Winexpression

Announced last week, the new agreement for American Winemakers with Europe allows for semi-generic place names to continue to be used by some wineries, but prohibits any new additions. This has gotten some European winemakers up in arms as they continue to contest that these semi-generic names, like “California Champagne”, are misleading and confusing. James [...]

California Winemakers have been a buzz since Wednesday, when the EC (European Community) announced they would allow California wines to be imported without having to meet the rigid European standards of wine making. The new world techniques employed by many California wineries, such as the addition of Malic Acid to balance a Wine, were allowed [...]

We wouldn’t want all the poor wholesalers to lose their jobs now would we? With the invention of the internet which connects customer to retailer without the middle man, wholesalers are now clamoring for their jobs. Shouldn’t they adapt? When robots and machines became the norm for the Auto industry, people needed to adapt and [...]

Yesterday a news release to Business Wire confirms that the California Supreme Court denied Bronco’s Appeal to review the decision from an earlier Appeal. Slowly, the steam is running out in Bronco’s battle to use the name Napa on their wine labels where the grapes don’t come from Napa. But it isn’t over yet, as [...]

Last week, The Napa Valley Grapegrowers Association held a fundraiser in Rutherford to raise funds for one purpose: the fight against Bronco Wines and Four Buck Fred in court. As the legal case continues to be dragged out, the winemakers of the valley are coming up with creative ways of raising funds to protect their [...]

This article in the Brendenton Herald written by Bill Daley reviews the ideas from Elin McCoy’s new book,
“The Emperor of Wine, The Rise of Robert M. Parker Jr. and the Reign of American Taste”. Parker’s influence is huge, as even I find myself consulting his ratings, trumping any other industry professionals, before I [...]

The SF Chronicle picked up the story I commented on last week regarding the signing of a declaration by wine makers from around the world. The issue at hand comes back to trademark and branding. They argue that because Champagne (among other wine brand names), comes only from the Champagne region in France that it [...]

China has become a huge exporter of Tartaric Acid to Europe, so the EU is imposing a 6 month tariff of almost 35% on the chemical product. The Tartaric Acid imported from China is much cheaper than the local supply, and local businesses have suffered from the under-cutting. Tartaric Acid is a common chemical found [...]

Who’s next? Tuesday’s ruling by U.S. District Judge George Smith allows residents of Ohio to receive out of state shipments by any winery, not just wineries whose product was sold in local stores. No limit was put on the amount of wine that can be purchased, just as long as all state taxes are [...]

Governor Pataki of New York will have signed legislation today at 2:00 p.m. EST to allow direct shipping into the State from out of State Wineries. The signing took place at Lamoreaux Landing Wine Cellars on Seneca Lake in New York, and the bill will take effect 120 days from today. Many wineries anticipate a [...]