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Fri, 23 Jul 2004
- 2000
deemed a good year for red Bordeaux - at all price levels
Robert M. Parker Jr., the world's most influential wine critic, declared 2000 "a
phenomenal year that might turn out to be one of the greatest vintages Bordeaux has
ever produced." The Wine Spectator magazine called it the best vintage for red
Bordeaux since 1961.
Say si to Spanish
wines
Because tapas aren't the same without enjoying Spanish wine, we went to Louisville
wine expert Scott Harper for advice. Harper manages the Bristol Bar & Grille
downtown, where he's featuring Spanish wines this month, and teaches wine classes
at Bellarmine University.
Wine
and headaches
In many of the wine seminars I conduct, the most-asked question from novice wine
drinkers is: What about additives? In fact, it came up just the other day, with a
gentleman adding, "I get headaches from California wine but not from French
wine, so the Californians must be adding chemicals to their wines."
Off
Odor Found in Small Batch of Nomacorc in Germany and Austria
German trade magazine Weinbrau reported that an off odor in a batch of Nomacorcs
in Germany and Austria earlier this year was attributed to a talc product used to
make Nomacorc in Europe. The raw talc material is used as a frothing agent in the
core of the Nomacorcs and was limited to and affected one specific lot.
US:
Wi-Fi Hits the Vineyard
Owners of a Sonoma Country vineyard are now using Wi-Fi technology to more carefully
monitor growing conditions at their site. Chris and Lorna Strotz, who grow grapes
on their Pickberry Vineyard for Ravenswood Winery, are testing technology developed
by Palo Alto, Calif.-based Accenture Technology Labs that enables them to keep an
eye on their vines, even from afar.
Thu, 22 Jul 2004
- France takes on
New World in wine export drive
PARIS: France launched a plan on Wednesday to help its struggling wine industry regain
its sparkle on international markets, where it has been losing ground to New World
producers. The government said it would double funds to promote the nation's wine
outside France, allow lower-quality exporters to market their goods by the grape
variety rather than the region they come from and permit new forms of wine-making
technology.
FRANCE: Boisset joins screwcap ranks
Burgundian negociant Jean-Claude Boisset will be using screwcap instead of cork closures
for 2500 bottles of three top red appellations. 'Screwcap is our future', Boisset
head winemaker Gregory Patriat said, adding that he had become a strong supporter
of screwcaps after tasting a 1976 Mercurey that was sealed under screwcap and had
aged very well.
New
UK Wine Magazine Launch
Fine Wine, a new bimonthly wine magazine, has just been launched. With Hugh Johnson
as editorial advisor and Andrew Jefford as contributing editor, the magazine aims
to offer "an authoritative and independent view of the world's finest wines."
The editor is Neil Beckett, who previously was with the Harpers industry trade publication.
Record vintage in
line with hopes
The record 2004 New Zealand grape vintage was in line with expectations said New
Zealand Winegrowers today as it released the results of the 2004 Vintage Survey.
Winery expectations about wine quality from the vintage are high given the favourable
growing and ripening season in most regions, said NZW.
AUS:
Mapping out wine growth
Winery numbers in the Barossa increased by more than double in just over a decade.
In 1991 there were 40 wineries, but by 2002 the number increased to 87. The Barossa
numbers are indicative of the enormous growth of the wine industry right across Australia
as revealed in a social atlas of Australian wine regions.
Czech wine consumption
may grow by up to 8 pct this year
PRAGUE- Wine consumption in the Czech Republic could increase by roughly 7-8 per
cent this year, Dalibor Sebela of major Czech wine maker Bohemia Sekt said after
Wednesday's press conference.
SA:
Agriculture & wine
Cape Town - Small wineries with debt would find it almost impossible to survive in
the export market because of the strength of the rand, Su Birch, the chief executive
of Wines of South Africa, said yesterday.
US: Constellation
shareholders re-elect board
The US drinks giant Constellation Brands yesterday saw stockholders at the company's
2004 Annual Stockholders' Meeting vote to re-elected all seven incumbent members
to the board of directors for one-year terms.
ARGENTINA: May wine
exports soar, volumes dip
Argentine wine exports in May this year leapt by 29% year-on-year, according to figures
released yesterday. The Argentine National Viticulture Institute (INV) said that
exports for the month hit US$16.8 m (Ä13.64 m).
Wed, 21 Jul 2004
- From the West, here come the Rhone Rangers
Roaming the hills and plateaus of the West, the Rhone Rangers maintain their lonely
mission: to sway the drinkers of America away from our safe zones of chardonnay and
cabernet sauvignon, into somewhat spicier territory.
Emile Peynaud dies at 92
Professor Emile Peynaud, the forefather of modern oenology and a former Decanter
Man of the Year, has died aged 92. Over a career spanning 46 years, Peynaud wrote
nearly 300 scientific articles as well as books on tasting and oenology. He played
a key role in influencing winemaking practices in Bordeaux for several decades.
Talking
wine: How much wine is too much?
If you drink wine long enough, in spite of everyone's best intentions and most concerted
efforts, you're eventually going to drink a little too much wine. Or way too much
wine. We've all done it, and the smart ones hail a taxi while the stupid and irresponsible
ones unwisely drive themselves home.
AUS:
Consolidation in the wine industry: is bigger always better?
Global wine production and retailing have undergone massive consolidation over recent
years. So the prices and the ease of purchase have improved for most consumers and
consumption has grown in non-traditional markets. But consumer choice has also decreased
as supermarkets now only stock well-known and highly promoted brands from large companies.
UK: Gallo launches
250ml Sierra Valley
Ernest & Julio Gallo is to add to its portfolio in the UK with the introduction
of 250ml bottles to its Sierra Valley range. The new single-serve format will be
introduced to Sierra Valley's premier Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and
White Grenache varietals.
North America's
Wine School Opens it Doors
Philadelphia is reclaiming its spot as America's premier wine city; the nation's
first wine school is opening its doors at 2006 Fairmount Avenue in the Art Museum
Area of the city. Beginning this week, The Wine School of Philadelphia is offering
classes and certification programs open to the public.
US:
Stopping the sharpshooter: Searching for solutions
On the outskirts of a dusty Central Valley town near the foot of the Tehachapi Mountains,
California Department of Food and Agriculture scientists are breeding tiny wasps
to keep the vine-killing Pierce's disease from coming to Napa County and other areas
blanketed by valuable vineyards.
US:
Mondavi Vineyard: Mercury kilns or not?
Two months after the release of a report about a 160-acre south Napa vineyard proposed
by Robert Mondavi Winery, a number of organizations are raising questions about what
might be three abandoned mercury kilns at the site.
US: Charmer-Sunbelt
Group Selected as Exclusive Distributor for Allied Domecq Spirits & Wine in Several
States
Charmer-Sunbelt Group, a leading distributor of fine wines, spirits, beers and bottled
water is pleased to announce that it has been awarded long-term exclusive distribution
rights for Allied Domecq Spirits & Wine North America's (NYSE: AED) full portfolio
of spirits and wine brands in the states of Maryland and Florida and the District
of Columbia. Representing Allied Domecq's premium portfolio in these ma
Tue, 20 Jul 2004
- AUS:
Reprieve for wine grower
Financially troubled winemaker Andrew Garrett has been given a month to prove he
can pay more than $10million to his creditors and ward off being declared a bankrupt.
However, a string of those creditors, big and small, lined up yesterday in the Federal
Court in Adelaide to demand that Mr Garrett be immediately declared bankrupt because
they had no faith he could come up with the money.
France's
wine industry deals with its crisis
The new wine is called Permis de Conduire, or Driving license, and will be marketed
with a pink label which is the same color as the document that permits French people
to sit behind the wheel of a car. The wine in the 25cl bottle, the label claims,
"corresponds to a concentration of alcohol not greater than 0.25mg per liter
of exhaled air or 0.5 parts of alcohol to each 1,000 parts of blood, if two people
share the bottle."
Archaeologists
Uncover What May Be the Oldest U.S. Wine Cellar
Archaeologists working at Jamestown, Va., have uncovered a brick-lined wine cellar,
filled with intact wine bottles, that appears to date to the late 1600s. "This
is one of the earliest wine cellars discovered in America," said William Kelso,
director of archaeology for the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities
(APVA). The APVA's Jamestown Rediscovery project is investigating what remains of
the first permanent English colony in America.
UK: England expects
too much
A couple of weeks ago, an over-hyped survey found that one English sparkling wine,
Nyetimber Classic Cuvee 1996, was judged better than a prize-winning Tesco Premier
Cru Champagne. Nyetimber is now owned by songwriter Andy Hill, who appropriately
wrote music for the scantily-clad 80s pop group, Bucks Fizz. No doubt this Dunkirk
victory brings rejoicing in the vineyards of Wittering-on-the-Wye and suchlike, but
I'm not persuaded.
Anderson
Valley Pinot Noir comes of age
For all its enduring rustic charm, Mendocino County's Anderson Valley, a little slice
of heaven about two hour's drive north of the Golden Gate Bridge, is showing signs
of change and development. Nothing drastic, mind you, but evident nevertheless.
Mon, 19 Jul 2004
- Where is Greek wine
today?
The fact that Greece produces some fine wine is now known by many serious wine lovers
around the globe and believed fervently by all Greeks, even if they are in practice
much more enthusiastic consumers of cigarettes and mobile phones (12 million units
reportedly owned by a total population, including children and those too old to text,
of 11 million). Beer, ouzo and other spirits are often more commonly drunk in Greece
than wine, except in the smarter restaurants. Perhaps it is because most Greeks encounter
good quality wine mainly on restaurant wine lists with their customary high mark-ups
that the pricing of Greek wine seems relatively ambitious in an international context.
Pleasures from far
down south in Uruguay
What does Uruguay have in common with New Zealand and South Africa? Politically,
not much. Culturally, even less. But geographically, Uruguay perches along the same
parallels as these up-and-coming wine countries, and like them, Uruguay is rapidly
emerging as a trendy "cusp" region just beginning to make waves in the
sea of delicious, affordable wines
AUS: Industry ponders
terms for Port/Sherry
Australia's peak wine industry organisation has begun a round of consultations to
drop the terms port and sherry from labels and find alternative terminology. The
discussions anticipate agreement in government to government negotiations with the
European Union which bars the use of such terms outside their geographic places of
origin.
US:
Four counties to vote on modified crops ban
A network of anti-biotech activists has succeeded in placing initiatives banning
genetically modified crops on the November ballots in four California counties as
part of a plan to create a patchwork quilt of GMO-free regions.
US:
Wines & Vines plucked by Sonoma publisher
Wines & Vines magazine, calling itself "The Authoritative Voice of the Grape
and Wine Industry since 1919," has been acquired by Sonoma-based Wine Communications
Group, publisher of the Wine Business Insider and Wine Business Monthly industry
publications.
US:
Riesling still rules in Michigan as the Northwest recoups from winter damage in '03
Judging from what I've personally tasted and can deduce from 2004 competition results,
Michigan continues to build its future on Riesling. So far this year, Rieslings from
Fenn Valley, Black Star, Tabor Hill, St. Julian and Chateau Grand Traverse have won
golds -- and the state's own Michigan State Fair Competition is still to come on
July 23. For three of those wineries -- Fenn Valley, Tabor Hill and Chateau Grand
Traverse -- the golds came for wines from the difficult 2003 vintage.
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