November, 01, 2012 NZ: New winery owners plan $11m growth

(Stuff) - Treasury Wine Estate has bought Rapaura Vintners from Babich Winery and is planning an $11 million expansion. The international wine company is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange and owns vineyards and wineries around the world, including Matua Valley in Marlborough. It already ...

November, 01, 2012 Hong Kong's wine lovers opt for cheaper Bordeaux

(SCMP) - Hongkongers are no longer the world's biggest spenders on Bordeaux wines but are opting for more affordable bottles. Over the past year, the city imported and re-exported Bordeaux wines worth €300 million (HK$3 billion), a 12 per cent drop year on year. In contrast, import volumes clim...

November, 01, 2012 US: Fund Seeks $100 Million to Buy Vineyards

(Wines&Vines) - Well-known vineyard and winery investor Richard Wollack has formed a company to select and manage high-end vineyard properties with Chinese investors. Wollack, the founder and former managing principal of Premier Pacific Vineyards, is partnering with the Hina Group (a financial firm ...

November, 01, 2012 UK: MPs vote for a review of beer tax escalator

(TheDrinksBusiness) - The future of the beer tax escalator was debated in the House of Commons on Thursday and although the tax will remain MPs have voted for a review. MPs have voted for a review of the beer tax escalatorThe beer tax escalator was introduced by in 2008 by then-chancellor Alastai...

November, 01, 2012 UK: Oddbins joins with War Child to promote ‘wine not war’ with special edition Châteauneuf-du-Pape

(TheDrum) - Oddbins has launched a promotion with charity War Child, with a special edition of Châteauneuf-du-Pape to be sold to raise money. For every limited edition ‘wine not war’ bottle sold, Oddbins will donate £1 to the charity, which gives money to former child soldiers, children liv...

November, 01, 2012 US: Washington has new viticultural area

(TNT) - Washington has gained its newest American Viticultural Area. The Ancient Lakes of Columbia Valley has been approved by the U.S. government as the state’s 13th AVA, and wineries can begin using it on wine labels in mid-November. An AVA, commonly referred to as an appellation, is a federa...

November, 01, 2012 Patch could help you say goodbye to hangovers

(TheDrinksBusiness) - As the party season beckons revellers have been offered a helping hand with that morning after feeling with an American hangover “cure”. New patch could help with hangoversThe Bytox Hangover Prevention Patch, invented by plastic and reconstructive surgeon Dr Leonard Gros...

November, 01, 2012 Wine Porn: Do Some Labels Cross the Line?

(MyNewOrleans) - I was preparing a Happy Hour column about how and why wines and spirits interact with oak in the aging process, along with the ramifications of what oak brings to the party, when I was distracted by an ongoing discussion now unfolding in the wine world about questionable and suggest...