An average man would need to put back five glasses of wine per day, every day, to consume enough inorganic arsenic to run the risk of causing health problems, according to a leading expert on food and beverage toxicology. At such a rate of consumption, however, that hypothetical person would likely have several other health concerns that would be more evident than anything related to arsenic. “The health issues for this particular individual is not the arsenic in the wine,” said Dr. Carl K. Winter.

When you’re down to the last glass of wine from the bottle you could have just sworn was full before, you could really use this contraption one Iowa State University professor is developing. It’s a tiny device that’s capable of creating a continuous supply of fresh wine. Yeah, you read that right. Attinger, working in tandem with a team of researchers at Swiss research institute Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, created the micro-winery in question to aid in expanding our knowledge of how fermentation actually works.

Fine wine buyers in the US, Asia and also Europe have wasted little time in seeking to take advantage of the weak pound sterling currency following the UK’s vote to leave the European Union, according to the country’s merchants. Growing numbers of the UK’s fine wine merchants are reporting a post-Brexit boost in demand, but they are also wary that the cost of replenishing their cellars with top wines from Europe could be significantly more expensive.

There are many visual clues wineries use to showcase their marketing vision, ambition and skill. Artistic rendering of stately chateau, ornate fonts and/or buzz words like Private Reserve or Select are common ones employed to denote that wine on offer is special, premium and worthy of attention. The obvious signal is also the most expected. It comes in a bottle. The idea of wine coming in anything else is enough to send wine geeks into a tizzy. Cans and kegs are for beer. Cartons are for juice. Wine calls for a glass bottle. No exceptions. Its superior nature demands it.

The Geographical Indications (Wine and Spirirts) Registration Act (GI Act) is currently being amended in a Bill before New Zealand’s Parliament. The Draft Geographic Indications Regulations have just been released. Among other things, the Regulations set out proposed procedures for the examination and registration of a Geographical Indication, as well as the process for maintenance of the Register of Geographical Indications in New Zealand.

One of two competitions showcasing the young talent in Central Otago’s wine industry has been cancelled due to lack of contestants. The 11th Bayer Young Viticulturist of the Year competition will be held on July 22 at the Otago Polytechnic campus in Cromwell. However, the young winegrower competition, which was scheduled for next Friday, will not go ahead.

Bibendum is re-launching its educational wine app, Plonk, with the aim of re-creating the success of photo-led social media platforms such as Instagram and Snapchat. Now that the merger with Conviviality is well on its way, the supplier is aiming to create an “engaged community of wine drinkers” via their app, with more capabilities to help consumers remember what they were drinking at parties and other social occasions.

Seifried Estate brought home two best in show awards from the San Francisco International Wine Competition. The winery won Best Sauvignon Blanc and Best Late Harvest White for their Old Coach Road Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2015 and Seifried Winemakers Collection Sweet Agnes Riesling 2015. The San Francisco awards have been running for 36 years and is touted as being one of the longest running wine competitions in the world.

A leading Marlborough wine company is lending its support to the region’s famous historical airshow. The company agreed to sponsor the airshow, which has been renamed Yealands Classic Fighters, for an undisclosed sum. Yealands Family Wines will hold the naming rights to the Classic Fighters Omaka Airshow until 2020. Airshow chairman Graham Orphan said the centre aimed to offer visitors something unique, and Yealands fitted in well as a sponsor.

FIRST there was crowd-funding. Next came Airbnb, followed closely by Uber. Now it seems the sharing economy has moved to the vineyard. Well at least on Brian Spencer’s 65ha Toolleen property it has, in the form of his Shiraz Republic’s rent-a-vine concept. Just like Airbnb has done with accommodation or Uber has with transport, Brian’s 10ha vineyard is allowing wannabe viticulturists and winemakers to experience a side of agriculture out of reach to the unlanded gentry.