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The World Atlas of Wine has just released its 9th edition, and Wine Economist has reviewed this major reference work alongside other new wine titles. Since the last edition in 2019, the wine world has shifted considerably, making this updated atlas a timely resource for anyone tracking global wine trends and production changes.
The wine industry is grappling with AI as a potential game-changer, with some calling it the biggest disruption of their time. The technology could reshape how fine wine is authenticated, priced, and produced, though industry professionals are still working out exactly how it'll reshape traditional practices. It's a developing story that's worth watching if you're involved in wine production, investment, or trade.
Artificial intelligence isn't just giving wineries new software to play with—it could reshape how they actually operate from the ground up. Rather than simply automating individual tasks, AI has the potential to change workflows, decision-making processes, and the way teams collaborate across vineyards and cellars. It's worth understanding what that deeper transformation might look like as the technology becomes more embedded in the industry.
Michelin has started rating wineries, but wine expert Jamie Goode thinks they're getting it wrong. While he believes they could offer something genuinely useful to the industry, their current approach with three-grape ratings isn't hitting the mark. The piece explores what Michelin would need to do differently to make their winery ratings actually work for wine professionals and enthusiasts.
Jamie Goode argues that old vineyards are at risk of disappearing during the current wine market contraction, not because they're poor quality but because they're unprofitable in the short term. He highlights how Australia's notorious vine pull of the 1980s wiped out exceptional Barossa old-vine plantings, and how Spanish producers like Comando G had to fight to save heritage Garnacha vineyards that fell out of favour during the Parker era. Goode poses a thought-provoking question: should there be laws to protect these special old vineyards as treasures?
Decanter's guide cuts through the confusion around sake classification and production. The piece explains key differences like Ginjo versus Junmai, clarifies that sake is fermented rather than distilled (and closer to wine than spirits in alcohol content), and offers practical serving and pairing advice for hospitality professionals. It's a handy reference for anyone selling or recommending sake to customers.
Wine writer Joe Fattorini argues that traditional sustainability conferences are ineffective because they preach to the converted rather than changing behaviour. He highlights the 'sustainability paradox', backed by research, showing that aggressive sustainability claims often backfire with consumers, who either dismiss them as greenwashing or assume 'sustainable' means 'tasteless and expensive'. His point: if the industry wants real change, it needs to win over skeptics and critics, not just celebrate good intentions among believers.
A Spanish wine publication is raising the alarm about the wine industry losing sight of basic business principles. The piece argues that despite wine's rich cultural heritage, producers and businesses need to refocus on commercial viability and sound business practices to ensure the industry's long-term survival. It's a candid look at what's going wrong behind the romance of winemaking.
Wine writer Joe Fattorini argues that the wine industry's efforts to strip away 'snobbery' and 'demystify' wine could be a serious mistake. He contends that wine's high-status appeal is actually what protects it from health regulation efforts and what makes it valuable to consumers, drawing a parallel to how smoking declined once it became socially low-status. Fattorini suggests that wine's tastemakers should embrace—not reject—its ability to confer status if the industry wants to thrive.
Sweden's Munskänkarna wine club boasts 30,000 members across 180 local groups, making it the world's largest wine appreciation organisation, despite thriving in one of Europe's most restrictive alcohol markets. The unpronounceable name reflects the group's distinctly Swedish identity, though there are growing outposts in Finland, Norway, Belgium, and potentially London soon. It's a fascinating example of how wine community and enthusiasm can flourish in unexpected places.
Wine expert Jane Anson explores the growing phenomenon of single vineyard Champagnes in a new podcast episode, using Clos Lanson as an example of what makes these expressions so special and sought-after. It's a fascinating look at how Champagne producers are creating more distinctive, terroir-focused wines that stand out from traditional blended offerings. If you're curious about what's happening in premium Champagne production, this is worth a listen.
Andrew Jefford's got a lovely travel piece in Decanter about Croatian wine country, specifically the Dalmatian coast around Primošten. He's chatting with local winemakers and oenology professors, exploring how the region's limestone soils and Adriatic setting shape wines like Babić – it's the kind of intimate, character-driven feature that reminds you why EU wine regions are so diverse and worth paying attention to.
Xavier Jean, fourth-generation owner of Couvent des Jacobins in Saint-Émilion, sat down for an in-depth chat about building a respected Grand Cru Classé estate and launching his bold Merlot project, Calicem, outside the traditional classification. It's a fascinating look at how family-run Bordeaux estates balance staying true to their terroir and philosophy whilst expanding internationally—he's even got markets sorted in Asia—without getting caught up in chasing trends.
Forbes has put together a guide to England's wine country, which could be useful for anyone wanting to understand the UK wine landscape better. It's the kind of piece that'll give you the lay of the land on English vineyard regions and what's happening here and some great international coverage for English Wine.
Joe Fattorini's got a brilliant take on how English sparkling wine brand Folc deliberately baited Bollinger into sending a cease-and-desist letter over their 'pink champers' ad – and how The Times then ran it as news. It's a cheeky dissection of modern wine PR tactics and how sometimes the most obvious manufactured stories get treated as genuine news by major publications.
Jason Millar's piece in Decanter challenges whether terroir has become so ubiquitous in wine marketing that it's obscuring what consumers actually care about. He traces how terroir went from being a disparaging term meaning 'taste of dirt' to becoming industry doctrine after the 1976 Judgment of Paris, and questions whether talking about alluvial marls and soil composition is really helping us sell wine or just making the industry sound pretentious.