September, 20, 2013 Fine wine market remains fragile

(Decanter) - A majority of merchants surveyed by fine wine index Liv-ex believe that prices will edge upwards in the remainder of 2013, but experts warn the market is still weak.  Liv-ex said 87% of those surveyed forecast higher prices on the group’s flagship Liv-ex 100 index, w...

September, 20, 2013 Creating the Wines Of Tomorrow

(Wine-Searcher) - In a hotbed of innovation, scientists in southern France are inventing the wines of the future, creating resistant grape varieties and developing new technologies in the winery. The 173-hectare Pech Rouge estate owned by the National Institute of Agronomic Research (INRA) in...

September, 20, 2013 Dario Sattui Built a Castle to House His California Winery

(WSJ) - Throughout the Napa Valley, vintner Dario Sattui is best known as the proprietor of a castle: the 142,000-square-foot, $40 million medieval-style structure that is the site of his second winery, Castello di Amorosa near Calistoga, Calif. The castle, which opened to the public six year...

September, 19, 2013 Humans sense 10 basic types of smell, scientists say

(BBC) - The thousands of aromas humans can smell can be sorted into 10 basic categories, US scientists say. Prof Jason Castro, of Bates College, and Prof Chakra Chennubhotla, of the University of Pittsburgh, used a computerised technique to whittle down smells to their most basic essence. The...

September, 19, 2013 Idaho: Small but growing wine industry making a splash

(IdahoPress) - Idaho’s agricultural heritage goes back to the days of its earliest settlers. But in the past several years, local growers have discovered a whole new way to make money — agritourism. Visitors come to sample one of Idaho’s newest agricultural industries: win...

September, 19, 2013 In France, Wine Without the Work

(WSJ) - An Irishman is converting former wine estates into luxury properties in Languedoc-Roussillon. The pitch: Homeowners get vineyard views and a share of the bottles—but don't have the headaches of making wine. It's a second-home buyer's dream: a home in the South of France overlookin...

September, 19, 2013 Thirsty? Fine wine funds growing again after weak vintages

(InvestmentNews) - Investing in fruit of the vine not for the faint of heart. Some wine investment funds have taken a hit in recent years as top-tier Burgundies and Bordeaux have slid down in value but wine funds aimed at middle-tier labels are raising a glass to the rosy returns on their i...

September, 19, 2013 New technology helps to darken wine

(ABC) - A Tasmanian wine researcher has become the first to use microwaves to improve the quality of pinot noir. Anna Carew from the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture has been doing laboratory trials using a domestic microwave to loosen the cells of crushed grapes from the inside. It is h...