Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

New Zealand wine exports reach NZ$2 billion

Published: 26 November, 2020

International demand for New Zealand wine has surged over the past decade, with total export value now reaching a record-breaking NZ$2 billion in 2020.

Jerry Lockspeiser: Can we plan for the unknown?

Published: 23 November, 2020

“The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence.” Charles Bukowski

Friday Read: What’s going to drive us to drink after the pandemic?

Published: 29 May, 2020

Rowena Curlewis, CEO of drinks design specialist Denomination, looks at the impact that the lockdown will have on our future drinks choices

Amathus Drinks invites consumers to Taste Together online

Published: 29 May, 2020

Wine and Spirit importer, distributor and retailer Amathus Drinks is forging head with a range of interactive online tastings to help customers explore far flung corners of the wine world.

Change of pace: How Covid/climate pressures are accelerating innovation of packaging and design

Published: 20 May, 2020

With drinks fast evolving to meet consumer trends, design and packaging has an ever more important role in communicating change, writes Andrew Catchpole

UK demand for premium Prosecco doubles

Published: 05 May, 2020

Export volumes from the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG to the UK doubled in 2019, according to the latest data from its Consorzio.

Premium drinking habits in the firing line amid economic shutdown

Published: 24 March, 2020

The ‘less but better’ mantra adopted by the trade over the past decade could be facing an existential threat, an industry expert has warned, as the coronavirus (Covid-19) epidemic hits the reset button on drinking habits.

Hardys focuses new branding around “certainty in uncertain times”

Published: 06 March, 2020

Hardys has unveiled a new look for its global branding while also offering customers a 100% money back guarantee with the aim of becoming “a top 10 global power brand by 2025”.

Friday Read: Sustainability, organics or biodynamics – who’s got it right?

Published: 24 January, 2020

Since France’s ‘organic’ fair Millesime Bio began in 1993, France and the rest of the winemaking world have come to embrace the gamut of holistic winemaking practices, from sustainability to organics and biodynamics. But how useful, actually, are they as separate disciplines? And do they have the staying power to be truly ‘sustainable’ longterm? Mike Turner, who was in Montpellier to judge this year’s medal winners, mulls over the big questions.

Jerry Lockspeiser: The winemakers that changed the world…and those that made themselves redundant

Published: 24 January, 2020

Harpers columnist Jerry Lockspeiser is the former chairman of Off Piste Wines. Lockspeiser left at the end of 2019 after ten years at the company, which he helped to grow from ‘acorn to oak tree’ after joining back in 2010. His departure follows an investment in Off Piste just before Christmas, which will take the company into a new phase of development. Lockspeiser was also involved in the founding and building of Bottle Green in 1990 and organic wine specialist Vinceremos Wines in 1985. Here, he takes a reflective look back on 15 years that changed the wine world.

Diageo Reserve hits the road for UK studios tour

Published: 20 January, 2020

Diageo is preparing to get bartenders revved up ahead of its annual World Class cocktail-making competition with a UK-wide ‘training tour’.

Vinexpo and Comexposium join forces

Published: 08 January, 2020

Leading global wine event organisations Vinexpo and Comexposium are to join forces in a new body.

Spotlight on 2020: Hugh Sturges, Jeroboams

Published: 19 December, 2019

As we prepare for the new decade, Harpers will be taking the month of December to look back over 2019 and ahead to what the coming year will bring – hopefully full of revived optimism for both politics and the trade.

Cava partners with molecular food-and-wine expert

Published: 29 November, 2019

The Cava DO has partnered with Canadian sommelier and molecular scientist François Chartier to map the international food-pairing ability of its wines.

Jascots strengthens team with former Sommelier of the Year

Published: 11 November, 2019

On-trade distributor Jascots Wine Merchants has appointed former Galvin’s head sommelier and wine buyer Andrea Briccarello to its new business team.

Jamie Goode to lead vinous journey through Bourgogne

Published: 25 October, 2019

Wine guru Jamie Goode will be hosting a one-off masterclass and blind tasting to delve deep into the vinous roots of Bourgogne, Harpers can reveal.

Tech: Bringing AI to independents

Published: 02 October, 2019

How can smaller stores compete with the sprawling technology departments and deep machine learning capabilities of giants such as Amazon and Walmart? NextOrbit’s small business networks might provide an answer, writes Jo Gilbert

Tim Atkin MW: Canary in the global coalmine

Published: 05 August, 2019

“Phew. What A Scorcher!” I’m old enough to remember June 1976, when we had 15 consecutive days above 32°C. The Sun’s headline captured some of the excitement I felt as a teenager. In those days British summers were frequently cool, overcast affairs and all of a sudden Kent felt like the Costa Brava. What was scorching then seems almost temperate now. Last week Cambridge sweated through the second hottest day ever at 38.1°C, just behind Faversham’s UK record of 38.5°C in August 2003.

JF Hillebrand celebrates 175 years with leaps forward in sustainability and tech

Published: 22 July, 2019

JF Hillebrand is currently celebrating nearly two centuries of connecting wine and spirits with consumers, from its humble beginnings in Germany to one of the world’s largest logistics providers.

International spirits industry unites behind new global body

Published: 10 July, 2019

Many of the world’s leading spirits producers have partnered to create a new global organisation for the industry, it was announced in Geneva yesterday.