Two wine behemoths are expanding, but doing so in very different ways, according to W. Blake Gray. Constellation and Gallo are the two largest wine companies in the world. Both built their empires on cheap wine, and started moving upscale in the last 20 years, because that’s where the future of wine is.

Emirates continues to invest heavily in its world-class wine programme, including top wines from New Zealand. In 2015, the airline purchased a record of over 13 million bottles of wine worth US$140 million – more than twice the value of wine purchases in the previous year. The wines are for customers across all three cabins, and most will only be served on board in seven to 10 years.

New Zealand wines are known for their high quality and unique flavours. The country exports $1.2 billion of wine each year, to premium markets such as Australia, the UK and the USA. Providing winemakers with tools to tailor flavour and maintain quality is key in meeting industry targets and retaining New Zealand’s competitive position on the marketplace. The unique environment, or terroir, of New Zealand vineyards provides one way for winemakers to produce the distinctive flavours that characterise New Zealand wines.

ALTHOUGH some vineyards are still picking some red wine varieties, out on the foothills of Mount Canobolas, at the Word of Mouth vineyard, Peter Gibson and his winemaker Will Rickard-Bell, are tasting and testing what could be the last white wine grapes to be harvested in Australia this season. Petit Manseng is a variety of grapes that is popular in the south of France, particularly around the foothills of the Pyrenees. Unlike most varieties the berries are very small and loosely bunched, something that has distinct advantages when it comes to maintenance.

The export of knowledge about winemaking to China has the Australian wine industry talking. Neville Hudson from Nangari Wine Consulting in north-west Victoria has made wine in France, Corsica, Portugal and the Czech Republic and for the past six years has worked as a winemaker in China. Hudson has been based in the Shandong province and said many Australians might be surprised at the size of Chinese domestic wine production.

Chris O’Brien is not sure if it’s a good or a bad thing but the general manager of Liquor Barons says Western Australia is a very parochial market. The retail banner group represents almost 60 WA stores and, according to O’Brien, around 44 per cent of their sales are Western Australian wine. “Most of the demand is driven by a perception of quality,” he said.

The head of one of China’s largest online drinks retailers, Jiuxian, believes Australian wine will be increasingly popular with Chinese consumers and intends to sign at least 10 import deals during a visit to the country. Jiuxian chairman Hao Hongfeng made his comments during a visit to Watershed Premium Wines in Western Australia’s Margaret River region. ‘Australian wine is very popular among Chinese consumers and the prospects are rosy,’ said Hao.

A few weeks ago, I posted an article introducing Enolytics, a new start up dedicated to bringing the power of big data to the wine industry. I wrote about big data as “the wine industry’s elephant in the room,” when massive amounts of data are generated, by-products of smart technologies like mobile apps and CRMs, but go untapped and un-analysed in favour of more traditional qualitative methods of research like surveys and polls.

The moniker chosen for a converted VW Kombi a Dunedin businessman hopes to sell wine from in Queenstown has come under fire at a liquor licence hearing. Richard Nelson appeared before the Queenstown Lakes district licensing committee seeking, among other things, a caterers endorsement to allow him to provide wine tastings from the refurbished vehicle he callled ‘‘Amy Winedub”, despite not intending to provide food.

Many of you will have experienced this scenario: you visit a winery on holiday and among the array of usual suspects available to taste and buy, you find a wine that you have never seen or tasted before; possibly one you have never even heard of. You taste the range with the owner or winemaker, but it’s clear they are hankering for you to try the wine that makes them stand out: they have an absolute passion for a little-known variety and that enthusiasm rubs off.