PGWA Creates Custom AVA Wine Maps Using Google Maps

The Petaluma Gap Wine Growers Alliance (PGWA) has been working with an illustrator to develop a more intricate digital and printable AVA map. While this project in progress, the Alliance wanted something temporary on the website and quickly created a custom and free AVA map using Google My Maps.

Here are the steps to follow in creating a map of a particular AVA:

Step 1 – Create A New Map – Access the Google My Maps website and sign in with your Google account. You’ll need to create an account if you don’t have one yet.  Once logged in, click the “+ Create a new map” button to initiate the map-building process.

Step 2 – Personalize Your Map – At the top left corner of the page, locate the “Untitled map” field. You can enter your organization’s name.

Step 3- Define Your Boundary – Download an SHP (shape) of your AVA boundary as defined by the federal government from the TTB website. Since Google Maps only supports KML files, you must convert the SHP using geographical information software (GIS). For instance, we used the open-source GIS application QGIS for this purpose. Import the converted KML file into Google Maps as your initial layer.

Step 4 – Map Wineries – Create an additional layer for wineries. Utilize the search function to locate wineries by name or address. Click the “Add to map” option in the toolbar. If a winery has claimed its business on Google, relevant information will appear in the drop-down menu. Choose or customize the marker icon, such as a wine glass or grape icon.

Step 5 – Plot the Vineyards – PGWA has employed latitude and longitude coordinates to locate vineyards. Since only a few vineyards were registered as businesses on Google, they manually inputted information, including vineyard photos, a list of cultivated grape varieties, and elevations. Non-grower members were identified on the map with less detailed information.

Step 6- Organize Your Layers – You can enhance your map by creating multiple layers. This helps in segregating distinct categories of data. Click the “Add layer” button in the left sidebar to establish a new layer. In our case, separate layers were used for wineries, vineyards, and members and non-members.

Step 7 – Share Your Map – The map can be shared using a unique link, making it accessible to specific individuals or made public or private.  Most importantly, you can embed code to easily incorporate the map into your website or blog.

This serves as a valuable tool for wine organizations and wine professionals in showcasing vineyards and tasting rooms within the geographical boundaries.

Source:  Wine Data Researcher

400 Drones Light Up The Sky At The Bordeaux Wine Festival

The Bordeaux Wine Festival was held June 22nd to 25th, where attendees were part of wine-tasting programmes and other fun experiences. But the highlight of the festival was the spectacular drone show.  The Bordeaux Wine Festival 2023 took an environment-friendly approach to replace its annual firework with drones.

Over 400 drones lit up the night sky over the Garonne River in Bordeaux. There were 20-minute shows held on both Friday and Saturday where the drones created stunning formations of wine being poured into a glass from a bottle, a vineyard, and the drones went into formation spelling: ‘Bordeaux celebrates wine’ in bold letters in the stunning night sky. The drones were operated by the French company Dronisos.

Chablis Launches Interactive Story Game

“Unlock Chablis” merges a historic wine region with modern digital technology. “Nowadays, so much of the world is focused on the digital, and the wine world is no exception. The Unlock Chablis game allows us to communicate our key messages to wine professionals in an entertaining, modern way; yet still remain educational,” says Paul Espitalié, Chablis Commission of BIVB president.

“Digital-heavy contexts allow us to increase the accessibility of Chablis wines, and gives us innovative ways to talk and learn about these, removing any barriers.”

The visually stunning interactive game involves 4 chapters in which participants will have in-depth knowledge about:

  • History and background of Chablis and the unique quality of Burgundy;
  • Wine making – from fermentation to bottle; and
  • Different types of Chablis and their food pairing.

“The idea originally came about as the world moved out of the Covid-19 pandemic, during which everyone – including the wine industry – saw an increased digital presence: whether this was online events, new ways of connecting with each other, or for research and educational purposes,” says Espitalié.

Unlock Chablis has been designed with wine professionals, taking them “on a journey to discover the history, terroirs, and versatility of Chablis wines in a fun and relaxing way”, in turn allowing them to learn more efficiently.

The multiplayer function of the game also allows groups of players to bond together while learning about the exciting world of Chablis.

Website: unlock.chablis-wines.com

 

 

Coravin Launches Single-Serve Vinitas System

Coravin, a global wine technology company, revolutionized the way wine is consumed 10 years ago with the launch of its preservation system that pours wine without removing the cork.

Coravin is now disrupting the category again with the launch of its next industry-changing device, Coravin Vinitas™, designed to help businesses share preserved tastings of wine with “try before you buy” while boosting interest in wine education.

Coravin Vinitas™ System

Coravin Vinitas™ is a revolutionary small-footprint device that transfers wine into smaller consumables with up to 12 months of preservation.

“Until now, there has not been a scalable automated product that creates single-serve formats and maintains the quality of the wine inside for months, as opposed to weeks,” said Greg Lambrecht, Coravin founder and inventor. “With Coravin Vinitas™, companies, hospitality services, and trade can sample and fractionalize any bottle, any time, on-site, ensuring the highest quality experience for businesses and consumers, no more needlessly shipping full-size bottles where only a taste is needed.”

“During the early days of the pandemic, we spotted a gap in the market for this type of self-use fractionalization device that would allow our customers to send samples, preserved for months, to their trade customers and consumers,” said Chris Ladd, Coravin CEO. “Since then, we have continued to see the wine industry struggle to connect with a younger consumer audience who have far more options to choose from than previous generations. Coravin Vinitas™ addresses this need and is primed to change the way the world consumes wine.”

Coravin spent more than eighteen months building and testing the Coravin Vinitas™ with wineries, retailers, and wine schools around the world including Napa Valley Wine Academy, Langton’s, Ceretto, Château Montelena, ONX, Alkina, Stéphane Derenoncourt of Domaine de l’A, Château Haut Bailly, Tooth & Nail Wine Co., Benom, Clos Solene, Claudio Martins Wine Advisor, Justin Leone, and more.

To learn more CoravinVinitas.com.

French company Zephalto is offering luxury wine tasting in space

French company Zephalto is offering passengers the chance to travel to the stratosphere in a balloon, starting at €120,000 /$132,000 per person in 2025.

Beyond organizing a panoramic viewing experience, Zephalto is also bringing in French luxury and the ‘art de vivre’ with a pre-flight gourmet meal prepared by famous French chefs, followed by a unique wine-tasting experience.

The wine tasting will take place in the Celeste, a metallic-like “spaceship” made from composite fibres to ensure its lightweight and exceptional strength. Its luxurious interior is said to be designed by Parisian interior designer Joseph Dirand.

Zephalto plans to launch the balloon from France on a six-hour experience that will include three hours at its highest altitude — above 98 percent of the atmosphere and twice as high as the average commercial jet. According to The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, the boundary of space is at 62 miles altitude, over four times higher than Celeste’s final ascent.

The ship will sit beneath a vast helium balloon “the size of the Sacré Coeur in Paris”, which will push the ship into the stratosphere. The experience will last six hours and will hold two pilots and just six guests.

Because the Celeste will not reach this space boundary, it will not leave the Earth’s atmosphere, meaning passengers will not experience weightlessness. This will make the experience open to anyone without specialist training.

Passengers will be presented with a pre-flight gourmet meal, which the company claims will be provided by a team of famous French chefs, and will then receive a unique guided wine tasting, featuring carefully selected French vintages.

Zephalto representative states: “From regions to grape varieties, discover France from sky and land.”

Pre-reservations for their first year of operation are open with 60 flights planned.

Reserve your seat for this unique experience: https://book.zephalto.com/