DECORKED
Posts
🖇️ How Design Drives Demand

🖇️ How Design Drives Demand

In this week’s DECORKED digest, we explore how great design helps wines fly off the shelves, why fine dining is embracing lower-alcohol pours, the overlooked legacy of Zinfandel, and the bold new voices shaping South Africa’s wine scene.

April 14, 2025

Collection of important links, information, and more.

📌 EMAIL - contact for business inquiries

📌 ADVERTISING - for advertising inquiries contact us via the email above

Happy Monday! We hope you have a great week ahead. In this week’s DECORKED digest, we explore how great design helps wines fly off the shelves, why fine dining is embracing lower-alcohol pours, the overlooked legacy of Zinfandel, and the bold new voices shaping South Africa’s wine scene. Keep reading!

➡️ PARTNERSHIP/SPONSORSHIP packages are available! Advertise your wine-related brand/product/story with the best community out there. For contact, please see above.

Read the most important and interesting news this week.

🗓️ 57th Vinitaly closes with attendance of 97,000 from more than 130 countries READ HERE

📝 How the wine industry is addressing labour standards in vineyards READ HERE

🌋 What’s got everyone so fired up about volcanic wines? READ HERE

🍇 The red wine region that’s defying market trends READ HERE

❓ Are the wine tariffs gone? Not so fast READ HERE

🍷 The most wanted Bordeaux of 2025 READ HERE

Collection of partnerships and collaborations.

📌 AMBLE WINE PARTNERSHIP - Explore the world of wine with Amble Wine's comprehensive World Wine Map Workbooks and challenging Wine Quiz Workbook, masterfully crafted by wine scholar Lea Gatinois. As our valued reader, enjoy a 5% discount on these premium, eco-friendly resources using code DECORKED at checkout (or click HERE). Expand your wine expertise today!

We curate, filter, and select only the most exciting and important news for you.

HOW GREAT DESIGN LEADS TO WINE MARKET SUCCESS

No matter how good the wine is, if the label doesn’t catch your eye, it might never leave the shelf. That’s the message from branding experts like Rowena Curlewis, who say great design plays a huge role in wine sales - making bottles more desirable, recognizable, and approachable. Backed by real-world examples, she explains how aligning brand values with what consumers care about can build loyalty and boost business. At the same time, entrepreneur Eliah Werner shows how smart, user-focused design, like simplifying labels and focusing on clarity, can help newer brands break through. Together, their insights reveal that in today’s crowded wine market, thoughtful design is more than decoration, it’s strategy.

CAN LOWER STRENGTH WINES WIN OVER FINE DINING?

In London's fine dining scene, lower-alcohol wines are gaining traction as diners seek lighter, more balanced options. Sommeliers at top restaurants, like Ikoyi and Jean-Georges at The Connaught, are incorporating wines around 12% ABV to complement bold, spice-driven menus. This shift aligns with a broader trend towards mindful drinking, where quality and flavor aren't sacrificed for lower alcohol content. As the no- and low-alcohol market continues to grow, it's clear that lower-ABV wines are carving out a respected place at the high-end table.

ZINFANDEL AND ITS UNDERRATED LEGACY

California Zinfandel, once the state’s dominant red grape, remains one of its most underrated despite its heritage, quality, and value. Though often overshadowed by Cabernet and Pinot Noir, Zinfandel offers age-worthy, complex wines - many from century-old vines, yet sells for a fraction of the price. As demand dips and tariffs loom, old-vine Zinfandel’s future is uncertain, with many grapes left unharvested. But producers like Ridge, Seghesio, and Bedrock continue to champion the grape’s rich legacy and potential. With origins traced back to Croatia’s Tribidrag, Zinfandel’s story is one of resilience, versatility, and underappreciated greatness.

GRAPEGROWERS IN AUSTRALIA’S BULK WINE REGIONS ARE FACING A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS

Grape growers in Australia’s bulk wine regions are facing a deepening mental health crisis as years of selling grapes below the cost of production push many toward financial and emotional breaking points. With ongoing declines in wine consumption, regions like Riverina are especially hard hit, and industry leaders are calling for immediate government support, including $50 million over five years. Farmers are dealing with rising debt, limited access to effective aid, and the emotional toll of watching their livelihoods, and often their heritage, wither. Community groups are stepping in with temporary counseling solutions, but industry figures stress the urgent need for coordinated, long-term mental health resources and policy reform.

HOW WINEMAKERS OF COLOR ARE CHANGING SOUTH AFRICA'S WINE SCENE

A new wave of winemakers of color is helping reshape South Africa’s wine industry, bringing fresh talent, diverse stories, and a strong sense of purpose to a historically exclusionary space. With support from initiatives like the Cape Winemakers Guild Protégé programme, these winemakers are gaining recognition not just for breaking barriers, but for producing exceptional wines. Many face persistent challenges, such as limited access to land and generational knowledge, but are determined to create opportunities for others and elevate South Africa’s diverse winemaking future on their own terms.

VINEYARDS BEING GRAFTED OVER TO MORE MARKETABLE WHITE VARIETIES

In California, a growing number of vineyards are being grafted over from red to white grape varieties like Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, and Sauvignon Blanc due to shifting market demand. Rather than replanting, many growers are “top-working” existing, healthy vines to more marketable whites, often incentivized by wineries seeking to end underperforming red grape contracts. Grafting offers a cost-effective and faster route back to productivity, with full yields returning by the second year.

WHICH VARIETIES GROW BEST IN VOLCANIC SOILS?

Volcanic soils offer a unique growing environment for certain grape varieties that have adapted to these challenging conditions over centuries. Across regions like Italy’s Mount Etna and Basilicata, Japan’s Yamanashi, Chile’s Ring of Fire zones, and Spain’s Lanzarote, indigenous grapes like Nerello Mascalese, Carricante, Aglianico, Koshu, and Malvasía Volcánica flourish due to their resilience and ability to express vibrant minerality and acidity. While each region approaches cultivation differently, producers agree that these soils bring out a distinct character in grapes, often enhancing freshness, structure, and terroir expression in both red and white wines.

Discover wine events worldwide.

🍷 ProWine Tokyo 2025 (April 15 - 17, Tokyo, Japan) - LEARN MORE

🍷 World’s Leading Wines San Francisco (April 17 - 18, California, US) - LEARN MORE

🍷 Barossa Vintage Festival (April 23 - 27, Barossa Valley, Australia) - LEARN MORE

🍷 Texas Wine Auction (April 26, Texas, US) - LEARN MORE

🍷 Garagiste Wine Festival (April 26, California, US) - LEARN MORE

🍷 Tasting Australia (May 2 - 11, South Australia) - LEARN MORE

🍷 Vinous Icons: Italy (May 14 - 17, New York, US) - LEARN MORE

Learn something new every week.

WINE REGION OF THE WEEK: IROULÉGUY, FRANCE

Nestled in the French Basque Country near the Pyrenees, Irouléguy is one of France’s smallest and most scenic AOCs, with just 250 hectares of steep, terraced vineyards. Despite its size, the region produces bold reds and crisp whites from native varieties like Tannat, Cabernet Franc, and Gros Manseng, all shaped by mountain air and Atlantic influence.

GRAPE OF THE WEEK: PELAVERGA PICCOLO

Pelaverga Piccolo is a rare red grape native to Piedmont's Verduno area in Italy. Known for its light-bodied wines with distinctive spicy and floral notes, it offers a unique profile that sets it apart from more common Italian reds. Often overshadowed by Nebbiolo, Pelaverga Piccolo provides a delightful alternative for those seeking something different in their wine experience.

How are you satisfied with this week's DECORKED?

Let us know, so we can do better. Simply click bellow.

🍾 Amazing | 🍷 Good | 🍇 I don't like it | 🤬 I wish I didn't subscribe

If someone forwarded this email to you, click HERE to subscribe.

Help us grow and earn rewards.