Hunter Valley winemakers may have raised their eyebrows when local bar manager Jamie Walker began using their wines in his cocktails, but he says the concept is taking off. Walker, of Goldfish Hunter Valley, told The Shout the idea of wine-based cocktails came from his experience bartending in fine dining restaurants with cocktail bars attached in his native home of Scotland. As well as creating drinks that were local and unique, Walker said the lower alcohol wine-based cocktails on the menu were well suited to the bar’s rural location, which is only accessible by car.

Having moved up “through the ranks” as part of the Craggy Range winemaking team Matt Stafford has been appointed the widely acclaimed Havelock North vineyard’s chief winemaker. Mr Stafford, who joined Craggy Range in 2006 as an associate winemaker, will take the reins from Rod Easthope on June 1 and his first major focus will be preparing the winery for the challenge of the upcoming harvest, reports Hawke’s Bay Today.

Natural wine remains ‘marginal’ in the UK, but organisers of the UK’s first artisan wine fair still aim to attract 1500 people to the inaugural event. More than 150 natural wine producers have already signed up for RAW including the Loire’s Nicolas Joly and Alsace’s Josmeyer. The London trade and consumer event takes place in May, and its creator, Isabelle Legeron MW, has plans to take the concept to other countries, reports Decanter.

A team of researchers has found a way to ensure that your evening glass of wine will continue to be available, despite the potential attack of Xylella fastidiosa (Xf), a bacterium that causes Pierce’s disease and poses a significant threat to the California wine industry’s valuable grapevines. Researchers from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), University of California at Davis (UCD), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service have created specially engineered grapevines that produce a hybrid antimicrobial protein that can block Xf infection, reports Western Farm Press.

ViniPortugal are planning to boost sales of Portuguese wine in the UK by 8% over the next three years. Using an annual budget of €500,000, the organisation is targeting 30 restaurants and 30 independent wine merchants in London, Manchester and Edinburgh with promotions and tastings. Speaking to The Drinks Business, Nuno Vale, marketing director at ViniPortugal said, “We will be more modern, provocative and aggressive in our promotion of Portuguese wine.”

Perfect weather set the scene for the Declaration of Vintage in Tanunda on Sunday, reports the Barossa & Light Herald. Forecasting the result of the 2012 vintage, Louisa Rose said things were looking like another good year. “You know it’s a good vintage when winemakers are relaxed and even have time to go to lunch,” she said. “Grapes are well-coloured and the flavour is also very good. All we have to do is pick the grapes at the right time for a great result.”

China is developing a growing thirst for white wine, according to Vinexpo. Red wines still make up 91% of total wine consumption in China, but white wine drinking rose 19% last year, with 70% further growth expected by 2015. Last week, the global wine and spirits exhibition group spelt out its views in Shanghai of the fast-developing Chinese wine market. Dominique Heriard Dubreuil, chairman of both Vinexpo and Rémy Cointreau, said China’s developing taste for white wine presents an educational challenge to vintners worldwide, reports The Drinks Business.

Arguably the world’s most respected wine commentator has given Tasmania a huge thumbs up. Leading United Kingdom wine expert, and wine adviser to the Queen, Jancis Robinson, has given the local wine industry a glowing endorsement. The celebrated wine writer describes local Chardonnays as “stupendous”, Pinots as “very promising” and wines produced by an ambitious “new wave” of young smallholder-winemakers as as having “an intensity that transends the norm”, reports The Mercury.

In the past couple of years, Sydney’s drinking scene has undergone huge changes, with the explosion of small bars throughout the city run by young, switched-on proprietors. In restaurants, a quieter revolution has occurred. There is a far greater number of sommeliers, a role traditionally filled by more mature types, and they are getting younger. At some fine-diners, wine recommendations are made by highly trained and knowledgable sommeliers younger than 35. Many bright, young things are making their mark in the industry, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

An initiative of Sapphire Coast Tourism aimed at developing a food and wine trail along the Far South Coast was launched on Friday. SCT is putting the call out for interested food and wine producers to sign up to a database that will be used to market the region’s incredible resources on a bigger stage. There are lofty aims for future projects, but this is just “the beginning of the story” according to SCT tourism and marketing manager Anthony Osborne, reports Bega District News.