HONG KONG — Japanese consumers seem to be developing quite a taste for bubbly, with a recent study predicting that Japan will become the largest market for sparkling wines in Asia-Pacific over the next five years. According to a Vinexpo study, the consumption of sparkling wine in Japan is forecast to grow 23% between 2015 and 2019, reaching a volume of 4.84 million cases and overtaking Australia as the largest market for sparkling wines in Asia-Pacific.

The New Zealand wine industry is big business with an estimated annual turnover of $2 billion, $1.42 billion of which comes from export earnings. That makes wine our sixth-largest export by value and with so much scientific research into wine, studying what makes our wine command such a high average price is crucial for sustaining this industry.

Each morning James Caldwell packs up his cardboard and blankets before making his way down the stairs of a Blenheim car park building he has dubbed The Ritz. The Blenheim vineyard worker has slept in the stairwell of one of the town’s few high rise buildings for the past four months. “It’s got to the stage now where the cleaners say hello to me in the morning.”

Peter Gago admits he’s in the grip of the grape. Others might say obsessed. Years ago the man who is now chief winemaker at Penfolds donated some treasured bottles from his extensive collection for a raffle to raise money for his wife, Labor MP Gail Gago’s election campaign. Not long after the draw, remorse kicked in. Gago couldn’t help himself: he went and bought two of the prizes back from the winners.

Cannabis crops could be the new industry for drought-stricken farmers in south-west Queensland. The decision by the Federal Government to legalise the use of medicinal cannabis has communities around the country vying for the right to grow the crop. Representatives from Queensland Health and the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries met with potential growers in Atherton earlier this week.

In 40 years of observing the wine scene, I have never known it to be in such a state of flux. Until a few years ago, all of the world’s winemakers seemed to be going in the same direction, roughly in pursuit of a local copy of the French classics, more or less styled to appeal to the perceived tastes of the most powerful American critics. Big and bold held sway.

Fancy serving your own custom bottle of wine at your next dinner party? You could name it after yourself or perhaps your dog – Quin’s Shiraz, perhaps? For a handful of Victorians who appreciate a boutique drop but don’t have the time – or the millions of dollars to set up their own vineyard – they are jumping on the sharing economy bandwagon and renting vines.

Tasmanian vineyard Josef Chromy makes very good wine, so it might be thought Malcolm Turnbull would get to try a drop or two when he dropped in on Friday. Not at all. “It’s not appropriate to be feeding alcoholic beverages to the prime minister before lunch,” joked winemaker Jeremy Dineen. In fact their prize example, a 2011 chardonnay judged the best in the world, sold out within days.

The Greatest Celebration of New Zealand wine opens its doors from 5.00pm this afternoon at Auckland’s Shed 10. WINETOPIA presented bySingapore Airlines is the most comprehensive and entertaining public wine tasting event with all major regions fully represented and stunning varietals exclusively showcased.

New Zealand Winegrowers has welcomed yesterday’s announcement by the Minister of Customs around the modernisation of New Zealand’s Customs and Excise legislation. Philip Gregan, New Zealand Winegrowers chief executive officer, said the legislation was becoming increasingly outmoded and an update has been badly needed.