Residents in the United States are being warned that the re-emerging trend of smoking alcohol is more harmful than just drinking. A number of videos have recently appeared online apparently giving youngsters tips on how to vaporise alcohol to inhale it, and more dangerously, there is no need for any kind of device to implement this. However, there are alcohol bongs, dry ice cocktails and people even free-base alcohol over an open flame, according to 10News WTSP.

Bannockburn vineyard owners are putting themselves on the map. In a five-year collaboration, they have produced a highly detailed map of their vineyards of a type commonly found in the world’s fine wine regions. The map shows details of the Central Otago wine subregion – just south of Cromwell – such as vineyard ownership, varieties planted, topography, row orientation and individual vineyard blocks. Felton Road winemaker Blair Walter has been driving the project, which was instigated by the winery’s owner, Nigel Greening.

Marlborough iwi Rangitane o Wairau have hit out at Heritage New Zealand and one of their own trustees following an out-of-court settlement relating to an important historical site. Trustee Haysley MacDonald and his father Phillip MacDonald were charged with interfering with the Kowhai Pa site, near the archaeologically significant Wairau Bar, near Blenheim, but reached an out-of-court agreement with Heritage New Zealand on Tuesday.

Drink wine and do good. In partnership with Social Traders and Australia Post, we talk to one of the social enterprises on their Good Spender website: Goodwill Wine. David Laity was one of the thousands of people displaced by the 2009 Black Saturday Bushfires in Victoria. At the time of the blaze, Laity was living in Chum Creek and working at a nursery in the Yarra Valley.

Treasury Wine Estate could boost its margins from 14 per cent to almost 20 per cent by the middle of 2020 if it can continue to build its strong sales momentum in China. That’s the view of JPMorgan analyst Shaun Cousins, who set a fire under Treasury’s share price on Thursday by slapping a target price of $10.25 on the stock. Treasury shares leapt 5.4 per cent to $9.72 on Thursday and have now climbed 89.6 per cent over the past 12 months.

Margaret River winemaker Josephine Perry is on the nose, literally. With no equipment to check PH and TA levels that are critical to nearly every aspect her wine, the 37-year-old uses her senses to get the chemistry right, sending samples to a lab only if she thinks something is amiss. Margaret River winemaker Josephine Perry is on the nose, literally. With no equipment to check PH and TA levels that are critical to nearly every aspect her wine, the 37-year-old uses her senses to get the chemistry right, sending samples to a lab only if she thinks something is amiss.

With a growing number of wine business owners were reaching retirement age, including among the wineries of the Limestone Coast, there has never been a better time to learn the ins and outs of passing a business onto family members. Generational change can deliver enormous opportunities for Australia’s family owned wineries to enter a new era of growth – but it will only happen if succession is properly planned, says leading wine law expert, Finlaysons Wine Partner, Will Taylor.

Stanton & Killeen Wines recently announced a new distribution partnership has been formed with Déjà Vu Wine Company, effective August 17, 2016. The announcement follows Stanton & Killeen’s recent complete vineyard rejuvenation, enabling the 141-year-old wine company to create environmentally sustainable pathways to deliver unsurpassed fruit quality, thus a significant improvement in wine quality.

Sydney independent retailer and former Penfolds executive John Quinn has partnered with Lindt Australia CEO Steve Loane to launch Iconic Winemakers, a new online platform to showcase Australia’s best winemakers. The new platform operates as a champion for Australian wine with its focus on high quality over price. Founder Quinn told TheShout: “What we’re about is quality and not price.”

Claiming back the wine roots of Australia, the NSW Wine Industry Association and Langton’s have joined forces to hold the inaugural First Planted Auction at the Sydney Cricket Ground 02 September 2016, showcasing the oldest and most diverse wine producing state in the country. “Winemakers from across NSW have been winning awards and producing outstanding vintages for decades.