Talk-A-Vino

There is something always happening in the world of wine. When we hear the word “wine”, of course, we get an instant image of the liquid in the glass. But before and after that liquid in the glass, the world of wine is a business world, and as with any other business, something is always happening in the wine business. Let’s take a look at some of the latest, “hot off the press” developments in the wine world.

Tariffs can’t stop the wine
It is nice to think of wine as something divine and poetic, but at the end of the day, wine has to be paid for, just like cars, TVs, and steaks. For things we pay for, the scary word of the day is “tariff” – we can’t just escape the reality of our lives. The US government floated the idea of setting the tariffs for all European wines at 200%, and that is a scary thought for winemakers and wine consumers alike. Some of the winemakers want to face this challenge head-on – and thus, venerable Champagne houses Dom Pérignon and Krug just announced that they will start production of their famed Champagnes in the US, which will allow them to avoid tariffs altogether. The information is scarce and protected by strong NDAs, but based on anonymous social media leaks, both houses entered into agreements with undisclosed wineries in Oregon to source the fruit and assist in the production of the sparkling wines. Would they be able to call them Champagne? This is the question of the year, of course. I’m sure we will learn more as the story unfolds. Currently, it is expected that both houses will be able to proudly offer “made in USA” Krug and Dom Perignon as early as the 2027 vintage.

Chateau Latour 1982 without alcohol? You got it
It seems that alcohol-free wine is a big trend (not for me, but hey, it is a free world, right?). Until now, the choices of alcohol-free wines had been limited to specifically produced non-vintage wines of unknown pedigree. This is about to change, all thanks to the company that already once revolutionized fine wine consumption. Coravin just announced a new wine preservation system, which not only lets you sip your prized First Growth over many years, but also allows you to remove the alcohol from the wine while it’s been poured! Think about your underage kids being able to enjoy the legendary wines together with the adults at the dinner table. Or even oneself, now being able to consume an unlimited amount of the elixir and then drive with no problems at all. This new Coravin wine preservation system, called Drink Freely, is priced at $899, and it is expected to hit the store shelves before Christmas of 2025. You can visit the Coravin website to sign up for the email updates for the early availability of Drink Freely.

Wine and health
I’m sure you noticed that wine has been assaulted as of late with all the baseless claims about the dangers of wine consumption to your health. Despite all the wealth of the previous research, talking about the benefits of moderate wine consumption, it seems that beating wine down became a favorite pastime of many medical “scholars.” The World Health Organization (WHO) has been one of the staunch critics of wine consumption and alcohol in general. In a stunning reversal of events, the WHO published the results of a 10-year-long lifestyle study, concluding that moderate wine consumption, up to 2 glasses of wine per day, had shown improved mental capacity, reduced stress, and boosted immune system defences among experiement’s subjects, compared with the control group. The findings were so profound that the WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, called the wine “an elixir of life” in his quote. Again, this was quite an unexpected endorsement, but who can argue with success?!

Vines under water
Rising sea levels are definitely a concern for many wineries, especially those located in the coastal areas around the world. What will happen if the vineyards go underwater? What if it is possible to successfully grow grapes in the vineyards at least partially, or potentially, completely submerged in water? The University of the Basque Country in Spain teamed up with famed UC Davis in California and several wineries in the Rias Baixas area to research the ability of vines to thrive under water. The first vineyards had been planted in the sea basin near Vigo in Rías Baixas, taking care of protecting young vines from the sea currents and fish. Obviously, Albariño was the first choice of the grape variety to plant, but a number of other Mediterranean grape varieties are also in the play. It is too early to talk about the results, as the project has been going for only 3 years, with the first mentions just leaking into the press, but the chief project scientist, Dr. Maximilian Grape-Seedling, says the early results are encouraging. We are still 3-4 years away from any commercial availability, but we can definitely share the hope for the future of the wine industry.

The wine crypto
Last but not least – we just learned of the first ever wine foray into the world of cryptocurrency. Loïc Pasquet, the winemaker behind the most expensive Bordeaux wine, Liber Pater ($30,000 per bottle upon release), just announced his brand new crypto, $Liber. $Liber will be based on the Ethereum blockchain and will be released at $10,000 a piece, with only 10,000 coins total planned for circulation. The new crypto will be backed by the 2020 vintage of Liber Pater, with 5,000 bottles set aside as collateral for the new cryptocurrency. It will be first available for sale on May 1st, and the demand for the hotly anticipated coin already exceeds 3 times the expected total supply. Each new $Liber owner will receive a 50 ml bottle of 2015 Liber Pater and the certificate of ownership signed by Loïc Pasquet himself. $Liber will be available on all major crypto exchanges such as Coinbase, Robinhood, and others.

And we are done here – all the latest wine news and updates.

Until the next time – cheers!