Past Wine News - Oct- to Dec 08
Sydney Time
Copyright © Ric Einstein 2009
Friday 19 December
A BOX of chocolates and a bottle of wine could be the healthiest Christmas
present you get this year, with an increasing amount of evidence that a diet
rich in antioxidants can help prevent heart disease. Sydney GP and wine
historian Phil Norrie has developed his own range of plonk specially formulated
with very high doses of resveratrol, a polyphenol antioxidant found in the skin
of red grapes.
Anger at breast cancer charity's wine promotion
Breast cancer support groups are outraged that a charity which raises money to find a cure for the disease is encouraging supporters to buy cases of wine despite numerous studies showing drinking alcohol dramatically increases the risk of getting breast cancer. The Breast Cancer Research Trust (BCRT) has sent emails to supporters promoting an offer by Vintage Wines & Spirits offering $100 off cases of Vavasour Rose sold to trust supporters and donating $40 from every sale to the trust. The trust is also sponsored by Moet and Chandon, which supplies alcohol for fundraising events.
Hardys Changes its Name to Constellation
For the corporate name it may not matter what the company is called though it's sad to see the 150 years of Hardy's with its illustrious history being renamed Constellation. The CEO John Grant says he was under no pressure to change the name to that of its parent and seems quite pleased about his move.
Plug-in plonk: quick jolt turns cheap wine into tasty drop
A quick burst of high-voltage electricity could turn a bottle of cheap plonk into a fine, mellow mature wine that will fool the most discerning palate. Five wineries in China have started scientific trials using electric fields to speed up the process of ageing wine. If the new technology is successful, it will enable China's relatively young wine industry to accelerate production to meet rising demand. It will also keep the cost down, by eliminating the need to age wine in wooden barrels.
Friday 12 December
Wine industry's fall not such a pleasant drop
THE wine industry's woes have been compounded by a sharp fall in exports and unrest at the Government's key wine marketing organisation. Figures released yesterday by the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation show wine exports for the year to November dropped 12.5 per cent, slashing 17.5 per cent off the value of sales. The slump comes as the AWBC closes its only European office and loses key staff in London and New York.
Family plants roots for a healthy future
NEW wine businesses are often the result of "unplanned pregnancies" -- grape growers who suddenly find there is no market for their grapes, so have the wine contract-made -- or people who establish a distraction from the humdrum of a weekday job but with no business plan and frequently without adequate capital.
Penfolds wine named best Australian export
Penfolds 2005 Bin 144 Yattarna Chardonnay was named Australia's best export wine for 2008 by the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation (AWBC). Selected from 17,369 entries submitted for the AWBC's approval, Yattarna is Australia's most expensive white wine, at AUS$130 (£58). The same wine was chosen best Chardonnay over £10 at the 2008 Decanter World Wine Awards.
A documentary that promotes the green credentials of the cork industry dodges
the real issues in the closures debate, say a UK supermarket and a synthetic
closure producer. Scheduled to air 9 December on BBC2, Cork – Forest in a Bottle
reports that natural cork is the green choice of closure and claims consumers
have been misled about the damage screwcap and synthetic closures cause to the
environment.
Cork is the most sustainable form of closure, study finds
A year-long life cycle analysis (LCA) of the environmental impact of cork, plastic and aluminium screwcap stoppers has found what is already widely accepted: that cork is the most environmentally-friendly stopper. The was study undertaken by analysts PricewaterhouseCoopers, commissioned by Amorim, the world's largest cork manufacturer.
Wednesday 3 December
THE European Union and Australia signed a new trade agreement today that will better protect EU wine labelling and ease the certification of Australian wines entering the 27-nation bloc. Under the deal, the most comprehensive such accord concluded with a non-EU country, Australia will end the "misuse" of terms like Champagne, Port and Burgundy, which are tied to geographical locations in Europe. Other contentious names include Chablis, Graves, Manzanilla, Marsala, Moselle, Sauterne, Sherry and White Burgundy.
Hairdressers face jail for offering customers mulled wine
Hairdressers who offer their customers a festive glass of mulled wine at Christmas have been warned that they face six months in jail and a £20,000 fine. The threat was made by council chiefs, who even announced that they will send officers into salons under cover in an effort to catch offenders. Hairdressers have criticised the move as "Scrooge-like".
Chateau Latour Fetches Record HK$1.32 Million at Hong Kong Sale
A 12-bottle lot of 1961 Chateau Latour, prized for its complexity and graceful aging, sold for a record HK$1.32 million ($170,320) at Christie’s International first wine auction in Hong Kong in seven years, as the company’s billionaire owner Francois Pinault watched from the front row.
Canberra landmark wine: this sweet drop comes once in a century
The sweet smell of a crisp new riesling filled the air at the Brindabella Hills Winery yesterday morning as the team bottled a landmark Canberra wine. A total of 3600 bottles of the special edition Centenary of Canberra Riesling were packaged under the watchful eye of Brindabella Hills Winery co-owner Roger Harris, who sipped from a small glass of the wine as he looked on. The blended riesling brought together winemakers from around the region, with grapes coming from five vineyards.
Kiwi wine no longer a one-trick pony
Cynics decrying the New Zealand wine industry as good for sauvignon blanc and little else have been silenced by the results of the 2008 Air New Zealand Wine Awards. Like many award shows this year, it’s showing an industry maturing and exhibiting a range of wines of surprising quality. This year sees the traditional varietals take a back seat to the rise of Riesling, the punch of pinot noir and the scope of syrahs, while niche grapes such as gewürztraminer and viognier boost their presence also.
Sunday 16 November
Foster's rethinks $4.5 billion wine sale
Global beverages company Foster's Group Ltd has reportedly dumped the option of a straight cash sale of its $4.5 billion wine business from its list of possible outcomes, given ongoing market and economic weakness. The company's board scrapped the option because of poor economic conditions, a lack of buyers, and because it believed a valuation in the current market would be too low, the Australian Financial Review reports.
Researchers seek smoke-resistant wine grapes
THE University of Adelaide has set out to find grape varieties less susceptible to smoke from bushfires. Oenology lecturer Kerry Wilkinson said the wine industry needed grape and wine production methods that minimised the effects of smoke by vines. Over the past five years, wine regions across Australia had reported financial losses and a decline in product quality following bushfires or controlled burns, she said.
Fine wine prices are at 18-month low, according to recent figures from
Liv-ex.com. The Liv-ex 100 Fine Wine Index fell 12.4% in October with highest-end
wines being hardest hit. Worst affected was Lafite Rothschild 2004 - down 27.9%
- with 2005 and 1995 falling 24% and 22.5% respectively. Chateau Montrose
2003 fell 23.1%, while a case of Chateau Ausone 2000 fell to £12,200, down 21.7%
from £15,575 in October.
Aussie thirst for Kiwi wine continues with older families tucking in
After a bumper harvest, New Zealand wine producers will be happy with recent
research from Nielsen showing the Aussie hunger for Kiwi wines hasn’t abated at
all. Table wine accounted for the largest growth in wine sales in Australia for
the July 2008 year. Kiwi wine contributed $AU198 million in off premise sales,
increasing its share of the Australian market by 3%, a boost of $60 million in
value.
Monday 10 November
Aussie wine producers see red in Canada: Critchley
How can you live in a country where the government tells you what you can drink? That comment was made by a number of Australian winemakers who while being anxious to export to Canada are critical of the role played by the various provincial liquor control boards. "It's a monopoly and they protect their monopoly status," said one producer who has dealt with most of provincial boards and is amazed at how consumers tolerate such a system.
THE collapse of the world’s financial markets is likely to play an important — and probably quite long-term — role in the world of fine wine. At its most simplistic level it will drive down prices, particularly in the premium segments, but pretty much across the board. When people scale back, they generally buy down. The mega-wealthy will keep the Bordeaux first growths for special occasions, and make do with lesser classed growths for everyday drinking. The still well-to-do will splash out on lesser classed growths and keep their Cru Bourgeois selection for midweek supper.
A NEW price war has broken out in the wine industry thanks to a large 2008 vintage, increasing retail competition and the economic downturn. Retailers are offering discounts, specials and promotions. Sales of premium bottled Australian wine on the domestic market are down by more than 4 per cent for the past 12 months, while total Australian domestic wine sales are down about 3 per cent. The problem has been exacerbated by brittle overseas markets. The latest international problem to emerge is in the United Kingdom with concerns that supermarket giant Tesco is imposing tougher conditions on wine producers. English newspapers have foreshadowed a supply revolt against Tesco which has introduced "take it or leave it" terms to protect profit margins.
Future of Australian wine cask in doubt
IT rose to prominence in the 1970s and spawned countless nicknames - now the future of cask wine is in question. The alcoholic product otherwise known as the "goon bag" or "chateau cardboard" is at a crucial junction where the options seem to be adapt or perish. A report by Citi Investment Research shows its share of the wine market fell from 60 per cent to 40 per cent in the past decade.
Cheaper wine at home as exports fall
The financial crisis may mean cheaper wine for Australians, as overseas customers cut back on luxury items. Laurie Stanford, from the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation, says with the United Kingdom and the United States being Australia's two biggest wine markets, the economic volatility has hit the industry hard.
Choppers called in to save grape crops
Helicopters will be in short supply this weekend as vineyards prepare for frosts in three major wine-growing regions. Temperature readings at Christchurch Airport yesterday morning hit new lows for November of minus 5.7deg (grass) and minus 2.6deg for the air, reported MetService, with further frosts expected tomorrow and Sunday.
Australia in talks with India on reducing import duty on wine
Australia on Wednesday said it is negotiating with India for a reduction in import duties on wines. "There is a department within the Trade Commission which is obviously in discussion with the authorities. I cannot, however, comment on the details of it," Australian Trade Commissioner Michael Carter said. The volume of the imported wine market in India stands at 1,80,000 cases annually in which Australia has a 25 per cent share, he added.
Sunday 2 November
Foster's puts wine plan in the cellar
FOSTER'S has delayed a decision on what to do with its troubled wine division by at least two months. Chairman David Crawford told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in Melbourne yesterday that while the fate of the wine division was to have been decided by the end of December, the outcome of the review would now be made in mid-February at the latest.
Researchers question health benefits after metal found in wines
The health benefits of a regular tipple have been thrown into doubt after the discovery of widespread metal contamination in common table wines. Tests on red and white wines from 15 countries, including France, Spain and Italy, have revealed the existence of ions at levels scientists consider hazardous. Wines from Hungary and Slovakia have been ranked as the most contaminated, while only those from Italy, Argentina and Brazil are not posing a health risk, the scientists said.
UK consumers cut wine spending
UK wine drinkers are cutting the amount they spend on a bottle, with price now
the most important factor in buying wine, according to a new survey. A
WineIntelligence poll of 1,000 wine drinkers found that the number of people
willing to spend £5–£6 on a bottle of wine had dropped by 5% in the past three
months.
Wine researchers make Chinese taste discovery
Australian researchers believe they have cracked the key to the lucrative Chinese wine market, with a study of Chinese tastes. The Australian Wine Research Institute found that most preferred Australian red wines over other international wines, and enjoyed light fruity flavours.
Amateur winemakers die treading grapes
Two amateur winemakers died last weekend treading grapes for home-made wine. Daniel Moulin, 48, and Gérard Dachis, 50, of Roiffieux, northern Ardeche died from carbon dioxide poisoning. They were crushing grapes in the traditional manner with their feet, in a vat that was approximately four square metres in size.
France: new drinks measures proposed
The French government has proposed a series of measures aimed at cracking down on youth drinking. These meaures, proposed by Minister of Health Roselyne Bachelot, include the prevention of sales of alcohol to under 18s, the removal of any alcoholic drinks in petrol service stations, and the end of 'open bars' – which charge entry but serve free drinks – for students.
Friday 24 October
Wine industry fearful of 'smoke taint'
The Australian wine industry is worried that it may literally go "up in smoke" because climate change predictions suggest that there will be a lot more bushfires in future. Wineries around the world have only recently woken up to the damaging effect of bushfire smoke on their vintages. Fires in Victoria a couple of years ago cost the industry more than $100 million.
Bottled wine exports on the rise
The share of bottled exports increased by 5 percentage points to 76pc in the year ended September 2008, as the bulk wine share of the total export mix fell 4 percentage points to 23pc, according to Wine Australia.
Council's proposal for a new EC/Australia wine Agreement
The Council has put forward a Proposal for a Decision on the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Community and Australia on trade in wine. This new document, which would replace the 1994 Agreement, aims to facilitate and promote trade in wine originating in the Community and in Australia.
Houghton wins best WA wine award
Houghton Wine Company has edged out other West Australian wineries to clinch the trophy for the best drop at the WA Qantas Wine Show for the second year running. Houghton's 2007 Wisdom Chardonnay was judged as the best wine of the show.
Agnew takes out top NSW wine award
Lawyer and former racehorse breeder Brian Agnew has won the 2008 NSW Wine of the Year title with a semillon from his historic Hunter Valley winery. Mr Agnew bought the Audrey Wilkinson Winery, one of the oldest continuing wine brands in Australia dating back to 1866, four years ago.
Show time for global master of wine
AT A dinner party or a restaurant where a series of wines are to be served, Debra Meiburg asks for a cup to spit the wine into. The 49-year-old American-born, Hong Kong-based former accountant is one of only 253 people around the world qualified as a master of wine. In Melbourne to judge the 2008 Royal Melbourne Wine Show at the showgrounds, she said that even when "off-duty" and facing "a wine extravaganza", she opts to savour the taste of each wine served rather than risk a concentration on the first bottles, sabotaging her taste buds.
U.S. Wine Consumption Grows for a Record 15th Consecutive Year, but Momentum Slows
Americans are on pace to drink more wine in 2008 than ever before, but this year’s expected growth of 1.5 percent represents the industry’s smallest increase since 2001, the last time the U.S. economy was in a recession. Nevertheless, retail sales of wine within the United States will surpass $25 billion for the first time this year, and set an all-time high of 306 million cases purchased, according to the just-released The U.S. Wine Market: Impact Databank Review and Forecast, 2008 Edition. The current financial crisis and struggling economy is expected to dampen industry growth, at least in the short term.
Sunday 19 October
Foster’s battens down the hatches
The City is rife with rumour that Foster’s will be the target of a hostile takeover bid once it sells its wine business. The Australian company, which announced a “strategic review” of its wine division following poor performance, is expected to complete a demerger of its wine business and is bracing itself for a takeover bid.
South Australian vines are showing promise of a good grape crop, and that means another wine glut. Wine Grapes Council of South Australia chairman, Paul Clancy, says last year's crop was more than 500,000 tonnes and this can't be sustained year after year.
UK Smaller wine glass bid 'backed'
An MP is dropping his bid to force bars and restaurants to sell wine in smaller
glasses, as he says ministers have indicated they will back the plans. It
follows newspaper reports that a code for the drinks industry to curb
drunkenness would include ensuring wine was served in marked measures.
Penfolds aftersales recorking service nears 100,000 bottles
Penfolds has just run another of its renowned re-corking clinics, at Somerset House in London - bringing the tally of recorked bottles to near 100,000. Chief winemaker Peter Gago, in London to host the clinic, said an important reason for servicing old bottles was to 'take some of the bad wines out of the system.'
International Wine Commodities office raided
Hertfordshire police have raided the Whetstone offices of International Wine
Commodities Ltd (IWC), a company offering wine investments. The raid, on 8
October, was carried out after search warrants were issued, allegedly on
suspicion that IWC failed to buy en primeur wines that their clients had ordered
and paid for. IWC is believed to have started trading in August 2007. Its last
set of accounts has just become overdue at Companies House.
Wednesday 15 October
Bordeaux, on-trade, threatened by financial fall-out
The world of fine wine is proving to be no longer immune to the global financial crisis – although no-one is panicking yet. Bordeaux is hardest hit, say some commentators, as it is perceived as an investment wine. There is a silver lining, however, in the form of good prices to be found.
Researchers unlock genetic code for wine yeast
The world-first discovery means scientists are now able to develop new strains of yeast to create wines for specific tastes and markets. Australian Wine Research Institute managing director, Sakkie Pretorius, says they've decoded all 6000 genes that make up the genome of a wine yeast, and that will provide a range of opportunities.
Creative plumbing puts wine on tap
A TOWN where wine gushes from a fountain in the main square is the ideal place to live for many people. But a town where it pours out of the kitchen taps is pretty close to heaven. The dream became reality this week for residents of Marino, south of Rome in the Castelli Romani wine region, who thronged the steep cobbled streets to celebrate the town's Sagra dell'Uva -- the annual wine harvest.
Red wine may be a cancer protector
Moderate consumption of red wine could decrease the risk of lung cancer in men, a study shows. The study, published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, found an antioxidant component in red wine may be protect against lung cancer, particularly among smokers. US researchers analysed data collected through the California Men's Health Study, which linked clinical data from California's health system with self-reported data from 84,170 men aged 45 to 69 years.
White wine also given a heart tick
THE health benefits of a glass of red wine are well known, but new research has found a tipple of white could also protect the heart. Rats that were fed the equivalent of one or two glasses of white wine by researchers from the University of Connecticut in the US found their hearts suffered less damage during cardiac arrest than those fed water or grain alcohol, according to New Scientist.
Australian wine makers buoyed by lower dollar
The plunging stock market and falling currency in Australia is not all doom and gloom -- there's a bright side for Australia's beleagured wine industry. The past year has seen declining wine exports, but the weakening Australian dollar and increasing demand from Hong Kong and China is turning the outlook around for wine-makers.
Global financial woes could put squeeze on wine exports
The sales and marketing director at Angove's Family Winemakers says the US credit crisis could potentially deliver a huge blow to wine exports from South Australia's Riverland.
Bad times predicted for SA wine industry
South Australian wine producers say the industry could be hit hard by the fallout from America's credit crisis. The US represents the state's second biggest export market. Clare Valley Winemakers Association president Neville Rowe says consumers tend to see wine as a luxury item.
Wine Industry Worries About the Economy
Wine retailers and restaurant sommeliers around the country are holding their breath as the busiest wine-consuming season of the year approaches. As the economy teeters and the election draws near, no one knows what the 2008 holiday season will bring. "Do you want me to get out my tarot cards?" said Nikos Antonakeas, managing director of the Morrell Group in New York. "It has been extremely volatile, with ups and downs that don't make a lot of sense. It's almost an impossible year to read."
Wednesday 8 October
Palandri Wine goes into liquidation
Creditors for the Palandri Wine Group voted Tuesday to place all the companies within the group into liquidation after accepting a recommendation to do so from its voluntary administrators. In its report to creditors, the administrators recommended they vote in favour of placing the companies into liquidation, Palandri said in a statement.
Wine Spectator Announces New Mobile Platform
WineSpectator.com has announced the release of a new mobile platform, Wine Spectator Mobile, an optimized version of its Web site, tailored specifically for wine-buying information on the go. With Wine Spectator Mobile, members of WineSpectator.com can:-- Search for scores and tasting notes in Wine Spectator's database of more than 200,000 wine ratings
Saturday 4 October
Grape growers crushed by oversupply
Paul Clancy, chairman of the Wine Grape Growers Council of South Australia, says the industry "is in a catastrophic state, partly because of the drought, but the real issue is the oversupply. And that is impacting on everybody in all regions." In fact, Clancy argues that the drought and irrigation restrictions are to some extent masking the real problem of oversupply. He says that last year, despite the water supply crisis, "we still grew 1.83 million tonnes nationally, which is about 300,000 or 400,000 tonnes in excess of requirement".
New Bordeaux appellation gets
go-ahead
After years of false starts, the new Côtes de Bordeaux appellation will go ahead from the 2008 vintage. The new AOC has been signed into existence by INAO (Institut National des Appellations d'Origine). The final step is Ministry of Agriculture approval.
Constellation Falls as Sales Rise Less Than Estimates
Constellation Brands Inc., the world's largest winemaker, fell the most since March 2007 in New York trading after sales rose less than analysts' estimates and purchases of international wine decreased. Constellation lost $1.90, or 8.8 percent, to $19.73 at 4:03 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares have dropped 17 percent this year.
Winegrape growers hung out to dry
UNCERTAINTY on water allocations and grape prices has left winegrape growers little ability to plan for the upcoming season, according to Murray Valley Winegrowers. A water allocation of 13 per cent in the Victorian Murray Valley, 80 per cent in the NSW Murray Valley and little information on what allocations will be available in summer has left harvest planning for many growers in tatters, according to MVW chief executive Mike Stone.
Heston Blumenthal: 'We are just scratching the surface of taste'
Speaking at a Sherry and food pairing event at Shoreditch House in London last night, the Michelin-starred chef praised research into new taste receptors that is bringing us towards a fresh understanding of the workings of the tongue. Blumenthal told Decanter, 'In experiments, fruit flies found receptors for C02, so there is evidence that carbon dioxide is a taste. There is also a growing argument that fat is a taste.'
Beer and wine may lose fishy labelling
Wine lovers not accustomed to reading labels may be surprised to hear their wine has been made with the help of a fish product, namely isinglass. New South Wales Wine Industry Association president David Lowe explains that the product comes from the fish bladder. "Isinglass is the name given to a protein that comes from the fish bladder, the sturgeon fish," he said.
Tuesday 1 October
Foster's Names Johnston CEO Amid Wine-Unit Review
Foster's Group Ltd., Australia's biggest beer and winemaker, named former Cadbury Plc executive Ian Johnston as chief executive officer as it considers the future of its global wine unit. The appointment is effective immediately, Melbourne-based Foster's said in a statement today. Johnston, appointed to the board 12 months ago, has been acting CEO since July after the departure of Trevor O'Hoy.
Foster’s shares rise on bid speculation
Foster’s was at the centre of takeover speculation on Friday as Deutsche Bank confirmed it had built a 5.3 per cent stake on behalf of an unknown investor and analysts suggested the Australian drinks group was in the sights of London-listed SABMiller and Heineken of the Netherlands. Shares in Foster’s have been battered after the group issued a profits warning in June when it reduced the carrying value of its global wine assets by A$1.2bn. The group is undergoing a strategic review with “all options open” and may look to shed its lower-margin wine assets.
Wine workshops focus on climate change
Preparing the wine industry for climate change will be discussed at two days of drought workshops starting today in the Barossa Valley. The water and vine workshops, funded by the Federal Government, have already run in the Riverland, the south-east and in other states.
