Old vines in Amador County. (Source: Amador County Wine)

In SevenFifty Daily, Laura Burgess explores why many of California’s best-known winemakers are flocking to Amador County. “For those who know it, Amador County is a slice of California teeming with opportunity—and not only for the well-funded. Rather, Amador and its wines offer an uncommon degree of value to everyone from farmers and winemakers to distributors and casual connoisseurs. This is a region worth knowing, and many of California’s best winemakers are already zeroing in on its terroir.”

A small Ukrainian winemaker whose vineyards sit on the edge of territory newly occupied by Russia has won gold in the prestigious Decanter World Wines awards. The Guardian has the details.

New World Shiraz has a reputation for richness and ripeness. But seek out cellar-worthy renderings from cooler climates, and you’ll find opulence giving way to elegance, says Natasha Hughe in Club Oenologique.

In Wine-Searcher, W. Blake Gray reports on how winemakers in Montefalco are tackling tannins in Sangrantino-based wines using new vilification methods.

In Wine Enthusiast, Marisa Finetti reports on Las Vegas’s evolving wine culture.

Jeff Siegel delves into the hush hush of Mega Purple in the wine industry in the Drop. “Adding them in California neither breaks state or federal laws or violates most appellation regulations. Nevertheless, concentrates like Mega Purple seem to be the wine business’ deep dark secret — pun fully intended.”

In Food52, Andrew Triska explores German and Austrian Sekt.