIRES

• Federal judge: ‘Not really true’ that safety is PG&E’s top priority
• PG&E Q&A: Will bills increase? Will fire victims suffer?
• Lawsuits by fire victims swept up in PG&E bankruptcy

TAKING THE HIGH ROADS

• NorCal Cannabis raises $27.4 million to expand operations in Santa Rosa
• People who make good wine have nothing to fear from cannabis competition
• US cannabis market to reach $26B by 2025, study says
• Cannabis Has Its Sundance Premiere At Wellhaus, The Festival’s First-Ever CBD Lounge

DROUGHT/WATER

• CALIF State board’s wetlands proposal needs to be clarified
• Strong storm will bring heavy rain, strong wind to most of California on Friday-Saturday

SHUTDOWN HANGOVER

• Shutdown casts pall on effort to help Oregon winegrowers

BREXIT

• Pernod Stocks Drinks Cabinet to Prevent No-Deal Brexit Headache

ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY

• Is Coffee Really Going Extinct?
• As Climate Warms, Plants Will Absorb Less CO₂

CONSUMER SALES: DTC, ON- & OFF-PREMISE

• Wine and Sex Off the Millennial Menu
• European online wine sales growing in ‘overcrowded’ market
• Forget wine. This is the week to drink beer

PUBLIC COMPANIES

• Diageo first-half sales up 6% boosted by strong UK performance
• Diageo posts 5.8% net sales rise as gin brands help drive growth
• Diageo reveals plans for Port Ellen distillery revival

FINANCE, INVESTMENT, M&A

• OZ: McWilliam’s secures ‘absolute stability’ after $15.8m investment
• Stock Spirits acquires Italian grappa producer Franciacort
• Asia stocks hit four-month high as Fed turns more cautious; dollar sags

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

High import duty restraining India’s potential in fine wine market: experts

Less Wine in Indian Markets, High Import Duty

Unit Value Per Litre of Total Wine Imports to China

EU Stands Up For Spanish Olives Against US Tariffs At WTO: Interview With Spanish Farmers Union

INVESTING IN WINE, COLLECTING & AUCTIONS

• Fine wine investment: What does the future hold?
• Year of the Pig – performance of “pig” vintages on the secondary market
• Mission to Own Every Bottle of Hennessy Cognac

HEALTH

• New advice for type 2 Diabetics: Drink wine
• Compound Found in Olives May Help Prevent Deadly Type of Breast Cancer

REGULATION & LEGAL MATTERS

• The three-tier system is rigged
• WA government to develop horticulture business case for North Wanneroo

MARKETING & SALES

• Californian wineries get creative with their marketing
• Hard seltzer sales triple for Super Bowl watch parties, challenging beer
• How To Sell Wine Into Restaurants Effectively *Sponsored Link*

MEDIA MATTERS

• Looking at the underbelly of wine

MATTERS OF TASTE

• Is wine an art?
• Napa Wine Now Has Two Distinct Styles
• Winemaking From Start to Finish (Told in Pictures)
• For Nemea and Saint George – Agiorgitiko Today
• Noble Rot in the Rheingau: The Rise and Fall of a Winegrowing Legacy
• 10 of the best cognac distillers, tours and tastings

WINE PLACES

• 5 Unexpected Wine Regions Producing the World’s Best Wines

AG, GROWER & CELLAR NEWS

• How Natural Wines Develop Reductive Notes
• Test tube wines

EUROPE & THE UK

• UK: Tax hikes on wine comes into effect tomorrow

DOWN UNDER

• OZ: Grape and wine producers unite as one peak body

OLIVE OIL

• All-female Cooperative Transforms Olive Oil Into Hope
• California Olives: New Process Removes Bitterness without the Waste

CRAFT BEVERAGES: BEER, CIDER, WINE & SPIRITS

• Being A Brewer In A Wine Country: A Challenging Business
• How to Make Wine Cocktails
• Whiskey Tech: Is This Robot The Future Of Whiskey?