Sunday, August 11, 2002

Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay released under screwcap

"Neudorf Moutere Chardonnay, long seen as one of New Zealand's more complex and sophisticated white wines, will this year be released under screwcapsules rather than the traditional cork stoppers. The 2001 vintage has been bottled and is due for release on the first of September."

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New Appellation Proposed for Northern California

"The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has posted a notice of intent to establish a new American Viticultural Area in California's Yolo County. The proposed Capay Valley appellation would be the county's fourth official AVA, the last one having been approved in 1993."

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Cork producer claims solution near to wine taint

"French cork giant Satiate claims to be on the brink of finding a commercial solution to wine taint blamed on traditional closures."

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The secret life of a bottle of bubbly

"Here's a look at the numerous steps required to make champagne: Juice from the pressed grapes ferments for two to three weeks, producing clear and still wines...."

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Dick Grace of Grace Family Vineyards, California

"He produces the most sought-after wine in California, but he's not in it for the money - all his profits go to charity - and he hasn't touched a drop of the stuff himself for 14 years...."

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US: Nation's First 'Green' Cooperative Winemaking Facility

"Carlton Winemakers Studio, the nation's first "green" cooperative winemaking facilities, will open in several weeks, featuring an All Star line-up of Oregon winemakers ready to produce high-end, premium wine..."

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Hungary's Tokay Wine Region Declared World Heritage Site

"The Tokay wine region in Hungary, home of the famed botrytized sweet wine, Tokaji Aszú, has been declared a World Heritage site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization."

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Australia's Answer To Goats Do Roam

"Fairview may have South Africa's cheekiest wine brand with the Goats do Roam series, but they've met their match with D'Arenberg in McLaren Vale near Adelaide...."

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Sir Cliff's wine has fans excited

"Pop legend Cliff Richard has created what he hopes is another hit -- this time with his debut as a wine maker. Richard has produced 27,000 bottles of a red wine from his vineyards in southern Portugal's Algarve region which will go on sale in supermarkets next week."

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Melbourne Wine Show: Ed Carr Does It "Back To Back"

"Ed Carr and the sparkling wine team have done it again - winning both the Best Sparkling Wine and Best Red Sparkling wine trophies for the second year in a row at last night's 2002 Melbourne Wine Show, where a total of three trophies were awarded to the BRL Hardy group."

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Silver Oak Founder Justin Meyer Dies

"Justin Meyer, the mind behind Silver Oak Cellars, one of Napa Valley's most successful Cabernet franchises, died of an apparent heart attack on Tuesday. He was 63."

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Mayor & Wairarapa Winemaker join chorus against Air NZ sale

"Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast and a Wairarapa winemaker have joined growing opposition to allowing Qantas to buy a stake in Air New Zealand."

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White zinfandel continues its story of success

"In the mid-'70s, I remember talking with Bob Trinchero of Sutter Home Winery about a blush wine, finished with some sweetness, that he made from the zinfandel grape. The wine was called white zinfandel and it sold out quickly. He told me he was going to double the production for next year."

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US: "Maestro" Honored by Wine Industry

"Russian born and French trained winemaker André Tchelistcheff may have been the most significant figure in the history of American wine..."

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Chile: Vina Santa Carolina Wines Get New Look, Appellations

"A new design with eye-catching colors is the first thing consumers will notice when they see Vina Santa Carolina wines on store shelves this fall. But a closer look reveals that the winery's commitment to producing the finest Chilean wines is more than label deep....."

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New York Winemaking

"It's no secret - winemakers in the Hudson Valley are struggling to create a regional identity on a par with the state's Finger Lakes and eastern Long Island. They are seeking to present a united image while making individual choices about which grapes create the best wines in a place where the river, hillsides and mountain ridges can brew a microclimate every few miles."

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Keep it cool: Finding the proper temperature for wine

"Finding the proper temperature to serve wine may seem like yet another instance of the extreme lengths wine lovers will go to in pursuit of perfection. But it really does matter. Temperature has both long-term and immediate impacts on the quality of your wine-tasting experience."

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Canada: British Columbia to Privatize Wine and Liquor Sales

"The 14-month-old Liberal government of British Columbia --Canada's westernmost province -- has decided to privatize some sectors of its alcoholic-beverage industry, including retail sales, and to reduce by half the number of related regulations."

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Tribute to a pioneer

"A pioneer in the development of the Australian wine industry, Philip Laffer, the 2002 Qantas/Australian Gourmet Traveller WINE Winemaker of the Year, has spent the past 38 years working to develop and improve the art of winemaking."

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Jane Hunter: A born winemaker

"Despite being the daughter of a grape grower in South Australia, it has been a long and winding road for New Zealand wine industry icon Jane Hunter."

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'Apocalyptic' storms devastate NE Italy

"Thunderstorms with winds of over 130km/h have decimated vineyards in Northeast Italy over the weekend, destroying the crops of premium producers like Masi and Costaripa."

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Lovers Leap Vineyards & Winery Began As Hobby

"Eight years ago, an Anderson County couple spent their hours after work for nearly two weeks with a shovel, planting 750 grape vines"

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Getting Screwy

""A lady in the audience stood up and said, 'You're the one. - You're the one that bottles with screw caps,'" he recalls, noting his winery is proud to be experimenting with the closures."

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Winewise: What's in a name? quite a lot

"As more and more of us started to drink wine, French producers caught on that the all-important person shelling out the dosh at the check-out was buying wines by the grape. Unfortunately, French appellations contrôlée (AC) wines are not permitted to put the name of the grapes on the front label."

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Wine producers sue government over drink-drive campaign

"Wine producers in France are suing the French Transport Ministry over an anti-drink-driving campaign which uses the image of a car shaped like a wine bottle. The country's wine producers say that the poster campaign will damage already falling wine consumption."

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Found - a lost sister for Grange Hermitage

"PENFOLDS winemakers have found a "priceless" sister wine to the Grange Hermitage they never knew existed. At a wine clinic in Sydney yesterday, a collector brought in a bottle of St Henri Claret stamped 1955."

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Why does my head hurt?

"Consider wine or spirits as a fermentation process followed, or not, by a distillation process. Leave all your romantic thoughts about wine and spirits behind as you don a chemist's hat."

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