Insights

NFTs and Wine: the Pros and Cons

The new technology platform which has already taken the art world by storm, is changing the way wine is traded. Will it open a path to new consumers? Robert Joseph reports.

Reading time: 8m 20s

Are you looking for more background information? For a Long Read that offers a deeper dive, click here (reading time 16m).

Barolo now being sold through Bordeaux

The news that Michele Chiarlo’s Cerequio super-premium Barolo is to be sold through la Place de Bordeaux broadens the range of Italian wines distributed through this virtual marketplace whose Italian focus was previously on Tuscany. 

Reading time 1m 35s
 

Russia and Ukraine – the Wider Implications

Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine raises unhappy memories in Georgia which suffered a similar fate in 2008 -  as well as current fears there and in Moldova which will also have to provide sanctuary to Ukrainians who flee across its border

Reading time: 1m 40s

All Change in Bordeaux

A new wave of Bordeaux, made from single varietals like Malbec, Petit Verdot and Muscadelle and packaged in Burgundy bottles with decidedly non-Bordeaux labels. Robert Joseph reports

Reading time: 4m

US Wine Market - Time for a Rethink

Rob McMillan of the Silicon Valley Bank has just published his latest annual report in which he describes the challenges facing the US wine market - and a possible solution.

Reading time 4m 42s

Strong Pre-Harvest Interest in 2022 Southern Hemisphere Whites

As the wine world begins to come to terms with a Post-Covid-19, 'new normal', buyers of bulk wine consider the opportunities and challenges that face them. An analysis by winebroker Angelo Cotrone from Ciatti.

Reading time: 3m

Half full or Half Empty? Selling New World Wines in Germany

New World brands have been important to the German wine market. They anticipated trends and helped to set new stylistic benchmarks. Today, this is only partly true, but the strongest brands are still doing well, as Clemens Gerke discovers.

Reading time: 3m 20s

'Better for you' - the new category for wine

US researchers have discovered that age and sex drives wine drinkers' attitudes towards how grapes are grown and that a surprising number of professionals believe calories and carbohydrates to be important too.

 

Reading time: 1m 40s

Gift Boxes - A Welcome Move for Wine?

Château Phélan-Ségur has just announced the creation of a pair of gift boxes, following the lead of Champagne, but breaking ranks with most other Bordeaux estates.

Reading time: 1m 10s

Selling the man behind the Dan Murphy's retail brand

Dan Murphy's, Australia's best-known wine retailer is 70 years old. A new advertising campaign seeks to humanise the brand and set it apart from its competitors. Robert Joseph reports.

Reading Time 3m 10s

FUTUREWATCH: Critic Publishers

As the number of subscription-funded online wine reviewers grows, questions are being asked about the generosity and integrity of some of their scores. Robert Joseph reports  

New power to the platform: How Vivino and Pix revolutionizing communication and distribution

New platforms, Vivino and, now Pix, are changing the way producers and distributors are communicating about wine - and selling it. Robert Joseph reports.

FUTUREWATCH: Retail – Flash Sales

Once, continuity of supply was an essential factor for almost any product that was not sold from a market stall. Then Zara introduced the notion of When It's Gone It's Gone to clothes buyers who learned to grab bargains in its shops when they saw them. The online version of that model is now being adopted by a wine industry that often has excess inventory. 

     

    PIWI - an idea whose time has come?

    Hybrid grapes used to be treated with disdain by the wine industry. Now German enthusiasm for new varieties of resistant varieties European moves against chemical treatments are helping to support their cause

    Butter and Bourbon

    Buttery and Bourbon-flavoured wines may not be the favourite styles of many critics, but for brands like Mondavi, they are proving popular and successful