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• Leticia Chacon-Rodriguez Named New UCD Winemaker
  Leticia Chacon-Rodriguez began work this week as the new winemaker/winery manager at the University of California, Davis LEED Platinum-certified teaching and research winery for the Department of Viticulture & Enology ...
  
  
• California Wine Grape Acreage Grew 6.3 percent in 2018
  The most recent survey estimates wine grape acreage at 637,000 acres. Of those, 590,000 acres were bearing and 47,000 acres were non bearing, according to the USDA/ USDA/National Agricultural Statistics, Pacific Regional Office in Sacramento. The survey considers varieties non-bearing for three years after they are planted
  
  
• Lawsuit Alleges Crowd-Funded Triumph Wine Group Didn't Pay For Grapes
  Agajanian Inc. of Madera, alleges Triumph Wine Group LLC owes $272,666 for fruit harvested from Lake and Sonoma counties, according to the complaint filed in Napa County Superior Court
  
  
• Sacramento Lawmakers Hear Concerns from California Grape Industry
  Several industry members recently went to Sacramento to meet with legislators and regulators to discuss the challenges that California grape producers are facing. President and CEO for Allied Grape Growers, Jeff Bitter was among those who went to the Capitol to highlight the needs of the industry.
  
  
• As demand for grapes softens, growers are leaving clusters on the vine, fallowing fields, and pulling out older vines
  In 2018, the Central Coast harvested the third largest crop in its history-and, according to Audra Cooper from Turrentine Brokerage, it could have been the largest if all of the "tonnage on the vine" was harvested. But it wasn't. The market for grapes "softened," as people in the industry say, meaning: The demand is less, and prices are lower. "It's definitely a changing market, but we just have to ride it out and see what happens," Mindy Allen from Martinez Farming and Custom Vineyard Applicati
  
  
• Premiumization Trend Drives Imported Wine's Growth In The U.S.
  Premium and above brands are clearly driving gains in the imported wine category. While overall depletions were up just 0.5% in 2018, the top 15 imported brands retailing at $10 and over combined for a 12.5% increase
  
  
• New executive director chosen by Finger Lakes Wine Alliance
  Carmela Barbagallo comes from a background in marketing, wine sales, events, business and restaurant management. She holds a bachelor's degree in marketing from SUNY Oswego and a master's degree in higher education from the University of Rochester
  
  
• OIV welcomes Pau Roca, the new general director
  OIV, the International Organisation of Vine and Wine, welcomed a new director general in January. BKWine was present, as one of two invited media, at his inauguration and we took the chance to say hello to the new general. Pau Roca is Spanish and has been representing Spain at the OIV since 1992. He was, among other things, vice president of an expert group concerning sustainability and climate change between 2016 and 2018
  
  
• Early warning for wildland fires?
  A weather satellite, GOES 17 (GOES West), sits above California taking photos every five minutes that can show hot spots throughout the West. If visible light and infrared data from this geostationary satellite are downloaded quickly enough, a computer program could easily be written to search for hot spots and alert emergency responders within as little as 15 to 30 minutes.
  
  
• UK: Competition and Markets Authority Blocks proposed Sainsbury/Asda merger
  It said prices would rise, the quality and the range of products would be reduced, services such as online delivery would be affected and there would be a poorer overall shopping experience.
  
  
• Top St-Julien 2018 wines: 'Silky and gorgeous'
  Jane Anson says the St-Julien first wines showed impressively and had great consistency across the appellation
  
  
• KEDGE Business School opens new spaces for the Wine & Spirits Academy and Executive Education
  KEDGE Business School opened almost 1,000 m² of space at its Bordeaux campus dedicated to the Wine & Spirits Academy and Executive Education.
  
  
• Adobe Road Winery's Race to the Top
  Kevin Buckler's motorsports journey has been fast and furious. As a race car driver and owner of The Racers Group team, he has won at the Rolex 24 at Daytona four times and the 24 Hours of LeMans once, in addition to numerous other titles and races. The sport is one of the most difficult in the world: "It's physical. It's hot. Then throw in the fear factor of crashing into a concrete wall," Buckler says. But his passion for wine has led him into a business that can be just as competitive and ner
  
  
• Counter Culture Wine & Food Festival
  Early bird tickets are on sale now for the 10th Annual Counter Culture Wine & Food Festival, returning to Anne Amie Vineyards on Thursday, July 25.
  
  
• Maison Marcel Rose? Brings the South of France to America's Summer
  Maison Marcel is a take on French rosé. The varietals are Grenache, Merlot, Black Muscat and White Muscat.
  
  
• 2019 Rodney Strong Summer Concert Series Entertainers Announced,
  In its 29th year, the Rodney Strong Summer Concert Series presented by Montgomery Village features great entertainers, award-winning wines, and local food purveyors at the scenic Concert Green & Terrace setting at Rodney Strong Vineyards.
  
  
• Economic Summit and Trade Show Will Spotlight Wine Business in Mendocino County
  Mendocino Winegrowers Inc. is hosting an Economic Summit and Trade Show on Thursday, May 9th at the Redwood Empire Fairgrounds in Ukiah.
  
  
• Douglas' New Robotic Metering Reduces Maintenance and Improves Simplicity
  A single robotic arm uses Rockwell controls and replaces linear motors from the previous metering design.
  
  
• UCLA public policy professor creates committee to advise the EPA
  "Our mission is to provide independent, state-of-the-science advice with regard to the benefits, costs and design of the EPA's environmental programs," said DeShazo, co-chair of the committee, who is also a professor of civil and environmental engineering in the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering.
  
  
• Kimball's Artisan Wines joins Jville wine scene
  You can hear the excitement in Kimball's voice as he describes the 15-year ride that culminated in his opening his own wine retail venue, Kimball's Artisan Wines in Jacksonville.
  
  
• Rumours that wine retailer Majestic is selling its entire 200-store portfolio have started to resurface
  The suggestion comes after Majestic announced in March that it will close stores and rebrand as Naked Wine as it concentrates on its online business, despite CEO Gormley insisting the recently transformed Majestic business had "the potential to be a long-term winner".
  
  
• Kimball's Artisan Wines joins Jville wine scene
  It started out as an easy way to get elective credits needed for graduation from SOU. But then college senior Josh Kimball was struck by the course instructor's upbeat demeanor. A native Oregonian, Kimball had never considered an interest in wine as the basis of a viable livelihood.
  
  
• BC Pinot Noir Celebration August 17th
  Now in its fifth year, the BC Pinot Noir Celebration is slated to be bigger and better than ever. Held at UBC's Okanagan campus in Kelowna, BC on August 17th.
  
  
• GQ calls this SF spot 'the first great restaurant of this new city'
  If you've read the food section of any local newspaper lately, you will not be surprised by GQ's San Francisco pick for its "best new restaurants" ranking.
  
  
• Fourth-Generation Winemaker Rob Mondavi Jr. to Visit Pemrose
  Multi-course dinner will feature fine wine pairings and live music
  
  
• Here Are Seven Of-the-Season Releases From Oregon Winemakers We're Most Excited About
  This is shaping up to be an epic year for releases statewide
  
  
• Bonobo hires winemaker, vineyard manager
  Cornel Olivier has worked in region since 1999
  
  
• Development and Evaluation of a Triplex TaqMan Assay and Next-Generation Sequence Analysis for Improved Detection of Xylella in Plant Material
  DNA reads were detected specific for X. fastidiosa. In most cases, the pathogen could be identified to the subspecies level, and for one sample even the whole genome could be assembled and the sequence type could be determined. All results of NGS-analyzed samples were confirmed with the triplex TaqMan polymerase chain reaction and loop-mediated isothermal amplification.
  
  
• New York wines score wins at Finger Lakes International Wine Competition
  Slovakia. The Czech Republic. Israel. And New York state
  
  
• Drink Wine and Help People with Tank Garage Winery
  Conscious Consumption Alert: Calistoga's stylish and thoroughly awesome Tank Garage Winery is making it easy to give a little something while treating yourself to great wine (and sincerely, it's great wine). Tank Cares, the winery's new give-back program, singles out some great bottles (and some legitimately cute merch) for inclusion in this program, where proceeds are donated to good causes. Says co-founder Ed Feuchuk:
  
  
• Meet the Unexpected: This Winemaker Is Studying Old Vines to Create New Wines
  When a magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck off the coast of Chile in 2010, damage was severe. Buildings collapsed, water lines burst, and blackouts ensued. In the aftermath, winemaker Andrés Caballero wandered into the cellar of Vina Santa Carolina, where he crafts award-winning Cabernet Sauvignon, to survey the damage. That's when he discovered something extraordinary
  
  
• Napa County's Bremer winery sues local law firm, alleging negligence
  Jared Walder is an attorney with Makarem & Associates. He said his law firm is representing the Bremers in their case against Dickenson Peatman and Fogarty and that Gilbreth is representing them in wrapping up the code issues with Napa County.
  
  
• Mechanical harvesters hauled in to help with Tasmanian wine grape harvest
  The area planted to vines in Tasmania has grown by about 20 per cent in the last two years. One of the key growth areas for the sector is on the state's east coast. However, it has become a battle to attract labour to pick fruit in the area. For the last couple of vintages, Michael and Kerry Dunbabbin have used a mechanical harvester to pick a portion of their crop in Cranbrook.
  
  
• Quick Aging Spirits Is New Frontier For Seagram Scion
  Matthew Bronfman, son of deceased Seagram spirits billionaire Edgar Bronfman, Sr. is backing a new venture to lend spirits wood-aged character in hours, instead of years.
  
  
• IDA To Provide Financial Assistance For Grape Growers Expansion
  The Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency board approved a 10-year payment in lieu of taxes agreement and mortgage recording tax exemption for the $3.4 million project. Linda Burns, IDA new business development manager, said the PILOT agreement will save Growers' Co-Op around $800,000.
  
  
• The New Destination For The Luxury Wine Life Is In Uruguay
  A lot of wineries have upscale tasting rooms and gourmet restaurants on-site, but if they want to keep up with Uruguay's Bodega Garzón, they better start planning their own golf courses. "We wanted to have the best facilities to make wine," says founder Alejandro Bulgheroni, "but then we thought we we need to do something else here, and create a truly special experience."
  
  
• Meet the Unexpected: This Winemaker Is Using Biodynamics to Elevate Chile's Most Popular Grape
  "Being a winemaker is a kind of passport for me," Noelia Orts, winemaker at Emiliana in Chile, says. "The connection with nature, being in the vineyard tasting, traveling, moving here and there and learning - it all inspired me."
  
  
• Travel Oregon awards $125,000 in grants via Wine Country license plate
  The Oregon Legislature authorized the Wine Country license plate program in 2011, and five organizations with ties to wine-country tourism learned today they will share $125,000 in grant funding as a result.
  
  
• $1 million to help farmers address climate change
  Building on a commitment to safeguard agricultural resources from the impacts of climate change, the Baker-Polito Administration today announced $1,000,000 in grants to 40 Massachusetts agricultural operations to install practices that help mitigate their impacts on climate change and adapt to changing climate conditions. The grants were awarded through the Agricultural Climate Resiliency & Efficiencies (ACRE) Program, which was created as part of the implementation of Governor Baker's Executive
  
  
• How Much Do People Spend On Alcohol? An Analysis Shows How Much People In U.S. Cities Spend Over A Lifetime
  Whether you like an occasional tipple or a have favorite go-to cocktail, there's no denying that drinking can get expensive. It may be one of the most common ways to socialize, but it can do a lot of damage to your wallet. In fact, if you've ever found yourself wondering, "How much should I spend on booze?" then you're not alone. Recently, Alcohol.org, an alcohol use disorder resource, looked at how much people spend on alcohol over the course of a year - and over the course of a lifetime. The r
  
  
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