Peter Brooks

What made you come to a small, hard-to-get-to village in the West Country?
Well I should still be organising events at Glyndebourne, Royal Ascot and the Cheltenham Gold Cup, as an operations director at Compass, but the managing director and I fell out. I was empowered to do exactly what he wanted me to do. We knocked spots off each other for three years, so I walked out. I trained as a chef in the '60s, and having seen so many restaurants done so badly, I thought I could do better. I waited for my wife, Sonia, to retire, and we came down here. We looked at a few places in Cornwall, but that seemed a bit far away, so in the end we picked up this place from the chef Martin Hadden, who was moving on to Ockendon Manor. It was a tough act to follow. He had a Michelin star, but the Good Food Guide has just given us five stars, so we're moving in the right direction.

Growing pains

A quick look at the statistics, and where's the problem? In the UK off-trade, Australia has the number-one spot wrapped up, with a 24% market share by value and 21% by volume.

'Fighting back' - by Jack Hibberd

It has become one of wine's most discussed topics - seminar after seminar, article after article and speech after speech have tried to tackle the subject of why France, still the second-biggest supplier to the UK market, has failed to produce hard' brands that can compete with the New World's branded wine juggernauts.

'In the face of conflict' - by Michael Karam

BEIRUT: In early August, at the height of the conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, Illi Adato, an Israeli wine-culture promoter, proposed a wine tasting in London at Vinopolis on 16 August.

Plumpton College

When you think of learning about winemaking you think of Bordeaux, UC Davis in California, Geisenheim in Germany, Roseworthy, South Australia.

Forbes' focus

Until recently it was almost impossible to have a trade discussion about Argentinian wine without the subject of a generic office - or, more precisely, the lack of one - being mentioned.

'Selling brand Portugal' - by Bernard Barbuk

As far as the UK market is concerned, Portugal has always been the bridesmaid, never the bride. It has often seemed on the verge of breakthrough, but has never quite managed it.

Andrew Bennett

What brought you to Lincolnshire?

My partner, Vicky Herring, and I wanted a complete change of scene after working for high-tech companies in Cambridge.

'Seeing red' - by Sally Easton MW

Austria, with less than 1% of global wine production, is a hot-house of innovation and aspiration for its red wine producers.

'Land of wine in crisis' -by Caroline Gilby

It's hard not to feel desperately sorry for Moldova, a country being brought to its knees by Russia's strong-arm tactics. This small, landlocked country is Europe's poorest, with the average wage hovering around US$70 a month.

Australia - state of the art

Aldo Zilli

This a big year for you with the 10th anniversary of Zilli Fish as well as the publication of a new book. Are you doing anything to celebrate?
We've given the restaurant a facelift. It used to be all blue and fishy, so to speak, but now we've gone a bit more contemporary and neutral. We let the food do the talking now, not the design - simple design but very good food and service. After 10 years, it was about time for a facelift. People do it to themselves and restaurants need it too.

Profile - Mark Williamson, Mr Waitrose

Suggest to Mark Williamson that Waitrose is middle-class, and he quivers. It's so remarkable that it's worth saying again - and he quivers again. The phrase middle-class' is clearly a tricky one: he prefers the description people who appreciate good food and wine, regardless of what car they're driving'.

The Interview - Kevin Howell, Thresher franchisee, Thresher shop, Hythe, Kent

Kevin Howell has been in the licensed trade just about all his 44 years. His parents ran the White Hart, one of major pubs in Hythe High Street in Kent. After studying at Portsmouth College, he went to work in a Peter Dominic off-licence in nearby Bearsted in Kent. He then moved to the Thresher shop in Hythe, 17 years ago. Kevin is the second person to switch from manager to fracnhisee under the new Thresher franchisee scheme. He is also vice-chairman of the local chamber of commerce.

Wine trade fairs

If you've survived the annual jaunt to the two major events in the wine trade calendar, the London International Wine & Spirits Fair (LIWSF) and Vinexpo, it's now time to sit back and enjoy the brief lull before the next round of exhibition hall madness. But how many of us are already planning to visit some of Europe's smaller wine fairs next year too? And are wine trade fairs an essential part of an independent wine merchant's buying strategy, or simply a waste of time and energy?

Thoughts and reflections on Len Evans

Len Evans AO, OBE, oenophile
Born 1 August 1930; died 17 August 2006, aged 75

Yeast - wild, cultured, genetically modified - by Jamie Goode

A few months ago, I visited one of Australia's leading small wineries at harvest time. A small open-top fermenter had been loaded with Shiraz the previous day: now, some 24 hours later, the must was already quite deeply coloured, but fermentation hadn't yet begun.

Austrian wine - in the groove - by Dawn Cran

What do most people think of when Austria comes up in conversation? Almost certainly Mozart and Viennese Opera, maybe Wiener Schnitzel, perhaps even mountainous ski resorts, but Austrian wine is unlikely to feature. This is no great surprise, considering that Austria accounts for less than 1% of the world's total wine production, but there are some serious wines hiding away here, and those who start to include them in their Austrian experiences are unlikely to regret it.

Rising alcohol levels - discuss

With the alcohol level of wines on a seemingly inexorable rise - led by the New World, but now increasingly driven by the Old World as well - the International Wine and Spirits Competition decided to hold a debate to discuss the often controversial issues that surround high alcohol. Does high alcohol go hand in hand with high quality? Do consumers like elevated alcohol levels? What are the health issues associated with consuming wines with high alcohol levels? And can a wine of 15% ABV ever be balanced?

A new era for Cyprus by Caroline Gilby MW

The Cyprus wine industry has reached a turning point. On the
one hand, EU membership has seen the loss of substantial subsidies for wine exports. This brought to an end the shipments of vast quantities of low-quality bulk wine that had been destined for Sherry-type fortified wines, gluhwein' and other mass markets in the EU. On the other hand, in 2005, Italian archaeologists found evidence that winemaking on the island dates back to 3,500 bc, possibly the longest winemaking history in Europe. Cyprus also claims one of the oldest images of wine drinkers in the 3rd century ad mosaics at Paphos. And Cypriots are proud of their sweet, fortified wine Commandaria, which is the oldest named' wine in the world, dating back to the 12th century and still made in the traditional manner from sun-dried grapes.