Phil Markert, Director of Liquor, Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions at Albertsons Companies, put it, we can’t treat 2025 like its 1985. It’s going to take grit, risk and a lot of work to endure present challenges and grow in a contracting market www.winebusiness.com/news/article...

Shifts in consumer behaviour suggest wine’s downturn is cyclical rather than structural, but as beverage choice expands, wine increasingly succeeds only when it connects clearly with food, hospitality and shared experiences, writes Matthew Deller MW www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2026/03/wine...

'I dislike "oakiness" – but I've come to realise that I also relish it,' writes Andrew Jefford, exploring evolving attitudes to wine and oak influence... www.decanter.com/wine-news/je...

A funny way to explicate the colossal tectonic shifts currently rocking the American drinks industry’s middle tier is to consider the sundry capacities for bribery exhibited by the country’s various beverage-alcohol mega-wholesalers vinepair.com/articles/hop...

In the celebrated Napa and Sonoma valleys, winemakers big and small are being forced to close facilities and lay off hundreds of people. Io Dodds explores the roots of the downturn — and meets the people trying to weather the storm www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...

Tumultuous cross-border relations have pushed Canadian consumers to rally for homegrown vintners. Canada’s still-blooming wine region is receiving a major boost on the back of American boycotts, Toronto-based Kate Dingwall reports for Decanter www.decanter.com/learn/canadi...

A year after Canadian provinces removed US wines from store shelves, full-year trade data reveal the steepest disruption in modern American wine export history www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2026/03/cana...

Great article by @jancisrobinson.com Because we all (who work in the trade) have more wine than years: www.ft.com/content/bea4...

A brush with medical professionals has left one wine lover unhappy at being pigeon-holed as an "alcohol user" ~ by W. Blake Gray www.wine-searcher.com/m/2026/03/al...

In 2024, California wine had its lightest harvest in 20 years. Last year’s was even lighter — yet grape growers are relieved ~ by Jess Lander www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

Making an attempt to drink my cellar before the drone attacks on coastal California 😉

The prohibition has rankled U.S. officials, reduced consumer choice and caused havoc for some in local alcohol-related industries www.biv.com/news/retail-...

You may have noticed that this newsletter has a new title — simply, “Chronicle Wine” — and with that, it also has a new author. That’s me, Jess Lander www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

California vineyards shrink as producers combat oversupply, falling demand www.foxnews.com/food-drink/b...

Opponents of Arizona’s ban on sales by out-of-state wine retailers are petitioning justices to intervene and clarify a confusing legal tangle www.winespectator.com/articles/sup...

Genetic adaptation, leaf-feeding populations, and global movement are reshaping the modern phylloxera threat daily.sevenfifty.com/is-phylloxer...

… with the media’s preoccupation with the idea that Gen Z isn’t drinking, does it really mean anything to turn 21 today? vinepair.com/articles/if-...

Stanly Ranch, the Auberge Resorts branded wellness retreat and luxury home enclave in Napa’s Carneros region, is now the backdrop for a legal fight with a nine-figure price tag hoodline.com/2026/03/napa...

Winery openings often get a lot of attention. Winery closings, not so much. Doors close, equipment is sold off, inventory is quietly liquidated, and memories fade ~ by Mike Veseth wineeconomist.com/2026/03/10/n...

… if wholesale is no longer a viable sales chain for wineries, what kind of lasting impact will this have on the wine industry at large? vinepair.com/articles/vp-...

For years, the wine trade blamed DtC sales for weakening distribution. But Alfonso Cevola argues the more serious damage came from compensation reform that rewired incentives, sidelined expertise and made much of the portfolio economically invisible www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2026/03/how-...

Wine sales volume declines continue to outpace those of sale value, which to some might indicate continued consumer interest in premiumization, but the greater likelihood is that the category is losing entry level wine drinkers to more affordable categories www.winebusiness.com/news/article...

Noma, in Copenhagen, has become one of the world’s most famous restaurants under its chef, René Redzepi. Former workers have come forward to say that its reputation was built on abusive working conditions ~ by Julia Moskin www.nytimes.com/2026/03/07/d...

With exploitation, human trafficking and fraudulent wine, this week's news roundup reads more like a police blotter ~ by Oliver Styles www.wine-searcher.com/m/2026/03/hu...

Discover how a new Supreme Court case about Arizona’s DtC wine shipping laws could reshape Dormant Commerce Clause alcohol regulation and the wine industry www.forbes.com/sites/noelbu...

A toxic mix of tariffs, falling alcohol consumption and soaring costs of doing business in California is squeezing vineyards across the state www.dailymail.co.uk/yourmoney/ar...

“What day is it?” asked Pooh. “It’s today,” squeaked Piglet. “My favorite day,” said Pooh.” ― A.A. Milne

The wine industry is in a crisis, and distribution is one of the largest pain points for many wineries, especially small producers: it’s expensive and highly competitive, monopolized by a handful of large distributors - by Jess Lander www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

The changes to California wine over the past decade have been monumental ~ by Esther Mobley www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

Is it too early for barrel sampling 🤷🏼 … #askingforafriend

Grocery Outlet, the Emeryville-based discount grocer with a large Northern California footprint, said it plans to close 36 financially underperforming stores www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/arti...

After a decade of sticking my nose in a glass for a living, I’m off to a new adventure ~ by Esther Mobley www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

Spring has sprung 💐

Executives at the nation’s largest alcohol distributor, Southern Glazer’s, engineered a sprawling multiyear bribery scheme to control which wines were offered on the shelves of hundreds of supermarkets across California, according to a federal indictment www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

Work in progress 🍇

In 2009 Cathy Huyghe and her co-founder launched a data analytics firm, Enolytics, which takes winery client sales data from all channels and returns actionable information about where and how the winery can improve its sales results podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

A Mount Veeder vineyard belonging to Alpha Omega Winery may be on the market again, a move triggered after a foreclosure notice recently sent to the winery napacountytimes.com/alpha-omega-...

The good life p

Tentative green shoots in the fine wine market have prompted greater focus on potential opportunities in early 2026 www.decanter.com/learn/wine-i...

At a time when U.S. wine consumption is under pressure, new research and industry insights presented this week in New York suggest the category’s future will depend less on immediate volume recovery and more on whether wine can adapt to how Americans now live www.forbes.com/sites/ericad...

The wine industry needs to stop chasing the billionaire dollar and start appealing to middle classes again, Oliver Styles argues www.wine-searcher.com/m/2026/02/wi...

US wine exports lost US$428 million in 2024, new data from the US Census Bureau has revealed, with exports to its leading market, Canada, plummeting 76% www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2026/02/us-w...

The California wine shakeout is upon us ~ by Esther Mobley www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

… the Liberty Justice Center and co-counsel Neal Katyal today filed coordinated motions in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) to enforce the ruling and initiate refunds libertyjusticecenter.org/pressrelease...

The former JAB Holdings chief, Olivier Goudet, has said luxury demand will rebound as he bets on the Australian wine giant with a new 6.17% stake www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2026/02/fren...

Doubt is the only certainty a bewildered wine industry can rely on as President Trump looks for alternatives to tariffs ~ by W. Blake Gray www.wine-searcher.com/m/2026/02/wi...

Today on the “VinePair Podcast,” Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss whether wineries should still consider by-the-glass placements as vital for their success vinepair.com/articles/vp-...

French cognac producers plan to pay to tear their vines out by the roots to cut output in order to address a drop in demand for the high-end liquor due to tariffs www.reuters.com/world/china/...

Jackson Family Wines, the sixth-largest U.S. wine company, permanently shuttered its Carneros Hill Winery, located in Sonoma’s Carneros wine region ~ by Jess Lander www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/ar...

Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey, a kiddley divey too, wouldn't you?