winefeed

US wine industry lacks coordinated marketing apparatus to counter negative coverage

• Gino Colangelo, founder of New York PR agency Colangelo & Partners, says US wine lacks the collective marketing infrastructure that dairy, almonds and cranberries sectors maintain.
• Come Over October, a pro-bono campaign co-founded by Colangelo and wine critic Karen McNeil, counters rising anti-alcohol media narratives by positioning wine as agricultural and social.
• Colangelo warns that inconsistent funding and company support for wine advocacy campaigns, coming in 'fits and starts', prevents sustained market-building unlike regional rivals Chianti Classico and Prosecco DOC Consortium.
• Wine regions that sustain incremental marketing campaigns build lasting market share, while those launching big programs then disappearing for years lose traction, Colangelo says.
• Current US wine downturn is cyclical but its depth depends on continued industry investment in marketing and advocacy, Colangelo argues, amid competition from THC beverages and weight-loss drugs.

Endeavour Group sells Chapel Hill and four Australian wineries

• Endeavour Group, Woolworths' wine subsidiary, is selling physical assets of Chapel Hill Estate in McLaren Vale and four other Australian wineries to cut costs by AU$300 million.
• Endeavour bought Chapel Hill in 2019 for an undisclosed sum, folding it into new division Paragon Wine Estates; the company will retain the brand but offload its 13.69 hectares of vineyard and winery infrastructure.
• The company plans to reduce grape growing by 80 percent, shifting to purchasing 99% bulk wine and grapes, keeping only Cape Mentelle and Dorrien Estate as full-owned Australian operations.
• Oakridge in Yarra Valley and Josef Chromy in Tasmania are also being sold; Endeavour will keep Chapel Hill, Riddoch and Krondorf brands but as purchased-wine producers only.
• The restructure under new CEO Jayne Hrdlicka targets brands generating strongest returns, following Australian wine exports hitting a 22-year low and harvests falling to 25-year lows.

Australian wine exports hit 22-year low amid global consumption decline

• 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, while the UK and US posted their lowest volumes in 25 years.
• Canada emerged as a bright spot, with exports rising 20% in value to A$188m, partly due to market-share gains from reduced US wine availability during trade disputes.
• Several Asian markets outside China recorded gains, with Thailand achieving record export values and Singapore becoming Australia's largest Asian market outside mainland China.

Younger Bordeaux vintages surge at iDealwine as collectors shift to drinking now

• iDealwine, the online wine auction house with offices in Paris, Hong Kong, Singapore and New York, posted record results in 2025: €33.9 million in value across 391,000 bottles, up 9% in value and 19% in volume.
• Bordeaux volumes jumped 23% to over 105,000 bottles, one in three lots sold, with value up 19% to €12.5m despite widespread talk of oversupply and vineyard removals.
• Bordeaux wines under 10 years old rose to 28% of bottles auctioned in 2025, up from 20% the year before, driven by modern winemaking styles that allow earlier drinking.
• The 2025 en primeur campaign saw subdued demand overall, even at attractive prices, as fewer collectors want to buy young wines and cellar them for years before opening.
• Château Lafleur volumes more than doubled but average price fell 25% to €471, while Château Figeac volumes rose 72% with only a 3% price dip after gaining premier grand cru classé A status.

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

• Majestic Wine, owned by Fortress Investment Group since 2019, will invest £4 million across its UK store network in the 2026/27 financial year.
• The investment will fund at least four new stores and a wider refurbishment programme, beginning with a new branch in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, which opened this year.
• Majestic has opened more than 25 stores since its 2019 acquisition, betting on physical retail as a growth driver despite pressure on the UK high street.
• The Trowbridge store stocks 1,000 wines and offers free tastings, WSET-trained staff, and next-day delivery via electric van to both retail and hospitality customers.
• Majestic Commercial, the group's wholesale arm, supplies over 4,200 UK pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels, including Manchester City Football Club and Lord's Cricket Ground.

Domaine Lafage acquires majority of Banyuls and Collioure production

• Domaine Lafage, a Roussillon producer, acquired the struggling Groupement Interproducteurs Collioure Banyuls (GICB) after Perpignan High Court approval, creating Terrasses Vermeilles.
• The new company controls approximately 60% of production across Banyuls and Collioure, managing nearly 500 growers farming 500 hectares and producing around one million bottles annually.
• Domaine Lafage plans to preserve the historic Les Templiers site, existing brands and appellations' identity while leveraging combined distribution networks and commercial strength.
• The acquisition aims to stabilize grower returns and employee livelihoods after months of uncertainty; Lafage will extend its climate adaptation and regenerative viticulture research to the acquired vineyards.

Champagnes & Châteaux adds Brokenwood Wines as first Australian distributor

• UK wine importer Champagnes & Châteaux, founded in 1989 and owned by French firm Arvitis, signed a deal to distribute Brokenwood Wines from August 1.
• Brokenwood Wines, a Hunter Valley producer founded in 1970, is Champagnes & Châteaux's first Australian winery, marking the importer's expansion beyond its French core.
• Brokenwood's range includes flagship Graveyard Vineyard Shiraz, Hunter Valley Semillon, Margaret River Cabernet and the Cricket Pitch blend line across Australian regions.
• Champagnes & Châteaux managing director Charles Taverner, appointed less than one year ago, is pursuing aggressive growth and recently created an off-trade key account manager role.
• The UK wine trade will preview the Brokenwood range at a Champagnes & Châteaux portfolio tasting in London on 9 September.

Bordeaux wildfires force mass evacuation, threaten wine tourism at peak season

• Massive wildfires in the Gironde region forced 220,000 evacuations across France, destroying around 240 homes and prompting the government to urge tourists away from Bordeaux.
• Wine tourism, the only growing revenue sector for Bordeaux estates, has halted abruptly. Edouard Le Grix de la Salle, winemaker, called it a brake on the region's recovery from falling consumption and economic pressure.
• Château Picque Caillou and other estates temporarily closed due to heavy smoke; Peggy Plouhinec, general director, said hospitality will suffer sharply from lost summer visitor numbers.
• Nearest vineyards are 15 kilometres from the fire source; smoke taint risk depends on proximity, smoke duration, and grape development stage at véraison, though 2022 wildfires caused only isolated damage.
• Thomas Duroux, director general of Château Palmer, warned that extreme heat and drought this year mark a turning point, requiring focus on water resources and vineyard resilience to climate change.

1811 Riesling from Weingut Bassermann-Jordan offered at Catawiki

• Catawiki, an Amsterdam online marketplace, is auctioning a bottle of 1811 Forster Ungeheuer Riesling from Weingut Bassermann-Jordan in Germany's Pfalz region, July 24 to August 3.
• The bottle is thought to be the oldest full bottle of German Riesling from a documented single vineyard ever offered at a European auction, estimated at €10,000, €13,000.
• It has remained in the winery's cellar for over 200 years and was recorked in April 2026 using wine exclusively from the same 1811 vintage.
• The 1811 vintage is celebrated as a 'comet vintage' following poor harvests earlier in the 1800s; master sommelier Anne Krebiehl MW described the wine as remarkably fresh and balanced in 2018.
• Only one of eight remaining bottles from the vintage is being offered; a half-bottle of 1727 Rüdesheimer Riesling sold at Christie's in 2009 remains the oldest Riesling sold at auction.

Chapel Down lifts H1 sales 19% on US expansion and UK sparkling growth

• Chapel Down, England's largest winemaker, reported net sales revenue of £9.4 million for H1 2026, up 19% from £7.9 million a year earlier.
• 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 as English sparkling wine category grew double-digit; on-trade climbed 18% to £1.5 million across 2,750 outlets.
• Traditional method sparkling now accounts for 74% of wine net sales revenue, up from 70%, as premiumisation strategy gains traction against Champagne pricing.
• Net debt increased to £14.0 million; company expanded credit facility to £25 million with £5 million accordion option to fund growth.

Sancerre's neighbors offer Loire Sauvignon Blanc at half the price

• Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc now sells for $40, $50 per bottle, but five neighboring Centre-Loire appellations produce comparable wines at $20, $30.
• Pouilly-Fumé, Menetou-Salon, Quincy, Reuilly, and Coteaux du Giennois all lie within an hour of Sancerre and share its Kimmeridgian limestone soils and mineral character.
• Sancerre is at production capacity with no plans to expand, while exports from neighboring appellations remain smaller but growing as US distributors seek alternatives.
• Producers including Emile Balland, Paul-Henry Pellé at Domaine Pellé in Menetou-Salon, and others are experimenting with old vine varieties to preserve acidity as climate change shortens harvest windows.
• Centre-Loire Pinot Noirs are improving in quality and offer better value than Burgundy, according to winemakers including Matthieu Delaporte at Domaine Delaporte in Sancerre.

Rutini Wines' awards push Mendoza sub-regions into fine wine focus

• Rutini Wines' Gualtallary Malbec won Best in Show at Decanter World Wine Awards in 2025 and 2026, signalling Uco Valley's emergence as a fine wine region.
• Juan Pablo Murgia, Rutini's head winemaker, attributes the wine's success to Gualtallary's high elevation, limestone soils and distinctive elegant fruit profile.
• Santiago Ribisich, Rutini CEO, argues that consistency across vintages proves terroir maturity, not exceptional luck, positioning sub-regional origin as the key differentiator.
• Gualtallary producers are pursuing formal Geographical Indication status to establish the sub-region as a distinct appellation, mirroring European fine wine recognition.
• Ribisich seeks international collectors and professionals in London and New York to associate Gualtallary with a specific style, elevating Argentine terroirs to European standing.

Fortnum & Mason curates chilled reds as UK trend surges

• Google searches for 'chilled reds' surged February, June 2026; UK consumers now ask which reds to chill, not whether to chill them.
• Fortnum & Mason, luxury UK department store, launched a curated 'Chilled Reds' collection this week priced £13.95, £29.95, spanning Beaujolais, Valpolicella, Garnacha, and English Pinot Précoce.
• Bordeaux introduced 'Claret', a new category from 2025 vintage: light, unoaked reds with two, four day maceration, served chilled or over ice, targeting younger drinkers.
• Edwina Watson, Fortnum's senior wine buyer, said serving temperature is about style, not quality: wines with bright acidity and supple tannins shine at 10-14°C regardless of price.
• UK summers warming and central heating have made room temperature serving impractical; the shift mirrors long-standing practice in Spain and Italy.

Historic vine-training systems disappear as labor costs and mechanization reshape European vineyards

• Alberata vines in Naples, pergola systems in Veneto, and hoyos on Lanzarote are vanishing as mechanizable training methods displace ancestral techniques developed over centuries.
• Lanzarote's hoyo vineyards shrunk 19 percent between 2000 and 2026 despite driving tourism; labor demands now threaten survival even as local governments introduce subsidies to preserve them.
• Familia Torres adapts pergola training for Rías Baixas Albariño using specialized machinery for maintenance, but manual harvesting rules mean all systems require equal hand-picking effort.
• Bellussera, a 19th-century pergola hybrid in Veneto, declined when silk production and subsistence farming ended; climate resilience and wine tourism may now reverse the loss.
• Regional factors determine survival: wetter climates, tourism pull, climate adaptation potential, and local regulations all shape whether growers abandon or invest in labor-intensive heritage methods.

Independent wine merchant wins inaugural sustainable buyer award

• Di Camillo, owner of Wine & Such independent shop, won the first Sustainable Wine Buyer award from Decanter's Wine Buyers Awards in 2025.
• Judges found her sustainability approach threaded through sourcing, producer relationships and daily operations, not limited to single initiatives like cork recycling.
• Majestic won the separate Sustainable Drinks Buying Team of the Year award, showing major retailers are embedding sustainability into purchasing decisions.
• Many competition entrants left sustainability sections blank, suggesting some buyers do not prioritise it or lack substantial programmes, judges said.
• The category launched in 2025 to recognise buyers shaping wine trends through sustainability, revealing the industry still has ground to cover in this area.

Groove Armada and Signature Brew launch regenerative barley lager

• Signature Brew in London's east end, Groove Armada musician Andy Cato, and Wildfarmed co-brewed Do It Right, a 5% ABV Czech-style lager using regeneratively farmed malted barley.
• Wildfarmed growers use practices that improve soil health, increase biodiversity, minimise water pollution and reduce carbon across their network.
• Do It Right launches nationwide at Waitrose in 440ml cans at £3 each, plus keg and can formats in pubs, bars and venues this week.
• Cato, who co-founded Wildfarmed after selling music rights to buy a French farm, frames the beer as uniting music culture, regenerative farming and live experience.
• The collaboration signals consumers increasingly link food and drink purchases to land practice and community impact rather than price or taste alone.

Korean men cut high-risk drinking; women over 30 drink more

• Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency surveyed 230,000 adults in 2025 and found high-risk drinking fell across all male age groups from 2016 to 2025, but rose in every female age group except those in their 20s.
• Men in their 40s and 50s still show the highest problem drinking rates, with over one in five engaging in high-risk drinking; women in their 20s peak at 34.2% binge drinking.
• Older women's rising consumption may reflect expanded social dining, at-home drinking becoming normalised, and shifting attitudes toward female drinking, per SBS News analysis.
• Young Koreans are meanwhile embracing sobriety, with non-alcoholic beer spending up 30% in three years, offsetting growth elsewhere.
• Soju shipments fell 13.4% from 2019 to 2025 (916,000 to 793,000 kilolitres), with household alcohol spending at a seven-year low and half of Korean pubs closed in eight years.

Vineyards deploy shade netting to cool fruit zones as heat stress intensifies

• Growers in California, Argentina, Italy, and France are using shade netting to lower cluster temperatures and protect color compounds during heat stress, a shift from netting's traditional role as bird and hail defence.
• UC Davis research on Cabernet Sauvignon showed shaded clusters had 27 percent more skin anthocyanins than unshaded controls when temperatures exceeded 35 degrees Celsius, the threshold for anthocyanin degradation.
• Catena Zapata in Mendoza uses light netting that blocks 15 percent of radiation; trials compare nets blocking 17, 50, and zero percent shade to measure effects on vine stress and phenolic compounds.
• At Petra in Tuscany, Merlot clusters under 90 percent shade nets measured 40 to 41 degrees Celsius versus 50 degrees in unshaded fruit, reducing sunburn from 41 percent to three percent in one trial.
• Net colour and placement matter: white or green nets absorb less heat than black; nets must stay away from clusters to avoid heat damage, and excessive shade can trap heat and compromise wine quality.

Grape sunburn spreads north as heat waves reshape canopy management

• Chris Tanghe, MS and director of education for GuildSomm, identified sunburned grapes by sensory markers: flattened fruit, rubber, asphalt, and creosote notes that mask wine complexity.
• Joanna Gambetta, Ph.D., wine scientist at University of Newcastle Australia, found berry surface temperatures can reach 22 to 27 degrees Fahrenheit above air temperature; Chardonnay shows damage within five minutes at 104 to 109°F under high light.
• Sunburn degrades chlorophyll, polyphenols, carotenoids, and aromatic terpenes while reducing tartaric acid; in red varieties heat damages anthocyanins more than light does, per UC Davis 2009 research.
• Producers including Chêne Bleu in Ventoux, Tyrrell's in Hunter Valley, and Matthiasson Wines in Napa have abandoned or retimed midsummer defoliation, adopted kaolin clay film, and redesigned canopy to shield fruit as heat waves intensify.
• Steve Matthiasson, winemaker at Matthiasson Wines, emphasizes sorting sunburned fruit at harvest is critical: poor grapes will degrade an entire batch regardless of winemaking skill.

Heat-tolerant Mourvèdre struggles as southern France temperatures soar beyond its limits

• Mourvèdre, bred for heat and drought in southern France's Bandol region, is now stressed by record temperatures and erratic weather that exceed even its tolerance.
• Producers including Jean-François Ott at Domaines Ott and the Gueissard family are experimenting with canopy shading, higher pruning, and ground cover to help vines survive extreme conditions.
• A three-year drought from 2022 to 2024 killed old Monastrell vines in Jumilla, Spain, forcing growers to irrigate or abandon southern parcels, with the region's vineyard surface halved in 20 years.
• Bandol's cooler sites traditionally used for rosé are now being planted with red varieties as heat shifts wine styles, raising questions about whether the region can sustain its current 75 percent rosé production.
• Viticulture professor Alain Deloire at Institut Agro Montpellier argues that dry farming is unsustainable and Provence must either irrigate or shift to more red wine production.

The brilliant Douro wines of Mateus Nicolau de Almeida/Ameztoy & Almeida

• Mateus Nicolau de Almeida founded his Douro winery in 2014 after leaving Muxagat, which he established in 2003.
• His wife Teresa Ameztoy, former chief winemaker at Ramos Pinto (2005-2019), now works alongside him on the venture.
• The couple farms 4 hectares organically and sources additional grapes from other growers in the Douro region.
• Mateus is the grandson of Fernando Nicolau d'Almeida, who began Barca Velha in 1952, and son of João Nicolau d'Almeida of Ramos Pinto.

Vinography Images: Cave Dwellers

One of the strangely most predictable signs that I’m going to enjoy the wines at a winery I’ve just walked

Is Old Aussie Shiraz Cool Again? Ehhhh Maybe, Maybe Not.

• Australian shiraz peaked in exports during the late 1990s, when Robert Parker awarded high scores to South Australian bottles at $40-$60, making them collector favorites.
• Yellowtail and similar bulk brands flooded the market in the 2000s, collapsing Australian wine's reputation and pushing collectors toward Burgundy, Bordeaux, Barolo, and Brunello.
• Aged Australian shiraz from the 1990s-2000s now sells for ~$30 per bottle, cheaper than original release prices, and significantly outlasts Parker's recommended drinking windows.
• Key producers like Clarendon Hills and Kay Brothers produced restrained and balanced shiraz; 2002 Kay Brothers (15% ABV) and 2002 Wild Duck Creek Estate showed fresh, concentrated fruit with 20+ year aging potential.

Michelin And The Death Of The Wine Guide

• Michelin's Wine Selection Burgundy 2026 awarded nine producers three grapes, 20 two grapes, 33 one grape, and 32 'selected' status.
• Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux publicly demanded removal from Michelin's guide after receiving only one grape despite being a celebrated Vosne-Romanée house.
• Michelin rates producers based on vineyard management and consistency rather than individual wines, unlike competitor Guide Hachette des Vins which rates cuvées one to five.
• Michelin owns 100% of Wine Advocate (acquired entirely in 2019 after purchasing 40% in 2017), raising questions about potential influence on Burgundy selections.
• Consumer wine guides emerged in the 1970s-1980s with publications like Decanter, Wine Spectator, and Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book, but internet and AI are reshaping the format.

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 Côtes Danubiennes sub-brand.
• Charly owns one hectare and sources grapes from friends farming organically or biodynamically.
• His Blauer Portugieser 2023, with grapes from Christoph Hoch, displays 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 at €27 per bottle, delivering to selected EU countries.

Notable Releases from Troon Vineyard

• Troon Vineyard released 2025 Vermentino and 2023 Syrah from Oregon's Applegate Valley.
• Troon Vineyard, located in Grant's Pass, farms using certified biodynamic and regenerative organic principles.
• Troon ferments with ambient cultures, uses minimal sulfite at bottling, and avoids new oak.
• Applegate Valley's high-latitude location provides long summer days and heat, with overnight temperature drops from Siskiyou Mountain winds.

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 emerged from a Christmas Eve 2024 experience; the brand is already listed in over 100 restaurants and bistros across five major Chinese cities.
• Coram's Chardomi blends 80% Chardonnay grapes with 20% glutinous rice; rice requires soaking, steaming, and saccharification before co-fermentation with pressed grape juice begins.
• Common huangjiu misconceptions: it is not cooking wine, optimal aging is three to eight years (not necessarily older), and modern styles are fresher and cleaner than historical sweet, oxidized versions.

A wine of straw

• Dessert wine consumption has declined for approximately 75 years, with limited signs of recovery.
• Goût Russe Champagne from the 19th century contained 300g/l of sugar for the Russian market.
• Raül Bobet, co-owner of Ferrer-Bobet in Priorat, Catalunya, releases dessert wines with 20-year aging processes driven by personal passion.