October, 01, 2010 'Finest' vineland under threat in Australia

Land hailed as Australia’s finest undeveloped vineyard site is under threat from developers. Construction company Fairmont has submitted plans for at least 1,200 homes and a major retail park on a 77-hectare site in McLaren Vale, just south of Adelaide.This development at the gateway to McLaren V...

October, 01, 2010 Most Sonoma Wines Must Say 'Sonoma County'

Sonoma, Calif. -- On Sept. 24, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law AB1798, the Sonoma County conjunctive wine label initiative. The new law takes effect Jan. 1, with a three-year phase-in period. Wineries must comply by Jan. 1, 2014.What does this mean for Sonoma County wineries? ...

October, 01, 2010 Ascentia Wine Estates claims legal victory over W.J. Deutsch

Eight Estates Wine Holdings, the parent of Healdsburg’s Ascentia Wine Estates, said Friday that a Delaware judge has thrown out a lawsuit against it by former marketing partner W.J. Deutsch & Sons.The ruling was announced in Chancery Court in Dover, Del., on Thursday, according to an Oct. 1 statem...

September, 30, 2010 Wine tourism in India catching on

The Indian wine market is accelerating quicker than you can say “cheers”.Bouncing back from the global financial meltdown and the Mumbai terror attacks — which affected tourism, the hotel industry and general spending — it appears that nothing can dampen the spirits of India’s wine pioneer...

September, 30, 2010 Prime French vineyards left bare after 'wine mafia’ strikes

French wine growers have fallen victim to a “mafia” which is systematically stealing entire crops of grapes. The criminals strip acres of vines bare and, overnight, take what can represent a year’s work for the farmer, which can mean financial ruin for the grower as agricultural insurance tend...

September, 30, 2010 Colorado Winegrowers Still Feel December Freeze

Grand Junction, Colo. -- Nearly 10 months after frigid temperatures seized acres of dormant vines on Colorado’s Western Slope, the region’s winegrape growers are still managing the fallout. And according to winemaker Nancy Janes, who owns Whitewater Hill Vineyards & Winery in Grand Junction, the...

September, 30, 2010 Water Into Wine: A High-Tech Path to Legal Distillation

For years I have been distilling illegally in my rotary evaporator because the products are delicious. I don't feel bad about being a scofflaw—our distillation laws are preposterous.Distillation is defined in the United States as any process that separates ethanol from an ethanol-containing mixtur...

September, 29, 2010 Wash. wine group lures buyers to state's vineyards

WAPATO, Wash. -- More then three dozen wine buyers from major U.S. restaurants and retailers are plucking grapes from vines and swirling and sipping wines during a road trip through Washington wine country this week, part of a concerted effort to raise the industry's profile outside the Pacific Nor...