New wine from old bottles.
Imagine going to the supermarket and finding all the dry goods packaged in returnable containers, coolers full of fresh milk and orange juice in washable plastic jugs, and soft drinks in returnable glass bottles. At the liquor store next door, customers bring bags full of beer bottles for return...

Harness the alcohol-content threshold to optimize wine.
Wine made from New York state fruit, such as strawberries, apples, cherries and peaches, and from vegetables like rhubarb, has been considered the ugly step-child of winemaking. But thanks to Cornell University research, full robust-flavor fruit or vegetable wines could be available on a wider basis. Food...

THE CHEMISTRY OF ... Wine Making.
Is dirt destiny? Do the French know what they're doing? Terroir. Tairrrr-wahrrrr. Roll those r's around your mouth as a Frenchman would. Gargle softly with them; squirt them through your teeth and from one cheek to the other, as if they were a 1990 Chambertin. Then go...

New Vines from Uruguay.
When a connoisseur mentions South American wine, consumers think of Argentina, Chile, or Brazil--rarely Uruguay. Fernando Deicas, president of Establecimiento Juanico, would like to change that. His company recently signed a joint venture with French distributors William Pitters and announced it would invest $1 million to buy land to...

Heard it through the grapevine.
A new machine replaces human hands for trimming grape leaves Until last year, vineyard owners had for centuries depended on laborers to hand pluck the leaves off the vines surrounding clusters of juicy grapes. They found the expensive, time consuming method necessary to let sunlight...

What's Cookin'.
WITH THE GULF COAST CONNOISSEUR CLUB IT WAS ONE YEAR AGO THAT WE LAUNCHED THE GULF COAST CONNOISSEUR CLUB -- the innovative loyalty program for the Klauber-Moulton-Mancini family of shops and restaurants. Our goal was simple -- to find a special way to say thank you to...

The Critic: The Second of the Enzo Files.
The Critic: The Second of the Enzo Files Peter May Poisoned Pen Press 6962 East First Avenue Suite 103, Scottsdale, AZ 85251 9781590584583, $24.95 www.poisonedpenpress.com Gil Petty, a world-renowned wine critic, went missing during a tasting tour and his...

Hawthorne Hotel Preparing for 'Fall Harvest Week'.
TRAVEL AND LEISURE CLOSE-UP-18 June 2008-Hawthorne Hotel Preparing for 'Fall Harvest Week'(C)2008 - CloseUpMedia - newsdesk@closeupmedia.com Massachusett's Hawthorne Hotel said that it gearing up for "Fall Harvest Week" and its Fall Harvest Wine Dinner. During the last week of August, the Hawthorne Hotel noted, it...

Dear EarthTalk: I've been noticing a lot of organic wines lately in the supermarket. Is this going to be a continuing trend?
--Peter Toot, via email The recent upsurge of interest in organic foods has indeed not escaped the wine business and, yes, organic wines are more popular and more readily available than ever. According to the Organic Trade Association, an industry group representing organic food producers...

EPA Honors Conservation Efforts at Australia's Yalumba Wine Company.
ENERGY RESOURCE-2 May 2007-EPA Honors Conservation Efforts at Australia's Yalumba Wine Company(C)2007 JeraOne - http://www.jeraone.com Yalumba Wine Company, Australia's oldest family-owned winery, has received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2007 Climate Protection Award. The annual award recognizes companies and individuals from around the world who have demonstrated...