“We can turn water into wine in 15 minutes.” So claims the Ava Winery, a San Francisco start-up that is making synthetic wine without grapes – simply by combining flavour compounds and ethanol. Mardonn Chua and Alec Lee came up with the idea while visiting a winery in California’s Napa Valley in 2015. There, they were shown the bottle of an iconic wine, Chateau Montelena, which is famous for being the first Californian chardonnay to beat French contenders at the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976.

For the region’s winegrowers, winemakers and wine lovers it will be the war of the wine worlds. It will be the battle of the barrels brigade, where not a verbal vine will be left standing. Hawke’s Bay versus Marlborough – although the real winner at the end of the night will be the Lowe Corporation Rescue Helicopter Trust.

A man fired for helping other employees at a Marlborough vineyard has received more than $10,000 in compensation. Mount Riley Wines and Estates Limited dismissed the man in 2015 on the grounds he was pruning vines for other workers for personal gain. A written determination from the Employment Relations Authority was released earlier this month, finding the man was unjustifiably dismissed.

Entries are now open for the 2016 New World Wine Awards, a wine show that provides winemakers with the opportunity to enjoy direct, tangible commercial benefits from their award-winning wines. In addition to the distinction of an award that judges quality on the same basis as all other wine competitions, winning wines are guaranteed national distribution and extensive promotion, driving sustained sales.

The wine industry is set to move into a stronger, long-term position after the Federal Budget announcements regarding the Wine Equalisation Tax rebate. Central to the package is the Government’s announcement that it will invest $50 million over the next four years to promote Australian wine overseas and wine tourism within Australia. Tony Pasin, Member for Barker, has welcomed the Coalition Government’s decisions to tighten the eligibility criteria and to return the WET rebate to its original policy intent.

THE International Cool Climate Wine Show is again proud to share a rare opportunity to assess the styles, characteristics and latest trends of inspirational cool climate wines entered in the 2016 show, with everyone. You will be able to taste wines from many classes including sparkling wines, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Pinot Noir, Merlot and Shiraz from vintages from 2012 to 2015 and older.

The Federal Budget’s changes to the WET rebate are mystifying. While it’s nice to get a few extra million for marketing, and tightening up the eligibility for the WET rebate is a good thing, the change to the WET rebate ceiling is puzzling. It will hurt a lot of medium-small wineries – and for what purpose? It’s hard to see a purpose.

COUNCIL red tape has left a once-thriving Boronia winery rundown and overgrown after a lease on the land expired a year ago, its former owners say. Wantirna South couple David and Pat Smith said they were “desperate” to reopen their award-winning Old Orchard Winery in Scoresby Rd after their nine-year lease to manage it expired last year. Smith said Knox Council, which manages the 8ha site on Crown land, had only offered him a month-by-month lease, forcing him to vacate on July 31 last year.

“Winning in the USA is a top priority for Pernod Ricard. We must win in this battleground to deliver our Group mid-term topline 4 to 5% growth objective,” says Alexandre Ricard, Chairman and CEO, Pernod Ricard. In line with this ambition, the Group launched DART 18 months ago, a business transformation project aiming at accelerating the current momentum in the U.S. It has a simple objective: grow value market share in a sustainable way.

FROM the corridors of law to the vines of the wine industry, it is fair to say the change in Melisa Beight’s career path has been a fairly marked one. Seven weeks ago she stepped into the role of Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers Association executive officer which was vacated by James Medina who left to take up a role at New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. “I absolutely love my role,” she said. “The wine industry is something I have long wanted to move into.”