Fri, 31 Oct 2003

Wine doesn't stop heart attacks: study
A new study suggests drinking a glass or two of red wine a day does not protect you from a heart attack. The study was done by the University of Manitoba's Alcohol and Tobacco Research Unit.

Moods for Moderns: Pink Champagne
Let the neighbors rig up their 40-foot, live-candle Christmas tree or present little pots of caviar so precious that each egg is like the last stand of an endangered species. It's the subtle touches that are actually the sweetest at holiday time, the quiet nuances that soothe our distracted psyches into moods of sharing and celebration.

New Book Tells the Life Story of the God of Wine
Wine lovers are quite familiar with the name Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and revelry. Now they can read more about him in a new book that treats the myth as if he were a man

Women's queries lead to wine book
Here's the situation: She and her husband have been seated in a restaurant. The server approaches and hands the wine list to her husband. He explains to the server that his wife, not he, is the wine expert in the family.

Choose your capsule
Has the "capsule," that simple metal or plastic sheath that wraps around the business end of most wine bottles, outlived its usefulness?

Another coup for new world wines
Jane Hunter put Marlborough, women and wine in the spotlight last night when she won the international Women in Wine Award. Hunter's Wines founder and managing director won the inaugural award for her long term commitment to Marlborough, New Zealand and wine, leading judges to call her an inspiration to any woman working in wine.

CAN: Vincor International announces continuing record sales
Vincor International Inc. (TSX: VN), one of North America's largest producers of wine and related products, today reported second quarter financial results for its 2004 fiscal year. For the three-month period ended September 30, 2003, Vincor reported an 11.6% increase in net sales and a 25.9% increase in net income over the corresponding period in the previous year. Net sales in the quarter were a record $120.7 million and net income was $14.1 million, or $0.51 a share on a diluted basis.

Lifestyles change wine retailing
Wine retailing has altered dramatically with the spread of the grocery channel and changing consumer lifestyles, according to a new report. KPMG's Wine Industry Group has released its second major industry study, entitled Shelf space... is there room for me?

Thu, 30 Oct 2003

President he was; winemaker he is - Jimmy Carter
When one thinks of the most-expensive wines in the world, perhaps the Rothschild clan of Bordeaux comes to mind. Heidi Barrett's Screaming Eagle is a great first thought. Penfolds' Grange Hermitage was recently released for more than $250 per bottle and classic vintages go for thousands.

Wine drinkers walk, beer drinkers walk to pub
From the more reserved wine drinker to the A-type beer swiller, the kind of alcohol someone quaffs often indicates a certain personality type, a new study by researchers in Winnipeg concludes.

Wine may extend human lives
Red wine has long been known to reduce heart disease as part of the "French Paradox," but a new study shows that one compound in red wine may actually prolong the human life span.

Black wine maker says 'cheers' at last
When Jabulani Ntshangase romped through the fields of KwaZulu Natal as a boy, he didn't imagine he would be the country's first black wine producer. Especially since his grandmother had drummed into his head that he shouldn't imbibe alcohol because "all her children were alcoholics".

ITALY: A new era for Italy's central wine regions
Although the wines of Northern and Southern Italy get all the attention, big changes are also occurring in Italy's belt, the region extending from Rome across the narrow peninsula to the Adriatic Coast.

Just a few drops of water go a long way
All manner of inexpensive wine tastes as though it has had the flavor and character diluted out of it by stretching with water, possibly the oldest form of wine fraud in the book. But how would you feel if a winemaker told you he was only adding water to make the wine taste better? That's a more difficult one, isn't it?

Leaving the oak behind gives the fruit a chance to shine
French and American oak barrels -- those most commonly used by New World winemakers -- cost up to $650 apiece. Wines fermented and aged in these barrels get a boost in texture and can take on aromas and flavors of toast, smoke, vanilla, spice and coconut.

NZ could be top wine country outside Europe
New Zealand could be the top wine producing country outside Europe in 20 years time, a new book reveals. Wine in New Zealand, just released, shows some critics favour New Zealand to be one of the leading wine producing countries in the world in 20 years.

Wed, 29 Oct 2003

US: Enjoying Wine Safely
Governor George E. Pataki has announced a new partnership with New York's wine and grape producers to reduce the potential risk of impaired driving by wine-tasting tourists and other wine consumers.

Breathe easy wine lovers...
A glass of red with dinner could help you breathe a little easier at night and help prevent emphysema, research suggests. Red wine, long thought to be good for your heart, may also be good for your lungs, says a report soon to be published in the international medical journal Thorax.

Standing Up to a Wine That's Not Always a Standout
While the wine panel agreed that most super-Tuscans we tasted were less than super, these wines were at least respectable, and often make very good choices for a drink with dinner. A number were original blends, deep in fruit and not shy on tannins, all qualities that make for easy pairing.

South African Semillon
Variety might be touted as the spice of life, but stray far from Cabernet, Chardonnay, Shiraz or Sauvignon Blanc, and it quickly becomes clear that the rest of the varietal, or style bunch, is spoken of in rather patronizing tones and soon passed over.

US: Country-of-origin labels for food trigger debate
New mandatory labels would distinguish foreign-grown from domestic food, under controversial rules proposed Monday. Amid heavy lobbying and considerable Central Valley anxiety, the Agriculture Department rolled out some compromise proposals for country-of-origin labels. Farmers, grocers and consumers all have a big stake in what happens next.

Red Wine Ingredient May Fight COPD
A new study shows resveratrol, a compound found in the skins of red fruits such as grapes, may slow down the inflammatory process involved in the lung disease COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

US:Wine vintners hope smaller picking tubs reap big benefits
Gregorio Rodales has been picking merlot grapes since dawn, gloved hands darting in and out of the pale green leaves as his hooked knife nicks bunches of dusty purple fruit off the slender vines.

An Aussie Winery's Bitter Harvest
Peruse the shelves of your local supermarket or wine shop and you'd think that Southcorp is going great guns. With brands such as Lindemans, Rosemount Estate, and Penfold's, Australia's No. 1 wine company seems to be everywhere. But despite booming sales in the U.S., Southcorp has been struggling.

Production and consumption Trends with Chardonnay in AUS
At last weeks Gisborne Chardonnay Challenge, delegates at the associated NZ Chardonnay Forum listened to papers presented by the three key note speakers on the opportunities and threats for New Zealand Chardonnay in each of their own markets. In today's news we bring you the first of the papers, titled Australian Trends in Winemaking and the Market, written and presented by Huon Hooke. One of Australia's most respected wine journalists, author, judges and educators, Huon writes for the Sydney Morning Herald, Australian Gourmet Traveller, Plus Decanter in the UK. Two more papers will be published over the next week or so covering the US and UK market for New Zealand Chardonnay. The forum was a New Zealand Winegrowers' initiative.

Mon, 27 Oct 2003

Time to drink a red? Chill out first
The rule book dictates that we chill whites and serve reds at room temperature. Well, the rule book is wrong. Unless you live in a house as cold as a Scottish dormitory, red wines are far from their best at room temperature.

Wine Ups Risk of Infection After Surgery
How much wine? The risk of surgical-site infections was nearly three times higher in men who drank more than six 4.25-ounce glasses of wine - equal to about four U.S.-size glasses of wine - every day. And the risk was even higher for very heavy drinkers.

US: Original California wine country vanishing
Don Galleano swivels his chair away from a cluttered roll-top desk, stands up and walks past a skinned rattlesnake on the wall. He slides out the swinging door into dusty terrain where gnarled Zinfandel vines have been growing for nearly a century.

Diners pay through the nose for wine
Scottish diners are being charged as much as a staggering 335% more than available wholesale prices for a bottle of wine when they sit down for a meal in some restaurants.

Mondavi earnings beat expectations
Oakville-based Robert Mondavi Corp. saw its stock jump Thursday as it reported strong earnings in the wake of a painful and expensive restructuring.

U.S: Wine Consumption Projected to Increase 5 Percent in 2003
Total wine consumption in the United States increased 6 percent in 2002 to 245 million 9-liter cases, and is expected to grow by another 5 percent this year, according to The U.S. Wine Market: Impact Databank Review and Forecast, 2003 Edition. The exclusive research indicates that the wine market will continue to expand to more than 300 million cases by 2010.

Turnaround for California Wine Industry?
Leading US winemaker Robert Mondavi Corp. reported a 22 percent jump in first quarter earnings Thursday, heralding a possible turnaround for the depressed California wine industry.

ITALY: Wine Exports to Canada in 1st Half Year up 5.8 pct
Canada is celebrating Italian wine with a four day event promoted by ICE (The Institute of Foreign Trade). From Sicily to Piedmont and including Tuscany, more than 300 products from all the Italian regions will be the protagonists of a 'tasting' festival in Canada's most important cities. Canada is a market with great potential.

CANADA: Cops OK with new wine law
It'll be business as usual in liquor possession enforcement when liberalized wine laws come into effect tomorrow, say city police. The law will allow diners to bring their own bottle of wine to restaurants that allow it and to take home any leftover vino.

Australia's Foster's/Outlook: US Wine Having Impact
Australia's Foster's Group Ltd. Monday said its continues to expected steady earnings growth in the first half of fiscal 2004 from the same time a year ago.

Sun, 26 Oct 2003

Profit falls at Allied Domecq
Montana wines owner Allied Domecq said fiscal 2003 profit dropped 13 per cent after it incurred higher pension costs and charges for inventory reductions in Spain and the US.

Wine production rises in China
China produced more than 140,000 tons of wine during the first half of the year, up 5.7 percent from the corresponding period last year. The figure was released at the 2003 national autumn trade fair on sweets and alcoholic drinks in Shenyang, capital of the northeastern province of Liaoning.

US: Wine Consumption Projected to Increase 5 Percent
Total wine consumption in the United States increased 6 percent in 2002 to 245 million 9-liter cases, and is expected to grow by another 5 percent this year, according to The U.S. Wine Market: Impact Databank Review and Forecast, 2003 Edition. The exclusive research indicates that the wine market will continue to expand to more than 300 million cases by 2010.

India develops a taste for wine
When you walk into an Indian restaraunt and order chicken Makni Tikka, you probably aren't thinking about which Indian wine goes best with the dish. But that may soon change.

Italian winemakers had challenging 2003 harvest
Abnormally hot and dry weather in Italy this summer created problems for Italian wineries, but the unusual weather could also produce stunning wines. Very high temperatures up to 104 degrees produced rich, high-alcohol "California"-type wines in many areas, but it also meant that harvest started in early August, four weeks earlier than usual.

US: Wine flows where tobacco no longer grows
For tobacco growers Glen and Judy Clements, hard times led them to fling open their lives and invite in some strangers to save them.