Terroirism

Thanks to Kerry's piece from last week, I was aware that French vintners are resentful of competiton from wine upstarts in places like California, Australia, and Chile, which is taking a bite out of profits in Bordeaux. I didn't realize just how resentful. From an article linked by Prof. Bainbridge:

Terrorist attacks by radical wine producers on government offices in the south of France yesterday served notice that the country's wine crisis may be spinning out of control…."The government had better respond clearly to our needs before the demonstration on 20 April," Denis Verdier, the president of the confederation of French wine cooperatives, said recently.