Jason Wilson joins the white wine appreciation society

It's easy enough for wine geeks to roll their eyes or poke fun at the Summer of Riesling, the popular annual campaign/movement here in the US that's just ended - and will finally be retired - after a seven-summer run.

Richard Siddle: time to put retailer and supplier relations on a fairer footing

The fallout from Tesco hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons - and overstating its profits to the tune of some £250 million - could be felt by everyone in the grocery retail sector, never mind the suspended Tesco executives currently re-evaluating their careers.

Harpers Global Design Awards 2014: what the judges said

This year saw Harpers' Design Awards go global, with entries featuring a range of products aimed at all levels of the market. From the budget to the luxury, we pick out the medal winners and showcase those products and their designers that stand out from the rest.

Tim Atkin on why modern winemaking is a breath of fresh air

"To thine own self be true." Polonius' advice to his son Laertes in Hamlet is arguably easier to give than to follow. Most of us make regular compromises in our personal and professional lives. We don't lie to ourselves exactly, but we fall short of the absolute standards to which we aspire.

Guy Woodward: Hegarty's right - we need to follow Top Gear to sell wine

It didn't come as a huge surprise when Sir John Hegarty used his WSTA conference key note speech to deliver a withering assessment of the wine trade's relationship with its audience. One of the foremost marketing exponents of his generation, Hegarty knows a thing or two about generating headlines. 'Appalling', 'pathetic' and 'mad' were among the politer descriptions aimed at his audience. 'Confusing' and 'impenetrable' were daggers to the heart - a stinging critique of the public's perception of the world of wine. Why so stinging? Because the words ring so true...

Pablo Alvarez, Vega Sicilia, on the global opportunity for Ribera del Duero wines

Vega Sicilia was established in 1859, although its modern history began with the property's purchase by the Alvarez family in 1982, who acquired the estate as joint shareholders. Patriarch David Alvarez subsequently appointed his son Pablo as managing director of the property. Since the mid-1980s, Pablo Alvarez has ensured that Vega Sicilia remains Ribera Del Duero's most renowned and prestigious wine, for sale in over 25 markets. With Alvarez's careful direction, the property has managed to overcome both the Spanish economic crisis and endure a family feud over the future of the estate, in addition to investing in the regions of Rioja and Toro. James Lawrence reports:

German specialists, ABS Wine Agencies and Howard Ripley, on promoting Grosse Gewächse

The annual release of the Grosse Gewächse in September is a firm feature in the German wine calendar. Slowly, this important release date is also gaining UK currency. Grosse Gewächse are dry single-vineyard wines produced to a strict quality code by VDP members (Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter). The VDP is Germany's largest and most important grouping of quality producers whose private vineyard classification recognises exceptional, historic single sites as Grosse Lagen.

Douglas Blyde: there's much to discover below the surface of Bibendum's South African wines

If you are looking to introduce and promote your South African wine offer then offering journalists the chance to meet four of their most innovative winemakers at the much brightened Quo Vadis, Soho, where arguably argumentative art has been removed in favour of characterful woodcuts on menus, is a good place to start.

Anthony Rose on the story behind his new Tapas Bar Guide

I met Isabel Cuevas seven years ago in Yamanashi, Japan's wine country, as you do. We got on like the proverbial house on fire and we kept in touch when she moved to England to join her husband-to-be, both, incidentally from the rural Spanish wilds of Extremadura. Thanks to her natural affinity for Spanish food and gastronomy and my love of Spanish wine, it took us no longer than you can say croqueta to decide that we should collaborate on a guide to tapas bars in the UK. Of course it would mean eating and drinking our way around our favourite tapas watering holes, but someone has to do it, as they say, so why not us?

Chester Osborn on his new d'Arenburg Amazing Site wines

Chester Osborn of d'Arenburg winery in McLaren Vale, on why he's decided to vinify and release winers from some of his top plots separately.

Jochen Erler goes behind the scenes at South Africa's Michelangelo Wine Awards

The International Michelangelo Wine Awards in Stellenbosch, South Africa, can be considered a truly international contest because only international wine experts are invited for judging.  It is also the only international wine and brandy contest held in South Africa.

Jerry Lockspeiser: why we should celebrate £6 wines not denigrate them

Wine selling for £6 or less is shit.  Not my words but those of advertising legend Sir John Hegarty at the Wine and Spirit Trade Association conference.

Arto Koskelo on wine blogging - a revolution that never happened

It was definitely a Summer of Love kind of a think though the cheerful crowd was not holding hands, singing Kumbaya and getting high on LSD, but rather handling Riedel glasses, dancing itself silly and getting tipsy on red wine.

What's on at SITT Autumn: Andrew Steel from Connoisseur Estates

Andrew Steel, director of Connoisseur Estates, a UK wine agency, tells Harpers.co.uk, what to expect on his stand today at the SITT Autumn Tasting held at the Royal Horticulture Halls in London.

Growing wine in the desert: Q&A with Alejandro Galaz of Ventisquero

Challenging stereotypes was on the agenda of Alejandro Galaz this week. As one of Viña Ventisquero's winemakers he is part of Ventisquero's latest project in the Atacama Desert: Tara Wines. 

Mike Paul's 7 steps to success with new product developement in wine

One comment on my recent piece on the importance of branding  was that it is all very easy to argue that one should invest in branding but it would be rather more useful, at least  to those already 'converted', to provide some insights into how best this might be achieved.

What to expect at SITT Autumn: Forth Wines

Scottish distributor, Forth Wines, explains what visitors can expect on its stand at SITT Autumn taking place at the Royal Horticutural Halls in London on September 24.

Danilo Zilli, head sommellier at Novikov, talks about how he fell in love with wine

Danilo Zilli, talks to Harpers.co.uk about the how he fell in love with wine.  Like any relationship, it has its up and downs, but being head sommellier at Novikov offers Zilli a great perk- the opportunity to taste some amazing wines.

Dr Damien Wilson on bridging the gap between wine academics and the trade

As the summer holidays in Europe wind down to a close, I find myself preparing for another promising year as an academic. However, fronting the ever-present glow of my computer screen, a quick glance at twitter reminded me of the uproar that researchers in wine business create when highlighting inconsistencies by practitioners in the wine market.

Chief of the week: Advertising legend Sir John Hegarty

lThe words "guru" and "legend" are bandied around by us journalists far too often to try and bring attention to what someone who is far from being either of those two things has just told us.