Franklin Liquors-The Wonderful World of Wine

Friday August 2nd 2013

Liquor Industry News/Links

By: Mark C. Lenzi CSW

Today Is A Biodynamic ROOT Day

Massachusetts: Reps to Consider DTC Bills this Fall

Thanks to all our Bay State friends for supporting House Bill 294, a favorable bill that would allow legal wine direct shipping . HB 294 will be reconsidered when the legislative session resumes this fall, but please visit www.freethegrapes.org today and take two minutes to write your state legislators.

A Nation of Wineries

Interactive Wine Map By The NY Times

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/07/07/business/a-nation-of-wineries.html?_r=0

Where Do Champagne Bubbles Come From?

Wine Folly

Read All About It:

http://winefolly.com/review/champagne-bubbles-how-is-champagne-made/

Protesters demonstrate against Sebastopol winery

By MATT BROWN
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

A group of about 50 protesters angry at what they say is an environmentally damaging vineyard conversion project demonstrated in front of Paul Hobbs Winery in Sebastopol on Monday.

Read All About It:

http://www.wineindustryinsight.com/ex_nf.php?url=http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20130729/articles/130729511

How the storytelling can add value to wines

The use of a vineyard’s storytelling helps to better understand the position of each vintage in a niche and luxury market. There is a link between the price level of the wine and the style of the corporate storytelling

Read All About It:

http://www.wineindustryinsight.com/ex_nf.php?url=http://www.teatronaturale.com/article/4342.html

Putting the Super in Tuscany

Great Northwest
Wine of the Week

July 30, 2013 • Vol. 1, No. 30
By Andy Perdue and Eric Degerman

You might have heard the term “Super Tuscan” but haven’t been sure what exactly that means.

It’s an interesting story – with a Pacific Northwest twist.

Back in the 1970s, a few Italian winemakers grew tired of regulations that required them to use certain grapes if they wanted their wines to be labeled “Chianti” (after the region between Florence and Sienna).

In particular, Piero Antinori began making a wine called Tignanello that was a blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon. But using French grapes was frowned upon in Italy.

The wines were a hit and became quite expensive, but this also created a problem because the blend didn’t fit a particular regulated category in Italy, so it was labeled as a table wine – vino da tavola . The producers and enamored wine critics referred to the wines as Super Tuscans.

Today, Super Tuscans are among the most expensive and sought-after wines made in Italy.

And the Northwest connection? In the 1990s, Antinori teamed up with Ste. Michelle Wine Estates to launch Col Solare and later built a grand winery on Red Mountain. There, they produce only one wine under the brand name Col Solare, and it is a red blend. Interestingly, Sangiovese is not part of the mix.

The house that beer built

31st July, 2013 by Andy Young

This is the house that beer built, or to be more specific the house that 50,000 beer cans built.

Read All About It:

http://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2013/07/the-house-that-beer-built/?article-source=newsletter&source=644&date=2013-07-31

Is wine from a cardboard purse a best bet for picnics? See our Wine Panel’s picnic picks

Dallas Morning News Wine Picks

Read All About It:

http://www.dallasnews.com/lifestyles/food-wine/food-wine-headlines/20130730-is-wine-from-a-cardboard-purse-a-best-bet-for-picnics-see-our-wine-panel-s-picnic-picks.ece

Environmentally friendly wine kegs should be more easily available

Posted:

July 30, 2013

Read All About It:

http://lubbockonline.com/life-columnists/2013-07-30/clemens-environmentally-friendly-wine-kegs-should-be-more-easily

Which wines are best for barbecues?

By: Len Napolitano

Read All About It:

http://www.winecountrythisweek.com/articles/which-wines-are-best-barbecues-4?utm_source=wctw+newsletter&utm_campaign=0096f7186f-WCTW_Newsletter_1_4_121_3_2012&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_677d5c9c1c-0096f7186f-209968790

10 Warnings For Visitors to Napa Valley

Posted by Tom Wark on Jul 30, 2013

Read All About It:

http://www.wineindustryinsight.com/ex_nf.php?url=http://fermentationwineblog.com/2013/07/10-warnings-for-visitors-to-napa-valley/

Hangovers can make you stupid

A hangover can leave you with more than a sore head in the morning – it impairs the way your brain holds and processes information, according to new research.

Read All About It:

http://www.wineindustryinsight.com/ex_nf.php?url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/10213764/Hangovers-make-you-stupid.html

Coming soon in 6 pack cans…Wachusett Larry Imperial IPA. This über-hoppy brew was originally released in 2010 as a one-off collaboration with Brookline (Boston) beer bar, The Publick House

Trinchero Family Estates has launched a new wine brand, Fancy Pants, into national distribution. Making its debut with a 2011 red blend (featuring Zinfandel, Cabernet and Merlot) and a 2012 Pinot Grigio, the new range is sourced from various California vineyards. Both Fancy Pants’ red blend and Pinot Grigio are priced at $9.99 a 750-ml. Trinchero said the brand’s test marketing generated “overwhelming response, especially among the millennial female wine consumer.”

Pernod Ricard’s Kahlúa liqueur is prepping a pair of seasonal launches for the fall and winter, including its new Kahlúa Pumpkin Spice and returning flavor Kahlúa Peppermint Mocha. Launching this September, Kahlúa Pumpkin Spice blends pumpkin flavors and autumnal spices with 100% Arabica coffee and sugarcane rum. Kahlúa Peppermint Mocha, which first launched in the fall of 2010, will follow with an October rollout. Priced at $17.99 a 750-ml., both 20%-abv offerings are targeted toward gifting and at-home cocktail occasions and will be available through December 31. In addition to its flagship coffee-infused liqueur, Kahlúa’s flavor portfolio includes Cinnamon Spice, French Vanilla, Mocha, Hazelnut and Especial (dark espresso-infused) expressions.

Sierra Nevada Brewing has added a new seasonal, Flipside Red IPA, to its lineup in time for fall. Flipside, which features a “deep ruby-red hue,” will be available beginning in September in 12-ounce bottles and on draft. The new beer (6.2% abv) features whole-cone Citra, Simcoe and Centennial hops, used as both finishing additions as well as in Sierra Nevada’s signature “Torpedo” system. The brewer also added two-row pale, wheat, caramel and chocolate malts. Sierra Nevada’s lineup of seasonal brews also includes Celebration Ale, Ruthless Rye IPA, Summerfest and Tumbler Autumn Brown Ale.

•Stone Brewing Co. has released Coconut IPA in collaboration with San Diego homebrewers Robert Masterson and Ryan Reschan, and San Marcos, California-based Rip Current Brewing. The brew is available now on draft and in 22-ounce bottles across 38 states and Washington, D.C. The recipe stems from the winning Coconut IPA that Masterson and Reschan entered into Stone’s 2013 Homebrew Competition earlier this year. For the final version, Stone added three pounds of lightly toasted coconut per barrel to the beer, and collaborated with Rip Current Brewing, who offered hopping suggestions and their pilot system to experiment on, allowing the team to brew test batches to reach the right combination. Six hops were eventually chosen—Centennial, Amarillo, Calypso, Simcoe, Belma and Australian Helga.

Beer Consumers Shifting Away from Premium Light Segment Appears to Be a Secular Shift to Other Segments

Source: Consumer Edge Insight

Jul 31st

According to Alcoholic Beverage DemandTracker, a periodic survey of US adults age 21+ who consume any type of alcohol at least once a week or more, beer drinkers who are drinking premium domestic light beer brands less often are more likely to be doing so due to changing preferences and tastes within the beer category, rather than weakness in spending money or other temporary factors.

Among beer drinkers who are consuming premium light beer brands less often, the main reason is “getting tired of the taste”, cited by 27% of them. The second-most popular reason given was “consuming more of other types of beer”, 21%. Economic factors were the third-most popular answer as 20% said they were drinking less premium lights because they were “trying to save money.” Another 17% said they were consuming other types of alcohol most often, suggesting some share losses to wine and spirits. Changing tastes are especially prevalent among certain demographic groups: 40% of 21-27 year olds drinking premium lights less often say they are getting tired of the taste, as well as 39% of Hispanics.

The most recent survey also showed fewer beer drinkers are naming a premium light brand as their favorite brand of beer. As of June 2013, 28% of beer drinkers named a premium light brand as their favorite, down from 32% in June 2012. Beer drinkers are now most likely to name an Import brand as their favorite (30%), while Craft beer brands also continue to gain share among favorite brands (15% in June 2013 vs. 13% in June 2012).

Beer drinkers’ perceptions of the premium light segment also show signs of gradually weakening. In June 2013, 30% of beer drinkers said they perceived the premium light segment as “tasting great”, compared to 33% in June 2012. And beer drinkers today are more likely to describe the premium light segment as “watery,” 37% in 2013 vs. 34% last year.

“Our latest consumer research reveals some serious warning signs for the premium light segment,” said David Decker, President of Consumer Edge Insight. “After a long period when these domestic premium light brands dominated the US beer industry, many beer drinkers, particularly younger ones, are finding that they prefer the stronger and more varied tastes of imports and craft beers instead. This suggests that the recent weakness in share trends for the big premium light flagship brands is likely to continue.”