Dr. Liz Thach, MW

Albert Bichot Winery in Burgundy Focuses on Organic Farming And Reducing Bottle Weight

Château-Gris in Nuits-Saint-Georges, France - Organic Wine Estate Owned by Albert Bichot. ALBERT BICHOT When I was doing my 4 month sabbatical abroad in Burgundy, Albert-Bichot was one of the wineries I was able to visit. They have a tasting room in downtown Beaune, but also own many individual wineries throughout Burgundy. As a large producer making 6 to 7 million bottles per year, they actually produce a lot of regional Burgundy wines that are affordable for everyday. At the same time, they also craft some very exceptional Premiere and Grand Cru wines, with price tags soaring in the the [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2026-09-14T13:12:58-07:00June 15, 2023|

Lunch with Portugal’s Rupert Symington to Discuss Sustainability And Innovation Efforts

Terraced Vineyard in the Douro Wine Region of Portugal. SYMINGTON FAMILY ESTATES The first time I visited Oporto, Portugal, I was thrilled to be able to tour the famous Graham's port house owned by the Symington Family. Therefore, I was very pleased to receive an invitation to have lunch with Rupert Symington, current CEO, and his son Hugh in San Francisco this Spring at the Wayfare Tavern. Not only did we have a delicious meal paired with 5 of their wines (see menu at bottom of article), but they updated me on everything they are doing to combat climate change [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-05-01T13:01:13-07:00May 1, 2023|

Wine Exports Break World Record In 2022

Wine Exports Break World Record in 2022. GETTY A combination of supply chain disruptions and inflation sent wine prices higher around the globe this year, resulting in a world record of €37.6 billion ($ 41.3 billion) of wine exports in 2022. This is a 9% increase over 2021. “This breaks all records,” stated Pau Roca, Director General of the OIV (International Organization of Vine & Wine) in an online session recorded in Paris earlier today. “Even though volume was down slightly (-5%), value was up.” The OIV, based in France, is the largest organization to collect global data on wine production, [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-05-01T12:42:30-07:00May 1, 2023|

The Power Of 50 Years Of Mentorship At Chandon In Napa Valley

Reunion of 4 Chandon California Winemakers to Create 50th Anniversary Special Cuvee: Tom Tiburzi, Dawnine Dyer, Pauline Lhote, and Wayne Donaldson DAMION HAMILTON 2022 In 1974, with a degree in Biology from University of California at Santa Cruz, Dawnine Dyer set off to Napa Valley with a dream to enter the wine industry. Not only did she succeed spectacularly with jobs at Robert Mondavi Winery, 25 years at Chandon California, and her own brand, Dyer Vineyards, but through the years she developed a reputation of being one of California’s most important female winemakers and mentor to countless others. This week, [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-04-10T18:28:20-07:00April 10, 2023|

How Avaline Wine Co-Founders, Cameron Diaz And Katherine Power, Achieved $20 Million In Sales With Ingredient Transparency

Cameron Diaz and Katherine Power, Co-Founders of Avaline Wines. AVALINE WINES When serial entrepreneur, Katherine Power met Hollywood star and author, Cameron Diaz, they discovered they had something in common – a love of good wine. At the same time, they also learned they had a common frustration – the lack of transparency on wine labels. With current TTB regulations not requiring alcoholic beverages in the U.S. to include ingredient or nutrition labeling (though this could be changing in the future – see foot note below), they decided to take action and create a new wine brand that did provide [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-04-10T18:21:30-07:00April 10, 2023|

How Fine Wine Importer, Wilson Daniels, Manages Some Of World’s Most Expensive Wine Brands

Wilson Daniels Imports Wines made from the Romanée-Conti Grand Cru Vineyard in Burgundy. GETTY When Rocco Lombardo assumed president at Wilson Daniels, one of the top luxury wine importers and marketers in the U.S., no one knew that in less than 8 years, he grew the company five times its size in revenue and case sales. Even more impressive, the privately owned company was able to grow its business by 68% during the pandemic, and did not lay off any employees. Today, Wilson Daniels oversees a wine portfolio of some of the most illustrious wine brands in the world. Examples [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-04-02T12:15:28-07:00April 2, 2023|

The Lion, The Wine and The Belly-Dancers: DAOU Vineyards Release Party

Probably one of the most enchanting wine release parties in California is the annual “Soul of a Lion” event held at DAUO Vineyards in Paso Robles each Spring. The wine is a delicious Bordeaux blend, made primarily of cabernet sauvignon, and was named in honor of George and Daniel Dauo’s father, Joseph Daou. The story behind the name is that Joseph always exhibited “the soul of a lion,” in that whatever hardships knocked him down growing up in war-torn Lebanon, he always jumped back up and faced life with the courage and strength of the “king of the jungle.” Daniel [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-04-02T12:20:08-07:00April 2, 2023|

Dreaming of Working in Napa Valley? New Digital Resource Improves Accessibility

New Digital Resource called 'Dream.Work.Napa' Improves Accessibility. Photo Credit: NVV A new digital resource called, ‘Dream.Work.Napa.’ was released today that will help those looking to start their careers in Napa Valley. This was developed by members of the NVV Leadership Program cohort. The site is designed to connect people with a range of resources available on the webpage, including internships, housing opportunities, education and mentorship programs, scholarships, employment opportunities and healthcare. The mission of Dream.Work.Napa. is to improve the accessibility and social sustainability of Napa Valley through supported educational and resource programs to attract, retain and inspire the next generation, [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-03-23T15:25:41-07:00March 23, 2023|

1795 and 1840 Rare Madeira Wine To Be Auctioned at Christie’s

Madeira Wine. Photo Credit: Creative Commons One of the great benefits of studying to become a Master of Wine is that I was introduced to fine Madeira wines, and fell in love with them. The taste is especially enchanting because it is a combination of dried orange peel, caramel, hazelnut, and brown sugar, as well as many other complex notes, depending on the age and varietal. I am also amazed by the fact that Madeira wines never go bad, even after the bottle has been opened for years! So I was intrigued when I learned that one of the largest [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-03-23T15:05:15-07:00March 23, 2023|

Why French Millennials Don’t Drink Wine

Why French Millennials Don't Drink Wine. Photo Credit: Pexels.com When I was traveling in France for a month in 2008, I did some research on why younger French consumers were not adopting wine as much as French people did in previous generations. The results were rather surprising so I published them in an article in WineBusiness.com, with my co-researcher, Dr. Francois d'Hauteville, who was teaching at the University of Montpellier in Southern France. Recently I was contacted by a French student who is studying the same topic, because -- alas -- the issue is still current. Young people in France [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-03-20T12:30:01-07:00March 20, 2023|

How ChatGPT Can Help Wineries Sell More Wine

A winery and vineyard landscape created by AI Art - Deep Dream Generator After asking ChatGPT (free open source artificial intelligence platform) to write a blog post on 'How ChatGPT Can Assist Customers in Buying Wine,' and being reasonably impressed with the results, I decided to flip the table and ask it 'how wineries could increase wine sales with ChatGPT'. The first blog post it wrote wasn't that accurate, because it said we were still in a pandemic, so I asked it to try a second time. This is what is came up with. Personally, I think it is relatively [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-03-19T12:30:33-07:00March 19, 2023|

How ChatGPT Can Assist Consumers in Buying Wine

Wine and Chat GPT. Photo Credit: Artbreeder As a wine business professor, I've become rather alarmed with reports that students are using ChatGPT (free open source artificial intelligence platform) to complete research papers with APA referencing. Therefore, I decided to test this out on ChatGPT and guess what? The platform did an excellent job of writing a 2 page research paper, complete with abstract and referencing, but it couldn't write the 10 page research paper I requested - even though I asked it multiple times. However, ChatGPT is actually supposed to be better at writing short articles and blog posts, [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-03-18T14:37:36-07:00March 18, 2023|

A Conversation With Sommelier Tonya Pitts On Wine/Food Pairing

Tonya Pitts, Sommelier and Wine Director of One Market Restaurant, CA. HARDY WILSON Tonya Pitts grew up in St. Louis, Missouri and remembers her grandmother and great-grandmother enjoying a glass of red Manischewitz wine with dinner each evening. Fast-forward to today where Tonya Pitts manages a 600-bottle wine list at the acclaimed One Market Restaurant in San Francisco, and was recently named ‘Sommelier of the Year’ by Wine Enthusiast’s 2022 Wine Stars Awards. In a recent phone interview, Pitts shares some of her insights into the art of wine and food pairing. She also comments on the importance of Black [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-03-07T16:04:46-08:00March 7, 2023|

Olivier Krug Describes How Champagne Can Be Paired with Music

Experience a Champagne and Music Pairing GETTY I first visited Krug Champagne House in Reims, France with my wine business students in 2014 (post at this link). While there, we had the most amazing tasting in the garden, as well as a tour of the cellars. Towards the end of the tasting, we were all honored and impressed with Olivier Krug came to speak with us, and reminded us that champagne is all about the enjoyment of life. Now in 2023, I had the honor of interviewing Olivier for this Forbes article, and once again I was entranced with his message. [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-03-07T15:57:51-08:00March 7, 2023|

6 Tempting Wine Cocktails For Valentine’s Day

Tempting Wine Cocktails for Valentines Day. Photo Credit: Getty While you can never go wrong serving champagne or sparkling wine for Valentine’s Day, sometimes it is better to get a little more creative and serve a tantalizing wine cocktail. After all, wine has been used as a base for cocktails as far back as the ancient Greeks and Romans, who used to add honey, spices, and different types of fruit to wine. With this in mind, we consulted six wine experts and sommeliers who provided six recipes for some of their favorite wine cocktails. These are ideal to serve as [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2023-02-12T09:14:33-08:00February 12, 2023|

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