October, 18, 2011 US: Cool California weather keeps winemakers waiting

(Reuters) - Hollywood executive and winery owner Frank Rich says the movie and wine businesses have plenty in common -- especially as this year's late California harvest has winemakers waiting in the wings for grapes to ripen. Both of California's famed industries require big up-front investments, s...

October, 18, 2011 France: Appeal court upholds Red Bicyclette sentences

(Decanter) - The French appeal court in Montpellier has upheld the sentences handed down in the notorious Red Bicyclette fake Pinot Noir case. The Court has however made considerable changes to the sentences, imposed by a court in Carcassonne in February 2010. Ringleader Claude Courset of the né...

October, 18, 2011 US: Lodi Launches LoCA Wine Promotion

(Wines&Vines) - The Lodi Winegrape Commission (LWC) launched its “LoCA” consumer marketing campaign this week with a $500,000 budget for print and digital advertising to promote consumption of Lodi appellation wines and increase visits to Lodi wine country. LWC executive director Mark Chandler s...

October, 18, 2011 AUS: Vandals release $800,000 worth of wine down the drain at Yenda winery in NSW Riverina

(TheAustralian) - NEARLY 500,000 litres of wine worth over $800,000 has been emptied from tanks at a winery in the NSW Riverina. Police say vandals entered the Yenda winery and drained 10 tanks of mixed wine over the weekend. "Police are still investigating how it came to be drained out and wh...

October, 18, 2011 Italy's 2011 wine harvest smallest in 60 years

(Reuters) - Wine output in Italy fell to the lowest levels in more than 60 years this year hit by an extremely hot and dry September, but the new vintage quality is promising, an industry report said. Italy's wine output dropped to 4.03 billion litres in 2011, down 14 percent from last year and w...

October, 18, 2011 Bordeaux "second wines" offer first-class bargains

(Reuters) - If you can't afford a top bottle of Grand Cru from Bordeaux, you might be delighted to learn that most leading chateaux also make less expensive "second wines". In the quest for quality, Bordeaux vintners such as Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, Chateau Latour and many other famous names ha...

October, 18, 2011 Lot18 Ventures Turns Wine Into Wine Country Excursions

(Allthingsd) - Lot18, which offers wines online for a discount, is expanding into travel deals that are packaged especially for lovers of the fermented grape.With the launch of the travel vertical, the members-only flash sales site treads more heavily into the territory of others who have been worki...

October, 18, 2011 Daily glass of wine can reduce risk of osteoporosis

(NetDoctor) - A glass of wine a day can help strengthen bones and reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis, according to new research. Researchers from the University of East Anglia and Kings College London conducted a study of over 1,000 pairs of female twins to discover more about the relatio...