winefeed

Federal THC beverage cap wipes out state-legal hemp drink sales

• Massachusetts retailers selling hemp-derived THC drinks faced a ban in May 2024 when state regulators prohibited their sale in wine and liquor stores, erasing revenue overnight.
• Art Nergaryan, owner of Art's Specialties in Massachusetts, saw his business jump 25 to 35 percent after adding THC beverages, then collapse when the ban took effect and distributors removed stock.
• The US THC-infused beverage market grew 135 percent in the 52 weeks to April 2026, reaching $239 million, but faces a federal cap of 0.4 milligrams per container effective November 2026.
• States have adopted conflicting rules: Minnesota and Georgia permit hemp beverages, while California, Washington, and Vermont restrict them outside licensed cannabis systems, creating an inconsistent national market.
• The 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp but not hemp-beverage products; Congress's November 2025 legislation closes loopholes by capping total THC concentration at 0.3 percent dry weight, effectively banning most current drinks.

English estates launch prestige cuvées at Champagne prices

• Nyetimber pioneered England's prestige cuvée market in 2018, releasing white and rosé 1086 wines at £150, £175, matching Champagne prices, from the 2009 vintage onwards.
• Chapel Down, Gusbourne, Langham and Squerryes have since launched their own super-premium bottlings, priced £109, £395, each with extended lees ageing and limited production runs.
• These cuvées draw from specific vineyard parcels and vintage selections, with ageing baselines of seven to eight years on lees, mirroring prestige Champagne production models.
• English prestige cuvées typically carry heritage narratives: Squerryes invokes a 17th-century wool merchant; Gusbourne named its range after vineyard latitude; Langham uses a solera-style perpetual blend inspired by grower Champagne.
• The movement reflects growing international recognition of English sparkling wine quality, enabling estates to command premium positioning previously reserved for Champagne houses.

Centre-Loire appellations gain traction as Sancerre prices soar beyond $40

• Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc prices have climbed to $40, $50, while neighboring Centre-Loire appellations, Pouilly-Fumé, Menetou-Salon, Quincy, Reuilly, Coteaux du Giennois, offer similar quality at $20, $30.
• Sancerre is at production capacity with no plans to expand, according to Clément Berthier, appellation president, limiting supply as demand from US and global buyers remains strong.
• Neighboring appellations benefit from Sancerre's popularity despite lower export volumes; Chad Stephens, Hawaii sales director for importer Chambers & Chambers, notes Sancerre demand still outpaces supply.
• Pinot Noir from the region is gaining attention as an alternative to Burgundy, with Matthieu Delaporte of Domaine Delaporte highlighting improved quality and favorable price-to-quality ratios.
• Climate change is accelerating harvest dates toward late August, forcing producers like Emile Balland and Paul-Henry Pellé of Domaine Pellé to experiment with abandoned varieties to preserve acidity and freshness.

World Cup sponsorship fails to reverse beer industry decline

• Anheuser-Busch InBev spent $110 million on global Michelob Ultra World Cup campaign but projected only 0.25% volume lift for the year.
• US off-premise beer sales fell 2.1% in dollars and 3.4% in volume in the final week of the tournament, outpacing prior declines.
• On-premise draft beer performed better, up 7.1% in dollars and 6.46% in volume across BeerBoard's network during the tournament.
• Overall US beer category is down 4.5% year-to-date, far exceeding the World Cup's modest boost and suggesting structural market weakness.
• Spirits outperformed beer during the tournament, with Cutwater up around 60% in the final week, suggesting beverage-alcohol consumers shifted categories.

Silver Scope Media bids $400k for bankrupt Rogue Ales' recipes and trademarks

• Silver Scope Media Ltd, a U.K. digital marketing agency, bid $400,000 for Rogue Ales & Spirits' intellectual property nine months after parent company Oregon Brewing filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Oregon.
• Rogue's IP includes website domain, recipes, manufacturing specifications, yeast strains, social media accounts, and trademarks for Dead Guy IPA and other brands; Oregon Brewing valued the assets at $2 million.
• The U.S. Bankruptcy Court accepts competing bids through Aug. 21, requiring offers to exceed Silver Scope's by at least $40,000, with a hearing scheduled for Aug. 26.
• Valley View Winery, an Oregon estate, objected to the sale, claiming it holds a perpetual license to Rogue's wine and wine-based beverage rights under a 1997 settlement agreement.
• Oregon Brewing filed for bankruptcy after citing $17 million in debts against $5 million in assets, leading to abrupt closure of its distillery and taprooms and employee layoffs.

Eleven sommeliers name the red wines they see overpriced and underdelivering

• Eleven US sommeliers were asked which red wines carry reputations and prices that outpace their quality in the glass.
• Cabernet Sauvignon, particularly from Napa and California, drew the most criticism for heavy oak and power over balance masking true character.
• Amarone della Valpolicella, Left Bank Bordeaux, Rioja, Pinot Noir, Argentine Malbec, and California Zinfandel also ranked as overrated by individual sommeliers.
• Professionals recommend alternatives with similar profiles but lower prices: Gamay from Beaujolais, Frappato from Sicily, Spanish reds from Ribera del Duero, and Portuguese Douro wines.
• Sommeliers stress that prestige and price often override actual quality, and smaller producers and overlooked regions deliver equal character at fraction of cost.

Young wine workers reshape how Gen Z discovers wine beyond formality

• Daria Volokitina, sommelier at Hotel Plaza Athénée in Paris, paired Austrian Furmint with casual barbecue instead of formal dining rules, choosing wine by sensation rather than tradition.
• Alex Padilla, retail staff at Hi-Time Wine Cellars in Costa Mesa, California, uses social media and personal recommendation to show younger customers that wine suits everyday meals and budgets.
• Both workers entered wine after other careers, deliberately positioning themselves as approachable faces to counter perception that wine requires prior knowledge or formal occasions.
• Natural wines and transparent winemaking styles appeal to this cohort, though younger drinkers still lack basic understanding of what natural wine actually is.
• The shift reflects broader change: wine is no longer reserved for specialists or fine dining, but barriers to entry for new drinkers persist despite younger staff presence in retail and hospitality.

Ancient vine-training systems face extinction as labor costs and mechanization advance

• Italy's alberata system, once widespread around Naples, survives on only a handful of hectares today, replaced by mechanizable methods like Guyot and vertical shoot positioning.
• Lanzarote's hoyo pits, carved after 1730-1736 volcanic eruptions, draw thousands of tourists annually and support the island's economy, but vineyard area fell 19 percent from 2000 to 2026 due to labor demands.
• Alberto González Plasencia, owner of Bodegas Timanfaya on Lanzarote, warns that losing hoyos would cost the island tourism revenue and reduce wine value despite local subsidies.
• Familia Torres maintains six hectares of traditional pergolas for Rías Baixas Albariño at Pazo Torre Panelas using specialized machinery, proving adaptation can sustain heritage systems where DO regulations support hand harvest.
• Bellussera, a 19th-century pergola-alberata hybrid near Venice, covers only nine percent of Piave DOC today but may recover as climate change favors its resilience and wine tourism creates new economic value.

Maker's Mark releases fourth Cellar Aged blend with record maturity ratio

• Maker's Mark announced its 2026 Cellar Aged expression, a blend of 11-, 12-, and 14-year-old bourbons bottled at cask-strength and 112.1 proof.
• The 2026 release comprises 49 percent 11-year-old, 33 percent 12-year-old, and 18 percent 14-year-old bourbon, increasing the 14-year-old content from last year's 16 percent.
• Maker's Mark master distiller Blake Layfield ages these expressions in a limestone cavern maintained at 50 degrees Fahrenheit, slowing wood influence while allowing flavor evolution.
• Layfield blends younger and older bourbons to amplify vibrancy and depth rather than pursuing the oldest possible bourbon; the cavern's controlled temperature enables this balance.
• The 2026 Cellar Aged will retail for $175 starting September 1, with international availability later in 2026 and early 2027.

Pierce's Disease Threatens 41% of European Vineyards as Climate Warms

• Xylella fastidiosa, a bacterium causing Pierce's disease, has been detected in grapevines in Portugal (2023), Spain's Balearic Islands (2016), and regulated zones across continental Europe, with potential economic damage estimated at €5.5 billion.
• A 2025 high-resolution climate study found 41.2 percent of European vineyards now face climate risk of Pierce's disease, up from 21.8 percent in earlier models, as warming winters allow the pathogen to survive in previously protected regions.
• Vineyard microclimates in river basins and valleys are especially vulnerable because they connect isolated areas that historically stayed too cold for the bacterium to persist.
• California's decades of fighting Pierce's disease show that early detection and integrated vector management are critical; once the pathogen becomes established, eradication shifts to slowing spread and minimizing damage.
• European countries lack consistent communication protocols between regional bodies and growers, risking concealment of infections and hindering coordinated surveillance efforts that California now recognizes as essential.

Disease-resistant hybrid grapes cut fungicide sprays by 80 percent in vineyards

• PIWIs, hybrid grapes bred for fungal resistance, require two to three fungicide sprays per season versus eight to 15 for traditional varieties like Cabernet Franc.
• Modern genetic testing technology rhAmpSeq, pioneered by the US VitisGen initiative in 2019, pinpoints disease-resistance genes with precision, accelerating PIWI development globally.
• Germany leads PIWI adoption with 4,000 hectares planted in 2025, up 10 percent year-on-year and representing four percent of German vineyard area.
• A 2026 Luxembourg study found PIWIs deliver twofold economic savings and up to threefold environmental benefit, chiefly through reduced chemical, fuel, and labor costs in spraying.
• New French ResDur hybrids crossing PIWI stock with Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot are entering trial plots in Bordeaux to maintain regional flavor while building mildew immunity.

Vineyards use netting to lower cluster temperatures and preserve color

• Vineyard netting, traditionally used for hail and bird protection, is being deployed to reduce solar radiation and lower cluster-zone temperatures during heat events.
• UC Davis research on Cabernet Sauvignon found shaded clusters retained 27 percent more anthocyanins than unshaded controls when temperatures exceeded 35 degrees Celsius, the threshold for color degradation.
• At Petra in Tuscany, Merlot clusters under 90 percent shade nets measured 40-41 degrees Celsius versus 50 degrees in unshaded controls, cutting sunburn from 41 percent to three percent in one trial.
• White and green nets perform better than black nets; placement matters, nets must stay away from fruit to avoid transferring heat, and one-sided shading avoids trapping warm air as an oven effect.
• Catena Zapata in Mendoza and Boroli in Barolo are studying net shade levels to balance UV exposure needed for phenolic development against heat stress, calibrating light pulses rather than full exposure.

The taste of stone

• Jako Andabak founded Stina (formerly Jako Vino) on Brač island in 2009 after purchasing a cooperative in Bol village.
• Stina modernized the winery and planted new vineyards starting in 2009, with initial wines presented at Zagreb Wine Gourmet Weekend in April 2012.
• Andabak, a hotel owner on Brač, had capital backing and direct market access through his hotels to support the wine venture.
• Stina emerged as part of a broader wave of 'Hrvatski Vrh' premium wineries established across Croatia around 2012-2013, often with significant financial backing.

Four wines from Virginia in the USA

• Virginia has 300 wineries across 1,600 hectares, with 75% Vitis vinifera and 25% hybrids, despite challenging hot, humid summers.
• Rosemont of Virginia Kilravock 2023 blends 44% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Franc, and 28% Petit Verdot, aged 18 months in French and American oak.
• Barboursville Cabernet Franc Reserve 2023 contains 10% Petit Verdot and costs $25 in the USA.
• Domaine Finot Turk Mountain Vineyards Petit Verdot 2023 uses whole cluster fermentation with wild yeasts and no added sulfites; drink in one sitting to avoid mousiness.

Vinography Images: Under African Skies

Dramatic skies make for a beautiful evening above vineyards near Stellenbosch, South Africa. Known traditionally as the home of South

Who's Afraid of Volatile Wines?

• EU law limits volatile acidity in wine to 1.2 g/L for reds, 1.08 g/L for whites; violations can result in bottle destruction orders.
• Sébastien David (Loire) had 2,000+ bottles of Cabernet Franc destroyed in 2019 for exceeding VA limits; a petition against the decision garnered almost 175,000 signatures.
• The US permits 1.4 g/L VA for red wines, up to 1.7 g/L for super-ripe grapes; the EU's 2025 exceptions list allows up to 2.4 g/L for hundreds of appellations including Amarone, Madeira, and Tokaji.
• The current 1.2 g/L limit was established by the European Economic Community in 1979 with vague consumer-protection justification; vinegar requires 40 g/L acidity to form.
• Orange wines must conform to the lower white wine VA limit of 1.08 g/L despite their tannin and VA levels typically resembling reds.

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 as 'selected,' sparking criticism including Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux's public demand for removal.
• Michelin rates wine producers based on vineyard management and consistency rather than individual cuvées, differing from competitors like Guide Hachette des Vins which rates specific wines one to five stars.
• Consumer wine guides emerged in the 1970s with publications like Decanter and Wine Spectator, but internet access from mid-1990s onward undermined print guides' relevance; Malcolm Gluck's Superplonk ended in 2006.
• Michelin's Burgundy focus and apparent exclusion of non-French regions suggests limited geographic scope compared to modern wine's global diversity and import variety.

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 relies on ambient cultures for fermentation, uses minimal sulfite, and avoids new oak aging.
• Applegate Valley's high-latitude climate features long summer days and cold overnight temperatures from Siskiyou Mountain winds.

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

• Coram Collective, founded in 2023 with 2024 production, co-ferments rice wine with grape varieties like Chardonnay and Merlot, and innovates huangjiu (yellow wine).
• Co-founder Alex Yuanzhu Wang's huangjiu products are already listed in over 100 restaurants and bistros across Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Chengdu since launching June 2023.
• Huangjiu's peak aging window is three to eight years; most modern styles are fresher and cleaner than older, sweeter, more oxidized versions.
• Coram's Chardomi blends 80% Chardonnay grapes with 20% glutinous rice through a multi-step process: rice saccharification, wild yeast fermentation, then co-fermentation with fresh grape juice.
• Wang's tangerine peel huangjiu uses aged Chinese tangerine peel (陈皮) co-fermented with rice, inspired by a Christmas Eve meal in Shaoxing's first brewing season.

What I Learned at a Conference on Drinking

• Drinking studies, an interdisciplinary field treating alcohol as cultural and social practice, is severely hampered by lack of historical records on ordinary people's drinking habits.
• The 18th-century gin craze may have subsided due to changing fashion rather than regulations or harvests, suggesting drinking trends are often poorly documented.
• Industrial Revolution factories shifted the meaning of moderation from avoiding disgrace to maintaining sobriety for productivity and punctuality.
• Ireland's 2018 Public Health (Alcohol) Act introduced minimum unit pricing, advertising restrictions, and cancer warning labels; labels were delayed to September 2028 citing international trade pressure.
• Early insurance companies charged higher premiums to non-drinkers, until actuaries observed non-drinkers had better health outcomes, reshaping understanding of alcohol harms.