The explosion of the style bar market is turning Brits into a nation of Martini-lovers who can tell their Absolut from their Zubrowka, their Bombay from their Plymouth. And as the drinks companies make long-term investments in training, the cocktail trend looks set to go from strength to strength. Julie Sheppard reports
Read more...Latest industry figures confirm that branded wines are driving major sales growth in the UK off-trade. So, with the Old World preparing to take the New World on at its own game, the branded sector itself looks set for considerable expansion. James Aufenast considers the implications for the market and for the consumer
Read more...The way a bottle is packaged has never been more important, but increasingly discerning consumers are looking for clarity and simplicity rather than gimmicks. Christian Davis talks to some of the UK's top designers to get the latest in bottle ideas and inspirations
Read more...Increased use of screwcap closures has highlighted the problems of reduction in wines. But is reductive winemaking always a bad thing? Jamie Goode explains both sides of this complex topic and argues that more research could paint a different picture of terroir-driven wines
Read more...Vctor Redondo Sierra's vision is to create the first appellation to span two countries, from Spain's DO Ribera del Duero to the DOC Douro in Portugal. Here, the president of ARCO-Bodegas Unidas talks to Joanne Simon about his problems with the DO system and how he plans to turn the company into one of the world's top ten producers
Read more...Apart from the Albarios of Ras Baixas, few wines from Galicia have made any impact on the UK market. Jack Hibberd travels to a verdant corner of Spain to take a look at its most famous export and see what else is on offer
Read more...In the land of the winemaking consultant, Riccardo Cotarella is king. Here, Italy's premier freelance expert talks to Tom Bruce-Gardyne about why his antennae point south, how he would reform Italy's classification system, and the similarities between the American and UK markets
Read more...Few personalities could survive a public removal' from Domaine de la Romane-Conti and bounce back with a biodynamic rival. But then, few French producers are as resolute and philosophical as Lalou Bize-Leroy. Monty Waldin meets the woman conducting the cosmic elements at Domaine Leroy.
Read more...Bordeaux has arrived in the world of brands kicking and screaming. With a greater volume output than Chile, the region certainly has the resources to unleash some major labels, but does it have the infrastructure and the unity of purpose? Bordeaux's key figures talk to Roger Voss about the unique hurdles to be overcome
Read more...The subject of this year's Harpers Debate at the London International Wine & Spirits Fair was, How can the wine trade increase its profitability?' Christian Davis was among the packed audience looking for some answers
Read more...Having jettisoned the arrogance of Apartheid-era South African winemaking, Cape producers have made significant inroads into the lower price points in the UK market. Now, key exporters are targeting the higher price points, with greater emphasis on premium wines. Tim Atkin MW reports on their chances of making the leap
Read more...Although Diageo recorded sales of nearly 6 billion in the six months to Christmas 2002, critics still question the group's ability to expand its business, and many believe its wine portfolio is under-strength. So, are there any more acquisitions in the pipeline? Ron Emler puts the questions to Diageo's chief executive, Paul Walsh, in his first ever interview with a trade magazine. Photography by Ralph Hodgson
Read more...The days are getting longer, we have already had some good weather - it's time to break out the T-shirts, scrape down the barbie and stock up with crisp whites, juicy reds, ross and fizz. Christian Davis considers the stocking equations and in-store promotions at the weather-watching retailers
Read more...Like much of the fortified wine market, 'British' fortified and made wine is in long-term decline. So, are producers and brand owners preparing to pull out of the category, or are they gearing up to fight back against increasing competition from new drink categories? Jack Hibberd takes a look at the sector
Read more...Are two gin-themed recent openings in London part of a new willingness to take mother's ruin seriously as a premium spirit? Or is the gin sector still more about commodity than connoisseurship? David Williams reports on the latest gin developments
Read more...As the wine trade's annual get-together settles into the second year at its new home at ExCeL, David Williams talks to organisers Andrew Evans and James Murray of Brintex about what's new for this year, and previews the product launches, events and tastings that will be pulling the punters to Docklands for the 2003 LIWSF
Read more...The English Wine Group plc recently defied lingering scepticism about the future of English wine to raise 500,000 and gain a listing on OFEX, the off exchange' for smaller companies. Christian Davis takes a tour around Kent, Sussex and Surrey to see how the big four producers are aiming to persuade the British to buy English
Read more...Chef, Windows Restaurant & Bar, London Hilton on Park Lane. Born and trained in France, chef Jacques Rolancy moved to the UK ten years ago to take over the reins at The Windows Restaurant and Bar in London. It has since won numerous awards, including three AA rosettes. Developing his cuisine lgre style of cooking, Rolancy himself has been awarded the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France (MOF) award, his country's highest culinary accolade, becoming only the second chef working in the UK (after Michel Roux) to hold the award.
Read more...Organic wines are claiming more shelf space in the multiples, but is this higher profile driven by the rising quality of organic wines, or a result of retailers' opportunism? In the Christmas build-up the Harpers team tasted 80 organic wines from around the world, to gauge the variety and strength in depth of the organic sector
Read more...Proprietor & Chairman, The Goring Hotel, London. Third-generation hotelier George Goring was born at the Goring Hotel in 1938. He studied at the Swiss Hotel School and then worked in Germany at the Kur Hotel in Bad Neuenahr and the Vierjahreszeiten in Hamburg. On returning to England, he worked for British Transport Hotels before replacing his father at The Goring in 1962.
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