Afternoon Brief, December 21
Trinchero Family Estates Purchases Mason Cellars, Pomelo Brand: Trinchero Family Estates today announced its acquisition of Mason Cellars, owners of Pomelo and Three Pears wines. As the super-premium ($7-10) and ultra-premium ($10-15) segments continue to show growth, this acquisition adds an important offering to the Trinchero family of brands...
Afternoon Brief, December 20
Tasting Room Trends: 2016 Review & 2017 Forecasts: As we looked at the data by annual taster range, we found the highest club conversion is in the 1-6K taster range. In the 10-16K taster range, taster count is up overall, but everything else is down...
Afternoon Brief, December 19
World Politics Could Sour the Cost of Wine: Mixing the world of politics and wine might be a bit like oil and water for some readers. But there comes a point, and it could come soon, that politically-based decisions could have a huge impact on wine and particularly the cost of wine...
Afternoon Brief, December 16
Premier Crude – Blackmail, Sex and Fraud: Here's a judicial irony. John Fox, 66, who pled guilty in August to defrauding his wine customers at Berkeley's bankrupt Premier Cru of $45 million, got a shorter prison sentence because he paid for sex...
Afternoon Brief, December 15
Winery Social Media Software VinTank Returns Under Avero Ownership: Five months since the shuttering of a Napa Valley-based VinTank software service that helped pioneer winery social media management, it's back under new ownership, a New York-based company that helps thousands of restaurants nationwide manage operations...
Afternoon Brief, December 14
Davis Family Vineyards Files Trademark Infringement Lawsuit: Today, the award-winning and family operated, Healdsburg-based Davis Family Vineyards filed a lawsuit for trademark infringement and unfair and deceptive trade practices against Napa Valley newcomer Davis Estates LLC and others in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California...
Afternoon Brief, December 13
UV Light Box Offers Hope for Vegan Wine Lovers, Says Winemaker: A Swiss company claims to be offering winemakers a new weapon against harsh tannins and underripe wines. Some winemakers also believe that the firm's namesake gadget, Vino Flux, could make it easier to produce vegan wines...
Afternoon Brief, December 12
Crimson Wine Group Buys 66 Acres of Walla Walla Valley Vines: Less than a year after snapping up Washington’s Seven Hills Winery for $5.75 million, Crimson Wine Group has purchased a significant part of the Walla Walla Valley vineyard that Seven Hills founder Casey McClellan planted…
Afternoon Brief, December 9
Wine Harvest Report 2016: A Record-Breaking Haul Has Washington Vintners in Good Spirits: Washington vintners are calling 2016 the longest harvest they can remember.The extended season allowed their grapes to ripen slowly, with early reports indicating a good vintage, especially for the state's Cabernet Sauvignon...
Afternoon Brief, December 8
Crimson Wine Group Buys Historic Blocks of Seven Hills Vineyard: Casey McClellan planted Merlot in the original Seven Hills Vineyard in 1982 and his family shared in its ownership for years while his winery and winemaking helped make Seven Hills Winery and the Walla Walla Valley famous...
Afternoon Brief, December 7
Denver Wine Collector Loses $1.7 Million to Crooked Vendor, Sues Insurer: A Denver wine collector who once ran the nation's fourth largest HMO has sued an insurance company for failing to cover his losses after a California vendor took the collector's payment for $1.7 million and instead of using it to buy wine, spent the money to hire female escorts, buy luxury cars and pay his daughter's college tuition...
Afternoon Brief, December 6
North Coast Vineyard Values Will Grow, Just Not as Fast: California agricultural land values have enjoyed an impressive run in recent years. Due to limited supply and increasing global demand for specialty crops, this trend is likely to continue in the long term...
Afternoon Brief, December 5
Korbel’s Gary Heck Recognized for Lifetime Achievement at Wine Industry Awards: The Heck family has been helm of the 134-year-old Korbel wine brand for six decades. Gary Heck for four of those decades has been carrying on the Korbel brothers' legacy of making fine Champagne-method bubbly in the U.S...
Afternoon Brief, December 2
Lewis Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2013 Named Wine Spectator’s #1 Wine of the Year: Wine Spectator, the world's leading authority on wine, today announced Lewis Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2013 as the 2016 Wine of the Year...
Afternoon Brief, November 30
Vivino Announces Year’s Best Consumer Rated Wines: Vivino, the worlds most downloaded wine app and largest community of wine drinkers, today announced Vivinos 2017 Wine Style Award winners...
