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Dr Steve Ostoja at the 2024 US Sustainable Winegrowing Summit. Topics of discussion covered viticulture, packaging, sales and social responsibility. ‘Climate change is and will continue to modify wine production conditions and requires adaptation from growers,’ said Dr Steve Ostoja, the director of the California Climate Hub. The forecast for growers includes more heat waves, spring starting earlier, a shift …

When I think of Andalucía – a region I have explored over several decades while also working and living in London – I don’t think only of the Sierras and of El Zauzal, my own property in Aracena. I am equally attracted by its Atlantic-facing and Mediterranean coastal worlds, the small towns and beautiful cities dotted throughout the largest region …

Ron Rubin Is So Close to The Finish Line! 391 Wineries Are Now TRAINED FOR SAVING LIVES With Their Free AED ~ FOR ANY US WINERY TRAINED FOR SAVING LIVES is a subtitle to Ron Rubin’s Marathon Chapter, solely directed by Ron. It began when Ron thought he was going to be running a marathon, […] The post Trained For …

Few Napa wineries have the history of Beaulieu Vineyard. In 1900, Georges de Latour founded the winery when he purchased a four-acre vineyard in Rutherford. His wife Fernande commented “Quelle beau lieu” upon first seeing the land, meaning “what a beautiful place.” Over the next two decades, Latour acquired land holdings throughout Napa Valley, including the 1923 purchase of the …

For many wine aficionados, sharing a glass or two with someone they love is one of life’s great pleasures. That can be especially true with a spouse or partner. A new study, led by researchers at the University of Michigan and published in February in The Gerontologist, says that when both partners in a couple drink moderately, they tend to live …

A world blend from Michel Rolland: Pangea. Credit: Pangea Wine. When the very first vintage blend was finalised for Pangaea – a wine not of any singular terroir, region, or varietal expression but one that is a true global red blend – its founders paused and reflected on the magnitude of what they had created. Scroll down to see notes and …

I led the USA & Central America panel – including flights from Paso Robles. This was my first systematic exposure to the 16,600ha AVA sited almost exactly halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. I still remember the quality of their Cab tannins: ample, tender, melting. Mental bookmark in place, I resolved to visit as soon as I could. That …

The launch of the AMW map. In addition to AMW’s recently launched map and tightening of the source area for AMW-certified fruit, it has updated its yield requirements with a minimum sugar ripeness level for members, whose grapes – other than those destined for low-alcohol products – must now exceed 18 Brix at harvest. It has also appointed its first …

The owners of Carlisle, California’s leading producer of quality Zinfandels, will call it quits after the 2024 vintage, Wine Spectator has learned. Co-founders Mike and Kendall Officer informed their wine club members of their decision today. “It was a decision that was a long time in coming,” Mike Officer, 62, said. “Financially, Carlisle is doing wonderfully. It’s just the owners …

Politicians, wine writers, sommeliers and trade professionals from across Europe gathered to celebrate Croatia’s record medal haul at the 2024 Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA). Tugomir Majdak, State Secretary for Agriculture, was among the dignitaries that gathered at the 5-star Kempinski Hotel Adriatic in Istria for the special event. Guests tasted the best wines from 40 different producers, who won 366 …

Hello and welcome to my weekly roundup of the wine stories that I find of interest on the web. I post them to my magazine on Flipboard, but for those of you who aren’t Flipboard-inclined, here’s everything I’ve strained out of the wine-related muck for the week. Credit Where It’s Due: The Unsung Heroes of the WineryThe people behind the scenes. …

Vineyards at dusk in Barossa Valley, Australia Barossa Shiraz 2022 overall vintage Rating: 4/5 A strong vintage with fruit of superb quality despite small yields. Winter rains nourished the vines, but frost, hail and wind events affected bunch sizes and reduced yields. Summer was cooler than usual; grapes ripened slowly and steadily in ideal conditions. The longer ripening period produced …

Among the big stories to emerge from the results of the 2024 Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) was the rise of rosé. Wine drinkers are ‘drinking pink’, encouraged by the marketing clout and celebrity stardust of plush-pocketed rosé producers – and an uptick in quality. ‘It won’t surprise readers to know that our rosé wine entries grow with every year …

Château d’Armailhac. Credit: Alain Benoit/Deepix Numbers have power in wine. Chinese buyers are well known to have drunk deep of Bordeaux’s 2008 vintage when it was released in the spring of 2009. Eight is the luckiest number in China, linked to wealth and prosperity. Some estates played to the gallery. Château Lafite Rothschild engraved the Chinese character for eight on …

Abrie Beeslaar has been winemaker at the iconic Kanonkop Estate in Stellenbosch for 23 years. His achievements during this time included making South Africa’s first ever 100-point wine. He will be stepping back from Kanonkop in November to focus on his own label, Beeslaar Wines, which he founded with his wife in 2011.  ‘I’m leaving a great team behind at …

Sit at the semi-circular bar at the new 25-cover Kioku Bar in London’s The OWO hotel, and sake will be the order of the day. Helmed by sake sommelier Anthony Yukio and head of bars Angelos Bafas, this groundbreaking new offering, modelled on traditional Japanese listening bars, claims to have the largest sake collection in Europe – 110 currently sit …

Taking a bicycle tour at Château de Reignac. Most visitors to Bordeaux head straight for St-Emilion, Bordeaux city centre or the Me?doc’s Route des Cha?teaux along the D2, and don’t get much further. But those who prefer to get off the beaten track and don’t mind focusing on less glitzy wines will be amply rewarded by a stay in Entre-deux-Mers. …

Rare Bordeaux, Burgundy and California wines have featured in a Christie’s auction of ‘last treasures’ from the Avery family’s private cellar. All lots offered in the London-based auction found buyers, said Christie’s, with total sales reaching £2.57m, including buyer’s premium. Bottles in the collection were acquired by different generations of the family that is behind historic Bristol-based wine merchant Averys, …

Hello and welcome to my weekly dig through the pile of wine samples that show up asking to be tasted. I’m pleased to bring you the latest installment of Vinography Unboxed, where I highlight some of the better bottles that have crossed my doorstep recently. This past week included an oak-aged Fumé-Blanc-style Sauvignon Blanc from Merriam Vineyards in Sonoma’s Russian …

Elisabetta (r) with daughter Clara (l) and Ettore (c). Le Pupille has been a leading name in the Maremma area of southern Tuscany since the mid-1980s, when Elisabetta Geppetti and her then-husband took over her family’s estate. The consultant enologist at the time was Giacomo Tachis (recipient of Decanter’s Hall of Fame award in 2011), a family friend. Architect of …