September 7, 2026 · This Week Uncorked

September 7, 2026 – U.S. Tariffs Just Reinvented Franzia Boxed Wine in China

This week’s wine news underscores how trade friction and climate realities are rewiring global distribution. We examine the new “CANADA Act” legislation, introduced after Canadian provinces banned US alcohol in response to trade tariffs. In China, exorbitant tariffs led American staple Franzia to quietly swap California fruit for Australian base wine packaged locally in Shandong. On the climate front, South African estates like Jordan are turning to climate-resilient grapes like Assyrtiko to counter severe droughts. Finally, US Champagne sales continue a steady rebound, setting up a fascinating tension with Europe’s impending early harvest.

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Winery of the Week

Reynvaan Family Vineyards – Walla Walla, WA

Cork & Journey: 4 out of 5 stars

Wine of the Week

Reynvaan Family Vineyards “Queen’s Road White” White Blend 2022

Cork & Journey: 92 points

Restaurant of the Week

Ōkta Farm and Kitchen – McMinnville, OR

Cork & Journey: 5 stars · Corkage Fee is $50 Per Bottle / Max 2

Corkage of the Week

Coppa 

Corkage Fee: $45 Per Bottle / 2 Max

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Wine News Round-Up

The Drinks Business

Will Canada End Up Being Punished for the US Alcohol Ban?

Jessica Mason, writing for The Drinks Business, reports that congresswoman Claudia Tenney has introduced legislation with one of the more pointed acronyms in recent memory.  (See Below)

Nearly all of Canada’s provincial liquor boards prohibited or restricted the importation and distribution of US alcoholic drinks in response to the trade war and tariffs launched last year, a move that at the time was widely characterized as consumer resistance. 

From the article:

The Canadian provinces’ restrictions on the importation and distribution of US alcoholic drinks were made in response to the trade war and tariffs the US launched against Canada last year.
According to Republican Tenney, the restrictions were “discriminatory” and this has led to her introducing the Combating Attacks on our National Alcoholic Drinks by Allies (CANADA) Act.
Nearly all of Canada’s liquor boards have prohibited or restricted the importation and distribution of US alcoholic drinks, a move that has impacted US producers and limited access to Canada as an export market.
…only two countries had retaliated economically against the US over the past year: the People’s Republic of China and Canada.

Vino Joy News

Franzia Without America: How Tariffs Reinvented an Iconic Brand in China

Morris Cai, writing for Vino Joy News, has another example of what tariffs actually do to a supply chain. Franzia, owned by The Wine Group and one of the largest boxed wine brands on earth, is still selling in China. It is just no longer selling American wine there. 

What? Yes. Why? And the Chinese drink Franzia? So many questions.

From the article:

Faced with nearly 80% import taxes on U.S. wine, the world’s leading boxed wine brand has quietly overhauled its China strategy. Instead of importing finished products from California, Franzia now ships Australian wine to China, where it is bottled and packaged locally before reaching supermarket shelves.
Until recently, Franzia products sold in China arrived as finished boxed wines imported directly from the United States.
The country of origin now reads “China,” with some products listing Yantai in Shandong Province as the production location. Only further down the product description does another detail appear: “Base wine origin: Australia.”
“The main reason is still tariffs,” Tao Xin, general manager of Shanghai Fuga Wines, Franzia’s distributor in China, told Vino Joy News.
“After the trade war escalated again last year, China imposed another 10% tariff on U.S. goods. The total tax burden on Franzia imported in its original U.S. packaging came close to 80%.”
Trade wars are fun.

Wine-Searcher

South Africa Tackles Changing Times

Jamie Gustafson, writing for Wine-Searcher, asks whether South Africa is undergoing a change of identity as a wine-producing nation, and the evidence says yes. The pressure point is water. The Cape Town Water Crisis of 2015 to 2020 pushed dam levels supplying the region as low as 14 percent of capacity, and even estates with their own dams found irrigation infrastructure unable to keep up. But all is not bad news. 

From the article:
Jordan Wine Estate has been proactive in their response to the drought, being the first in the country to plant Assyrtiko in 2019, along with new foundation block plantings of Mencía, Xinomavro, Grenache and Cinsaut in 2025. “The Assyrtiko is thriving in the warm, dry, north-facing slopes within sight of the sea and hence copes perfectly in this environment buffered by the salt-laden winds blowing off False Bay”, says Gary. With the first vintage produced in 2022, it bears all the characteristics of a premium Santorini offering; ripe citrus and stone fruits are backed by the hallmark fresh acidity and saline minerality that the grape typically offers. Having already received high scores from several critics, this wine shows the region’s great potential to diversify and produce varieties better suited to arid conditions.

Shanken News Daily

Champagne Rebounds In The U.S.

Daniel Marsteller, writing for Shanken News Daily, reports a rare piece of good news in a category otherwise defined by decline. Total Champagne depletions in the US increased 1.5 percent to 1.59 million cases in 2025 according to Impact Databank, and the gains are continuing, with the category up 1 percent in volume and 4 percent in value in Circana channels year to date through mid-May. Six of the top eight brands grew last year. That said, this is a rebound and not a recovery: during 2021 and 2022 the category surged to nearly 1.9 million cases as consumers splurged through the pandemic, and it has not returned to that level. Set this against what we covered in Episode 109, and the tension is obvious. American demand for Champagne is climbing at exactly the moment the region is heading into its earliest and one of its smallest harvests on record.

Random Call Outs: Top Champagne Brands in the U.S., 2025 depletions

Veuve Clicquot, Moet Hennessy, 589,000 cases, up 2.1%
Moet & Chandon, Moet Hennessy, 366,000 cases, up 1.5%
Laurent-Perrier, 67,000 cases, up 17.1%
Nicolas Feuillatte, Palm Bay International, 60,000 cases, down 7.0%
Perrier-Jouet, Pernod Ricard, 45,000 cases, up 24.7%
Dom Perignon, Moet Hennessy, 43,000 cases, down 4.5%
Piper-Heidsieck, Folio Fine Wine Partners, 40,000 cases, up 2.5%
Taittinger, Kobrand, 31,000 cases, up 3.0%
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Wine & Winery of the Week

Winery of the Week

Reynvaan Family Vineyards – Walla Walla, WA

Reynvaan is a family estate in the Walla Walla Valley, founded in 2004, farming Rhône varieties on the cobblestone riverbeds and foothills the valley is known for. Winemaker Matt Reynvaan works low-intervention, and the Syrahs come out savory: river stone, olive brine and dark fruit rather than jam. Most of the wine moves through an allocation list, which tells you how the following grew.

  • Cork & Journey: 4 out of 5 stars

Cork & Journey: 4 out of 5 stars

Wine of the Week

Reynvaan Family Vineyards “Queen’s Road White” White Blend 2022

Queen’s Road White is Reynvaan’s Rhône-style white: Roussanne, Marsanne and Viognier in a full-bodied, textural frame. Ripe stone fruit and floral aromatics sit over wet stone and savory depth, with the oak folded in rather than laid on top. Drink it over the next few years, with food.

  • Cork & Journey: 92 points

Cork & Journey: 92 points

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Restaurant of the Week

Restaurant of the Week

Ōkta Farm and Kitchen – McMinnville, OR

Ōkta cooks a micro-seasonal four-course tasting menu inside McMinnville’s Tributary Hotel, drawing produce and livestock from its own nearby regenerative farm. The kitchen is open, the execution precise, and the menu rewrites itself with the farm’s calendar rather than the season’s trends. Willamette Valley cooking with the supply chain measured in miles.

  • Cork & Journey: 5 stars
  • Google: 4.6 stars

Corkage Fee is $50 Per Bottle / Max 2 / Can’t be on Wine List
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Cork & Journey: 5 starsCorkage$50 per bottle · 2 max
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Corkage of the Week

Corkage of the Week

Coppa 

Corkage Fee: $45 Per Bottle / 2 Max
Boston, MA
4.4 Stars with over 1103+ Reviews

Coppa is an intimate enoteca tucked away on a quiet street in Boston’s South End with expansive patio seating, and featuring Italian small plates.

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