August, 14, 2012 Extra-dry weather a bittersweet harvest for US winemakers

(Reuters) - Winemakers in drought-hit parts of the United States are predicting a smaller and earlier 2012 harvest but see an upside in higher-quality production because of the high heat and lack of rain. Emerging wine-producing areas such as the Midwest and South -- California is the top U.S. wi...

August, 13, 2012 Wine imports give Chinese firms a hangover

(ChinaDaily) - Chinese consumers' growing preference for imported wine is expected to pile further pressure on beleaguered domestic wine brands, according to industry analysts. Imported wine currently accounts for around 25 percent of the Chinese market, industry analysts said....

August, 13, 2012 Billionaire Foley wins vote for control of NZ Wine Co

(BusinessDesk) - Foley Family Wines, owned by the California-based billionaire Bill Foley, will take control of New Zealand Wine Company, adding the Grove Mill, Sanctuary and Frog Haven brands to its suite of local wines. NZ Wine Co shareholders approved the merger at a special general meeting in...

August, 13, 2012 Pesticide Levels In Wine From China "No Risk To Health," Gov't Says

(Forbes) - Pesticide residue in Chinese red wine poses no threat to health, the country’s Ministry of Health said yesterday, according to a report in today’s state-published Shanghai Daily. The Securities Market Weekly of Beijing said last week 10 samples from three wineries including giant C...

August, 13, 2012 WHISKY BOTTLE NAMED WORLD’S LARGEST

(TheDrinksBusiness) - A whisky bottle holding more than 9,000 drams has been declared the largest in the world. The bottle stands at 5ft 5in tall and took three hours to be filled with The Famous Grouse blended whisky. It surpassed its 200-litre target by more than 10% and holds the equivalent of...

August, 13, 2012 US: Restart for Mendocino Wine Industry

(Wines&Vines) - It didn’t take long for grapegrowers and winemakers to reunite after growers shot down the state-administered Mendocino Winegrape and Wine Commission (MWWC) earlier this year. Members have chosen a name for a new and voluntary alliance of growers and vintners—Mendocino Winegrower...

August, 13, 2012 Chinese and Brazilian wine: hello UK

(FT) - “Made in China” is a familiar mark on many products in the UK, but not imported wine. That is about to change, as Waitrose has announced that it will become the first British supermarket to stock Chinese and Brazilian wine later this month. Following the successful launch of two Indian...

August, 13, 2012 DON'T BET ON BRET

(NewWorldWinemaker) - Have you met Brett? Brett is mentioned so often in the wine industry that you might think he's Robert Parker's protégé nephew. Not so, but the truth is just as controversial. Brett, known technically as Brettanomyces bruxellensis, is a yeast. That puts it into the same cat...