Things I’m Reading Online This Week

Early August Wine Reads

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All you need to stay informed is Google and a glass of wine!

It’s true, “what I’m reading posts” are some of the easiest blog posts to put together and have been around since blogs were first created. But the combination of helping people discover new things and be more informed about what’s happening in the wine world, is what It’s Wine By Me is all about.

Besides, when friends ask me, ‘How do you know so much about wine,’ it all comes back to poking around the Internet and staying on top of what others are reporting. So, here’s what’s currently crossing my radar.

Harvest News

While California celebrates the start of Harvest 2022, more worrisome eyes are focused on the wildfires south of Bordeaux.

Women in Wine

Remember the Instagram uproar over D.C.’s women in wine? Some local publications took notice, too. Plus, some additional headlines worthy of your attention.

Wine Gadgets from #CES2018

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I’m starting a new day job shortly that will move me into the consumer technology space, so with the 2018 Consumer Electronic Show making headlines in Las Vegas this week, it had me thinking: What kind of crazy wine gadgets are being touted and might be entering the market?

As many wine experts have expressed (for example, see this interview I did with with Jon Bonné about his new book, “The New Wine Rules”), these fancy tools aren’t necessarily helpful to your wine and are often more show than function.

But that doesn’t make me stop wondering! So, here are a few of the gadgets I found on a google search of wine and CES 2018:

* This modular wine shelving for your cellar: Caveasy One (via  AndroidHeadlines).

* This new aerator for your wine bottle: Aveine (via The Verge).

* And there’s now a connected (automated) version of the Coravin (via CNET).

(For those following this topic more closely, did I miss anything?)

Does anyone really need new technology for a product that has been produced and enjoyed for centuries upon centuries? Probably not. But it’s still fun to think about and any time wine can enter a wider conversation in the world, it gives us some fun teachable moments.

Three #Winestagram Accounts to Follow

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Of all the social networks, Instagram is by far my favorite way to learn about wine — and probably more importantly, the people in wine. It can be super fun to ogle at bottle shots (I’m certainly guilty of posting many of those) or follow winemakers during harvest, but it’s the accounts that teach me a little something or show off a creative way to look at wine, that I really appreciate. Here are  three of the accounts I’m currently crushing on. Leave me a comment with the accounts that make you happy.

@thevintnerproject

Beautiful photography and profiles of winemakers.

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Marcel Lapierre was the driving force behind biodynamic practices and minimalist winemaking in Beaujolais in the 1980s. He was a third-generation farmer, who began working alongside his father in 1973, growing grapes and making wine from their then 17-acre estate. The twist in his story was his introduction in 1981 to Jules Chauvet, the forerunner of France’s "natural wine" movement. With Chauvet’s teachings, Lapierre rejected excessive wine manipulation that was taking hold in the region and combined some of the traditional techniques already in place at his estate with newer organic practices. His goal was to let nature and the vintage be expressed without chemical inputs. To Lapierre, a winemaker's responsibility was to guide the grapes unsystematically and with discernment. A philsophy that his children, Mathieu and Camille, have embraced since taking over winemaking duties in 2010. Lapierre passed away at the end of the 2010 harvest —a poetic farewell for a man that forever changed our perception of Beaujolais

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@freshcutgardenhose

An artist takes tasting notes from mobile app Delectable and turns them into funny often literal cartoon sketches.

@ladies_in_wine

Curious about the women who get their hands dirty in the business? This account introduces you to them.

Wine Reads for Your Radar

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Just back from Raw Wine New York. What a fun, crazy opportunity to talk to producers, catch up with folks in the industry, taste and learn! As a result, I wasn’t paying much attention to what’s happening online. But not to fear, there’s still a few good pieces that should be on your radar.

* First, some sad news from Wine Spectator: Oregon Winemaker Patricia Green Dies In Apparent Accident. Known mostly for her Pinot Noir, Patty Green was no doubt a pioneer in introducing Oregon wine. (Read the announcement from the winery here.)

* VinePair has a piece I personally don’t agree with, but still an interesting read about somm social media culture: Instagram Is Making Wine Culture Snobbier.

* There are 18 more wine experts in the world, as Decanter reports: Eighteen New Masters of Wine Sworn In.

* Ahead of the launch of Jon Bonné’s new book, he questions the role and definition of a wine expert in Punch: Why It’s Time to Stop Fetishizing Wine Expertise.

Things I’m Reading Online This Week

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The best way to understand a topic is to keep reading about it. And that’s why my apartment has turned into quite the wine library (not just books, but magazines and of course all the wine bottles piling up). Funny, since otherwise, I’m not an avid book reader. But as a news gal, I’ve learned the only way to keep on top of an industry is to read as much as you can. I’ve added a reading list to the sidebar of this site, but as with many other sites out there in the blogoverse, I thought I’d start highlighting some specific stories that are either piquing my interest or  are necessary reads to keep up with the industry. Hope they help you as much as they help me!

* California’s Wildfires and the Complexities of Wine in America via Punch is an honest look at what the flames in wine country exposed.

* Speaking of wildfires, California wasn’t the only wine region burning. Wine Spectator reports: Wildfires Devastate Spanish and Portuguese Wine Regions.

* And as NPR wrote, it’s not a very good year for wine in much of Europe, either: Wine Organization Forecasts Historically Bad Year Due to Weather Events.

* Back here in the states, trying to buy and sell wine is getting a bit more difficult. The New York Times explains: Interstate Wines Are No Longer Free to Travel Across State Lines.

* And if you’ve started buying online from Amazon, you’re out of luck, as many news organizations (including this one from Recode) reported: Amazon is shutting down its Amazon Wine business in the wake of the Whole Foods deal

* As a fan of the documentary Somm, it’s always fun to see the results of the Master Sommelier exam each year. In 2017, 8 more joined the ranks, and SevenFifty Daily caught up with six of them: How 6 New Master Sommeliers Made The Cut.

Keep tabs on my Twitter accounts: @alicyp and @itswinebyme for more of what I’m reading.