“Six master sommeliers will lose their prestigious wine titles following investigations into sexual misconduct allegations, pending appeals — notably San Francisco’s Fred Dame, who has been called “the godfather of the American sommelier community,” and two other local figures: Robert Bath, a professor at St. Helena’s Culinary Institute of America, and Matt Stamp, co-owner of Napa restaurant Compline,” reports Esther Mobley in the San Francisco Chronicle. “The Napa-based Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas…will also move to terminate the membership of Fred Dexheimer, a wine consultant in Brooklyn; Drew Hendricks, who had been director of business development at Pioneer Wine Co. in Texas until November 2020; and Joseph Linder, a sommelier in Seattle.”

Wirecutter exposes the open secret behind many trendy wine clubs’ mediocre wine selections, which usually consist of white-label and private-label wines. “A lot of clubs selling private-label wines claim they are “rare” or “exclusive,” which is technically true since the label is unique to their subscription service and often can’t be bought elsewhere. But that’s not an indication of quality, nor is it a reason to charge more for wines that may cost significantly less to make.”

As the vocabulary of wine evolves, can it escape the gendered frameworks that forged it? Leslie Pariseau calls for the end of gendering wine in PUNCH.

In Eater San Francisco, Maria C. Hunt explores how pay-per-taste technology is democratizing wine tasting. “While sommeliers can help guide people to wines they’ll enjoy, bias can creep into the process, turning them into gatekeepers. This technology removes that implicit bias and allows wine consumers to serve themselves anything they like.”

In Wine Spectator, Robert Camuto looks at how a new team is tweaking Montalcino’s legendary Biondi-Santi.

Treasury Wine Estates is acquiring Frank Family Vineyards, including the historic winery, brand and vineyard holdings. The transaction is expected to close in December 2021.

In Wine Enthusiast, Demi Elder delves into the meaning of “austere” in wine descriptions.