The Wine Press: NOW A Warning?!

Today in Wine News

United States Surgeon General Doctor Vivek Murthy woke up to 2025 and chose violence against the alcohol industry when he released a new warning on the correlation between alcohol and higher cancer risks. In a twofold statement, the Surgeon General’s warning called for an update to the health risk labels on alcoholic beverages to include cancer risks, in addition to amended alcohol consumption guidelines.

With a change at the Oval Office later this month and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans due for an update in 2025, how will the Surgeon General’s warning shape American alcohol consumption in the new year? And how did the Neo-Prohibitionists of the 21st Century toss aside years of research highlighting the benefits of moderate drinking to lobby the country’s highest legislative powers?

Keep listening to learn more.

U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy (Photo illustration/STAT, Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Fine wine is grounded in time and place, and when enjoyed in moderation, can be a thrilling and delicious glimpse into history, society, and science in a glass.

Please remember to drink responsibly. If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357). More links and resources are available in the show notes below.

Further Reading

• Find help for substance abuse (USAGov website)

• “Alcohol and Cancer Risk: The US Surgeon General’s Advisory” (2025)

• “U.S. Surgeon General Issues New Advisory on Link Between Alcohol and Cancer Risk” (Press Release/U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)

• “Review of Evidence on Alcohol and Health” (National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine)

• The Wine Press, Episode 18: Who’s Afraid of Neo-Prohibitionists? (Oct. 3, 2024)

In Other News

Here are some additional highlights from the week in wine news:

Butterfly Equity has completed its $1.95 billion purchase of The Duckhorn Portfolio… days before The Duckhorn Portfolio announced a new CEO. On December 27th, Butterfly Equity announced the close of its big ticket purchase of The Duckhorn Portfolio - a purchase that formally delists The Duckhorn Portfolio from the New York Stock Exchange and puts the company into private hands yet again.

Eleven days later, Butterfly Equity issued a new press release announcing Robert Hanson, a former executive at Constellation Brands, as the new President, CEO, and Chairperson of The Duckhorn Portfolio, effective February 1, 2025. Mahlan will reportedly serve in an advisory capacity once Hanson starts his tenure at the beginning of the fiscal third quarter.

• “Butterfly Completes $1.95 Billion Acquisition of The Duckhorn Portfolio” (Press Release/Wine Business)

• “Former Constellation Brands Executive Robert Hanson Appointed CEO of The Duckhorn Portfolio Following Completion of $1.95 Billion Transaction with Butterfly” (Press Release/Business Wire)

• The Wine Press, Episode 19: Duckhorn Flies The Coop (October 10, 2024)

The black market for expensive restaurant reservations in New York has closed. Officially. New York Governor Kathy Hochul has signed the Restaurant Reservation Anti-Piracy Act into law, making it illegal to sell restaurant reservations to third parties.

• “Gov. Hochul Signs Law Making the Restaurant Reservation Black Market Illegal” (Emma Orlow/Eater)

And finally, Marge Simpson has turned into the wine world’s newest persona non grata. A new episode of the long-running animated series The Simpsons features Homer Simpson guarding a bottle of red Burgundy supposedly owned by Napoleon Bonaparte, only for Marge to use the bottle in a million dollar stew. In a bout of dubious morality, Marge works with wine counterfeiters to “replace” the missing bottle, only to get a taste for the act of wine thievery that puts her in the middle of Wine Court.

• “Marge Simpson, Wine Counterfeiter?” (Mitch Frank/Wine Spectator)

• Watch The Simpsons Season 36, Episode 11 “Bottle Episode” here

That’s all the news this week. Thank you for listening to The Wine Press!

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We’ll be back next week with a new crop of wine news. Until then, cheers, and happy drinking!