William Grant & Sons takes New Zealand Whisky Company to court

Global Scottish whisky giant William Grant & Sons is taking Dunedin DoubleWood, part of the New Zealand Whisky Company, to court, claiming the DoubleWood name confuses consumers with its Balvenie brand's DoubleWood.

Naked Wines secures additional £6.4m for expansion abroad

Norwich-based Naked Wines has announced it has secured a third round of funding of £6.4 million from German WIV Wein International AG, a founding shareholder in the company, bringing the total amount invested by WIV in the online retailer to £15.4 million.

Jack Daniel Distillery to undergo $100m expansion

Brown-Forman is to invest US$100 million in expanding the Jack Daniel Distillery. 

Cobevco brings Rob Higgs's 'Corkscrew' to Beautiful South Tasting

The headline sponsor for the Beautiful South tasting, bottling specialist Cobevco, will be pouring a selection of its customer wines from the specialist Rob Higgs "Corkscrew" at the event in September.

Provence harvest begins after most vineyards escape weather damage

Vineyards in Provence have escaped wide-scale weather damage and the harvest looks set to begin this month. 

Step up to the Bénédictine challenge

Bartenders are being challenged to come up with a new Bénédictine cocktail for the Bénédictine Cocktail Challenge.

The Whisky Shop opens Manchester store

Luxury drinks retailer the Whisky Shop has opened a new 600sq ft store in Manchester which aims to provide a dedicated platform for some of the world's most exclusive whiskies. 

Treasury sees 50% profits dip due to unsold wine in US

Treasury Wine Estates has seen annual net profits slide by 50% due to one-off charges on unsold wine in the US, but sales in the UK have shown signs of recovery in recent months.

Bartenders battle it out in Buffalo Trace competition

Scottish bartenders battled it out last week in a Buffalo Trace Barrel Aged competition to create an original cocktail using the spirit.

Alastair Campbell to speak at Alcohol Concern conference

Former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell is to speak at Alcohol Concern's Annual Alcohol Conference in London in November. 

Cointreau to host pop-up bar at London Fashion Week

Rémy Cointreau is to launch a pop-up bar for its Cointreau brand to coincide with London Fashion Week.

Douglas Blyde: Up the Shard

Wiener Gemischter Satz becomes Austria's ninth designated DAC

Following the successful creation of eight DACs (Districtus Austriae Controllatus), an official classification designating origin, grape variety and flavour profile of the wine, the historic Wiener Gemischter Satz has become the latest DAC under Austrian wine law.

Irish Distillers releases Midleton Very Rare 2013

Pernod Ricard-owned Irish Distillers has released the 2013 edition of its Midleton Very Rare Irish whiskey.

Scotland stands firm on minimum pricing as drinking falls

Scotland's government has again defended plans for minimum pricing, after drinks industry leaders argued that falling alcohol consumption makes the policy obsolete.

Retailers sign up for National Calvados Week

Matthew Clark to offer digital drinks list app

Drinks wholesaler Matthew Clark has partnered with iRiS Software Systems to offer customers digital wine and drinks lists.

Australian Vintage chief calls for lower-alcohol tax breaks

Australian Vintage chief executive Neil McGuigan wants the UK government to introduce a new tax band to encourage the production of wines naturally lower in alcohol.

Manchester ups its fine-dining focus

Manchester is to add to its developing fine-dining ethos with a new venture from celebrity chef James Martin and an announcement from Allied London that the Spinningfields area is to become a bespoke high-end dining, leisure and cultural destination.

Michael Karam: The Lebanese red and white debate

For some reason my radio in London is tuned to LBC, the capital's talk radio station. I really should twiddle the knob along to Radio 4 but there something comforting about the "I say get rid of the lot of 'em, I do" right-wing cabbie rants, don't you think?