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Fri, 10 Sep 2004
- Slate's Medical Examiner: AWOL Inhalable
Alcohol
NPR's Noah Adams speaks with Slate contributor Amanda Schaffer about a new device
that allows people to inhale alcohol. The maker says the device -- called Alcohol
Without Liquid, or AWOL -- won't produce serious hangovers. But Schaffer says inhalable
alcohol could prove to be even more addictive than traditional drinks.
Wines from the sole of Italy
The arrival of modern
technologies has helped make many underrated wines from southern Italy and Sicily
very drinkable.
But is the wine
organic?
Is the wine 'organic'?
It's a frequently asked question at cellar door tastings. While most weekend wine
tasters want to believe that being 'organic' is both desirable and environmentally
responsible, many are not so sure why.
Wine industry innovator dead at 38
Jimi Brooks was a charismatic
and well-respected member of the new wave of Oregon winemakers. So his sudden death
Saturday of an apparent heart attack - at the youthful age of 38 - sent a current
of shock and sadness coursing through the local wine industry.
While France
Worries Over Large Crop, Bordeaux Starts Harvest
The 2004 harvest got rolling in Bordeaux this week under sunny skies clouded only
by fears that a large crop could deepen the French wine industry's oversupply crisis.
Constellation Brands downgraded to "market
perform" - update
Analysts at Wachovia Securities downgrade Constellation Brands from "outperform"
to "market perform," while reducing their estimates for the company.
Northern Cape
wine gets a foothold in Malaysia
"From Keimoes to Kuala Lumpur" is how wine writer Melvyn Minnaar describes
it. It is not a book, a play or a movie but a chance for the Orange River Wine Cellars
(OWK) to gain a toehold in the Far Eastern wine market and came about when a Malaysian
business agreed to import fruit juice and 15 containers of wine valued at R3.3 million.
Achieving global competitiveness
Global competitiveness
starts with a passion to make world-class products. It builds on these strengths
with a sharp customer focus and an understanding of the emotional needs of the consumer.
What are some of the strategies the South African wine industry can bring into play,
to achieve maximum global competitiveness? Mike Carter offers some insights.
Montelena joins
the list of tainted wineries
Wine Spectator magazine
has outed a fourth winery whose cellar is tainted by TCA (2,4,6-trichloroanisole).
This time it's Chateau Montelena, the historical Calistoga producer whose 1973 Napa
and Alexander Valleys Chardonnay won the famous Paris Tasting in 1976.
Thu, 09 Sep 2004
- Parker Predicts
The Future For Wine
Robert M. Parker, Jr., the world's foremost wine guru, makes 12 bold predictions
about seismic changes that will influence how we'll shop, what we'll buy and how
much we'll pay.
It bubbles, it sparkles, it's Coppola's
wine in a can
Iconic winery
gets $17m revamp
ONE of South Australia's oldest wineries, Tintara Winery at McLaren Vale, will undergo
a $17 million redevelopment. The redevelopment of the 143-year-old winery, part of
the Hardy Wine Company, will take six years to complete.
21st century
chieftains: Rich harvest for (viti)culture
From the urban insanity that is New York and Boston, from other overcrowded cities
on the US eastern seaboard, sales men and women every northern winter fly to the
remote but sun-kissed Awatere Valley in Marlborough, one of the vineyards that provide
Tohu Wines with its viticultural nectar.
2005 Unified Wine & Grape Symposium
In late summer and early
fall, while most attention in the wine and grape industry was turned to the harvest,
a group of 28 industry leaders were hard at work putting together the program for
the 2005 Unified Wine & Grape Symposium, to take place at the Sacramento Convention
Center on January 25-27, 2005.
U.S. wine consumption
at all-time high
Consumption of wine rose
5.2 percent last year to 2.98 gallons per adult in the United States, according to
the Adams Wine Handbook.
Bad cork?
Cork taint has become
a serious issue for the wine industry, with manufacturers increasingly moving towards
plastic corks because they are deemed to be less of a risk. However, UK-based Instruments
has developed a series of solutions to the problem that have now been completed with
the addition of its sample grip.
Wed, 08 Sep 2004
- Homemade pinot noir a winner
They blame beginners' luck, but there is more than chance to this winemaking duo's
winning pinot noir. Bill and Pam Francis, with not an ounce of previous winemaking
experience, recently won a bronze medal for a wine made in the garage using a barrel
and electric blankets.
Wine drinking seen to reduce mortality
in those with high BP
A moderate intake of wine
is associated with a lower risk of mortality from all causes in people with raised
blood pressure, reports a French team.
US: Wine 'doggie bag' law to kick in
this week
A new law, which will
allow restaurant patrons to take home a partially consumed bottle of wine providing
they consumed a full course meal, takes effect on Thursday, September 9th.
Wine glut sets export records
Wine exports have surged with the release of the first wines from the 2004 vintage,
winegrowers say.
White grape harvest begins in Bordeaux
The Bordeaux harvest began
yesterday with workers at first growth Chateau Haut-Brion starting to pick the Sauvignon
Blanc for the estate?s white wines.
FRANCE: Pernod Ricard launches share
buyback
Pernod Ricard has begun
its share buyback programme.
SA: Distell to
appeal against bottle ruling
Distell, the wine and spirits producer, said yesterday it would appeal against a
Cape high court ruling that the bottle in which it sold its Grönberger wines
- known as a böcksbeutel - should be removed from the trademark register.
Tue, 07 Sep 2004
- A sense of place for Rhône wines
People in the wine business speak longingly about a sense of place. By this, they
mean wines that through aroma and flavor convey the special combination of soil,
climate and the human touch that are encompassed in the mystical French word terroir.
A wine with a sense of place adds a new chapter in a story that continues, year after
year. Some chapters are more fascinating than others, but they are all similar tales.
Wine Exports Jump with 2004 Vintage
Following release of the
first wines from vintage 2004 wine exports have surged in the first two months of
the 2004/05 year according to New Zealand Winegrowers.
NAPA: 2004 Harvest
Report -- Week 4
The two days of heat at
the end of last week sent the Pinot Noir remaining on the vines into a rapid sugar
accumulation (read raisining). But cooler weather at the start of this week has prolonged
the harvest window. As the heat that is promised for the end of this week arrives,
we should see most houses finishing up with their Pinot.
AUS: Trend estimate for domestic wine
sales down 0.8%
Figures released by the
Australian Bureau of Statistics show the trend estimate for domestic sales of Australian-produced
wine was 34.5ML in July 2004. This is a decrease of 0.8% compared to June 2004, but
an increase of 1.2% compared to July 2003.
Phytonutrient flexibility from ARS
The US government
science agency has made available a new tool to help food scientists undergoing research
into the burgeoning field of phytonutrients, used increasingly by food makers looking
to grab a share of the growing health food market.
Mon, 06 Sep 2004
- SA wines up there with world's best
reports The Washington Post
Michael Franz set out on a mammoth tasting of South African wines in pursuit of answers
to the following questions: Can Africa consistently achieve excellence from year
to year?; Can it show depth, with many excellent wines in particular categories,
or does it have only a few star wineries?; Can it achieve excellence with a broad
range of wine types, or is it just a niche player?
US: Wine stomping
good time
The moment was repeated
live at the 12th annual Pennsylvania Wine and Food Festival held recently at Seven
Springs Mountain Resort.
AUS: Glut good
news for red fans
Wine lovers are enjoying
their cheapest drinks in five years, thanks to the combination of a fierce price
war and a glut in red-wine grapes.
Excellent wine
vintage expected this year in Italy
This year's wine harvest
should be one of the best in the past decade, Italian wine experts said on Saturday.
CANADA: Winemakers blend estate craftsmanship,
conglomerate clout
The head of North America?s
fourth-largest wine company and owner of a large stable of international wineries
and vineyards sees a global future for British Columbia wines.
Allied Domecq
2004 Profit `In Line, Bolstered by U.S. Growth
Allied Domecq Plc, the
maker of Malibu rum and Baskin-Robbins ice creams, said its fiscal 2004 earnings
were "in line with expectations," helped by growth in the U.S
US: Wine.com to decant $20 million in
funding
Online retailer Wine.com
is expected to announce a new round of venture funding on Wednesday, to be used to
bolster its redesign efforts and move into personalized features for customers.
US: Labels have a say in vineyard's
success, appeal
Bill Brinton was ready
for a change. Although his Charles Creek Vineyard is just 2 years old, the California
wine maker felt the label on his wines just wasn't telling the story.
Sun, 05 Sep 2004
- 'Sensational' vintage for English wine?
English wine producers
are watching the skies with bated breath as they hope for an excellent vintage despite
the wettest summer for decades.
SA: Shiraz steals the show at SAA
... and Sauvignon Blanc
excites. South African wines are riper with higher alcohols than ever. Pinotage impressed,
though Cabs tended to be on the green side. Where are the Rieslings? What the judges
had to say...
Australian wine on a global roll
The landscape at Mount
Pleasant Estate has all the markings of New South Wales gentility. But in an estate
office, Phillip Ryan, the chief winemaker for McWilliam's Wines, talked of his company's
new distribution agreement with E.&J. Gallo Winery, making aggressive forecasts
for the American market. "We plan to double, treble, quadruple sales over the
foreseeable future," Ryan said.
SWITZERLAND: Hess merges Euro wine exports
The Swiss Hess Group is
merging its wine export activities in continental Europe. The move follows the group?s
recent acquisition of a substantial majority interest in the Australian wine producer
Peter Lehmann Wines and acquisition of full control of Glen Carlou Vineyards in South
Africa.
Canada's Vincor
Adds South African Wines to its Global Portfolio
Canadian giant Vincor
International, which already owns wineries in California, Washington, Australia and
New Zealand, has bought a privately held British firm, Western Wines, owner of Kumala,
the biggest-selling South African brand in the United Kingdom. The purchase price
was nearly US$243 million, which includes US$89.5 million in assumed debt.
Chilean Wine
Exports Increase nearly 20 percent
Chilean bottled wine exports
totaled US$363.3million in the first seven months of 2004, an increase of 19.2 percent
over exports of US$304.9 million in the same period in 2003.
AUS: Wine exports up in July, down on
month
Exports of Australian
wine rose year-on-year in July, according to figures released today. The Australian
Bureau of Statistics said that exports were up for the month by 9.5% year-on-year,
but fell by 8.6% against June this year.
US: High-Tech
Wine Grapes
Northern California's
wine grape harvest is underway. Growers say warm weather last March accelerated the
growth cycle this year with some varieties ready for picking two weeks earlier than
last year. Technology is playing a larger role in cultivating higher quality grapes.
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