winefeed

Joel Gott releases electrolyte-infused Sauvignon Blanc spritz for younger drinkers

• Trinchero Family Wine and Spirits, the third-largest US wine supplier, launched Sauvy B on 15 July through Target, Walmart and Total Wine & More at US$13.99 per four-pack.
• The 4.5% ABV canned spritz blends 9% California Sauvignon Blanc with sparkling water and pink Himalayan salt electrolytes, yielding roughly 100 calories per 355ml can.
• Joel Gott and wife Sarah Gott positioned Sauvy B as a recruitment tool for younger drinkers rather than existing wine consumers, aiming to embed 'wine' in their everyday vocabulary.
• Spirit-based RTDs have outpaced wine-based formats among younger drinkers; electrolytes and low-calorie claims now join established functional positioning on wine-adjacent packaging.
• National rollout continues through January 2027 with planned pineapple and watermelon extensions, signalling a standard forming around 4.5% ABV for functional RTDs.

Vintae acquires 90% stake in historic Bodegas Riojanas for €12 million

• Gevisa Wine Capital, Vintae's holding company, completed acquisition of 90% of Bodegas Riojanas after court approval and Commercial Registry registration in Logroño.
• The transaction cost €12 million in capital investment plus a €5 million financing facility to support Bodegas Riojanas' operations.
• Ricardo Arambarri Pérez becomes chairman and Fernando Martínez Sampedro chief executive, with two independent directors to be appointed in September.
• Bodegas Riojanas, founded in 1890, retains its listing on the Spanish continuous market and will now operate within Vintae's portfolio across Spain and 70+ countries.
• Vintae's acquisition includes four wineries: Bodegas Riojanas in Rioja, Bodegas Torreduero in Toro, Bodegas Viore in Rueda, and 56% of Veiga Naúm in Rías Baixas.

Half of Napa vineyards unprofitable; survivors pivot to hospitality and club models

• WineBusiness Monthly's annual survey found 50 percent of Napa vineyards reported declining revenue and 51 percent saw profit decreases in the past two vintages, with 2026 marked as pivotal.
• Profitable Napa producers are leaning on tasting room hospitality, flexible wine club tiers, and direct-to-consumer sales rather than relying on walk-in visitors paying $75+ per tasting.
• Julien Fayard's downtown Napa bottle shop achieved 66 percent growth in one year through foot traffic and local events; Domaine Carneros saw specialty experience bookings rise 7 percent year-over-year.
• Wineries including Chateau Montelena, Pestoni Family Estate, and Baldacci Family Vineyards build loyalty through member-exclusive experiences, staff relationships, and emotional brand connection over wine scores.
• Lower grape prices have opened access to premium vineyard fruit like Beckstoffer and Hyde blocks previously unavailable, giving profitable growers a cost advantage.

AB InBev builds US$760 million brewery in Mexico to boost Corona exports

• Grupo Modelo, owned by AB InBev, is constructing a US$760 million brewery and bottling complex in Apan, Hidalgo, Mexico, designed for 12 million hectolitres annual capacity.
• The facility supports Mexico's position as the world's largest beer exporter and will boost Corona sales into the US market where import-driven demand has surged.
• Construction has employed 4,500 workers; the plant will employ over 600 permanent staff once operational.
• AB InBev pledged US$3.6 billion investment in Mexico between 2025 and 2027, with the Hidalgo plant as a cornerstone project.
• The International Brotherhood of Teamsters has called on Trump to impose tariffs on Mexican beer, demanding production shift to US workers instead.

US lifts Scotch whisky tariffs after 15-month dispute with UK

• US President Donald Trump removed a 10% tariff on Scotch whisky effective 24 July, ending a dispute that began in April 2025 and was set to rise to 25% for single malts.
• Scotch Whisky Association reported exports to the US fell 15% between May and December 2025 under the tariff, though the US remained the sector's largest overseas market.
• The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and Pernod Ricard's spirits division, whose brands include The Glenlivet, welcomed the tariff removal as relief for hospitality and consumer access.
• Scottish first minister John Swinney called the tariff elimination a 'zero-for-zero' win benefiting workers and businesses across Scotland's spirits sector and wider economy.
• Industry leaders now seek tariff removal on Irish whiskey, Cognac and Champagne to expand duty-free trade between the US and European spirits producers.

Trump's escalating tariffs threaten wine and spirits trade across major markets

• The U.S. Supreme Court struck down Trump's initial sweeping tariffs in July 2025 as exceeding presidential authority, potentially allowing importers and distributors to seek reimbursement for paid tariff costs.
• Tariffs on Scotch whisky imposed in April 2025 were lifted after King Charles III's state visit, with the first tariff-free shipment departing the U.K. on July 24, 2025.
• A 15 percent tariff on EU goods took effect August 7, 2025, with wine and spirits still unexempted; the Toasts Not Tariffs Coalition estimates this could eliminate over 25,000 American jobs in related industries.
• Most alcohol from Canada and Mexico remains covered by the USMCA trade agreement and thus exempt from tariffs, while negotiations continue over potential strategic product exemptions for wine and spirits in the EU deal.

Teamsters push 75% tariff on Mexican beer to shift Modelo production stateside

• Sean O'Brien, Teamsters president, called on the Trump administration to impose a 75 percent tariff on Mexican beer to incentivize U.S. brewing of Modelo and Corona.
• The union argues Mexico uses tax policy to subsidize beer exports, suppressing wages and undercutting American brewers; it filed the case with the U.S. Trade Representative earlier in 2026.
• Constellation Brands, which holds U.S. licenses for Modelo and Corona, disputes the tariff claim, citing a May 2026 study stating 74 percent of economic value from imported Mexican beer flows to American workers and businesses.
• The Teamsters do not organize Mexican workers and stand to gain dues-paying members if Modelo production moves to unionized U.S. breweries.

United Spirits profit surges 52% on premium whisky and gin demand

• United Spirits, Diageo's Indian unit, reported standalone net profit of 3.91bn rupees in Q1 ending 30 June, up 51.6% year-on-year, on 5% revenue growth to 61.13bn rupees.
• Premium spirits including Johnnie Walker, Antiquity and Tanqueray drove growth, with prestige-segment net sales rising 10.1% and accounting for 91.7% of total sales.
• Karnataka's May tax reforms abolished government price controls and introduced strength-based excise rates, allowing producers to cut prices on premium spirits and boost demand.
• CEO Praveen Someshwar cited double-digit growth in the prestige segment and signalled confidence in further expansion as the financial year progresses.

Wetherspoon profits fall despite 4% sales rise as costs surge

• JD Wetherspoon, operator of 793 managed pubs, warned full-year profits will fall below analyst forecasts despite like-for-like sales rising 4% in the final quarter to July 2026.
• Chairman Tim Martin cited food, labour, repairs, energy and business rates as rising faster than revenue, squeezing margins across the budget pub chain.
• Wetherspoon's value-led pricing model leaves it particularly exposed to cost pressures, with slim margins offering limited room to absorb inflation.
• Year-end net debt of £720 million came in better than guidance, with the chain spending £42 million on share buybacks and £12.2 million on pub freeholds.

Rathfinny Wine Estate wins planning approval to expand Sussex accommodation

• Rathfinny Wine Estate in Sussex secured unanimous planning approval from South Downs National Park Authority to expand guest accommodation.
• The 600-acre sparkling wine producer will add six luxury Grape Pickers' Huts in a former quarry and a four-bedroom Stable Block with terraces.
• Existing Flint Barns accommodation will be refurbished with larger rooms, a new dining room, and a vineyard-facing terrace.
• Sussex wine tourism is growing among UK, Scandinavian, and North American visitors, driving demand for overnight stays in a region with limited accommodation.
• The expansion will create hospitality jobs including a Flint Barns Manager and Food & Beverage supervisors.

Bordeaux châteaux mark anniversaries with gold-decorated 2025 vintage bottles

• Château Gruaud Larose in Saint-Julien released a 300th-anniversary 2025 with golden vine etchings, marking its 1725 founding by Joseph-Stanislas Gruaud.
• Château Brane-Cantenac in Margaux celebrated 100 years under Lurton family ownership with a golden-label 2025 vintage inspired by a 19th-century medallion.
• Château Mouton Rothschild's 2000 millennium bottle with gold-decorated Augsburg Ram design released at €250 now trades around €1,550, setting precedent for collector demand.
• Château Angélus applied 21.7-carat gold to its 2012 bell label for Premier Grand Cru promotion; magnums now trade above double release price despite less celebrated vintage.
• Bordeaux estates use golden bottles and redesigned labels to commemorate anniversaries, architectural milestones and family ownership anniversaries across multiple decades and châteaux.

Andreola drops Prosecco name to sell Valdobbiadene terroir instead

• Stefano Pola, owner of Andreola estate in Valdobbiadene since 1984, removed the word Prosecco from labels between 2007 and 2018 to emphasise hillside geography over category.
• The shift reflects a widening gap between mass-market flatland Prosecco and quality-focused hillside Valdobbiadene DOCG, which Andreola now positions separately at premium pricing.
• Older regional producers view the move as betrayal, having built Prosecco's reputation themselves; Pola argues the message of territory and craft is now strong enough without the word.
• Vineyard labour shortage on steep slopes is the harder challenge than climate change; younger workers reject early starts and unpredictable schedules set by nature's timetable.
• Andreola farms 110 hectares across 250 parcels in the Rive of Valdobbiadene, bucking regional trend toward easier flat vineyards and applying the same terroir focus to a new nine-hectare Belluno Dolomites project.

Moldova's vineyard density and native grapes position it as emerging wine nation

• Moldova has the world's highest vineyard density at 4 hectares per 100 people across 114,000 hectares, though reduced from 350,000 hectares during the Soviet era.
• The Fetească family of native varieties comprises three related grapes: Fetească Albă (white, floral, citrus), Fetească Regála (white, elderflower), and Fetească Neagră (red, black fruit, firm tannin).
• Rară Neagră, possibly cultivated since 3000 BC and grown mainly in Stefan Vodă, produces lighter reds with sour cherry and redcurrant notes, positioned as value alternatives to Pinot Noir.
• Viorica, a 1969 crossing created for frost resistance, yields an intensely floral white wine with grapey-Muscaty richness, particularly suited to Asian cuisine.
• Moldova remains largely absent from UK wine retail despite wine representing 3% of GDP and 8% of exports, with tourism infrastructure including Cricova and Mileștii Mici underground cellars.

Independent wine shop owner wins first sustainable buyer award

• Di Camillo, owner of Wine & Such independent shop, won the inaugural Sustainable Wine Buyer award from Decanter's Wine Buyers Awards in 2025.
• The judging panel found her entry exceptional because sustainability shaped her entire sourcing model, producer relationships, and daily operations, not just isolated initiatives.
• Majestic won the separate Sustainable Drinks Buying Team of the Year award, showing sustainability recognition extends beyond independent retailers.
• A significant number of competition entrants omitted sustainability sections entirely, suggesting the industry remains inconsistent in prioritising environmental practices.
• The Sustainable Wine Buyer category launched in 2025 to acknowledge buyers' influence on trends and to highlight sustainability gaps across the trade.

Trinchero and Joel Gott launch electrolyte wine spritzer for younger drinkers

• Trinchero Family Wine and Spirits, the third largest U.S. wine supplier, released Sauvy B, a ready-to-drink wine spritzer made with Sauvignon Blanc, sparkling water, and Himalayan salt electrolytes at 4.5 percent ABV.
• Winemaker Joel Gott, whose brands Joel Gott Wines and Three Thieves are owned by Trinchero, created Sauvy B to introduce younger consumers to wine through a product they perceive as health-conscious and contemporary.
• Each 12-ounce can contains 90 percent sparkling water, 9 percent wine, and natural fruit flavoring in grapefruit and lime, with pineapple and watermelon versions planned for fall; cans retail in four-packs for $14.
• Initial distribution begins this week through Target, Total Wine & More, and Walmart nationwide, plus Albertsons and Safeway in southern California and Texas, expanding to on-premise accounts by January 2027.
• Gott positioned Sauvy B as a gateway product to convert RTD drinkers toward traditional wine consumption, citing low-ABV competition from malt and spirits brands and younger consumers' demand for electrolyte-enhanced beverages.

Fifteen sommeliers name expensive Bordeaux bottles worth the premium price

• Fifteen US restaurant sommeliers and wine directors were asked which three-figure Bordeaux bottles justify their cost.
• Château Palmer, Château Lafleur, and La Mission Haut-Brion emerged as top recommendations, valued for emotional complexity and terroir expression over brand cachet.
• Sommeliers favour 'Super Seconds' and lesser-classified estates that deliver first-growth quality at lower prices, signalling skepticism toward century-old classification systems.
• Reasoning centred on vineyard craftsmanship, family heritage, and winemaking technique rather than prestige; one sommelier noted Pontet-Canet's biodynamic farming and amphorae use justify its cost.
• Choices ranged from $100 retail bottles to rare vintages, with advisors emphasising that great Bordeaux must feel memorable and emotionally resonant, not merely impressive.

Wildfires advance toward Bordeaux; smoke taint threatens 2024 vintage

• Fast-moving wildfires in France's Gironde region have burned out of control since midweek, advancing within 15 kilometres of Bordeaux city centre.
• More than 220,000 people have been evacuated across France as fires sweep the Cap Ferret peninsula and surrounding areas; Bordeaux itself has not been evacuated.
• Smoke taint, when smoke particles cling to grape skins and harm wine flavour, especially in reds, poses the major threat to vineyards if the blaze reaches them.
• Thousands of firefighters and water-bombing aircraft are deployed, but shifting winds and prolonged heat and drought have hampered containment efforts.
• Gironde prefect Sophie Brocas has urged tourists to avoid the region until conditions improve.

Wildfire destroys old-vine parcels in Spain's Sierra de Gredos region

• The Burgohondo fire in Ávila province burned over 20,000 hectares starting 24 July, destroying vineyards in Sierra de Gredos, a region known for old-vine Garnacha and Albillo Real.
• Bodega El Reventón lost its San Gregorio vineyard with vines dating to the 1920s; Soto Manrique and Indiano Wines also suffered losses, though some vines were saved by cleared undergrowth.
• Producers cite Spain's strict woodland protection laws and lack of year-round land management as obstacles to preventing fire spread through vineyards surrounded by unchecked vegetation.
• Winemaker Bárbara Requejo of Las Pedreras stated the region's landscape and economy are fundamentally changed; no fundraising system existed as of publication.
• The fire remains active through August, the region's highest-risk month for fire; full damage assessment awaits containment and producer access to affected areas.

Château d'Esclans picks earliest harvest ever, trials heat-resistant grapes

• Château d'Esclans, Provence rosé producer behind Whispering Angel, expects to begin harvest around 10 August 2024, earlier than any year in its history including 2018 and 2020.
• Winemaker Joéva Walczak confirmed very high temperatures are accelerating vine ripening, though the vineyard has no disease or weather damage problems so far.
• The estate is trialling three experimental grapes permitted in Provence rosé since December 2021: Nero d'Avola and Xinomavro from Italy and Greece, plus Spanish Verdejo, all chosen for heat and drought tolerance.
• In the vineyard, Château d'Esclans uses permanent grass cover to lower soil temperature and retain moisture; in the cellar, it keeps grapes and wines cool with inert gas protection and equipment.
• Grenache will remain the backbone of all rosés including Whispering Angel; any new varieties would supplement, not replace it, and trial results will determine whether they enter production.

Grape sunburn damage spreads as heat waves reach cooler regions

• Grape sunburn occurs when berry surface temperatures exceed 104-109°F under high light, causing chlorophyll and aromatic compounds to degrade and producing flavors of cooked fruit, asphalt, and rubber.
• Direct sun can push berry surface temperature 22-27°F above air temperature, meaning a 95°F day creates 122°F conditions on sun-facing fruit.
• Defoliation timing is critical: leaf removal at veraison increases sunburn risk, while removal at flowering allows berries to build photoprotective compounds.
• Producers including Tyrrell's in Australia and Chêne Bleu in Provence have abandoned or drastically reduced summer defoliation and now rely on kaolin clay sprays and canopy management to shield fruit.
• Sunburn damage in finished wine, premature aging, smoky and kerosene notes, becomes more pronounced over time, making prevention essential in warming climates.

Heat-Tolerant Mourvèdre Struggles as Southern France Temperatures Soar

• Mourvèdre, a late-ripening variety prized in Bandol and Spain's Jumilla region for heat tolerance, now faces stress from extreme temperatures and drought even in traditionally warm zones.
• A three-year drought from 2022 to 2024 in Jumilla killed some old bush vines despite their depth, prompting Carolina Martínez Origone, general secretary of Jumilla Consejo, to call irrigation essential for survival.
• Producers including Jean-François Ott at Domaines Ott and the Gueissard family are adapting canopy management and planting cover crops to shade vines and retain soil moisture as traditional dry-farming fails.
• Olivier Colombano, director of the Bandol appellation, notes cooler rosé parcels are now being considered for red wine as heat reshapes production, potentially reducing rosé output from its current 75 percent of the region.
• Alain Deloire, viticulture professor at Institut Agro Montpellier, argues Provence must shift to more red wine and irrigation or face unsustainable dry-farming, challenging the region's typicity and identity.

Revisiting the wines of Doran Vineyards, Voor Paardeberg, South Africa

• Edwin Doran bought a vineyard in Voor Paardeberg, South Africa in 2010 as a retirement gift; his son Tom now runs it following Edwin's death last year.
• New GM Ernie Manuel, previously at Mullineux and Joostenberg, is directing Doran Vineyards toward regenerative viticulture practices.
• The 2025 Ayra Chenin Blanc (stainless steel) scored 89/100; the 2025 Chenin Reserve (Serbian oak) scored 85/100.
• The 2024 Pinotage and 2024 Iosa blend each scored 90/100 and 91/100 respectively, with the Iosa showing sweet cherries, berries, and spice.

I’ll Drink to That!: Is Cory Empting Writing The Next Chapter of Napa Valley Cabernet at Harlan Estate?

A new episode of the I’ll Drink to That! wine talk podcast was released recently. Episode 504 features Cory Empting.

The Yang Of Greek Wine

• Assyrtiko dominated Greek wine's international reputation for 20 years, but Malagousia has emerged as the major white wine story domestically since the late 2000s.
• Malagousia was rescued from near-extinction in the late 1970s by Vangelis Gerovassiliou, an agriculturalist, viticulture professor, and winery owner collaborating together.
• By 2020, Malagousia had caught up with Chardonnay in vineyard acreage and was closing on Moschofilero, with producer numbers skyrocketing.
• Malagousia offers rich, generous summer and tropical fruit character, positioning it as the opposite of Assyrtiko's sharp, mineral profile; it pairs well with seafood and lighter foods.

In Praise of Older White Wines

• Octavian Wine data shows 78% of white wines shipped to collectors are from the previous six vintages, versus only 40% of red wines, indicating collectors drink whites far younger.
• White Burgundy's 'premox' crisis (early 2000s) caused unexpected oxidation in wines from 1995 onward, affecting even top producers like Puligny-Montrachet and Meursault, with no consensus on its cause.
• University of Verona professor Maurizio Ugliano is mapping volatile compounds and aroma precursors of Italian grape varieties including turbiana to understand how they develop complexity with age.
• The Burgundy Wine Board's six-year VOLTA study found that white wine aging potential is built primarily during pressing and élevage, not determined by grape variety alone.
• Only two Lugana producers visited held back aged stock, and retention quantities remain too small to establish a secondary market or culture of drinking mature vintages.

Six Wines That Stopped Me in My Tracks

• Charly, from Burgundy, relocated to Lower Austria a decade ago and produces wines under his own label with a French sensibility using Austrian varieties.
• Charly's Blauer Portugieser, sourced from grapes grown by Christoph Hoch, displays ripeness, vivid fruit definition, and creamy texture unusual for the variety.
• Charly owns one hectare of vines and sources additional grapes from friends farming organically or biodynamically.
• Three of Charly's wines (Grüner Veltliner 2022, Blaufränkisch 2023, Zweigelt 2023) are available from Gute Weine at €27 per bottle for selected EU countries.

Notable Releases from Troon Vineyard

• Troon Vineyard released 2025 Vermentino and 2023 Syrah from Oregon's Applegate Valley.
• Troon Vineyard farms biodynamic and regenerative organic certified land in Grant's Pass, using ambient cultures for fermentation and minimal sulfite.
• Applegate Valley's high-latitude location provides long summer days and heat, with overnight temperature drops from Siskiyou Mountain downslope winds.
• Troon ages wines in neutral barrels, concrete, qvevri, stainless steel, or combinations, never new oak.

Q&8 | Wang Yuanzhu Talks Grapes, Grain & Ancient Wine

• Coram Collective, founded in 2023 with production from 2024, co-ferments rice wine with grape varieties like Chardonnay and Merlot, and innovates huangjiu (yellow wine).
• Co-founder Alex Yuanzhu Wang's products are already listed in over 100 restaurants and bistros across Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Chengdu.
• Huangjiu typically shows its best between three and eight years of aging; many examples lose freshness after 10 years, contrary to the assumption that older always means better.
• Coram's Chardomi blends 80% Chardonnay grapes with 20% glutinous rice; rice requires soaking, steaming, and saccharification before co-fermenting with pressed grape juice.

A wine of straw

• Dessert wine consumption has declined for approximately 75 years, with no expected recovery amid current sugar and alcohol concerns.
• Raül Bobet, co-owner of Ferrer-Bobet in Priorat, Catalunya, released a dessert wine requiring 20 years of aging, driven by personal passion for the style.