winefeed

Younger Bordeaux vintages surge at iDealwine as collectors shift to drink-now wines

• iDealwine, an online auction house with offices in Paris, Hong Kong, Singapore and New York, reported record trading in 2025: 391,000 bottles worth €33.9 million, up 9% in value and 19% in volume.
• Bordeaux volumes surged 23% to 105,000+ bottles despite widespread industry talk of oversupply; value sales rose 19% to €12.5 million while prices held nearly flat, outperforming the broader market's 8% decline.
• Bordeaux wines under 10 years old jumped to 28% of auction lots in 2025 from 20% the year before, driven by modern styles that are drinkable young rather than requiring decades of cellaring.
• The 2025 Bordeaux en primeur campaign saw weak overall demand despite attractive pricing, suggesting fewer collectors want to buy-and-hold; most buyers now prefer wines to open the same night.
• Château Lafleur volumes more than doubled at lower prices (average €471, down 25%), possibly linked to its withdrawal from the Pomerol appellation; Château Figeac volumes rose 72% with stable pricing after its 2022 elevation to premier grand cru classé A.

Australian wine exports fall to 22-year low amid global consumption collapse

• Wine Australia reported exports fell 7% in value to A$2.3bn and 6% in volume to 598 million litres in the year to June 2026, the lowest volume since 2004.
• Global wine consumption has fallen to its lowest level since 1961, driven by cost-of-living pressures, changing consumer habits and competition from alternative alcoholic beverages.
• Australia's three largest markets all declined: mainland China dropped 15% to A$756m despite remaining the top market, while UK and US shipments hit 25-year lows.
• Weakness in the UK focused on lower and mid-priced wines, while US demand softened across most price categories due to lower retailer inventories and domestic competition.
• Canada surged 20% in value to A$188m, aided by market-share gains from reduced US wine availability during trade disputes, while several Asian markets outside China also grew.

Majestic Wine commits £4m to open four stores and refurbish existing branches

• Majestic Wine, owned by Fortress Investment Group since 2019, will invest £4 million in its UK store network during 2026/27, opening at least four new branches and refurbishing existing ones.
• The first new store opened in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, stocking over 1,000 wines plus beers, spirits and gifts, with WSET-trained staff offering tastings and services including wedding consultations.
• Since separating from Naked Wines, Majestic has opened more than 25 stores across England, Scotland, Wales and Jersey while refurbishing dozens of branches.
• Majestic Commercial, the group's wholesale arm, supplies over 4,200 UK pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels, and was named On-Trade Supplier of the Year at the Drinks Business Awards 2024.
• The investment reflects management confidence in physical retail growth as a core strategy alongside improvements to logistics, systems and data capabilities across the Majestic Wine Group.

Domaine Lafage acquires majority of Banyuls and Collioure production

• Domaine Lafage, a Roussillon producer, completed acquisition of the Groupement Interproducteurs Collioure Banyuls after court approval, gaining control of approximately 60% of output across both appellations.
• The newly renamed Terrasses Vermeilles will oversee nearly 500 growers farming 500 hectares, producing roughly one million bottles annually from the 2025 vintage.
• Domaine Lafage committed to preserving historic Les Templiers site, established brands, appellations' identity, and workforce expertise during transition to the combined business.
• The producer plans to extend climate adaptation and regenerative viticulture techniques developed on its own vineyards to the steep Mediterranean vineyards of Banyuls and Collioure.
• Lafage stated the acquisition aims to provide long-term stability for growers and strengthen wine values and producer returns across the two historic Roussillon appellations.

Champagnes & Châteaux adds Brokenwood Wines as first Australian producer

• Wine importer Champagnes & Châteaux, founded 1989 and owned by French firm Arvitis, will distribute Brokenwood Wines in the UK from 1 August 2024.
• Brokenwood Wines, founded 1970 in Hunter Valley, is Champagnes & Châteaux's first Australian producer, marking expansion beyond its French-led portfolio.
• Brokenwood's range includes Hunter Valley Shiraz and Semillon, Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon, McLaren Vale Shiraz, Yarra Valley Chardonnay, and Cricket Pitch blends.
• Charles Taverner, managing director at Champagnes & Châteaux, appointed less than one year ago, is pursuing aggressive growth plans across the importer's portfolio.
• UK wine trade will taste the Brokenwood range at Champagnes & Châteaux's London portfolio tasting on 9 September, with Nathan Hughes, Brokenwood's global sales manager, attending.

Ancient vine-training systems fade as labor costs and mechanization reshape European vineyards

• Italy's alberata system, once common around Naples, survives on only a handful of hectares today, replaced by mechanizable methods like Guyot and vertical shoot positioning.
• Lanzarote's hoyo vine pits, created after 1730s volcanic eruptions, attract thousands of tourists annually; the island's vineyard area fell 19 percent between 2000 and 2026 due to labor demands, threatening tourism revenue.
• Alberto González Plasencia, owner of Bodegas Timanfaya on Lanzarote, warns that if hoyos disappear, tourists will stop visiting and wine values will decline.
• Familia Torres uses specialized machinery to reduce labor on Rías Baixas pergolas; the region's designation bans mechanized harvesting, equalizing manual work across all training systems.
• Veneto's bellussera hybrid pergola, covering 9 percent of Piave DOC, may revive through climate adaptation and wine tourism as erratic weather favors its resilience.

Bordeaux wildfires force tourist evacuation, threaten wine region's recovery

• Wildfires in the Gironde region forced 220,000 evacuations across France and destroyed 240 homes; the French government told tourists to avoid Bordeaux.
• Edouard Le Grix de la Salle, winemaker in Bordeaux, said tourism was the region's only growing sector before the fires shut it down.
• Peggy Plouhinec, general director of Château Picque Caillou, closed her estate due to heavy smoke and expects the hospitality business to suffer from fewer visitors.
• Most vines escaped direct flame damage; however, smoke-taint risk concerns growers within 50 to 100 kilometres downwind of major fires during véraison.
• Thomas Duroux, director general of Château Palmer, warned that extreme heat and drought are forcing Bordeaux to rethink water resources and vineyard resilience.

1811 Forster Ungeheuer Riesling from Bassermann-Jordan offered at Catawiki

• Catawiki, Amsterdam online marketplace, is auctioning a bottle of 1811 Forster Ungeheuer Riesling from Weingut Bassermann-Jordan in the Pfalz region, July 24 to August 3.
• The bottle is believed the oldest full bottle of German Riesling from a documented single vineyard ever offered at a European auction, with pre-sale estimate of €10,000, €13,000.
• It is one of eight remaining bottles from the 1811 vintage and has been stored in the winery's historic cellar for more than 200 years, recently recorked in April 2026.
• The 1811 vintage is a celebrated comet vintage that followed poor harvests at the start of the 19th century; Anne Krebiehl MW tasted it at the winery's 300th anniversary in 2018 and found it remarkably fresh.
• A 1727 Rüdesheimer Riesling half-bottle sold at Christie's in May 2009 remains the oldest Riesling sold at auction.

Chapel Down reports 19% sales growth, US expansion accelerates to 31 states

• Chapel Down, England's largest winemaker, reported net sales revenue of £9.4 million for H1 2026, up 19% year-on-year, across retail, hospitality and direct-to-consumer channels.
• International sales surged 66% to £0.8 million, driven by US partnership with Jackson Family Wines now stocked in 31 states and 250 Whole Foods locations.
• Off-trade sales rose 18% to £4.4 million, with the group extending its lead in English sparkling wine, a category growing at double-digit rates.
• Direct-to-consumer sales grew 4% to £2.5 million, with returning customer rate climbing to 63% despite modest growth.
• Chapel Down extended credit facility to £25 million with £5 million accordion option, signalling confidence in funding continued expansion.

Centre-Loire appellations gain traction as Sancerre prices surge past $40

• Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc now sells for $40, $50 or more, pushing buyers toward five neighboring Centre-Loire appellations: Pouilly-Fumé, Menetou-Salon, Quincy, Reuilly, and Coteaux du Giennois.
• Wines from these appellations, mostly Sauvignon Blanc with smaller amounts of Pinot Noir and Gamay, typically sell for $20, $30, offering similar mineral and limestone-driven profiles at lower cost.
• Clément Berthier, Sancerre appellation president, notes Sancerre is at capacity with no plans to expand production, tightening supply as demand outpaces availability.
• Winemakers in the region, including Matthieu Delaporte at Domaine Delaporte, report improving Pinot Noir quality-to-price ratios that rival Burgundy, signaling a shift in how Centre-Loire producers market themselves beyond Sauvignon Blanc.
• Earlier harvests driven by climate change are forcing producers to experiment with abandoned grape varieties blended into Sauvignon Blanc to preserve acidity as ripening accelerates.

Familia Zuccardi limits La Place bottles to build Argentina brand in Asia

• Sebastián Zuccardi, owner of Argentina's Familia Zuccardi, placed two wines on La Place: Finca Canal Uco Malbec and El Camino de Las Flores 2025 Chardonnay, produced in small volumes to avoid price pressure.
• El Camino de Las Flores 2025 numbered only 2,000 bottles on its inaugural release and scored 96 points from a critic; five negociants now represent both wines across La Place.
• Zuccardi uses negociants' market reach to access Asian regions where Familia Zuccardi lacks direct distribution, supplementing company representatives in Hong Kong, the US, Brazil and London.
• Zuccardi argues that deliberate underproduction relative to demand is essential for building a wine brand without cutting prices or compromising identity through rapid growth.
• Negociants absorbed excessive stock from outside Bordeaux after pandemic price spikes, complicating the market; Zuccardi expects consolidation but requires active brand-building work beyond distribution.

Louis Roederer acquires Domaine Pierre Damoy in Burgundy debut

• Champagne house Louis Roederer completed its first Burgundy acquisition on 24 July, buying Domaine Pierre Damoy and nearly eight hectares of grand cru vineyards in Gevrey-Chambertin.
• The purchase includes parcels in Chambertin, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze, Chapelle-Chambertin, and the monopole vineyard Clos Tamisot; financial terms were not disclosed.
• Domaine Pierre Damoy joins the Roederer Collection, the family-owned group's existing portfolio of estates across France, Portugal and the United States.
• CEO Frédéric Rouzaud cited the acquisition as a milestone during Louis Roederer's 250th anniversary year, pledging to steward the estate with exacting standards while preserving its character.

RNDC enters Chapter 11 with buyers circling remaining markets

• Republic National Distributing Company filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Texas federal court, citing financial strain after months of asset sales and market exits.
• RNDC lists liabilities between $1 billion and $10 billion against assets of $500 million to $1 billion, with over 100,000 creditors and unsecured claims totalling over $300 million.
• The distributor's largest single debt is $93.92 million owed to Proximo Spirits for trade debt and litigation; smaller suppliers holding unsecured claims face risk of minimal recovery.
• Prospective buyers have already expressed interest in acquiring RNDC's remaining markets through the court-supervised process, which will allow orderly wind-down of operations.
• RNDC preserved over 5,000 jobs through recent sales to Reyes Beverage Group, Columbia Distributing, and others after withdrawing from California in 2025 and losing major suppliers including Brown-Forman and Pernod Ricard.

Rutini Wines' Gualtallary Malbec wins back-to-back Decanter Best in Show

• Rutini Wines' Single Vineyard Gualtallary Malbec won Best in Show at Decanter World Wine Awards in both 2025 and 2026, in its 2021 and 2023 vintages.
• The repeated wins signal that Gualtallary, a high-elevation sub-region of Mendoza's Uco Valley, produces consistent, world-class Malbecs with distinctive character: elegant yet fruit-forward with floral and herbal notes.
• Rutini's CEO Santiago Ribisich and winemaker Juan Pablo Murgia argue that Argentine terroir now matters more than grape variety, and that sub-regional identity must rival European appellations in international buyers' minds.
• Gualtallary producers are pursuing formal Geographical Indication status to establish precise sub-appellations within the larger territory, completing the work of terroir mapping across Uco Valley's five distinct zones.
• The awards have reached 80 countries and shifted domestic Argentine purchasing toward precise origin over price, establishing foundation for positioning Argentine sub-regions as fine wine equals to Bordeaux and other European regions.

Fortnum & Mason launches curated chilled reds collection as UK trend surges

• Google searches for 'chilled reds' surged between February and June 2026, with UK consumers shifting from asking whether to chill reds to which varieties suit chilling.
• Fortnum & Mason, London luxury department store, launched a curated 'Chilled Reds' collection this week spanning Beaujolais, Valpolicella, Garnacha, and others priced £13.95 to £29.95.
• Bordeaux introduced 'Claret', a new category from the 2025 vintage featuring light, fruit-forward dry reds with two to four day maceration, designed to serve chilled or over ice.
• Edwina Watson, senior wine buyer at Fortnum & Mason, says serving temperature depends on style, not quality; wines at £15 or £50 benefit from 10-14°C chilling to enhance freshness and aromatics.
• Warmer UK summers and centrally heated homes are shifting perceptions; the traditional 'room temperature' rule for reds no longer suits modern conditions, Watson said.

Hungarian wine board tours UK to move beyond Tokaj's shadow

• Wines of Hungary, the sector's marketing agency, ran UK roadshow events in six cities during 2024-2025 to position Hungarian wines beyond Tokaj's historic dominance.
• Hungary's six regions and 22 districts span volcanic terroir and local varieties like Furmint and Hárslevelű alongside international grapes, offering diversity few nations match.
• Masterclasses led by Patrick Schmitt MW, walk-around tastings with up to 36 producers per day, and food pairings positioned wines for UK on-trade adoption.
• UK producers including Sebestyén Pince Szekszárd and Gere Attila Pincészete saw opportunity in Scotland and Northern England's restaurant diversity and consumer openness to lesser-known regions.
• Hungarian exporters plan annual sommelier visits to Hungary and regular UK market presence to build long-term trade relationships and consumer awareness.

Brooklyn public housing installs pathways from 450,000 recycled wine corks

• Public Housing Community Fund and Cork Collective, an architecture and cork manufacturer partnership founded in 2024, completed a $500,000 renovation of Marlboro Houses in Gravesend, Brooklyn using recycled wine corks.
• Cork Collective sourced over 450,000 corks from NYC restaurants and beyond, shipped them to Wisconsin for grinding and adhesive mixing, then laid them as playground and pathway surfaces.
• Children at Marlboro Houses submitted design mockups that shaped the final layout, partnering residents with Center for Justice Innovation, The Urban Conga design studio, and the Resident Association.
• Cork surfaces absorb stormwater to reduce flooding, lower ambient temperature by 20 to 30 percent, and provide non-toxic alternatives to plastic, rubber, or asphalt.
• Globally, 13 billion cork stoppers are made annually; fewer than one percent are recycled, while three billion corks are discarded yearly in the United States alone.

Independent wine shop owner wins inaugural sustainable buyer award

• Di Camillo, owner of Wine & Such, a one-person independent shop, won the first Sustainable Wine Buyer award from Decanter's Wine Buyers Awards in 2025.
• Judges found her sourcing model embedded sustainability throughout her whole ethos, from wine selection to producer relationships, not as a single initiative.
• Majestic won the separate Sustainable Drinks Buying Team of the Year award, showing larger retailers also pursuing systematic sustainability strategies.
• A significant proportion of competition entrants left the sustainability section blank, suggesting many wine buyers do not yet see it as core to their role.
• The Sustainable Wine Buyer category, new in 2025, aims to recognise and encourage buyers who embed sustainability into their business rather than treating it as optional.

Korean men drink less; women over 30 drink more, survey shows

• Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency surveyed 230,000 adults in 2025; high-risk drinking fell across all male age groups since 2016 but rose in women aged 30 and older.
• High-risk drinking is defined as seven or more soju shots or five beers for men, five shots or three beers for women, in a single sitting.
• Middle-aged men still drink most heavily: over half of men in their 30s, 40s and 50s binge drink, and more than one in five in their 40s and 50s engage in high-risk drinking.
• Women aged 30 and up are now drinking more due to expanded social activities, at-home drinking becoming normalised, and shifting social attitudes toward women's alcohol use.
• Overall Korean alcohol consumption fell sharply; soju shipments dropped 13.4% between 2019 and 2025, while non-alcoholic beer spending rose 28% in three years.

Vineyards deploy shade netting to cool grape clusters during heat stress

• Shade netting is being tested across California, Argentina, Italy, and Piedmont to lower cluster temperatures and protect color and acidity during heat spikes.
• A 2022 UC Davis trial on Cabernet Sauvignon found shaded clusters had 27 percent more anthocyanins than unshaded controls when temperatures exceeded 35°C degradation threshold.
• At Petra estate in Tuscany, Merlot clusters under 90 percent shade nets measured 40-41°C versus 50°C unshaded; sunburn fell from 41 percent to 3 percent in one trial.
• Net design matters: white and green nets perform better than black, and nets must be positioned away from fruit to avoid heat-trapping contact; more shade does not always mean cooler berries.
• Boroli in Barolo's Villero vineyard found an open net reduced maximum temperatures from 49.2°C to 43°C, but darker nets exceeded 50°C, demonstrating netting's complexity as a heat-adaptation tool.

Grape sunburn spreads as heat waves reach cool regions, forcing vineyard rethink

• Sunburn in grapes is a stress response to excess light and ultraviolet radiation, but primarily to berry surface temperature; direct sun can push fruit 22-27°F above air temperature, causing cells to die, skins to crack, and berries to shrivel.
• Joanna Gambetta, Ph.D., wine scientist at University of Newcastle Australia, found that Chardonnay berries show damage within five minutes at surface temperatures of 104-109°F under high light; browning appears at lower heat, necrosis at extreme temperatures.
• Sunburned grapes taste of cooked and oxidized fruit, fruit leather, rubber, asphalt, and creosote; in finished wine they show flabby acid, high alcohol, light color with brown rim, astringent tannins, and premature aging that worsens over time.
• As climate change pushes heat waves into historically cool regions, vineyard management practices that worked in moderate summers are being retimed or abandoned; sorting sunburned fruit at harvest is now critical defense.

Heat-Tolerant Mourvèdre Struggles as Southern France Temperatures Soar

• Mourvèdre, long bred for heat in Bandol and Jumilla, now faces extreme temperatures and drought that push even this variety toward imbalance and vine death.
• A three-year drought in Jumilla from 2022 to 2024 killed old bush vines; surface area there halved in 20 years as producers abandoned hotter southern sites.
• Bandol producers including Jean-François Ott at Domaines Ott and the Gueissards are adapting canopy management, higher pruning, and ground cover to shade vines and retain soil moisture.
• Irrigation, long rejected in dry-farmed Provence, is now deemed essential by viticulture professor Alain Deloire and accepted by some Bandol growers to prevent vine death in severe years.
• Wine style is shifting: cooler Bandol sites traditionally used for rosé are now reserved for red wine; rosé production may decline as the region prioritizes survival of remaining vineyards.

The wines of Zacharioudakis, Crete

• Zacharioudakis is a family-owned winery in northern Crete started by journalist Stelios Zacharioudakis in 2000, operating 20 hectares of organically farmed vineyards.
• The winery's 500-metre altitude vineyards in Crete produce whites from Assyrtiko, Muscat Spinas, Sauvignon Blanc, and Vidiano, plus reds from Syrah, Merlot, Kotsifali, and Cabernet Sauvignon.
• Zacharioudakis Kotsifali 2021 scored highest at 92/100; Zacharioudakis Vidiano 2023 and Codex Red 2022 both scored 90/100.

"There's Always a New Wave"

• Rioja DOCa celebrated its 100th anniversary with a gala at the Vivanco Museum featuring wines from five Michelin-starred restaurants and over 100 selections.
• New-wave Rioja winemakers reject traditional crianza, reserva, and gran reserva aging designations, prioritizing freshness and terroir over barrel aging and oak influence.
• Sandra Bravo of Sierra de Toloño and Oxer Bastegieta exemplify the new wave, arguing extended barrel aging destroys fruit and that Rioja's old vineyards deserve better winemaking beliefs.
• Álvaro Palacios, whose 1990s Priorat reds defined an earlier new wave, observed that "there's always a new wave", suggesting cyclical generational shifts in wine preferences are inevitable.
• Author questions whether new-wave-versus-old-wave framing diminishes appreciation of stellar traditional Riojas like the 1978 Bodegas Bilbaínas Gran Zaco and Remírez de Ganuza's 2018 Olagar Gran Reserva.

Michelin And The Death Of The Wine Guide

• Michelin's Wine Selection Burgundy 2026 awarded nine producers three grapes, 20 vignerons two grapes, 33 one grape, and 32 were merely 'selected.'.
• Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux publicly demanded removal from Michelin's guide after receiving one grape despite being celebrated.
• Michelin rates producers based on vineyard management and consistency, not individual wines, unlike competitor Guide Hachette des Vins which rates cuvées one to five.
• Michelin owns 100% of Wine Advocate since 2019 after purchasing 40% in 2017; WA Editor-in-Chief William Kelley may have influenced selections.
• Consumer wine guides emerged in the 1970s with Decanter, Wine Spectator, and Parker's Wine Advocate; internet access from mid-1990s rendered print guides obsolete.

Wine News: What I’m Reading the Week of 7/26/26

Hello and welcome to my weekly roundup of the wine stories that I find of interest on the web. I

Six Wines That Stopped Me in My Tracks

• A Burgundy-born winemaker named Charly relocated to Lower Austria a decade ago and produces wines under his own label and Côtes Danubiennes sub-brand.
• Charly owns one hectare of vines and sources grapes from friends farming organically or biodynamically.
• His Blauer Portugieser 2023, made from Christoph Hoch's grapes, exhibits ripeness, vivid fruit, and creamy texture unusual for the variety.
• Charly's Grüner Veltliner 2022, Blaufränkisch 2023, and Zweigelt 2023 are available from Gute Weine for €27 per bottle with EU delivery.

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 vineyards in Grant's Pass, western Applegate Valley.
• Troon uses ambient cultures for fermentation, minimal sulfite at bottling, and ages in neutral oak, concrete, qvevri, or stainless steel.
• Applegate Valley's alluvial soils, high latitude summer light, and nighttime cooling from Siskiyou Mountains enable Mediterranean grape ripening.

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 huangjiu with aged Chinese tangerine peel came from inspiration during a Christmas Eve 2024 shift in Shaoxing; the idea emerged after tasting a citrus beer.
• Coram's products are already listed in over 100 restaurants and bistros across Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Chengdu since launching last June.
• Good huangjiu peaks between three and eight years of aging; modern styles are fresher and cleaner than older, sweeter, more oxidized versions.
• Chardomi (80% Chardonnay, 20% glutinous rice) requires rice saccharification before co-fermentation with pressed grape juice, a fundamentally different process than traditional winemaking.

A wine of straw

• Dessert wine consumption has declined for approximately 75 years, with minimal recovery expected amid concerns over sugar and alcohol content.
• Raül Bobet, co-owner of Ferrer-Bobet in Priorat, Catalunya, releases dessert wines with 20-year aging processes driven by personal passion rather than market demand.
• Goût Russe Champagne of the 19th century contained 300g/l of sugar for Russian markets, setting a historical extreme in sparkling wine sweetness.