SWGB: sustainability and using glass wine bottles Sustainability isn’t a “nice to have” these days, it’s an essential part of business success, and winegrowing is no exception. In an exciting development last year, WineGB (English and Welsh wine’s national association) commenced a new environmental sustainability scheme. It’s called SWGB, standing for Sustainable Wines of Great Britain. The SWGB code affirms that members …
Rightweighting Glass Wine Bottles
Rightweighting Glass Wine Bottles Suppose that we had the technology to create a “wonder material” to package wine? It would need some essential properties. For example, it would come from abundant natural materials. And be completely inert, not affect the taste and have the ability to preserve the wine for decades. It would come in a range of shapes and …
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Unblocked: 20 Minutes Into The Future, Part 5
Unblocked: 20 Minutes Into The Future, Part 5 Part 4 described how Blockchain will be used in the wine industry to guarantee wine quality, safety and origins. In this final Part 5 of Unblocked, it’s time to imagine what the future of Blockchain and Wine will be. The road ahead This is what the road ahead looks like right now. It’s …
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Unblocked: from Grape 2 Glass, Part 4
Unblocked: from Grape 2 Glass, Part 4 Part 3 took a look at wine frauds. Because of wine and food scandals, consumers distrust the system and are increasingly demanding traceability & transparency about food and wine. In wine, this ideally needs to exist all the way from grape 2 glass. As you know, we now have lots of complicated wine …
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Unblocked: a brief history of wine fraud, Part 3
Unblocked: a brief history of wine fraud, Part 3 Wine Frauds – a short detour Wine Fraud exploits wine industry processes in many ways. The rewards are high, while the chances of being caught are small. Penalties such as fines and imprisonment tend to be light too. Wine fraud damages everyone. This slide lists ten major wine frauds that are all a …
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Unblocked: the Trust Machine, Part 2
Unblocked: the Trust Machine, Part 2 Part 1 claimed that the Blockchain is a Trust Machine. But what is it? The Blockchain has several essential elements that combine to make it a Trust Machine. The Ledger is a critical part. It’s just a database; recording transactions, assets, locations and anything else. The clever bit is that the Ledger sits on a …
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Unblocked: the revolution will not be centralised, Part 1
Unblocked: the revolution will not be centralised, Part 1 Unblocked is an edited version of my business presentation about Blockchain and wine. This was made at venues including wine2wine in Verona, called “From grape2glass – demystifying the Blockchain”. The goal was to show at a high level how Blockchain will transform the wine industry. In short, the goal was for the audience …
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wine2wine Verona – No Dry Ice or Flying Pigs
wine2wine Verona – No Dry Ice or Flying Pigs I’ve recently returned from wine2wine Verona. It lived up to it’s billing as a leading forum for the wine business worldwide, as previewed here. What makes a great conference? What makes a great Conference? I reckon that the following essentials are on anybody’s list: Learning something new that can make a positive …
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Corks Out! Diam Bouchage fights back
Corks Out! Diam Bouchage fights back. Hands up who has had a bottle of corked wine? Ok, that’s most of you. And I don’t mean wine with a few bits of cork floating in it. It’s the awful smell and taste of musty or mouldy cardboard. The culprit is TCA, short for 2,4,6-Trichloroanisole. It forms when airborne bacteria and fungi …
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