The Winery Contento of delle Venezie of Vénétie

Despite the lowest number of barrels going under the hammer in 15 years, the 2021 Hospices de Beaune charity auction broke per-barrel price records, reaching an impressive total sales figure of €12.5m (£10.48m/$14.09m), excluding buyer premiums. The total was not too far behind last year’s high tally – close to €13.44 million – where almost double the number of barrels were sold. This year’s sale, with 362 lots, including seven barrels of spirits, reached an average price per lot of €34,980 (£29 ...

The W/O (standing for ‘without’) Frappato 2020 – an organic Sicilian red – is packaged in a bottle made with ‘wild’ glass (the name bottle manufacturer Estal has given to its 100% recycled glass). The launch, which forms part of the company’s pledge to become Net Zero and halve its carbon footprint by 2030, marked a ‘UK first for wine’, according to the online wine merchant. It follows a recent audit commissioned from EcoAct – a specialist company advising on sustainability, which sh ...

Last week, Basque National Party (PNV) spokesperson Aitor Esteban announced the withdrawal of a bill that, if passed, would have granted Basque winemakers of the Rioja Alavesa region greater autonomy. A proposal to establish a breakout Viñedos de Álava DO for Rioja’s Basque enclave was originally launched in 2016 by the Association of Rioja Alavesa Producers (ABRA), which represents over 100 local wineries. While a number of Basque producers continue to battle for the creation of an entirely sep ...