• Napa wine prices: The world as we know it is ending, reports Paul Franson in Wines & Vines. Some Napa producers are considering cutting prices. Participants at an industry panel earlier this month told wineries that people are trading down – that those who bought $40 to $45 wines (core Napa territory) are buying wines that cost $20 or even $10, and the industry must adjust. Said one speaker: “Life won’t be the same.”
• Court throws out St. Emilion classification: The 2006 St. Emilion classification, which rates the quality of the region’s wine, is invalid and will have to be redone, reports Decanter. A French appeals court said there were irregularities during the tasting process and should no longer stand. This is huge news, even if it baffles most Americans. The French government oversees wine ratings in Bordeaux – on the left bank, which is part of the famous 1855 Classification, and on the right bank in St. Emilion. The latter is reclassified every 10 years, and the 2006 reclassification was appealed by a producer who was downgraded. The court told the government it would have to go back and redo the 2006 ratings. This is, of course, yet another reason why ratings are silly.
• Iowa wine: Because the Wine Curmudgeon can’t get enough of regional wine. It’s not the best written piece in the world (a little overdone, frankly), but this effort from Appellation America is a terrific overview of what’s going on in Iowa. Notes author Clark Smith: The best Iowa wines are are “clean, varietal and always well balanced, wines that succeed by not trying too hard.” Which is what all winemakers should shoot for, isn’t it?
Comments