Posted by Sandra Silfven (The Detroit News) on Tue, Jul 28, 2009 at 12:07 PM

Appellation American to shut down new story content

As the economy continues to take a bite out of every facet of our lives, the Web has one less site to offer new information about wines produced all over the United States.

Tom Welch, CEO of the Internet magazine Appellation America, confirmed to Wines & Vines today that the site will feature no new content, and the office will close this summer.

The site reported on wine appellations across the country, delivering concise, informative accounts by qualified wine writers.

Wines & Vines quoted Welch as saying, "We are downsizing things to a minimum, given the economy and the lack of revenue."

The wine evaluation program, called "Best of Appellation," will continue under Clark Smith. BOA judges wines against others in their region.

This is a great loss to the wine world on the Web and to regional wine lovers and wineries. But perhaps it comes at a time when wine regions as diverse as the Finger Lakes and Long Island in New York, the Charlottesville, Va., area and Old Mission Peninsula in Michigan are finally making good enough wines -- and news -- to propel themselves.