Imagine a warm and sunny day in May. You're walking across the green fairway of a golf course (or riding in a cart if you prefer), surrounded by vineyards and oak-studded rolling hills. When you arrive at the tee, there's a gathering of friends and colleagues. You mingle—catching up with old friends or meeting new ones. You stop at a booth to snag a glass of sparkling wine or limoncello and place a bet on how many capsules are in the jar; if you're right, it could win you a prize. When it's time for your foursome to tee off, you move on through the course to the next tee, where more fun awaits. The day ends at the clubhouse with a full dinner, awards ceremony and a party with the DJ spinning music for dancing, drinking and good vibes. This scenario isn't just a daydream or another weekend golf game in wine country; it's an entirely different experience designed to provide a casual environment for the hard-working folks in the wine and spirits industry to h

Afternoon Brief, February 22nd

Former Employee Arrested in Nov. Vandalism of Woodinville Winery and Draining 24K Bottles of Wine: Detectives arrested a former employee suspected of breaking into and draining roughly 24,000 bottles of wine at a Woodinville winery in November 2023...

Afternoon Brief, February 7th

Prohibition Era Over? State House Passes Bill to Legalize Sale of Liquor, Wine in Small Towns: The House passed a bill that would no longer prohibit Mississippi’s small towns from selling liquor and wine — a Prohibition-era carryover still enforced for municipalities in many “dry” counties...

Italy. The name alone conjures images of undulating grape vineyards traversing and defining its hillsides. Its long history of winemaking has resulted in generations of innovative Italian engineering in machinery and equipment for the wine industry.  This November, the International Trade Fair for Winemaking and Bottling Machinery (SIMEI) will hold its 30th edition in Milan, Italy. This biennial event is the world’s largest exhibition of machinery and equipment for the production, bottling, and packaging of wine and spirits. Featuring the world’s leading manufacturers, it has a 60-year tradition of showcasing state-of-the-art technology in Italian and international engineering.  “It's a great place to go,” says Italian-born Alberto Migliardi, CEO of APS Packaging. ”First, because it is in Italy. Second, because so many of the most innovative companies producing winery equipment are in Italy. You can meet them, see the details of their equip

Afternoon Brief, January 23rd

Why Sokol Blosser Is Adding an Ingredients List to Its Wine Labels: Generally speaking, the wine industry has long resisted putting an ingredients list on wine labels...

Afternoon Brief, November 7th

Changing Consumer Palettes May Cause Growers to Shrink Winegrape Acreage: Wine industry experts are now saying the state is growing too many wine grapes to keep supply and demand balanced...