Many of Australia’s wine regions have been exposed to bushfires over the last decade, and scientists have made great strides studying the effect of the smoke on wine grapes, according to a University of Adelaide researcher. Early questions about the chemistry of smoke taint have been answered.
The focus of research then shifted to treating wine affected by smoke taint, which cause a smoky, ashy taste.

Australian taxpayers would be forced to subsidise the importation of Kiwi beer, under a new New Zealand government proposal. Prime Minister John Key’s Government has hit out at the move to stop Kiwi wineries claiming tax rebates of up to $500,000 a year from Australia. They also want independent NZ breweries that export beer across the Tasman to be able to claim up to $30,000 each a year Australia’s brewery refund scheme.

Leading Loire winemakers François Chidaine and Jacky Blot have been banned from vinifying their Vouvray wines in the neighbouring commune of Montlouis. Vouvray’s appellation rules were changed in October 2009 to ensure that all wines bearing the name, whether still or sparkling, were made within Vouvray. The only exception is Nazelles-Négron, a neighbouring commune just outside the eastern limit of the appellation.

Leading Loire winemakers François Chidaine and Jacky Blot have been banned from vinifying their Vouvray wines in the neighbouring commune of Montlouis. Vouvray’s appellation rules were changed in October 2009 to ensure that all wines bearing the name, whether still or sparkling, were made within Vouvray. The only exception is Nazelles-Négron, a neighbouring commune just outside the eastern limit of the appellation.

The Prosecco DOC Consortium has responded to recent reports of the potential shortage of Prosecco saying “that there will not be a shortage of Prosecco in the coming months.” The Consortium confirms that the 2014 harvest was affected by some hard weather and that yield were less than the maximum yield. However, certified production yield were still up 17.9 per cent more than the previous year’s harvest. They also ruled out any significant price increase during the summer.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Phil and Sheryl Jones’ purchase of land in the Moutere Hills to establish Spencer Hill Wines. The most well-known wine from this producer is the Tasman Bay label, gaining this recognition after the very first chardonnay produced at Spencer Hill in 1994 was named Champion Chardonnay, Champion White Wine and Reserve Wine of Show at the Air New Zealand Wine Awards in 1995.

Alsace’s white wines offer incredible diversity—from fresh, vibrant wines that sing across the palate to sweet, floral off-dry whites that make for exquisite food pairings. The problem is that consumers cannot always tell which style is in the bottle they’re looking at in the store. Now a group of local winegrowers is working to clear up the confusion by requiring dry wines to be labeled as such.

CORINTH, N.Y. (AP) — The Marquette grapevines clinging to a steep, rocky hillside in the southeastern Adirondacks are among a host of new grape varieties that have enabled a boutique wine industry to take root in areas of the Northeast and Midwest that were previously inhospitable. There were about 2,000 wineries in the U.S. in 2000; today, there are more than 8,000, according to the industry publication Wines and Vines. “Across the country we’ve seen a huge expansion in wine and grape production and wine-related tourism.”

A NEW campaign to help WA wine producers satisfy the growing global thirst is planned. The State Government is in talks with the local wine industry to set up a specialist “export development office” in Perth, The Sunday Times can reveal. If given the go-ahead, the ­initiative would aim to get more WA wine on to shop shelves and restaurant tables around the world. The EDO is a proposed partnership between the Australian Grape and Wine Authority, Wines of WA and the Department of Agriculture and Food.

On the mainland, $3 million can buy you a fair bit – a six-bedroom home in Manly, or even Port Melbourne penthouse. However if neither of those ideas takes your fancy, you could also spend that money on a wine cellar in Tasmania. The clifftop property is a 20-minute drive from Hobart, and includes 8 hectares of land, a 300-square-metre shed, and the most unusual wine cellar in Australia. The wine cellar is housed in a tunnel that is a staggering nine stories deep. Like something out of a Bond film, it took mining experts six-and-a-half months to build.