Appellations can force wine producers to pay membership fees, a French court has ruled. In an important test case that will have an impact across France, the Constitutional Council in Paris has ruled that it is legal for syndicates, or growers’ organisations, to make membership payments mandatory. The decision has a direct impact on the case brought against the Bordeaux Wine Bureau (CIVB) in December 2010 by a group of winemakers who were withholding their contributions, citing mismanagement and lack of transparency, reports Decanter.

Campo Viejo has dropped the crianza cue and opted for varietal labelling in an attempt to attract more consumers. The well-known brand from Rioja has replaced its crianza with Campo Viejo Tempranillo 2010 following research which shows that almost 70% of wine drinkers consider the grape as the most important factor when deciding what to buy. Pernod Ricard, owners of the brand, also believe Tempranillo could be a flagship for Spain, comparing its potential to New Zealand’s success with Sauvignon Blanc, reports The Drinks Business.

Who produces the best-value Yarra Valley Chardonnay? As tough times encourage more producers to come out with a budget-priced bottling of this keenly sought wine, it’s becoming a competitive market. Hoddles Creek Estate would have to be at the top of my list. It makes three levels of Chardonnay and its standard-bearing Hoddles Creek Estate label, at $19-$20, takes the honours, writes Huon Hooke in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Kiwis had access to less booze last year than in 2010, despite hosting the Rugby World Cup. But we are still putting away a lot more beer, wine and spirits than we did five years ago. Information released by Statistics New Zealand shows the total amount of alcohol available for consumption dropped by 1.6 million litres, or 0.3 per cent, last year, largely due to a 4.6 per cent fall in the amount of wine. Although the 472 million litres produced was down on 2010, it was still 8 million litres more than what was produced five years ago, reports Stuff.co.nz.

Researchers in Australia say they have pinpointed key factors in the early ripening of grapes, providing potential answers for wine growers threatened by global warming. In Australia and Western Europe, there is an abundance of anecdotal evidence linking higher temperatures with earlier grape maturation, a phenomenon that can affect the quality of table wine. But wine growing and climate change are each highly complex questions. Until now, no one has sorted out how the variables – warming, sunlight, soil moisture and vineyard management – each play a role in grape maturation, reports the Herald Sun.

Lighter-bodied wines dominated the awards at the Sydney International Wine Competition over the weekend. The Trinity Hill 2010 Gimblett Gravels Syrah took out three trophies at this year’s show – the only Australian wine show where wines are judged alongside appropriately weighted food. The Syrah took out trophies for best wine of competition, best red wine of competition and best lighter-bodied dry red table wine of competition.

Hill Laboratories expects its Christchurch wine lab to become a one-stop shop for Kiwi wine companies. The wine-testing division of the laboratory has leased adjoining space in its existing Hornby building and employed three extra lab technicians, a technologist and former Lincoln University oenology lecturer Kirsten Creasy as the resident wine expert. Plans are to employ another four people in the next three years, reports The New Zealand Herald.

Hill Laboratories expects its Christchurch wine lab to become a one-stop shop for Kiwi wine companies. The wine-testing division of the laboratory has leased adjoining space in its existing Hornby building and employed three extra lab technicians, a technologist and former Lincoln University oenology lecturer Kirsten Creasy as the resident wine expert. Plans are to employ another four people in the next three years, reports The New Zealand Herald.

Hawke’s Bay’s reputation as a red wine creating stronghold has strengthened after a Bounty of the Bay masterclass held last Monday left a Melbourne media and trade group impressed and asking for more information about what they sampled. “Many have since requested tasting notes and more follow up information, so that’s exciting for us,” Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers’ executive officer Lyn Bevin, said. The group were so glowing in their praise for what they sampled that members wanting to be part of a second masterclass, being staged in Brisbane today had been left clamouring for spots, reports Hawke’s Bay Today.

A bushfire tore through one of the state’s best known vineyards in the Upper Derwent Valley and claimed up to 50 sheep on the property yesterday. The family of vineyard owner Gerald Ellis and fire crews spent last night keeping an eye on the blaze that continued to burn around the Meadowbank Estate property. The fire has ruined any chance of a wine grape harvest this year, but Mr Ellis hoped the vines would bounce back, reports The Mercury.