Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

A model UK winery

Published: 13 April, 2022

Cast your mind back, if you can, to the pre-pandemic rush of grape plantings that boosted English wine coverage before 2020.

Nyetimber announces record year as estate leads the way for English sparkling

Published: 14 February, 2022

The UK’s leading English sparkling wine brand, Nyetimber, enjoyed a record year in 2021 in both sales and production. Following its largest ever harvest, Nyetimber’s UK sales increased by 55% on the previous year. Situated in the south of England, the 30-year-old winemakers saw sales in Europe grow by a whopping 89%.

Bolney Wine Estate acquired by major international

Published: 17 January, 2022

Sussex-based Bolney Wine Estate has been sold to sparkling wine behemoth Henkell-Freixenet via Freixenet Copestick in the UK.

Bouncing Back Q&A: Jacob Leadley, CEO & winemaker, Black Chalk Wine

Published: 15 December, 2021

Continuing our seasonal Bouncing Back Q&A series, Jacob Leadley takes stock of the challenges and lessons of 2021 and considers the path ahead for the trade.

English fizz's bawdy move

Published: 17 November, 2021

A month or so ago, I attended two eye-catching, if very different, launches. Both were from Bibendum Wine: the UK debut of former Dom Pérignon chef de cave Richard Geoffroy’s sake; and an unorthodox new English sparkling wine, with the charming name Harlot.

WineGB announces new board directors

Published: 04 November, 2021

Wines of Great Britain (WineGB), the national association for the English and Welsh wine industry, has made new appointments to its board of directors.

Landmark overhaul for alcohol duty is the biggest shakeup in 140 years

Published: 27 October, 2021

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced the most radical simplification of alcohol duties for over a century by slashing the number of main duty rates from 15 to six, while also cutting the premium on sparkling wine.

Soaring demand for rosé and exports at Nyetimber

Published: 15 February, 2021

Nyetimber has reported a major spike in demand for rosé in 2020 from their south east England vineyards, despite the loss of social drinking occasions often associated with pink wines.

Rathfinny joins Liberty portfolio

Published: 25 January, 2021

Sussex-based producer Rathfinny has appointed Liberty Wines as its sole agent in the UK and Ireland.

Nyetimber expands across Kent with 205,000 new vines

Published: 18 May, 2020

Nyetimber has gone ahead with plans to rapidly expand its area under vine, with a major planting of 42ha at a new site in Kent.

Gusbourne expands global reach

Published: 19 December, 2019

Gusbourne has announced it is extending its global reach with new distribution partners in seven countries from the start of 2020.

Rathfinny announces 19% increase in 2019 yield

Published: 05 November, 2019

Rathfinny Wine Estate has announced a 19% increase in 2019 yield compared to last year’s harvest.

Q&A: Simon Robinson, chairman, Wine GB

Published: 17 September, 2019

Following the excellent 2018 vintage and a ramping up of exports, English and Welsh wine has come of age. Andrew Catchpole asks what’s next for the burgeoning domestic scene

English sparkling encouraged to tap into “moderation, local, and craft” as sales dip

Published: 28 August, 2019

A new report has suggested that English sparkling wine ticks all the right boxes to help reverse something of a slump in sales of sparkling wine over the past year – the first time this has happened in a decade.

Winetraders signs up Hampshire’s Exton Park

Published: 28 June, 2019

Winetraders has expanded its listings with the addition of English sparkling wine producer Exton Park.

Simpsons releases its first sparkler

Published: 13 November, 2018

Kent estate Simpsons has released its first sparkling wine, six years after its founders branched out from the Languedoc in France to launch their first UK venture.

South African producers thirst for English fizz

Published: 21 September, 2018

Two prominent South African wine estates are adding to the roster of overseas interest in English winemaking with plans to produce sparkling wine in the UK, Harpers has learned.

Industry urged to better market English sparkling as poll shows 85% British consumers ‘don’t have a clue’

Published: 03 August, 2018

British consumers are ‘clueless’ when it comes to English sparkling wine, a survey has revealed.

English winemakers experiment with Charmat method

Published: 26 June, 2018

A number of English winemakers are breaking with convention to produce fizz made using a method more often associated with Prosecco.

Shaking up the sparkling wine market

Published: 20 March, 2018

It’s long been the case that Champagne sales are a barometer of the times, with a rise or fall in fortunes reflecting the performance of the broader economy. This has held true in the UK market through various recessions and dips, and the current downturn in Champagne sales is no exception.