China’s dwindling economy could help stabilise its wine market and see it being a new devotee of Beaujolais and white Burgundy according to Louis Latour’s export director, Mark Allen. Since Maison Latour acquired Brouilly-based Henry Fessy in 2008, the négociant has concentrated on making Beaujolais wines more recognizable in China as well as bolstering its portfolio of white Burgundy in the country renowned for its love of red, reported export director, Mark Allen.

French wine growers are hunting for a climate change-resistant grape that can cope with scorching summers and unstable conditions. Producers realised the threat of climate change during a 2003 heatwave, when grapes in some areas melted on vines. The summer of 2015 has been exceptionally dry, with France recording its third-hottest July since 1900 and receiving less than half the amount of rain than usual.

Expat Kiwi viticulturist Mike Insley shares key insights with Kea regarding the production of wine in Yinchuan, China. “The Wine industry in this part of China reminds me a lot of the Marlborough industry when I first started there in the late 1980’s. At that stage, Muller Thurgau (remember those wines?) was the largest variety, Marlborough was just starting to get some international wine recognition and total NZ wine exports were around NZ$50 million p.a. They’re now NZ$1.4 Billion.”

Northern Californians are again finding themselves at Mother Nature’s mercy. Yetanother wildfire erupted in dry, drought-stricken Lake County on the afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 12. It’s the county’s fourth this year, by far the most destructive to date. Dozens of wineries and vineyards are inaccessible due to the fire, and more than 5,000 buildings are without power, bringing harvest to a halt in the emerging wine region due north of Napa, where Howell Mountain and its prized Cabernet vineyards have already been evacuated.

The Marlborough economy is well placed to weather most economic challenges during the next 12 months, economists say. Export growth from the wine industry, as well as growing international tourism trends, especially from China, is expected to help insulate the region from economic issues, such as the low dairy payout, facing larger regions. Infometrics senior economist Benje Patterson and ANZ chief economist Cameron Bagrie each spelled out a positive outlook for Marlborough over the next year at separate meetings in Blenheim.

The wine grape harvests of 900 growers in Switzerland have been damaged after using the Moon Privilege fungicide produced by the German chemical firm Bayer, a Swiss TV report claims. Bayer says it is investigating but rejects legal responsibility at present. According to a Swiss public television (RTS) documentary broadcast on September 13, around 2,000 hectares of crops out of a total of 15,000 have been affected after being treated with the Moon Privilege fungicide. A total of 900 wine growers are reportedly affected.

It’s now two and a half years since the fruit of the 2013 New Zealand vintage was harvested and immediately declared a rare gift from Bacchus. I’m still tasting 2013 wines for the first time, most of these being top shelf releases that have been given more time in the bottle to polish their moves. Some of these look astonishingly good, especially the Hawke’s Bay Syrahs. If I were to pick one star variety from the vintage, it would have to be Syrah, with chardonnay a close second.

Entries for the 2015 Marlborough Wine Show close this Friday 18 September and judging takes place on 6 and 7 October. Guest international judges are Ralph Kyte-Powell of Melbourne and San Francisco-based Wilfred Wong, sponsored by Wine Marlborough. Wilfred is Chief Storyteller for Wine.com and is a 40+ year veteran of the wine industry. In his role at Wine.com, Wilfred concentrates his efforts on social media.

A fundamental understanding of the underlying market is one of the most important factors for brand owners trying to make an informed decision when developing a successful market strategy. From the increasing importance of monitoring small trend variances to the influence of international market developments, commercial success is shaped by the ability to adapt to industry fluctuation.

Sipping fine wines has long been one of life’s great pleasures. Sharing it with new friends makes a charming activity for corporate groups. It is little wonder that group tours of the nation’s celebrated wineries have become a wildly popular incentive experience. Here are four well-respected firms, in different regions of Australia, where groups can enjoy one of life’s true pleasures—sampling fine wines with fine food, in good company.