I have just come across WineCountry.com’s top wine stories of 2010. The full list can be found here whilst some of the stories that caught my eye are listed below:
Asia Evolves: Wine sales in Asia continue to grow, with marketing reps from wine producing spots around the globe spending more and more time in the region raising awareness and drumming up sales.
Lofty Lafite: Celebrated Bordeaux First Growth Château Lafite-Rothschild was the year’s barometer for skyrocketing wine values in Asia, with three bottles from the wine’s 1869 vintage selling for a mind-blowing HK$1.8 million each in Hong Kong in October.
DIY Over Scores From On High: Speaking of pompous, critics’ scores continue to rub new drinkers the wrong way, while a slew of new and improved wine apps on iPhones, iPads and other mobile devices are putting the power of choice into the hands of drinkers of all stripes.
Rise of the Négociant: Recession-induced downward pricing pressure coupled with rising costs has made wine production in the traditional sense fearsomely unappealing (the year’s rash of winery foreclosures makes for a grim tale). Enter the négociant, nimble practitioner of a lean business model who makes use of purchased fruit and leased winery space.